Tag Archives: dinner menu

Grilled Steak with Chimichurri Sauce

Posted by deliciousonadollar in Main Dish and tagged with , , , ,
Chimichurri Sauce

Chimichurri Sauce

Although I like a good steak, I’m not a total carnivore.   Whenever I do eat meat, I like a good topping or spice rub to season it up.  Especially if I’m going to be grilling it.

Steak topped with too much A-1 sauce or blue cheese,   hamburgers with waaay too much cheddar cheese.  Yes and yes!  It’s the melted butter that makes the lobster better, the barbecue sauce on ribs, and salsa on tacos.  Please join me in saucing just about anything and everything.

In my refrigerator, you will find a number of little jars filled with sweet, sour, and spicy sauce concoctions.   Butter too…..obviously lots of butter.

Steaks are not regular visitors to my refrigerator.   The good ones are a bit too pricy, but when they are marked down because of “sale date expiration”, that’s when I grab them for the freezer.   So, because it’s the end of summer,  and I want to grill out a few more times, and because I made a “fancy-pants” chimichurri sauce, it’s a special occasion calling for STEAK!

Steak on the grill!!

Steak on the grill!!

In Argentina, a beef-raising country, where everyone loves their beef, chimichurri sauce is a household staple.  Made with fresh and dried herbs, garlic, red wine vinegar and a good quality olive oil,  it brings out the best in meats.  Brush it on both sides of the steak before grilling to lock in moisture and add a depth of flavor to an already flavorful cut of beef.  Then save the remainder of the sauce to serve at the table with the steaks.

Serving suggestion:   grilled steak with chimichurri sauce, grilled green beans, and orzo with tomatoes and shallots.  A glass of Merlot would be a nice  accompaniment this mighty fine meal.

The perfect meal.

The perfect meal.

GRILLED STEAK WITH CHIMICHURRI SAUCE

Yield:   Serves 4

Ingredients:

  • 4 small steaks, such as sirloin, rib-eyes, strip, or T-bones
  • For the sauce:
  • 1/4 cup mixed chopped fresh Italian flat-leaf parsley and cilantro leaves
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano
  • 3 cloves garlic, finely minced
  • 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher or sea salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 1/3 cup virgin olive oil
  • 1/4 cup red wine vinegar

Directions:

1.  Make the sauce:  In a medium bowl, whisk together the sauce ingredients.  Brush some sauce on both sides of the steaks. Set the remaining mixture aside to serve with the steaks.

2   Prepare the grill:  preheat to medium-high.

3.  Place the steaks on the grill grates, and grill for 5 minutes per side for medium-rare  and 6 minutes per side for medium.  Remove from the grill and serve, or cover with foil to keep warm while any other items finish cooking.

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SOURCE:  Week Night Grilling with the BBQ Queens.

 

 

 

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Spiced Shrimp with Peach Salsa

Posted by deliciousonadollar in Appetizers, Desserts, Main Dish, Salads and tagged with , , , , ,
Spiced Shrimp with Peach Salsa

Spiced Shrimp with Peach Salsa

Back in the spring our church had a goods and services auction as a fund raiser.  A friend and I got together and offered a catered dinner for up to 6 people.   Two couples teamed up and bid on it, winning the bid.  The date chosen for the dinner was this past weekend.   We had a lot of fun planning the menu, shopping, cooking and then serving the meal.   This was so rewarding, and a great way to help out our church.

The menu we served consisted of several dishes that I have already featured here on the blog with the exception of this shrimp appetizer.  The recipe for it follows below.  The full menu was as follows:

Appetizers

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Garlic- Herb  Cucumber Bites

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Spiced Shrimp with Peach Salsa

Salad

Baby Greens with fresh pears, grapes and pistachios

and honey-balsamic dressing

warm rolls and herb dipping oil

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Entree

Greek Style Chicken Breasts with Herb Rice Pilaf

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Desserts

Jamocha Silk Pie

with whipped cream topping

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Fresh Pear Galette

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SPICED SHRIMP WITH PEACH SALSA

Yield:  Serves 8

Ingredients:

     Peach salsa:

  • 3  1/2 cups coarsely chopped peeled peaches   (nectarines may be used, but don’t bother peeling them)IMG_8033
  • 1 cup coarsely chopped red bell pepper
  • 1 cup coarsely chopped green bell pepper
  • 1/3 cup coarsely chopped red onion
  • 1 jalapeño pepper, seeded and chopped
  • 1/4 cup fresh cilantro leaves
  • 1 Tbsp. lime juice
  • 1/4 tsp. salt

 

Shrimp:IMG_8037

  • 1/4 tsp. salt
  • 3 tsp. brown sugar
  • 2 tsp. ground cumin
  • 1/2 tsp. chili powder
  • 1/4 tsp. black pepper
  • 1  1/2 pounds large shrimp, peeled and deveined
  • 1 Tbsp. olive oil

Directions:

1.  To prepare salsa,  place all the salsa ingredients in a food processor, pulse 8 times.  Set aside.   If the bowl of your processor does not hold all the ingredients, divide in half and process in two batches,  adding the lime juice and salt to the combined batches at the end.

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2.  To prepare shrimp, combine salt, sugar, cumin, chili powder, pepper, and shrimp in a large bowl or zip-lock bag.  Toss gently to coat.  Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Add shrimp mixture; sauté  4 minutes or until shrimp are done.  Serve with peach salsa.

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SOURCE:    A Carolyn Original

Glazed Chicken and Szechuan Noodle Salad

Posted by deliciousonadollar in Main Dish, Quick Meals and tagged with , , , , , , , , , , ,

Would you believe I have spent all summer (until now) without a gas grill?  How is that possible you might ask?  Ours simply refused to light when we took it out of storage in the Spring.  My husband took it all apart, cleaned all the parts, refurbished the burner with new parts, put it back together and it still wouldn’t work.  Dang!   So while everyone else was having their cookouts, or talking about the great foods they cooked on their grills I was feeling totally left out, not having anything to contribute to that conversation.

Last weekend we finally got a new grill, all in pieces, in a HUGE box.  The nice guys at the big orange store brought it out and put it in my car for me, but I was dreading the task of helping to put it together.  But surprise! it was so simple.  The directions were clear, made perfect sense. and all the screws were even pre-installed so we didn’t end up with any extra parts.  This grill is just like having a gas stove on my back deck instead of in my kitchen.   We celebrated the new grill and how smart we were to put it together by grilling a steak for dinner that evening.  It was a very good steak but not especially blog-worthy.  (I like that word.)

My post today is about my first real effort to cook something a little jazzier on the grill; Glazed Chicken Thighs.  Since the recipe for the chicken contained some ingredients found in Asian cuisines, I paired it with another recipe I had for Szechuan Noodle Salad, and also included Sesame Broccoli.  This, then, is my complete menu.  It can be prepared in about 30 minutes.  While the grill is heating coat the chicken in the glaze mixture.  Grill the chicken.  Keep the chicken warm in a low oven, and cook the noodles and steam the broccoli. Season the noodles and broccoli and serve.

GLAZED CHICKEN and SZECHUAN NOODLE SALAD with SESAME BROCCOLI

SERVINGS:    4

INGREDIENTS–CHICKEN

  • 1 Tablespoon grated peeled fresh ginger
  • 3 Tablespoons hoisin sauce
  • 1 teaspoon olive oil
  • 1 teaspoon lower-sodium soy sauce
  • 8 skinless, boneless chicken thighs (about 1 1/2 pounds)
  • cooking spray

INGREDIENTS–NOODLES

  • 6 ounces uncooked udon noodles (thick, fresh Japanese wheat noodles), or whole-wheat linguine
  • 1/4 cup bottled Szechuan sauce
  • 1 Tablespoon creamy peanut butter
  • 2 teaspoons lower-sodium soy sauce
  • 2 teaspoons fresh lime juice
  • 1 cup matchstick-cut carrots
  • 1/2 cup matchstick-cut green onions

INGREDIENTS–BROCCOLI

  • About 1 pound broccoli, trimmed and cut into florets
  • 1 Tablespoon sesame seeds
  • 1 Tablespoon dark sesame oil
  • 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

PREPARATION

1.  Preheat grill to medium-high heat.

2.  Combine fresh ginger, hoisin sauce, lime juice and olive oil in a large bowl.  Add chicken, toss to coat.

3.   Place chicken on grill rack coated with cooking spray.  Grill, about  4 minutes/side or until done.  Remove from grill, cover and keep warm.

The chicken could also be cooked indoors on an electric grill, or on the stove-top in a grill-pan.

4.  Cook noodles according to package directions.  Drain well.  Combine Szechuan sauce, peanut butter, soy sauce, and lime juice in a large bowl, stirring with a whisk.  Add noodles, carrots, and green onions; toss and serve with chicken.

5.  For the broccoli:  Add water to a saucepan to a depth to 1-inch.  Add broccoli florets, bring to a boil and simmer for 4-5 minutes until crisp-tender.  Place broccoli in a medium bowl.  Add the sesame oil and sesame seeds,  kosher salt and  black pepper. Toss well.

SOURCE:   Cooking Light   for both Glazed chicken thighs and Szechuan noodles.