Pounded Filet Mignon with Grilled Sweet Potatoes and Grilled Broccolini

This was a really delicious and fast meal. The pounded filet mignon turned out soooo tender and delicious. We went a little overboard and made two different sauces to try with the meat. The overall consensus was that the horseradish sauce went amazing well with the meat. The other sauce was delicious as well, but when compared next to the horseradish, the horseradish won. We wanted to be super fancy, so we added some grilled shrimp on skewers as well. The shrimp were just covered in melted butter, garlic, and salt.
Here are the original recipes:
Horseradish Cream Sauce: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/horseradish-cream-sauce-recipe.html
Shallot Red Wine Sauce: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/grilled-flank-steak-with-shallot-and-red-wine-sauce-recipe.html
Sweet Potatoes with Lime and Cilantro: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/bobby-flay/grilled-sweet-potatoes-with-lime-and-cilantro-recipe.html

Plated!

Sauces

Sweet Potato/Yam assortment

Ingredients:

Steak:
2 lbs Filet Mignon - pounded until about 1/2" thick
Butter
Salt
Pepper

Horseradish Cream Sauce:
1 cup sour cream
1/4 cup cream horseradish
1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt

Shallot with Red Wine Sauce:
4 shallots, sliced in thin rings
4 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup red wine
1 cup beef broth
1 tablespoon cold butter, in small chunks

Sweet Potatoes:
3 sweet potatoes, peeled
Salt
Zest form 2 small limes
Pinch of cayenne pepper
1/4 cup canola oil
Freshly ground pepper
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro

Directions:

Steak:
1. Preheat grill.
2. Pound steaks until 1/2" thick. Pour melted butter and add salt and pepper on top.
3. Grill steaks until desired done-ness

Horseradish Cream Sauce:
1. Mix all ingredients together. Refrigerate for at least an hour to allow flavors to blend.

Shallot with Red Wine Sauce
1. Saute shallots in olive oil until soft
2. Add wine and beef broth and simmer until reduced.
3. Add cold butter into sauce and swirl.

Sweet Potatoes:
1. Slice the potatoes into circles and steam for 10-12 minutes until fork-tender
2. Mix 1 tablespoon salt, oil, salt, pepper and the lime zest and cayenne in a small bowl.
3. Brush the potato circles with the oil mixture. We made bowls out of tin foil and grilled in those.
4. Grill until golden brown on all sides and just cooked through.

What we liked:

The meat and sides were DELICIOUS. 

What we didn't like:

Nothing, it was great. 

What Kaspian thought about it:

He was busy playing in the sandpile with his cousin to care about food. Astrid however, LOVED the sweet potato wedges (we saved some for her without any sauce)

Next time:

No Changes. 

Pounded beef tenderloin with hearts of palm salad

Tonight, we made a hearts of palm salad with pounded beef tenderloin. Our local store did not have watercress that the recipe calls for, so we used baby romaine lettuce instead. We also don't have a grill pan, so instead we simply used our gas grill.
Here is the original recipe: http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/pounded-beef-tenderloin-hearts-palm-salad

Pounded beef tenderloin with hearts of palm salad

Ready to go on the grill 

salad

dressing for the salad - mixed

Ingredients:

1 pound center-cut beef tenderloin - we ended up with 3 pieces that we had to butterfly - pounded to about 1/8 of an inch thick. Between and 1/8 and a 1/4 should be okay, depending on how you like it.
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for brushing
Salt
Pepper
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons minced shallot
1 1/2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
4 ounces baby romaine
One 15-ounce can hearts of palm, drained and sliced 1/4 inch thick on the bias
1 avocado, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
2 tablespoons of butter

Directions:

1. Heat the grill to medium high.
2. While the grill is heating, make the salad: In a large bowl, whisk the 2 tablespoons of oil with the lemon juice, shallot and mustard. Add the salad greens of your choice, hearts of palm and avocado. You can now plate your salad. Add steak after it's cooked.
3. Brush the steaks with oil and rub with butter; season with salt and pepper. Grill over medium high heat for about 1 1/2 minute per side for well done or about 1 minute per side for medium well. You can cook it to your tastes. Transfer to plates with the salad.

What we liked:

The steak was excellent. It was the best filet mignon we've ever made, and also the quickest. It cooked super quick! The salad was really good; the hearts of palm were great and provided a unique flavor and texture in the salad.
Nick was suspicious of pounding the steak - however, it actually ended up making the filet mignon more tender and juicier even though it was counter to all previous steak experiences. 

What we didn't like:

The salad did not complement the steak very well. It was good individually but the steak could have used a better, perhaps more traditional side. 

What Kaspian thought about it:

He just ate pepperoni. The steak and salad did not warrant his attention. 

Next time:

Make a baked potato side for the steak. We would do a slow cooked baked potato with this steak next time.