Tender Beef Medallions with Sweet Carrots and Wild Rice

As the temperature drops, we all seek some added warmth and comfort. Experiencing a 30-degree drop in the temperature over the last 24 hours had me craving some serious "comfort food"...something warm, delicious, savory, and inviting.

I got the idea for this recipe from another recipe I obtained from AllRecipes.com for pork medallions. Besides bacon, I'm not the biggest pork fan, so I wanted to use beef instead. I tweaked the recipe a bit to really enhance the beef flavor, and paired it with a couple of "comfort" sides.

Beef Medallions

• 1-lb beef top sirloin (or use tenderloin for extra tender medallions), cut into small, thin pieces
• 1 Tbsp canola oil
• 3 large white (button) mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 1 large onion, cut into wedges
• 2 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 Tbsp butter
• 1/4 tsp sage
• 1/4 tsp rosemary
• 1/4 tsp dried parsley
• 1 & 1/2 cup beef broth
• 2 tsps flour
• 1/8 tsp salt
• 1/8 tsp pepper

Heat canola oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add beef pieces and let cook until browned, about 4 minutes. Remove beef from skillet. Pour off excess oil and fat. Add butter, mushrooms, garlic, and onions to skillet, stirring frequently. Cook for about 5 minutes or until onions and mushrooms are tender.

Mix flour and beef broth together very well then slowly stir into skillet. Add sage, rosemary, salt, pepper, and parsley. Stir and bring to a boil. Add beef back into skillet, reduce heat to low. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes.

Sweet Carrots

• 1 cup sliced crinkle carrots
• 1 Tbsp brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp butter

Put all ingredients in a small sauce pot. Add enough water to cover the carrots. Bring to a boil and cook for 5-7 minutes, until the carrots are crisp-tender.

For the wild rice side, I used Rice-A-Roni's natural wild rice; follow package directions (the only extra ingredients you'll need are olive oil and water).

Now that's a comforting meal...tender, hot, and deeee-lish! The recipe above makes enough for 3 servings (a dinner for two...and someone's leftovers for the following day's lunch!) or two large servings.