Two words. Filet Mignon.

When it comes to fancy dinners, I almost always get filet mignon.  I can't help it.  That delicious, so tender you can cut it with a fork, steak is just too good to pass up.  But let's face it, we all know where I work, and we all know that I shouldn't be going out for fancy dinners all the time; they can be pricey!  I improvise and make my own, just call me Chef Bresnahan.  Now, if I only owned a little white chef jacket and a ridiculous hat (I would so pick a crazy looking chef hat over a hair net any day).

Thursday night.  The Bruins are going to be on soon, and me and the hubby have tomorrow off.  I think that means a little celebration is in order.  I wasn't totally prepared to be making a "nice" dinner tonight, but I pride myself on throwing things together and making some sort of meal.

I quickly seasoned my filets with some pepper, olive oil, garlic, and some Montreal steak seasoning (they aren't that great at hockey, but they make a good steak seasoning) and threw it on the grill.  I have some zucchini in the fridge, so I cut that up in french fry formation and throw that in the pan with some olive oil and garlic.  And now, I need a starch...is red wine a starch?  Hmm, not sure, I'll pour a couple glasses of that, and throw some rice pilaf on the stove while I drink it.  As you know, my favorite is Near East. 

Everything is cooking, and I'm sitting here sipping on my wine waiting for it all to be done.  I've got about 10-15 minutes to kill.  I know, I'll make some chimichurri sauce.  Yes, this is best made a day before, but who's counting?  I pour a little less than 1/4 c of olive oil in a bowl add a tablespoon of garlic, because I love garlic, 2 tablespoons of red wine vinegar, a little salt, some parsley, and some chopped basil.  I whisk that together and admire how beautiful it looks.  My mouth is watering as I think about how good this steak is going to be. 

That killed about 5 minutes.  I still have about 10 minutes to go until feeding time.  I guess I'll keep sipping on my appetizer.  Make sure that while you're sipping away, getting little red marks on the corners of your mouth, that you're flipping your steak (cooking it to your liking - feel free to use a meat thermometer), and stirring around that zucchini so it cooks evenly.

Dinner should be ready in no time...and at a quarter of the cost as Capital Grille (although I still hold a special place in my heart for their Kona-crusted steak).

Light some candles, and spend some time with the one you love..  :-)

P.S.  The Bruins won....it's a series now baby!!