A real treat - fillet of beef...... on a Wednesday night

This was a real treat and the boys could not believe their eyes when they saw dinner - I almost did not post this as it sounds like such an extravagant meal in these tough times but..... this was a bargain of all bargains. Many butchers are struggling to sell their top cuts as the restaurants are not buying them so we were able to buy a 2.2kg fillet of beef for 1/2 of the price it usually is. We cut it in two and had it on Sunday and then again this evening. My dad who is the king of cooking fillet of beef gave me all the advice I needed and talked me through the whole process. It is key to have a thermometer as it takes the guessing game out of it. We like our beef rare so made sure the beef came out at 46C that's 110F. Make sure you wrap it in two layers of foil and rest it under 2/3 t-towels for 40/50 mins. It was divine, you could cut it with a spoon. 

Ingredients
1.2 kg fillet of beef
olive oil
whole black pepper - ground in a pestle and mortar
Sea salt
Garlic slivers 

Method

1. The night before cover beef in olive oil and roll in cracked black pepper. Wrap in cling film and leave in the fridge over night. 
2. Two hours before cooking take the beef out of the fridge. 
3. Preheat oven to 180C, place beef on a preheated roasting tin tuck slivers of garlic around the beef. Insert thermometer into the thickest part of the beef and place in oven.
4. When beef reaches 46C (about 40 mins - but may be less) remove from oven, wrap in tin fold and allow to rest for 30/40 minutes minimum. 

We had it with pommes Dauphinoise and a rocket salad. 

What a treat.