I recently had a chance to experience La Cense grass fed beef.  Their Black Angus cattle graze in 88,000 acres of open pastures in Montana and are raised without pesticides and antibiotics.  Research shows that grass fed beef is lower in calories than grain fed beef and higher in beta-carotene and Omega-3 fatty acids.  This leads to a healthier beef eating.  La Cense beef is then dry-aged for 19 days before butchered and the result of the entire process is a leaner, more tender cut of meat.  Check out their 4th of July Special at their website www.lacensebeef.com. 

The only time I have obtained beef from so far away was when my grandfather used to butcher a side of beef from his farm and drive it out from Oklahoma in his trunk packed in dry ice.  So, I was really glad to see UPS deliver my beef well packed and still frozen during a week of 112 degree Arizona days.

La Cense was nice enough to send over two patties and a boneless ribeye for me to sample.  They also send over recipes for each. Although their recipes looked good, I decided to do something a bit different.  This was mostly because I didn’t have most of the ingredients.   Since I only cooked up a ribeye, you will have to wait to hear about the patties when I cook those at a later time.  Anyway, here is how I prepared the La Cense Ribeye… 

Red Wine Butter Sauce 

• 1/4 cup red wine
• 1 Tablespoon Butter 

Steak Rub (equal parts of each)

• Paprika
• Fresh Ground Pepper
• Sea Salt
• Sugar 

 Veggies

• Asaragus
• Red, yellow, orange bell peppers cut into large pieces

BTW – I don’t really ever premix the rub….I just lightly sprinkle each ingredient over the steak separately.

Prepare the steak rub.  Season to taste and press the rub into the meat with your fingers.

For the sauce, put 1/4 cup of red wine in a sauce pan and bring to a boil for a few minutes. Add 1 tablespoon of butter and let it sit for a few more minutes.  

Meanwhile, cook the ribeye to medium rare…..the information that came with my beef says that lean beef takes lower heat and will cook in less time.   I actually didn’t pay too much attention to the time, but just used my trusty “finger test” (see my other Ribeye blog).

The veggies should be lightly oiled with olive oil and seasoned with salt and fresh ground pepper.  These can be cooked for about 15 minutes, turning occasionally until they have nice grill marks. 

Drizzle the red wine butter sauce on your steak and serve up with veggies.

Verdict:  The La Cense Ribeye was more tender than most of my store bought ribeyes.  The red wine butter sauce was probably over simplified, but I still thought it was good and was actually a hit with my wife.  I give La Cense props for bringing me a healthier cut of meat.  Two thumbs up to La Cense! 

-GrillDude