Steak with pesto and a vegetable mash

Who doesn't love a good steak, expect vegetarians- of course. Accompanied with a homemade basil pesto and a low carb carrot mash thats sweet and delicious? definitely not me.

So simple yet everything just goes so well together to make a perfect healthy dinner.

The mash is inspired from when I went to the Maldives where they serves this beautiful 'Root Vegetable Mash' every lunch. I always got heaps of it with a fillet of fresh fish from the sea and a salted tomato salad since it was so hot there. Then since this was a little dry, I drizzled over a lemon, garlic butter. Then coming home where it's a lot colder, i'm more in the mood for steak so here's my 'steak version' of that.

I though pesto was the perfect accompaniment( how do you even say that? ) with the steak however you can use any sauce you like. After all it is just steak and mash.

Steak with Pesto and Vegetable Mash

Serves: 2

Ingredients

• 2 steaks ( I used fillet but sirloin is great too )

• 1 tbsp olive oil

• seasoning

• For the Pesto

• 1 garlic clove

• 35g basil

• 20g pine nuts, toasted in a frying pan

• 40ml olive oil

• 13g parmesan cheese, grates

• 1/2 tsp lemon zest

• half a chilli (optional for extra spice)

• salt and black pepper

• For the mash*

• 3 large carrot

• 3 parsnips

• 2 cloves garlic

• Knob of butter (or coconut oil)

• To serve

• A handful of baby plum tomatoes each and a packet of asparagus

• drizzle high quality balsamic vinegar

*In the pictures I ran out of time so I used this deciduous root vegetable mash from Tesco

Method

- Preheat the oven to 200 degrees (fan)

- Start by cutting up the vegetable however you like, it doesn't matter. Get a nob of butter ( about 25g) and melt it. Add in the minced garlic and pour over the vegetables. I use my hands to make sure everything is evenly coated. Season.

- Wrap another sheet around the veg and seal the edges. This ensure they don't burn or dry out.

- Bake in a preheated oven for 45-50 minutes.

- Next, make the pesto by popping all the ingredients into the blender and whizz until it's....pesto! Remove and place in a small bowl.

- 5 minutes before the vegetables are ready, boil some water in a large sauce pan. Place a sieve over it and add in the asparagus. Cover with a lid and steam until tender with a bit of crunch left.

- Season the steaks. Heat the oil in a large frying pan. When it's hot add the steaks. Fry them until however rare you like it.

- When it's time, remove the vegetables ( they should be very soft) and whizz them in a blender. I like my mash chunky otherwise it feels like i'm eating baby food, but blend it to however smooth you want it. If you wan't it even smoother you can add cream or water.

- Add the steaks to a plate. Serve the mash along side and place the asparagus beside with the tomatoes on top. Give a good drizzle of balsamic glaze and a sprinkle of salt.