Blackberry Bourbon Ribeye with Cracked Pepper

Blackberry preserves and ribeye sound like two groceries that should pass each other politely in the kitchen and continue on with their separate evenings. Add bourbon, balsamic vinegar, beef stock, rosemary, Worcestershire, and a serious amount of cracked black pepper, though, and suddenly everybody has a reason to be in the same skillet. The fruit brings dark sweetness and tartness; bourbon and stock give the pan sauce depth; pepper keeps the finished steak from drifting into anything remotely dessert-like. Start by seasoning 1 1/2-inch ribeyes and letting them stand for about 20 minutes, then sear them in a very hot heavy skillet. Butter-baste near the end and use temperature—not hope—to decide when they are ready: the recipe calls for 125°F for rare or 130 to 135°F for medium-rare. Rest the steaks for eight minutes while you build the sauce in the same pan, where the browned bits are already waiting to make themselves useful.

Cook the shallot briefly, pull the pan away from the flame before adding the bourbon, then return it to the heat and add stock, blackberry preserves, balsamic, rosemary, and Worcestershire. A final tablespoon of butter turns the reduced sauce glossy. That flame precaution is not decorative advice. Bourbon is excellent on steak; eyebrow flambé is a different recipe entirely.