White Wine Apricot Sauce over Sauteed Beef

The other day we went to stay with a friend out of town and arrived late. Being thoughtful she knew we would be hungry when we arrived so she left a huge strip steak to thaw on the counter for us. It looked great but I wasn't sure how to cook it. My first choice would have been to grill it, but no grill was available. I also could have broiled it, but instead I trepidatiously choose to fry it in a pan, using the juices from the pan to make a sauce to cover it with. I looked around the kitchen for the makings for a sauce and found a big bag of dried apricots. I remembered I once worked at an Italian restaurant that made a chicken dish with an awesome apricot sauce, so I decided this was the way to go. I don't know if its the deep orange color or the sweet-tangy flavor, but here is something about the apricot that just seems to capture the harvest season for me.

I think I first had dried apricots when I was just a toddler, its one of the foods that remind me of my grandmother who first taught me to cook. I vaguely remember her making something like an apricot glaze or frosting for a cake with them, but most fondly I remember eating them right out of the bag. A few months ago I brought a bag of dried apricots for the purpose of making a sauce with them, but ended up eating them as they were. Next time I buy dried apricots I'll be sure to buy plenty for cooking and for eating plain!

This is a simple sauce with a rich and fruity flavor that's not too sweet, it would be a great compliment for chicken or pork as well. I served this over a bed of fresh spinach for a low-carb late dinner, but it would go very well over rice, or with sweet potato.



White Wine Apricot Sauce over Sauteed Beef
Serves 2

@1 Lb tender cut of boneless steak (pork or chicken can be substituted)
6-8 dried apricots- chopped small
8 oz white wine
2 cloves garlic- chopped fine
1/2 onion - chopped fine
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tsp corn starch
few dashes of Worcestershire sauce
sprinkles of garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
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• Sprinkle the meat on both sides with salt, pepper, garlic powder and a dash of GF Worcestershire sauce, let sit for about 20 minutes before cooking.
• Heat a skillet to medium heat, add olive oil
• Saute meat until roughly cooked half way through, about 10 minutes depending on thickness, flip over in the pan.
• Add the onion and garlic to the pan, saute for two minutes. Add the chopped apricots, about 6 oz of the wine and salt and pepper to taste, mix around, incorporating the scrapings from the bottom on the pan.
• Cook the meat until done, for beef you can cook to how done you like (I prefer medium-rare), for chicken or pork be sure to cook all the way through. Remove to a cutting board.
• Whisk the remaining wine in a bowl with the corn starch, stir until there are no lumps. Stir into the pan. Bring to a slight boil, and reduce to simmer. Stir occasionally for a few more minutes until the sauce thickens slightly. remove from heat.
• Cut the meat into 1/3" long slices, drizzle the sauce over top and serve.