Porcini crusted filet mignon

Ingredients

Sunchoke purée
3 tbsp. vegetable oil
3/4 cup peeled and sliced sunchoke (also known as Jerusalem artichoke)
3/4 cup vegetable stock
1/4 cup heavy cream
Salt, to taste

Filet mignon and vegetables
4 (6-oz.) filet mignon steaks
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 tbsp. porcini powder (see note)
6 tbsp. vegetable oil, divided
4 cups beef stock
3 baby leeks, sliced julienne
8 king trumpet mushrooms, cleaned and quartered
3 small porcini mushrooms, cleaned and 1/4-inch sliced
1/2 cup artichoke hearts
2 tbsp. butter

Directions

For sunchoke purée: Get a sauté pan really hot and add vegetable oil. Right before it starts smoking, toss in peeled sunchokes. Caramelize for 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Stir in vegetable stock and cream. Reduce heat to a low simmer and cook until sunchokes are tender. Place mixture in a blender. Blend until smooth and season with salt only. Hold in a saucepan with plastic wrap directly on top of the surface (otherwise a skin will form and make the sauce lumpy).

For filet mignon and vegetables: Season steaks with salt and pepper and then dust with porcini powder. Let sit at room temperature for 10 minutes.  Heat a cast iron pan until hot. Add 4 tbsp. of the vegetable oil. Once oil is smoking, add steaks and sear until browned on all sides. Check internal temperature with a thermometer. (For medium rare, temperature should reach 140 degrees.) Once desired temperature is reached, place steaks on a sheet pan lined with a rack. Put a piece of aluminum foil over the top to keep steaks warm. Keep all of the residue in the cast iron pan and add beef stock. Reduce heat to medium and cook, uncovered, until liquid is reduced by half.

Meanwhile, in a separate pan, heat the remaining 2 tbsp. vegetable oil and toss in leeks. Reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 1 minute. Add mushrooms and caramelize for a few minutes before adding artichoke hearts. Season with salt and pepper. Now that beef stock has reduced by half, reduce heat to low and whisk in butter to thicken sauce.

To serve: Put a little sunchoke purée on each plate. Top with vegetables and then steak. Drizzle with sauce from steak pan.

Note: You can find porcini powder at specialty food stores including Far West Fungi (www.farwestfungi.com).

Serves 4