Steaks with a mushroom and brandy sauce

There are many recipes for steaks that include a simple sauce made in the pan using the juices that have come from the steaks during cooking, this is a very simple recipe .

1kg Beef Sirloin

50 ml good quality oil

Fresh ground Pepper

200 g sliced mushrooms

200ml stock (either from a stock tablet or prepared as described in the stew recipe below)

20 ml brandy

100 ml cream

• Begin by preparing the steaks exactly as in the basic sauteed steak recipe above, but cook for a little less time as they will be flambeed later. Keep the steaks warm - either in the oven or covered with aluminium foil.
• Add the mushrooms to the frying pan in which the steaks were sauteed and cook on a medium heat until they become soft (about 2 to 3 minutes) stirring all the time. NB the mushrooms will pick up a lot of brown colour from the juices in the pan
• .Add about half the stock and scrape all around the pan to get all the juices and brown bits that are sticking to the pan into the sauce which will turn a beautiful deep brown .
• Add the remaining stock and, if you wish, thicken using a teaspoon of cornflour which has been suspended in a little cold water
• Allow the sauce to come to the boil and then put the steaks back in and add the brandy (which you have warmed in a small glass). Immediately set fire to the alcohol fumes that come off the pan. You can either do this with a match, or, if you are using a gas stove, just tip the pan so that the gas flames up around the side of the pan to ignite the brandy fumes.
• Shake the pan from side to side until the flames die away,stir in the cream and serve immediately.

Serve 6