This tagliata of beef recipe is pure decadence: good steak, truffle and creamy butter.

Serves 6

Ingredients:

– 2 x 20g truffles
– bunch of fresh rocket
– 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
– 6 x 150g striploin steaks
– knob of truffle butter
– salt

Method:

1. Prepare the truffles by rinsing them quickly and lightly brushing off any dirt.
2. Toss the rocket leaves in the extra virgin olive oil.
3.Heat a griddle pan until it’s smoking hot. Brush the steaks with a little olive oil. Cook the steaks, two at a time, for 3 minutes on each side. Finish with a knob of truffle butter and a pinch of salt. Set the steaks aside to rest.
4. Cut each striploin into four or five pieces. Slice the truffle with a truffle slicer or mandoline or as thinly as possible with your sharpest knife.
5. Place a bed of the dressed rocket on warmed plates. Top with slices of steak and freshly cut truffles.

 ‘In Italy, eating translates into saporous feasts, merriment and chat, and all guilt  free. I had travelled from purgatory to heaven.’ So begins Eileen Dunne  Crescenzi’s wonderful adventure with Italian food, culture and celebrations. In  Festa the renowned restaurateur shares the recipes and memories that defined her  many happy years living la dolce vita. For every occasion there is a recipe, and for  every recipe there is a story about the trials and triumphs of an Irish food lover’s  life in Italy.

Here the table is the soul of the home – a place to come together, share food and  thoughts, and spend valuable time with loved ones. Eileen’s recipes are designed to  create conviviality and make every occasion a cause for celebration, whether you’re  planning an annual holiday feast, a catch-up with friends or a special homecoming.  Fill your home with the aroma of wonderful food, the sound of clinking glasses and happy chatter, while you create memories that you will treasure forever. To buy your copy visit www.gillmacmillanbooks.ie.

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