Filet Mignon Steaks With Merlot Sauce And Wild Mushrooms

To prepare the sauce, heat the oil in a saucepan. Add the garlic, onion, carrot and celery; saute over medium heat for 7 to 8 minutes, until the onion is lightly browned. Stir in the tomato paste and cook for about 2 minutes.

Deglaze the pan with the wine and then stir in the bay leaves, thyme and peppercorns. Bring the sauce to a boil over medium-high heat and reduce by half. Add the stock and return to a boil. Lower the heat to a simmer and cook the sauce, stirring occasionally for about 30 minutes, until reduced to about 2 cups of liquid. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean saucepan and keep warm.

Season steaks on both sides with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a saute pan, add the steaks to the hot pan, and sear over medium-high heat for about 5 to 6 minutes per side for medium-rare or about 7 minutes per side for medium. Remove the steaks from the pan and keep warm.

Add the shallots and mushrooms to the same pan and saute over medium-high heat for about 5 minutes, until lightly brown. Add the Merlot sauce and bring to a simmer. Reduce the liquid by half and stir in the butter until throughly incorporated. Add the parsley before serving.

Place the steaks in the center of warm serving plate and spoon the mushroom sauce over and around the filets.