Brazillian Inspired Grilled Flank Steak with Fresh Salsa

Okay, so I was sick for most of the week, and while I am feeling better, I am seriously lacking motivation right now. Probably because Hubby and I went out for lunch and I ate a whole Reuben, most of my fries, and drank two beers. So now, I'm not even hungry, but I have to cook dinner and write a blog post. 

This week's challenge is Brazilian. (Insert waxing joke here, since every time I say it, Hubby giggles like a school boy.) I had a hard time deciding what to make this week. I finally found a recipe for Brazilian style flank steak that looked yummy, so I decided to use this for inspiration.

For the flank steak...
1.5 lb flank steak
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeno, minced
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 tsp kosher salt
pepper

For the salsa:
1 tomatillo
2 plum tomatoes
2 hearts of palm
2 thick slices of red onion
2 serrano peppers
cilantro
red wine vinegar
juice of 1 lime

First, I got the flank steak marinating, then I got to work on the salsa. Sorry there aren't very many pics, but like I said, I'm lacking motivation right now.

While the flank steak marinates, put together the salsa.

Get your grill up to about 400 degrees, then cook the steak for about 8 minutes per side for medium. When it comes off the grill, let it rest for about 5 minutes on a cutting board, covered with foil.

When it's done resting, cut it in thin strips, across the grain.

I served this with the salsa, black beans, and some white rice.

 You should also serve this with a caipirinha. I will make this again, but the salsa was too spicy. Next time I'll only use one serrano, and maybe add more hearts of palm and tomatoes. Maybe I'll even add a little sugar. We'll see.


*Editing before posting, a day after I cooked this. 

EggFest!!!

EggFest is an annual party I go to every May in Waldorf, MD. There are fests all around the country, but this is the one I go to every year. This is a great party where eggheads from all over the country get together, cook, eat, drink and hang out. It's a day where we can walk around and sample food that others are cooking, compare cooking techniques, exchange recipes and have an all around good time.

This year they decided on a pirate theme with prizes for the best costume, cooking galley and more. My mom, Sally and my friend Jackie, tied for best costume.

Here's my mom in all her pirate glory...

And here's Jackie and my mom's BFF Bonnie...

My step dad, Wess, made his ribs and even did a demo...

They were so yummy that I forgot to take a pic of the finished product!

Here's a pic of Sally and I enjoying the party together...

My lovely sister/Lovely assistant, Stacey, with her youngest daughter, Gena...

My oldest niece, Ana...

Gena, giving me the stink eye...

When the fest was over some people went home, but others had hotel rooms across the street. There are three hotels right next to each other, and every year we take over the parking lot for our after party. Most people took a quick break to shower and change, then the after party began!

Here's me and my mom again...

Wess was finally able to sit down and relax...

And everyone continued to eat, drink and be merry!

Next year I'll try to do a better job taking pics of the food, but for now, hopefully this will give you some idea of how we roll!

Atomic Buffalo Turds, or ABTs

OMG! These are those yummiest things ever!!!! I know the name doesn't sound all that great, but man oh man, I swear they are awesome! Really, it's just kind of like a grilled jalapopper, but even that description doesn't do it justice. These are really versatile little snacks, because you can put whatever you want in them. I'll tell you how I do it, then I'll offer up some variations. I even have a vegetarian option!

You will need...
tooth picks
About 10 whole jalapenos
1 lb of bacon (Regular slices, not thick cut)
1 pkg cream cheese
1 lb ground pork
2 cloves minced garlic
some fresh grated ginger
your favorite seasonings

The first step is to prep your jalapenos. WEAR GLOVES!!! I can't stress this enough. The first time I made them I did not wear gloves, or use any tools to remove the seeds and membranes. My hands were on fire for about three days! I also wear safety glasses. Again, the first time I made them I didn't wear safety goggles and I got shot in the eye with jalapeno juice. Add to that the fact that the oils were all over my hands, and I was one very miserable red head! So now that you have your gloves and safety goggles, cut the tops off of each jalapeno, then cut them in half, length wise. I use a tomato corer to remove the seeds and membranes. Set these aside and start prepping the meat.

Saute the ground pork in a large pan on your stove top. Add some garlic and ginger and any other seasoning you want. Drain the grease and set the meat aside in a bowl. This usually makes too much, so I put the leftovers in a baggie and freeze it for the next time.

Now create an assembly line of the peppers, bacon, cream cheese, and meat. I like to fill the jalapeno with some cream cheese, then add the meat, then wrap a slice of bacon around the whole thing and secure it with a toothpick. Once they are all ready, sprinkle any seasoning you want all over the bacon. Grill over indirect heat for an hour, turning once, with a drip pan underneath. I have also done this in the oven, on a cookie sheet, with racks on the cookie sheet, but I prefer grilling them.

Once they are cooked don't allow too much time for them to cool, or by the time you go to get one, they will be gone!

Now for variations. I have seen these made with little smokies instead of the pork mixture, but I don't recommend it. Yes, it's easy, but not very yummy. My step dad always uses pulled pork for filling. That's yummy, but more effort than I want to do. You could try shrimp, ground beef, sausage (remove casing and cook first). I have even made vegetarian ones. For those I used crumbled veggies burgers for filling and veggie bacon. They were surprisingly yummy, and the girl we made them for was so pleased that we wanted to make sure she could have some too! I also cut the cooking time in half for the veggie ones so they wouldn't get over cooked.

These take a lot of effort, but they are worth every second you spend putting them together. I hope you enjoy them, and please let me know if you come up with any tasty variations.

My Big Green Eggs

When you saw the pics of my garden you may have wondered what those weird things on my porch were. They are called the Big Green Egg.

The one on the left is my large and the one on the right is my small. These grills are the most versatile grill ever! They can be used as a simple grill, an oven or a smoker. We have smoked our Thanksgiving turkey on them, made burgers, steaks, pork chops and even baked cookies on them! Yes, that's right, I sometimes bake on my grill. They are based on the old kamodo style smokers from Japan. It is a ceramic grill and there are openings at the top and bottom so you can regulate the heat. They use lump charcoal, so the flavor you get is just amazing! This is nothing like dad's Weber grill that uses Kingsford briquettes, or a propane grill. It becomes a lifestyle. I'm so happy that the weather is finally getting nice so I can grill everything!!!

On May 1st there is a huge party in Waldorf, Maryland called Eggfest. This is such a fun party! People come from all over the country for these festivals. They have live music, drinks and there is food all day. The trick is to only eat one bite of anything. Any more than that and you get full too fast. Some people just come for the party, others come to cook, and some people come to buy their egg. You get a discount if you buy it that day, because it gets used that day for all the cooking. There are amateurs and professionals, but a fun time is had by all. I can't wait to get together with all my fellow eggheads and eat some great food!