New Orleans to Texas Cookin: Beef Tips and THICK Mashed Potatoes

Hello again! I know it has been quite some time since I made a new recipe and I apologize for that but my life has been a big ball of crazy. I finished college, got engaged, and now working my tail off to get a new house. Don't get me wrong, I have been cooking lots of yummy dishes but it takes more time that you know to cook, snap shots of the food, and post it. Give me a break, a girls' got to have a social life....Ok so for today I will be making Beef Tips and Creamy "To Die For" Mashed Potatoes.

First we want to do the potatoes because they take longer that the tips. You must get your water boiling and peel your potatoes. I usually like to make a full pot of potatoes. This usually means 4-5 small potatoes or 3-4 large ones. Cut them up and boil them from 10-13 minutes. Drain when done for about 5 minutes to get all of the water out.
I have heard from Emeril Lagasse that putting the potatoes still wet into the hot pot will dry out the rest of the water. You can tell this is happening by the crackling sound in the pot after you put the potatoes back into the pot.

I like to mash up the potatoes a little before putting in the ingredients. I also like to use my old fashioned smasher. This gives me an excuse to "exercise" my arm strength even though I did nothing that day.

After you smash the potatoes a little, you want to add...don't be shocked...a stick of butter and an 8oz. container/block of cream cheese. This I know sounds sooo bad but you are no eating this everyday. This can be for special occasions, Sunday dinner, or a cheat meal. Trust me on this.....the mashed potatoes are the best you will ever have!

Add your salt and pepper to your liking

Told you...a whole container of cream cheese...YUMMMMM

This is the consistency you want it. By the time you are finished mashing it up your arm will hurt it is so thick...but it will withstand the gravy very much and go great with the tips...Which brings me to the next portion of this meal. The beef tips.

When selecting a cut of meat you need to see how long you want to cook it. I chose to have a meat that cooks well under 30 minutes but you may have time to use a cheaper cut of meat and cook it o low heat for a couple of hour. I chose the tenderloin cut. I asked the butcher for about 2 pounds and it made 4 servings. I cut it up to my desired bite size and sprinkled it with a little salt and pepper.

You need to fry these in the pan and sear on both sides until brown. Be careful not to overcook it and take the beef out of the pan to rest while you make your sauce.

While the meat is cooking you can cut up your veggies. This is the first time I have used a Shallot and boy was it great! I think I am hooked now. So I used one shallot, four cloves of garlic, and one shiitake mushroom. Chop those up and set them aside.

After you have chopped up the veggies you can throw them into the pan along with some olive oil and one tab of butter (use real butter...it tastes better). Let those veggies soften for about 5-10 minutes and continue to stir to avoid burning at the bottom.

After the veggies are nice and tender you can add the following into the pan..
1 cup of beef broth
1/2 cup sherry cooking wine
2 tablespoons of low sodium soy sauce
1 teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce

Cook those down for about 5 minutes and add 2 dollops of sour cream and mix until dissolved. After that you can add some flour to thicken it up a bit and if it is too light you can add some gravy master to darken it. Throw the beef back in and mix together.