BBQ Steak with Blue Cheese Butter + Grilled Eggplant, Corn, and Sourdough Salad

Sunday dinner rolled around, and I was committed to manning my post at our grill with another all grill-able meal. Keeping all the cooking, from the main course to the side salad, outdoors, & thus keeping me from making an extreme mess in my kitchen. & let me tell you, not turning my kitchen totally upside down as a result of making dinner is a routing I am quite enjoying this Summer.

Also to note, we’re in the midst of planning to go full vegetarian in September, which is currently translating to not missing any opportunities to satisfy my inner carnivore. This weekend, the steak-craving hit hard, & all I wanted was to have a juicy, medium rare steak with some type of compound butter & a some sort of lovely salad to go with it. I stepped outside of my herb + garlic compound butter comfort zone, & whipped up BBQ Steak with Blue Cheese Butter + Grilled Eggplant, Corn, & Bread Salad. & it was truly and summertime dinner delight. Cheesy, savory, and some like Italian BBQ vibes running through the dish - it was a big hit + perfect for a backyard meal at home.

I’ve always been a fan of family style dinners vs individual plated meals, even for just Jordan & I. & I’ve really enjoyed creating steak dinners that revolve around just one piece of steak, loading it up with butter & seasoning & any other needed garnishees, and then slicing it up to serve family style. Even for just us two it’s perfect. It creates this ease when preparing dinner, and pulling off a family style dinner (like this one) that’s done 100% grill-side just makes for a super simple & delicious dinner.

With that being said, it’s a quick cook once that grill is up to temp and your ingredients are on the BBQ. So before heading down the road of this recipe, you need to be prepared to act quick once you’re in the act of grilling - make sure you’re ready to flip the steak, assemble your grilled salad, and add those final touches quickly + swiftly. The main take away here is you really can’t skip prepping the dressing, getting out your serving platters, & having those herby garnishes at the ready. It makes going from grill to the table easy-peasy.

So shareable

So as mentioned, I love sharing a curated, composed steak dish with Jordan. It is very satisfying, tends to look pretty + appetizing on the table, & adds a bit of simplicity to dinner. My Summer theme this year has been preparing grill-able meals that are supremely share-able. I love these “share-able” steak meals in particular where we just buy one steak, slice it up to serve family style, and split it between the two of us. I love how light it makes a steak dinner feel, & I think my husband and both enjoy not having to commit to our own personalized hunk of meat.

Also, the sort of finishing touch for a share-able steak dish, for us at least, is adding a veggie. In this case, just simply dressed greens for the steak slices to sit on did the trick. Buttery steak & crunchy fresh greens in one forkful - it’s perfect. If you’re going the cruciferous greens road which is pretty much always a good road to go down, you don’t even have to really measure anything. A drizzle of olive oil, a pinch of salt & pepper, and maybe little splash of vinegar or lemon juice if you’re feeling wild. I mean it’s like a throw it in a bowl and give it a taste to make sure it’s all good kind of situation.

Heavy on blue cheese, light on the butter

The compound butter on top of this steak is real deal, and I just really wanted the blue cheese to come through. So much so I almost scratched the butter all together and just sprinkled it with blue cheese. But knowing that melted butter on steak is really one of the most delish things ever, I simply just played the ratios. Just 3 tbsp of butter to like a half cup of crumbled blue cheese was perfect. Primarily cheesy + just buttery enough.

As with anything that calls for blue cheese, the better blue you can get the better. I mean nothing to crazy, & stick to the harder blues that easily crumble. Simply avoiding the pre-crumbled is my mindset.

Grill your veggies

I’m just a big proponent that grilled veggies equates to better veggies. & the grill can really transform veggies you don’t love so much into the most delicious part of your meal. For example - eggplant. I’ve tried it so many ways, and most recently used it as a stir fry component. & it was ok. I mean nothing ground breaking and definitely not the most delicious thing I’ve ever eaten in a stir fry. & if I’m being honest, I just kind of tolerate it when it’s cooked in a skillet. Like I don’t hate it, but I’m not dying to make it again. Grilled eggplant, however, I’m dying to make again!

We kept the slices of eggplant on the thicker side, and tossed only with EVOO, salt & pepper before heading onto the grill. These veggies absorb the smokey flavor, take on a kind of meaty texture that is really tasty, & they just feel like a veggie that’s appropriate for the elevated bbq dinner I strive to deliver. So delish and to be honest, Jordan & I have plans to go full meatless in September, & grilled eggplant is something we’re keeping on the back burner for some creative vegetarian cooking.

The eggplant is paired with grilled corn + charred bread, & it’s just a fun and easy grilled salad to make. The grilled bread is super fun, & they’re like big bbq croutons on your salad. Pro tip: I used leftover sourdough hamburger buns we had saved in the freezer, and those worked perfectly and avoided any need to buy a brand new sourdough loaf. It all gets tossed with a tangy balsamic vinaigrette, & finished with some fresh (unroasted) tomatoes, so it’s a grilled salad that has a slightly Italian flare. Pairs perfectly with the blue-cheese sirloin.

We’re back in the swing of things at the bar, so later nights & so the opportunity to have a nice meal at home isn’t an option everyday. So I’m extra thankful for a relaxing day at home, a Sunday where we were just able to hang out together, & this lovely + simple Sunday dinner. Hopeful & confident it will help to set the tone for a really good week.

For the steak

• 1/2 c. blue cheese crumbles

• 3 tbsp butter, softened

• 1/4 c. balsamic

• 2 tbsp Dijon

• 1/4 c. EVOO

• Salt + pepper

• 1 ear of corn

• 1 eggplant, halved + sliced into thick, 1/2 inch pieces

• 1/2 c. cherry tomatoes, sliced

• 2 garlic cloves, minced

• 2-3 tbsp fresh basil, packed + thinly sliced

• 1-2 thick slices sourdough

• 1 sirloin steak (about 1 lb)

• Fresh parsley (minced) for garnish

• A handful of fresh green, like kale or butter lettuce (optional)

Start by prepping the compound butter and the dressing for the salad. In a ramekin, mix together the butter and blue cheese, using a fork to mash it all together. In a mason jar, add the balsamic, Dijon and the EVOO. Add in a small pinch of salt and pepper. Shake the mason jar until the dressing is fully emulsified. Set both the butter & dressing aside, leaving out at room temp.

Prep the veggies. Remove the husks from the corn, and let it soak in a bowl of water. You want it to soak for at least 30 minutes. Toss the eggplant with a couple tablespoons EVOO, salt & pepper. Take the tomatoes, & place them in a small bowl with the garlic and a light drizzle of EVOO. Sprinkle with a small pinch of salt + pepper, toss together, and set aside.

Remove the steak from the fridge about 30 minutes before your grill time. If you’re using a charcoal grill (like me!) you can just removed the steak when you fire up the grill. Heat the grill to 500. Add the steak, cooking for 5 minutes on one side before flipping, and keeping the heat between 400 + 500 degrees. Flip, and when you flip add the eggplant and corn. Close the grill and cook for another 5 minutes. Remove the steak after 5 minutes, setting it aside to rest. Immediately top with the compound butter. Simultaneously flip the eggplant, rotate the corn, and add the bread slices to the grill. Flip the bread over after 1-2 minutes, and let the eggplant continue cooking for 5 minutes. Remove the veggies + bread slices once they have a desirable char.

Assemble the salad by placing the grilled eggplant to a serving tray. Cut the bread into large chunks & place on the serving tray with the eggplant. Remove the corn from the cob. Sprinkle the corn + prepared tomato on top of the eggplant and the bread. Drizzle the salad with a few spoonfuls of the dressing.

If you have some leafy greens, like kale or butter lettuce, give them a quick toss with EVOO, salt, and pepper. Slice the steak & transfer to a serving tray, right on top of mixed green.

Eat up!