| 1 | Preheat the oven to 37Peel the potatoes and cut them into slices about 1/8-in. |
| 2 | Thick. |
| 3 | As the potatoes are sliced, drop them into a bowl of cold water to prevent them discoloring. |
| 4 | Spread about 1 tsp of the butter over the bottom of a large heavy skillet with a overproof handle. |
| 5 | Drain the potato slices and pat dry. |
| 6 | Layer them in the skillet, spinkling the layers with small pieces of butter(using all but 2 tbsp). |
| 7 | Cover the skillet closely and cook on top of the stove over moderate heat about 20 min. uncover and tranfer to oven. |
| 8 | Bake 20 min. Meanwhile, sprinkle the steaks with the brandy. |
| 9 | Set aside. |
| 10 | Heat the remaining butter in a saucepan, add the mushrooms and thyme and cook until wilted. |
| 11 | Add the broth and cook until reduced by 1/Add thge sour cream and olives. |
| 12 | Remove from heat and set aside. |
| 13 | Drain the brandy from the steaks and reserve. |
| 14 | Heat the oil in a heavy skillet and add the steaks. |
| 15 | Cook over high heat about 3-4 min. on each side (or longer if you prefer your steaks medium to medium-well). |
| 16 | Remove and keep hot. |
| 17 | Add the brandy to the skillet and cook, stirring to dissolve the brown particles that cling to the pan. |
| 18 | Stir in the sour cream sauce and heat through without boiling. |
| 19 | Turn the potato cake onto a warmed serving dish. |
| 20 | Arrange the steaks on top and spoon a little sauce over them. |
| 21 | Serve the remaining sauce separately. |
| 22 | This dish: tournedos a la russ |
