T-Bone Steaks with Roasted Garlic Adobo Potatoes and Garlic Herb Butter

I was at Costco innocently buying groceries when I ran across these giant prime t-bone steaks, on sale... Needless to say, they went straight into my cart, no questions asked!

Here is the link to the potatoes I made to go with the steaks; they turned out really good: Spicy Garlic Adobo Roasted Potatoes

For those of you that don't know, the t-bone is actually comprised of two cuts of meat; the tenderloin and the New York Strip.  Meat is more tender and flavorful when cooked on the bone, so you can't go wrong with t-bone (well, overeating could be an issue!).  Prime is a grade of meat and is more heavily and evenly marbled with fat, which marinates it naturally during the cooking process, resulting in a more juicy and tender end product.  Prime cuts of meat are usually quite expensive, but sometimes you can find a deal at Costco or your local butcher. 

Here is a pic of the marbling on these particular steaks.  Even when you purchase lower grade meat, you can find yourself a better steak by choosing the ones with the best marbling, so look for long thin veins of white scattered throughout the steak.

Yield: Serves 2-4 

Ingredients:
2 large t-bone steaks (these were 1 1/2 lbs each!)
2 tsp olive oil
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

Garlic Herb Butter:
1 lb butter, softened
2 garlic cloves, finely minced
2 tsp fresh parsley, chopped
2 tsp fresh oregano, chopped
1 tsp fresh basil, chopped
1 tsp lemon juice
Salt and pepper, to taste 

Directions:
To make the herb butter, bring butter to room temperature.  Mince garlic and chop herbs (any herbs can be substituted here, depending on your own preference).  Whip herbs, butter, and lemon until creamy and then season to taste.

There are a lot of fun ways to store and serve homemade butters.  The most common way is to layer it onto saranwrap and then roll into a log.  Chill or freeze until solid, then peel saranwrap back to slice pats of butter from end.  The butter can be stored in the freezer for up to a year.  You can also form balls (butter balls!) with a melon baller or press it into molds for other shapes.  The butter should be chilled until firm (1-3 hours) before serving, otherwise it will not hold the desired shape. 

To make steaks, bring steaks to room temperature and pat dry.  Heat a grill pan or outdoor grill to high.  Mix spices in a small bowl.  Drizzle olive oil over steaks on both sides, then season with spice mix.

Place steaks on grill and cook for approximately 4-6 minutes per side (depending on desired doneness), rotating 90 degrees once halfway through cooking time to create hash marks.  Flip and repeat.  Top with a slice of garlic herb butter and allow to rest for at least 5 minutes before serving.  Mmmmm.... beef!  Hungry yet?