Ally's Steakhouse

Tonight felt like we went out to dinner at a steak house. We had perfectly cooked bacon wrapped filets, my au gratin recipe with a twist and I (yes only me, you know Chad's fear of vegetables, lol) had steamed broccoli.
I didn't plan on wrapping the 2 filets with bacon, but the bacon was just sitting there asking to be used up. I also didn't plan on using potatoes again for dinner tonight (we had them in the soup last night) but what goes better with steak than potatoes? I wanted to spice things up a bit so instead of using the usual cheddar/jack blend in my au gratin, I decided to use pepper jack/cheddar. Let me tell you, it was fantastic! I especially loved the cheese crust.
I will be making au gratin potatoes with the pepper jack more often! It really felt like we went out to a fancy steak house for dinner. But the fantasy soon went away after I remembered the dishes in my sink! ; )

Bacon Wrapped Filet Mignon

• 2 6oz. filets
• 2 strips bacon
• salt, pepper and garlic powder
• 1 tbs. evoo
• Heat oven to broil at 500 degrees

Let steaks come to room temp. and season with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Wrap bacon around filets and secure with a tooth pic. Heat cast iron grill pan over med. high heat and add olive oil. Sear meat on both sides for 2 minutes. Transfer pan to oven and cook 3-4 minutes per side for medium done steaks.

Pepper Jack Au Gratin

• 3 medium Yukon gold potatoes sliced very thin
  1/2 cup finely chopped vidalia onion
  3 cloves garlic minced
  1 1/2 cup of milk (2%)
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
  3 Tbs. unsalted butter
  3 Tbs. flour
• 6 slices pepper jack cheese
  1 cups shredded Cheddar
  1/2 tsp. freshly gated nutmeg
  Salt and Pepper

For the Bechamel, melt butter in a medium sized sauce pan over medium heat and add onions. Saute for about a minute and add garlic. Saute for another minute and add flour. Whisk until smooth and add milk slowly Whisking the entire time. Add nutmeg and Salt and pepper. Let come to a simmer and remove from heat.Preheat oven to 375.Grease a small casserole with butter and layer 1/3 of the potatoes on the bottom. Layer the bechamel over the potatoes, and then add a layer of cheese (break up slices into pieces and lay around on top, then use the cheddar). Complete this layering process until all ingredients are used. Cover and bake for 45 minutes, and remove the foil the last 15 minutes to let the cheese get nice and browned.