Recipe: Broiled Rib-eye Steaks with Gorgonzola Butter

BROILED RIB-EYE STEAKS WITH GORGONZOLA BUTTER

"Steak is one of the easiest proteins to come up with on a weeknight. It's quick, and it's flavorful. But steak is steak. So hearken back to the old days, when a pat of a compound butter-the classic was maitre d'hotel, with parsley and lemon juice-melted down into a hot piece of grilled meat. Gorgonzola butter adds much more in the way of flavor and texture, but you have many other options."

FOR THE GORGONZOLA BUTTER:
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 pound Gorgonzola dolce, at room temperature
Coarse salt and coarsely ground black pepper
FOR THE STEAKS:
2 teaspoons herbes de Provence
2 (1-pound) boneless rib-eye steaks
Coarsely ground black pepper
Coarse salt
Chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, for garnish

FOR THE GORGONZOLA BUTTER:
Beat the butter in a small bowl with a wooden spoon until it's smooth. Add the Gorgonzola and stir to combine, but leave some lumps of cheese. Season with salt and pepper.

Scrape the butter out onto a sheet of wax paper or aluminum foil and use a spatula to form it into a rough log 5 or 6 inches long. Wrap the paper around the butter, using the paper to shape the butter into a uniform log as you roll. Twist the ends closed and refrigerate until firm and well chilled, at least 2 hours.

FOR THE STEAKS:
Crumble the herbes de Provence and rub into both sides of the meat. Season the steaks generously with pepper. Leave them on the counter for 30 minutes to 1 hour.

Heat the broiler, with the broiler pan about 5 inches from the heat source.

Broil the steaks, turning them once and salting them when you turn them, to your desired doneness. Broiling steaks that are 1 inch thick for 5 minutes per side should result in meat that is medium-rare.

Top the steaks with a few pats of the Gorgonzola butter and let them rest on a cutting board for at least 5 minutes.

TO SERVE:
Slice the steaks and arrange the slices on a platter. Garnish with more slivers of Gorgonzola butter and a shower of parsley.

Serves 4
Source: Tasty: Get Great Food on the Table Every Day by Roy Finamore
Copyright 2006 by Roy Finamore. Reprinted by permission of Houghton Mifflin Company.