Beef Carpaccio and Tomato Salad

A friend called me yesterday from North Dakota and was looking for a couple of recipes, so it got me thinking that I'd share them while they are in my head. This guy is also a great cook and gardener - and we unfortunately only get to see him about once a year. The last time he was down, he and my guy bought this beautiful Prime Rib roast for me to cook and I ended up overcooking it. In my defense, we'd had a lot to drink that day but I was literally in tears, nonetheless. Ruining a Prime Rib is, in my eyes, grounds for a hanging. The guys were awfully nice about it, but it still bothered me for weeks. Actually, it still bothers me. And although I really can cook a Prime Rib roast (I highly recommend a professional probe thermometer to do this, so you don't have to keep opening the oven door to check on it...that just screws with the oven temp) I will not be sharing that particular recipe today.

I have been longing for summer & gardens & such, so a fresh tomato recipe is a good way to jump start the season. Most stores carry vine-ripened tomatoes all year long now. And Carpaccio - well - I just love it. Just make sure the meat is really fresh.

BEEF CARPACCIO

• 1 8-10oz piece of beef tenderloin
  
• 1/2 cup of extra virgin olive oil
• 1-2 cloves garlic, cut into thin slices
  
• fresh basil, chopped
• salt & freshly ground pepper

Appx. 4 servings

Wrap the beef in plastic wrap & freeze for about 2 hours. You want it to be firm enough to
slice thinly, but not frozen solid! Remove from freezer (and plastic) and slice as thinly as
possible, preferably with a meat slicer. If you do not have a meat slicer, you can slice as
thinly as possible and then place in between sheets of plastic wrap & pound until paper-thin.
Arrange 4 slices per plate, fanning them out so that they are in a single layer.

Heat olive oil in a sautee pan & add garlic slices...you want to toast the garlic until it's golden
but be careful not to burn it. Toss in chopped basil & then drizzle a little of the olive oil mix over each plate of beef, making sure to get a little garlic & basil on each serving.
Sprinkle with salt & pepper and serve.

This is also really nice over a fresh layer of arugula or spinach.

Vine-ripened Tomato Salad

• 4-5 vine-ripened tomatoes, cut into wedges
• 1/2 red onion, sliced thinly
  
• 1-2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 handful fresh basil, slice into thin strips
• 1 tsp. fresh or dried oregano
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1/8 cup balsamic vinegar
  
• freshly ground pepper

Toss everything together in a bowl & let marinate for an hour or so. You will notice that I
did not include salt & that is because you do not want to add it until you are going to serve
it. Salt will start to break down the tomatoes & will make the salad runny if you add it too
soon.

If you have freshly grated parmesan, you can also sprinkle some of that on top, right before
serving.