Tuesday After Kickball Snack - Steak and Cheddar Bread

Tuesdays are kickball days, so we usually have a light snack before the game (Carnitas tacos from Porque No?) and a light dinner or snack after. Last night, we had this steak in the fridge and I had seen Giada De Laurentiis make this cheddar bread earlier in the day on the new Cooking channel and figured the two would go great together. Cheese and steak? Hell yeah.

Obviously, we had to make the steak the same way we did on Saturday - Tuscan-style. If you want to see that post, click here. The only difference? It was raining out (and really cold, too. Stupid Juneuary) and without propane and considering our less than stellar experience with charcoal we decided to sear the steaks indoors. This method is a great method - we've pretty much got it down to a science. Of course, your cooking time will depend on the thickness of the steak - the thicker, the longer you'll want to keep it in the oven, but for us it's always turned out well. And the addition of the lemon and olive oil after the cooking, mmmmm...So good.

Seared Steak: 
1 steak (we've used all types of steak for this recipe, but last night we used boneless ribeye)
Salt
Pepper
Olive Oil
Lemon

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Salt and pepper your steak generously on both sides. Heat a large heavy-bottomed skillet (it needs to have a NON plastic handle, and be oven safe) to high (like screaming high, as high as your stove top will let you go). As far as skillets go, we LOVE our cast iron skillet and use it for everything, including this recipe. But, any heavy bottomed skillet that distributes heat evenly should work.

Place steak in skillet, no need for oil, it will just smoke. Like, a lot. Sear for 5 minutes. Flip and sear for another 5 minutes. Flip once more. Using oven mitts, or an Ove' Glove, move the skillet into the oven and cook for 3-7 minutes more depending on the thickness of your steak. Ours was about 3/4 inch thick, so I went for 4 minutes in the oven. For a 1 1/2 inch thick steak, go for 5-7 minutes.

Remove from oven, place on cutting board and let rest for at least 5 minutes. Cut into thin slices, drizzle with olive oil and lemon. Serve with lemon wedge on the side.

Cheddar Bread:
8 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded or coarsely grated
6 ounces butter, at room temperature
4 scallions, finely chopped (we used chives)
2 cloves garlic, chopped
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 (1 pound) loaf ciabatta bread, cut in half horizontally (we used pre-cut ciabatta bread, and it turned out fine)


Place an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

In a food processor, combine cheese, garlic and butter. Process until the mixture is smooth. Add the scallions or chives and pulse until combined. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Spread the cheese mixture on the cut sides of the bread. Place on baking sheet and bake, 10-12 minutes until golden.

If you're using a whole ciabatta loaf, cut into 1-inch thick slices and serve.

Bon appetit!