Seared Steak with Roasted Garlic Aioli

1. When cool enough to handle, squeeze the roasted garlic pulp into a small bowl. Add mayonnaise, rosemary, 1/4 teaspoon pepper and 1/8 teaspoon salt. Stir and gently mash together, leaving large pieces of garlic intact to create a chunky sauce.

2. Pat steaks dry and cut into 4 equal portions. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon each salt and pepper. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until very hot, but not smoking. Add the steaks and cook until browned on the bottom, 2 to 4 minutes. Turn over, reduce heat to medium-low and cook to desired doneness, 3 to 5 minutes for medium-rare. Serve the steaks with about 1 1/2 tablespoons aioli each.

Tips

Make Ahead Tip: Cover and refrigerate sauce (Step 1) for up to 3 days.

To roast garlic, position rack in lower third of oven; preheat to 400°F. Rub off the excess papery skin from a head of garlic without separating the cloves. Slice the tip off the head, exposing the cloves. Place the garlic on a piece of foil, drizzle with 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil and wrap into a package. Place the package directly on the oven rack and roast until the garlic is very soft, 40 to 45 minutes. Unwrap and let cool. Refrigerate in an airtight container for up to 3 days.