Flat iron steak casserole...

Enjoying an adult beverage with a friend at his home one cool, late afternoon in the fall, we watched Lydia Bastianich's cooking show on PBS.  She was making a flat iron steak casserole.  When Lydia popped the casserole out of the oven, I exclaimed, "I can do that, even without a recipe!"  Because I love cabbage, what really caught my attention is how Lydia incorporated Savoy cabbage and an inexpensive cut of beef with a great sounding rosemary pesto into the recipe.  Flavor and cheap!  Who can beat that?

I don't believe my friend was very much impressed with my bravado.  But, after I got home that evening, I wrote down what I recalled of the recipe and, over the next few days, I began playing with the recipe to maximize what I envisioned to be its flavor.

The neat thing about this particular casserole is that it requires no "pre-cooking" and minimal prep work.  Use the food processor to shave the cabbage and a mandoline to slice the potatoes.  Made much like a lasagna, cabbage, beef, potatoes, and rosemary pesto are layered and, then, drenched in good white wine!  (Always remember the rule: Don't use wine to cook with that you wouldn't serve yourself at the table.  Too many people cook using cheap wine which, in turn, only robs the meal of exceptional flavor.)  After the casserole is nearly baked, it's covered with Parmesan and Fontana cheeses which give the casserole a great cheesy top.

In the picture below, I've separated the contents in a pasta bowl to show what the insides of the casserole look like when cooked.  To inspect the contents, enlarge the picture by pressing the "control" button and then the "+" button.

Whether this recipe is exactly like Lydia's, I don't know.  But she certainly inspired an excellent dish for a cold fall or winter evening dinner.  Plus, when your guests walk into your home, it will be permeated with an absolutely phenomenal aroma!

Like the idea?  Here's the recipe:

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