Caramelized Onion And Blue Cheese-Smothered Filet Mignon Recipe

Any kind of steak these days will likely set you back a hefty sum, but filet mignon is seen as being more special than most other types and will likely come with a higher price tag, as well. In this case, you'll want to take extra care to cook your filet mignon just right. This super-saucy steak recipe, which features both caramelized onions and blue cheese, is upscale enough that developer Leah Maroney calls it "The perfect dish for a fancy dinner party."

The recipe, as Maroney tells us, "has three very separate components: blue cheese sauce, caramelized onions, and seared filets." If you want to add a few additional filets to the pan, she says you may feel free to do so, since as she notes, "There is quite a bit of blue cheese sauce and onions." Since everything in the recipe cooks in a single pan, Maroney assures us that "Cleanup is a breeze," which will no doubt help to lighten your load when your dinner party is over and your guests have gone home.

The main thing you will need here is filet mignon, of course, plus onions and blue cheese crumbles to make the sauce. The other ingredients for this recipe include bacon, butter, salt, pepper, garlic, heavy cream, and Worcestershire sauce.

Fry the bacon until it's crispy, then take it out of the pan and add 2 tablespoons of butter to the grease. Use this mixture to fry the sliced onions for about 25 minutes, stirring them frequently. Once the onions are very soft and brown, stir the bacon in, then take both ingredients out of the pan.

Sprinkle the salt over the steaks along with half of the pepper, then crank up the heat until the pan is smoking hot. Lower the heat to medium, toss in the steaks, and cook them for 5 minutes on each side (10 minutes in all). Don't move the steaks as they sear except to flip them over at the 5-minute mark. If you want medium-rare, a meat thermometer should read 130 F when you stick it in the middle of the meat. When the steaks come out of the pan, cover them with a tent made of aluminum foil.

Melt the rest of the butter in the pan, then use it to fry the garlic for maybe a minute until it gets soft and smells garlicky. Pour the cream into the pan, then stir in the blue cheese crumbles, Worcestershire sauce, and the rest of the pepper. Heat the mixture to a low boil, stirring as it cooks. Keep cooking the sauce for 3 minutes once it hits the boiling point, then put the steaks back in the pan. If you're using the optional herbs, add these too, then stir in the onions and bacon.

If you prefer, you can skip the part where you put the steaks, bacon, and onions in the pan. Just pour this sauce over the steaks, then put the bacon and onions on top. You can accompany the steaks with a starchy side such as mashed potatoes, french fries, or rice if you like, or go lighter with something like a green salad.

Leftover steaks should be good in the fridge for 5 days as long as you seal them in a container of some sort. Maroney even has a suggestion for re-purposing them, telling us they're "delicious sliced over a salad the next day."