In The Kitchen: Can the peas, go for beef

Start the new year off with a hearty meal of surf and turf.

It’s another New Year, so Happy New Year!

The new year brings all kinds of expectations in the food/kitchen category. Most of us turn our thoughts to having a “thinner” new year, with promises to exercise and cut back on our calorie intake. Maybe there is a diet on the horizon.

But all that starts “after” Jan. 1, so New Year’s Day dinner is still up for grabs with anything goes. In the United States, a traditional New Year’s Day food is black-eyed peas, which are thought to bring the consumer good luck in the new year. Pork is also considered a “good luck” meal, as in cabbage. Cabbage, so the folk story goes, was a sign of prosperity because cabbage leaves were representative of paper currency.

My family, however, doesn’t like black-eyed peas and would rather have a hearty meal to start the new year.

My sister, Gail, does like black-eyed peas, but she says she finds the canned ones are just as good as the dried, made-from-scratch peas. Gail adds about 1 cup of cooked ham for extra flavor.

Beef and seafood can soften winter’s bite, so I’m offering New Year Surf & Turf for this week’s In the Kitchen.

New Year’s Surf & Turf

2 tsp. finely chopped onion

1 garlic clove, minced

1 Tablespoon olive oil, divided

1 Tablespoon butter, divided

½ cup beef broth

10 uncooked medium to large shrimp, peeled and de-veined

2 tsp. parsley, minced

2 beef tenderloin steaks (about 6 oz. each and 1-1/2 to 2 inches thick)

In small skillet, sauté the onion and garlic in half of the oil and butter until tender. Add broth. Cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the shrimp. Cook and stir until shrimp turn pink, usually about 3 to 5 minutes, depending on the size of the shrimp. Stir in parsley.

Cut a pocket in each steak, and place 3 shrimp in each pocket. Cover remaining shrimp and broth mixture to keep warm.

In large skillet, heat remaining oil and butter over medium-to-high heat. Add steaks. Cook until meat reached desired doneness (about 10-13 minutes for medium), turning once. Top with reserved shrimp and broth mixture. This will yield 2 servings.