Mustard & Lavender Encrusted Smoked Ribeye with Olive Pesto

Mustard & Lavender Encrusted Smoked Ribeye with Olive Pesto

This delicious recipe was stolen ‘con permesso’ from Carlo Cavallo, Executive Chef and Proprietor of Sonoma Meritâge, which is located in the heart of Northern California's wine country, just one block off historic Sonoma's plaza (which happens to be the birthplace of California). The restaurant utilizes all local organic produce, local prime aged beef, local wild game, lamb, and the finest local handcrafted cheeses and the freshest seafood, including oysters from Hog Island Oyster Company.
The cuisine at the restaurant is a combination of southern French and northern Italian and there is a full service martini and raw oyster bar with live Dungeness crab and a Maine lobster tank. 
For Chef Carlo, who was drawn to Sonoma because of the similarities to his Italian hometown of Verona, Meritâge offers the perfect venue to blend his European heritage with California's wine country sophistication – he says "I opened Meritâge in the heart of Sonoma's world renowned wine country expressly to take advantage of the year round abundance of locally grown fresh products, artisan food producers, and superior wines".

About the chef: Carlo Cavallo found his life's calling at an early age as he began his culinary career at the early age of three in his Grandmother's trattoria cleaning the mixing bowls used to make her desserts, as children are apt to do. By the age of five he had graduated to making stuffed pastas such as tortellini and ravioli and in order to pay for college he started his first catering company. 
After college he was hired as a Pastry Chef at the prestigious L'Assassino Ristorante in Milan, a favorite celebrity dining spot. Where he quickly worked his way up to Sous Chef. He then took a job as the Chef de Cuisine at the famous Belmonte Hotel in Lugano, Switzerland, where he honed his talents in French Provencal cuisine.
In 1993 Carlo began to forge his career in the US and spent the next three years as the Executive Chef for Giorgio Armani's restaurants in Beverly Hills, Boston and Costa Mesa and by November 1999 opened his own restaurant; Sonoma-Meritâge Martini/ Oyster Bar & Grill. 
He is one of the founders of the Sonoma Valley Olive Festival and serves as its Culinary Director. He is also the Culinary Director of the Cinema Epicuria, Sonoma Valley Film festival. Chef Carlo is also a culinary instructor at Ramekins Cooking School. His catering company serves several Sonoma and Napa valley wineries for private functions. Additionally, he cooks for many top winery owners privately including Robert Mondavi, Richard Arrowood, Bob Sessions, Bruce Cohn, and the Sebastiani family, among others.

Sonoma Meritage
165 W Napa Street
Sonoma, CA 95476
707 938 9430

Mustard and Lavender Encrusted Smoked Ribeye with Olive Pesto is served at Sonoma Meritage for $32. 
This recipe makes 2 restaurant servings.

Please note, this recipe calls for a home smoker (available at kitchen stores and on the web).

Steak Ingredients:
1 ribeye steak, cut 1 inch thick (12 ounces)
3/4 teaspoon coarse grind black pepper
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
Rub Ingredients:
2 tablespoons Dijon-style coarse-grain mustard
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
1/4 teaspoon finely chopped fresh lavender leaves or 1/8 teaspoon dried lavender

Pesto Ingredients:
2 tablespoons olive tapenade
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon finely chopped walnuts
2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh parsley

Steal This Recipe® Step by Step Instructions:
Press pepper evenly onto beef steak. 
Combine rub ingredients; spread evenly onto one side of steak. 
Prepare and preheat smoker according to manufacturer’s directions. 
Place steak, mustard-side-up, into smoker and smoke according to manufacturer's directions or until instant-read thermometer registers 145°F for medium rare; 160°F for medium. 
Meanwhile, prepare the Pesto - combine the pesto ingredients in small bowl. 
Carve the steak into slices; season with salt. 
Serve the steaks with pesto on top and garnish with thinly shaved slices of Parmesan cheese.

Recipe courtesy of The Beef Checkoff.