Beef Tenderloin & Scalloped Potatoes

All recipes are part of the Healthy Calendar adventure!.

I have great news: Sean and I are going to be parents!

...

....

.....

....................

That's right, we are thinking of "adopting" an animal from the Salisbury Zoo! For a small fee, we can help provide food for one of the zoo animals and get an adoption certificate with a picture of "our" animal, an "Animal Fact Sheet", and our names on the board of recognition at the zoo (obviously, the most important part). I sent an e-mail to who I believe is the zoo director, asking which animal is the least sponsored [or most unloved! ):]. I want to sponsor the animal in most need of sponsorship, as I'm sure all the cute animals (i.e. the bobcat or capybara) could be eating filet mignon and truffles with the number of people desiring sponsorship. I can't wait to get back a picture of Twinkie, the hissing cockroach, thanking me for my interest...



I'm sure you're all excited to see a true "meat-and-potatoes" dish here. Don't get too comfortable, it's likely the first and only of its kind! Since I'm reducing/deleting farm animals from my diet, this is the only steak with the special privilege of appearing on this blog!

Nonetheless, it was a good farewell to steak, and the scalloped potatoes were low-fat and delicious, so if you would like to recreate this dish, here you go!:

First, prepare the potatoes. Peel and slice 6 russet potatoes into thin rounds. Spray a skillet and saute the potatoes and a sliced onion for a few minutes until the onion turns clear. Spray a small (8") baking dish and spread half the potato mixture on the bottom. Salt and pepper it, pour 1/2 cup of fat-free half-and-half over the potatoes, and top with 1/4 cup or so of reduced-fat cheddar cheese. Repeat this process one more time, then pop this in the oven for 40 minutes at 400 degrees, or until the potatoes are soft.

Season your chosen number of tenderloin steaks with salt and pepper (I'm usually pretty liberal with the pepper), and sear for a minute on each side on a pan coated in cooking spray. Place them on a sprayed baking pan and bake for the last 15 minutes with the potatoes. I utilized the "Chef's Tip" from the book, and let the steaks sit for 5 minutes out of the oven so the juices could redistribute. It's a good tip!