Cocoa-Rubbed Steak with Bacon Whiskey Gravy

Wow.  I can not believe it.  I have not posted an actual recipe in a really long time.  It feels refreshing to get to share a new recipe.  This one was very very yummy.  No complaints at all.  I would even venture to do it on a slightly bigger scale (small dinner party).  It comes from the food network magazine.  So here it is:

Cocoa-Rubbed Steaks with Bacon-Whiskey Gravy

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons sweet paprika
1⁄4 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon packed light brown sugar
1⁄4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 1-pound New York strip steaks (about 1 1/2 inches thick)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
4 strips bacon, diced
1 leek (white and light green parts only), finely chopped
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1⁄2 cup whiskey
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
2 bay leaves
1⁄2 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Steps:

1. Make the steak: Mix the cocoa powder, both paprikas, brown sugar, cayenne and 2 teaspoons salt; rub on the steak and bring to room temperature, 30 minutes.
2. Make the gravy: Cook the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat, stirring, until crisp, about 5 minutes. Remove to paper towels with a slotted spoon; set aside. Add the leek to the drippings and cook until soft, about 3 minutes. Add the flour and cook, stirring, 1 minute.
3. Remove the skillet from the heat. Add the whiskey, then return to medium heat; if the alcohol ignites, let the flames die out. Bring to a simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until slightly thickened, about 2 minutes.
4. Add the chicken broth and bay leaves. Bring to a boil over medium- high heat and cook until the mixture is reduced by one-quarter, about 8 minutes.
5. Whisk in the heavy cream and simmer, stirring occasionally, until the gravy coats a spoon, about 7 minutes. Stir in the butter, reserved bacon and parsley; season with salt and pepper. Keep warm.
6. Heat a large cast-iron skillet over high heat, about 3 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon butter; when it melts, add the steak and sear until a dark crust forms, about 8 minutes per side. Transfer to a cutting board and let rest 5 minutes. Season with salt. Slice and serve with the gravy.

The Final Product:

First, I made a few changes to the ingredient list.  I only had sweet paprika so I left out the smoked paprika.  I switched out dark brown sugar for light brown sugar.  Instead of bacon, I found this great package of diced proscuitto.  What the heck, it's better than bacon, why not use it?  I didn't have any leeks so I chopped up half of a small onion.  The recipe is fairly simple to follow.  No major changes to that - except I could not get the gravy to thicken after adding the heavy cream.  I added another tablespoon of flour and that did the trick.  Next time, I might lower the broth amount to 2 cups so that it thickens faster.

The steaks were so complex - chocolatey cocoa flavor, the sweetness from the sugar, and then a little heat from the paprika and pepper.  Neither taste was really overpowering.  As for the gravy, I realize I did not mention what whiskey I used.  Here goes - Wild Turkey Bourbon.  Nothing fancy.  Actually, the Wild Turkey has such a distinct smell and flavor that you can easily pick it out in the gravy but it is tempered enough that you are not knocked out by it.

Overall, a great dish to get me back into the "cooking" swing of things after my hiatus.