This Sunday is the beginning of the end of Mad Men. Sniffle. I have been a huge fan of the show for years and am sad to see it end. But that doesn’t mean I can’t still throw a little party of my own in celebration of the final premiere!
All week, bloggers have been featuring their own spins on Mad Men-inspired recipes to gear up for the premiere this Sunday, when we will have a Virtual Mad Men Finale Party!
I adapted some recipes from The Unofficial Mad Men Cookbook: Inside the Kitchens, Bars, and Restaurants of Mad Men by Judy Gelman and Peter Zheutlin. I wanted to cheers to Mad Men in style, so I made a version of Trudy’s Rib Eye in the Pan, Individual Potatoes au Gratin, and Perfect Manhattans.
If you’re a Mad Men fan, you probably remember Trudy calling Pete at the office early into their marriage asking what he wanted for dinner. His response: “Rib eye, in the pan, with butter.” So Pete, this one’s for you! This version is a pan-seared New York Strip Steak with cognac butter. (I made New York Strip Steaks instead of Rib Eye, because that would have just been way too much meat for me.)
The steaks are paired with an adapted version of Julia Child’s Potatoes au Gratin, served in individual crocks.
And what’s a Mad Men Party without a cocktail?? I decided to make a more modernized version of a classic, called a Perfect Manhattan, which refers to using equal parts sweet and dry vermouth.
If you want to also Party Like a Mad Man, you’re in luck! I also have a copy to give away! Details after the recipes.
Adapted from The Unofficial Mad Men Cookbook
Ingredients:
Steak in the Pan with Butter:
- 4 boneless New York Strip Steaks, ~1 inch thick
- 4 teaspoons canola oil
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 4 oz cognac
- 8 tablespoons butter
Potatoes au Gratin
- 3 tablespoons butter, divided
- 1 cup finely chopped onions
- 1/2 pound raw potatoes (about 2-3 large potatoes), peeled and diced into 1/2 inch cubes
- 3 eggs
- 1 1/2 cups half and half
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper
- 1/2 cup sharp cheddar cheese, crumbled (I used Valley Thunder from Valley Shepherd in Reading Terminal)
Perfect Manhattan
- 8 oz rye whiskey (I prefer Dad’s Hat’s version that is finished in Vermouth barrels)
- 2 oz dry vermouth
- 2 oz sweet vermouth
- 8 dashes bitters
- maraschino cherries for garnish