Monday, October 13, 2014

Vietnamese Flank Steak Salad

This recipe is adapted from the Williams Sonoma Salads Cookbook featuring 365 seasonal salads.

1 lb flank steak - excess fat trimmed

Marinade:
2 tbsp soy sauce
1/2 tbsp fish sause
1/2 tbsp toasted sesame oil
sriracha to tatste

Salad:
2 cups Romaine lettuce
1/2 large cucumber julianned
1/4 cup bean sprouts
1/2 bunch of cilantro
1 bunch of mint
1 bunch of thai basil

Dressing:
Rice Vinegar to taste
Fish Sauce to taste

2 ounces of almonds roughly chopped for garnish

1. Score the meat and marinate for 1 hr to over night
2. Grill outdoors or indoors on a grill pan.  Discard remaining marinade.
3. Assemble the vegetables, herbs and meat over the salad and garnish with nuts. 
4. Dress to taste.

If we weren't doing a low carb meal I would likely add some honey to the dressing.  It was delicious as is though. 



Delicious Whipped Cauliflower (Yes, really)

1 head of cauliflower cored and cut into large florets
1 tbs butter
4 tbs sour cream
2 oz cream cheese
2 cloves of garlic
salt and pepper to taste

1. Steam the cauliflower until fork tender.  Be sure not to over or under cook.  Boiling is not recommended due to loss of nutrients and the additional water could make the final product too runny.

2. In a tiny sauce pan add the butter and roughly chopped garlic cloves.  Cook until lightly browned and remove from heat.

3. Add half the cauliflower, along with the cream cheese, sour cream and butter garlic mixture to your food processor or blender.  Once blended add the second half of the cauliflower and blend until creamy smooth.  Add salt and pepper to taste.


And that's it!  It truly is scrumptious!  Not the same as potatoes but possibly even better.  Please give it a try!

Other options would be to include cheese, chives or even wasabi.

Nutritional information based on 6 servings.  If you choose reduced fat sour cream, cream cheese and and substitute a healthy oil with the butter you could easily lower the fat.


Nutrition Facts

User Entered Recipe
  6 Servings

Amount Per Serving
  Calories 77.5
  Total Fat 7.1 g
      Saturated Fat 4.1 g
      Polyunsaturated Fat 0.4 g
      Monounsaturated Fat 1.8 g
  Cholesterol 19.0 mg
  Sodium 52.2 mg
  Potassium 87.8 mg
  Total Carbohydrate 2.8 g
      Dietary Fiber 1.1 g
      Sugars 0.9 g
  Protein 1.8 g

  Vitamin A 5.2 %
  Vitamin B-12 1.1 %
  Vitamin B-6 4.5 %
  Vitamin C 31.2 %
  Vitamin D 0.3 %
  Vitamin E 0.9 %
  Calcium 2.6 %
  Copper 0.8 %
  Folate 5.1 %
  Iron 1.5 %
  Magnesium 1.4 %
  Manganese 3.7 %
  Niacin 0.9 %
  Pantothenic Acid     2.7 %
  Phosphorus     3.2 %
  Riboflavin 3.2 %
  Selenium 1.1 %
  Thiamin 1.6 %
  Zinc 1.1 %



*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.


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Recipe to try - home made beef jerky

http://thehealthyfoodie.com/home-made-beef-jerky-in-with-the-yummy-out-with-the-nasty/

NOT MY RECIPE from The Healthy Foody

Hot & Spicy Home Made Beef Jerky
Yield: Yields about 650g of finished jerky
Hot & Spicy Home Made Beef Jerky
INGREDIENTS
  • 2kg (5lb) grass-fed beef brisket (or other lean cut such as top round, flank or sirloin)
  • Marinade
  • 1 cup sweet apple cider (or unsweetened apple juice)
  • 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
  • 2 tbsp fish sauce
  • 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
  • 1/4 cup unpasteurized honey
  • 2 tbsp liquid smoke
  • 2 tbsp freshly cracked black pepper
  • 2 tbsp smoked paprika
  • 3 tbsp garlic powder
  • 1 tbsp onion powder
  • 1 tbsp Himalayan salt
  • 3 tbsp sesame oil
  • 2 tbsp crushed chili pepper
  • 2 dried chipotle peppers, chopped
  • 1/4 tsp ground clove
INSTRUCTIONS
  1. Remove all traces of visible fat from your piece (or pieces) of meat. Place the meat in the freezer for about 60 to 90 minutes, which will make it easier to slice thinly. Don’t wait until the meat is frozen solid, you just want ice crystals to start to form. It should be really firm but you should still be able to pierce it with the point of a sharp knife.
  2. Slice the meat in long thin strips, going with or against the grain depending on your preference. Jerky sliced against the grain tends to be easier to chew and breaks more easily into pieces whereas jerky that is sliced with the grain will be a lot chewier and somewhat leathery.
  3. Place your meat in a re-sealable plastic bag, or non-reactive container with fitting lid, and set aside.
  4. In a large measuring cup or mixing bowl, add all the ingredients for the marinade and mix until very well combined. Pour over the sliced meat and mix everything around until all the strips are completely covered.
  5. Place your meat in the refrigerator and let it marinate overnight.
  6. VERY IMPORTANT! Before you go any further, cover the bottom of your oven with aluminium foil. Things are going to get messy!
  7. Remove the strips of meat from the marinade and place them directly on your oven racks. No need to pat them dry, just let the strips drip a little bit as you remove them. If you have smaller pieces that will not fit on the racks without falling right through the cracks, arrange them on a cooling rack and place that rack right over the oven rack. You can even stack it right on top of an oven rack that already has meat on it: simply rest it on a few shot glasses or egg cups or other suitable small object. Don’t worry about it burning or breaking, we’re not going to turn the heat all that high.
  8. Place your racks back in the oven, the higher the better, and set your oven temperature to 170F. If you have a convection oven, by all means, use that setting. Keep the oven door slightly open by sticking a wooden spoon or crushed aluminum can in the door. This will allow some of the heat to escape so the meat has a chance to dry without cooking.
  9. Let the meat dry for about 3 hours, then flip it over and give it another 3 hours or so. Total cooking time depends a lot on the size and thickness of your strips.
  10. Your jerky will be done when it’s dry enough that you can rip off a piece easily but not so dry that it’ll snap if you bend it.
  11. Leave the jerky out to cool for a couple of hours, up to 24, then transfer to an airtight container or sealed plastic bag where it will keep unrefrigerated for 4 to 6 months - but I dare you to keep it that long!