Filet Mignon with Blackberries

I never liked Blackberries. I thought they were too sweet and had too many hard, little seeds resembling teeny tiny BBs. But I love Red Raspberries, in fact every home we’ve ever lived in I’ve planted Red Raspberries but never Blackberries until now. Over the last two years I’ve grown to love Blackberries. And yes they are full of little nasty seeds but dental floss and a sieve take care of that problem!

I like Blackberries in just about any kind of dessert. But as a savory sauce with beef OH MY GOSH..delicious! If you can only make one thing from my blog let it be this recipe. It was delicious! Nope it was better then delicious, it was fabulous! In fact it was better then fabulous, it was a scrumptious, outstanding dish! And Mr. Tastebud’s loved it!

Instead of using Blackberry Preserves I used fresh mashed Blackberries, added a little sugar and then cooked it down until thick. Since we are not in a Filet Mignon economy, I used a rib steak instead and I did not make the Compound Butter. I served the Rib Steak with Blackberries with steamed asparagus and a side dish of Israeli Coucous and finely chopped vegetables.

Israeli Couscous was something I’ve wanted to try for over a year but could not find it in my area. My friend and fellow Whisker, Glennis of Can’t Believe We Ate sent me two boxes and I am so happy to finally taste it. The Israeli Couscous was wonderful and I’m keeping my eyes peeled for more! Thank you so much for thinking of me!

Filet Mignon with Blackberries
Recipe adapted from The Deen Brothers

Beef and Blackberry Sauce:
4 (6-ounce) Filet Mignon steaks
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/4 cup finely chopped shallots (I used 4 green onions finely chopped including tops)
1/2 cup dry red wine (recommended: Cabernet Sauvignon)
1 cup low-sodium beef broth
3 tablespoons blackberry preserves (see recipe for Fresh Blackberry Sauce below)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
Compound butter, for garnish, recipe follows
Blackberries, for garnish

Compound Butter:
1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
1/4 cup fresh blackberries
In a bowl, combine butter and blackberries and mix well.

Pat the steaks dry with paper towels and season generously with salt and pepper. In a heavy skillet, heat the oil over medium-high heat until almost smoking. Sear the steaks in the hot oil for 3 minutes per side for medium-rare. Transfer the steaks to a serving plate, tent with foil, and let stand.

Using the same skillet, saute the shallots for 1 minute. Add the red wine, scraping up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan. Let wine boil until reduced by half. Add broth and blackberry preserves or the Blackberry Sauce (recipe below), return to a boil and reduce by half. (The sauce should coat the back of a spoon.) Whisk in the 2 tablespoons butter. Season sauce with additional salt and pepper, to taste.

To serve, drizzle the sauce over the steaks. Place a pat of compound butter and scatter a few blackberries on the plate

Compound Butter:
Place on plastic wrap to mold into a log shape. Wrap and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Blackberry Sauce
Recipe developed by Big Black Dog

1-2 c fresh Blackberries
2-3 tsp sugar

Put Blackberries in a food processor or blender and whiz until finely minced. In a small sauce pan add the mashed Blackberries. Over medium-low heat bring to a simmer and add the sugar 1 tsp at a time. While constantly stirring, simmer about 20 minutes or until sauce becomes thick.

Strain sauce through a fine sieve catching all the seeds. Discard seeds. Set aside.

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Tagged as: Beef, Blackberries, Couscous, Sauce, Steak