This article was written by Kristel Matousek and was featured in our July issue of Home By Design magazine. Recipe and photographs by Kristel Matousek from www.photoricalfood.com. To visit the original Home By Design article, click here.

SIRLOIN & CREAMY GARLIC SHRIMP

Serves 2

• 12 large uncooked shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 2 (4-ounce) sirloins
• Salt and pepper, as needed
• 3 tablespoons butter, additional as needed
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 sprig thyme, plus more for garnish
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 1 tablespoon shaved Parmesan, plus more for garnish

Pat the shrimp dry with a paper towel. Season the shrimp and steak with salt and pepper.

Preheat a sauté pan over moderately high heat. Melt the butter in the pan. Add the garlic and thyme, then carefully place both sirloins into the pan to sear. Baste the steak with the butter as it cooks. Halfway through cooking, turn the steak over and baste the other side. Cook to the desired internal doneness (for medium, an internal temperature of 140 to 145 degrees F), then transfer to a plate to rest. Using the same pan, sauté and fully cook the shrimp, then remove from the pan to be reintroduced later. Return to a moderate heat to prepare the pan for sauce.

Add the garlic to the pan, cooking until aromatic. Deglaze the pan with the heavy cream, scraping any browned bits. Bring to a simmer, cooking to reduce, and thicken the cream until it coats the back of a spoon. Stir in the Parmesan, season with salt and pepper to your tastes, then reintroduce the shrimp, tossing them in the sauce.

Top the seared sirloin with the creamy garlic shrimp and garnish with fresh thyme leaves and shaved Parmesan. Serve immediately.

MIXED BERRY COBBLER

Serves 6

• 2 cups (268g) flour
• 2 teaspoons (10g) baking soda
• ¼ teaspoon (2g) salt
• 3 tablespoons (22g) brown sugar
• 6 tablespoons (3 ounces) unsalted butter
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• ¾ cup (6 ounces) cold buttermilk
• 8 cups (36 ounces) mixed berries
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice
• ½ teaspoon lemon zest
• ¼ cup sugar
• 2½ tablespoons cornstarch
• 3 tablespoons buttermilk, for brushing biscuits
• Raw sprinkling sugar, as needed
• Fresh mint, for garnish
• Frozen vanilla custard, for serving

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Prepare the biscuit dough by sifting together the flour, baking soda, salt, and brown sugar. Cut the butter into the flour using a pastry cutter until it resembles pea-size pieces. Combine the vanilla with the buttermilk and add it to the sifted dry ingredients, mixing until just combined. Set aside to be used later.

Place the fruit in a large bowl. Add lemon juice and zest, sugar, and cornstarch, tossing to coat. Spread the fruit evenly across the bottom of an ovensafe baking dish.

Grabbing 1 handful of prepared dough at a time, press the dough ¼-inch thick between your hands, then place it on top of the fruit in the baking dish.

Brush the top of the biscuits lightly with buttermilk and sprinkle with raw sugar. Bake in the preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes, or until the biscuits are golden brown. Let cool slightly and set before serving.

Garnish with fresh mint and serve with frozen vanilla custard, if desired.