STEAK AND ALL THE TRIMMINGS April 21, 2004 Susan Noble Family and Consumer Science Extension Agent

Spring has sprung. Shorts, sandals, and grills are coming out of winter storage. Celebrate by firing up your grill and trying this steak "with all the trimmings" meal.

First, the steak -- top sirloin steak is a great cut for the grill. It is a leaner cut of beef, yet it's tender enough to be cooked on its own without a marinade for tenderizing. But do try the marinade in the recipe; it's for flavor. The balsamic vinegar gives a sweetly pungent zing to the steak.

Here I must make a confession. I tested the steak recipe for you but not on the grill. I have a definite phobia of fire. I don't even like to light candles, so firing up a grill is totally out of the question. Thus, I cook my steaks in a heavy iron skillet on top of the stove . . . usually with great results. However, this marinade is so thick that it burned when in direct contact with the hot skillet. I easily scraped the burnt marinade off the steak, but it took a whole lot of scrubbing to clean up the skillet. Next time, I'll have to recruit a grill and a griller.

Even though sirloin is a lean beef cut, this is not an excuse to overindulge. Remember that a serving of meat is three to four ounces (without bone). Thus, a one-pound steak should feed four people.

When I buy a steak, I cut it into the appropriate number of servings and freeze them. A good trick is to go on and make your favorite marinade; freeze each steak piece along with some of the marinade in a small freezer bag. When you later thaw the steak (in the refrigerator), the marinade can do its work, but your work will be done and cleaned up.

Another option is to buy a larger steak than needed for one meal so you can have leftovers. Steak leftovers are good with eggs for breakfast, in sandwiches, and in salads. Remember that eating meals at home instead of doing the fast-food thing is a major way families can fight obesity.

The Spanish Rice makes a great change from the baked potato we typically put with steak. This brings me to another confession. Growing up I enjoyed school cafeteria food (was I weird?) and Spanish Rice was one of my favorites. It's taken me years to find a recipe that is as good as I remember the school's rice being, but I've finally succeeded. This is it!

Try making extra Spanish Rice and use the leftovers for stuffed peppers. Simply fill bell pepper halves with the rice, top with a slice of cheese, and bake for a quick, easy - and meatless - entree. Remember about those meals eaten at home? You might as well do it, because I'm not going to leave you alone.

Blue Cheese Salad Dressing is another favorite. Here's confession number three - it's really the blue cheese I like, in any form. On a family cruise last summer, I ordered blue cheese and fruit every night for dessert. My family found this strange, but I was one happy camper . . . er, cruiser.

Blue Cheese Salad Dressing is typically high in fat and calories due not only to the cheese but to the other stuff. This version uses reduced-fat mayonnaise and no-fat sour cream to radically cut fat and calories. Thus, a generous amount of blue cheese can be added and still produce a "healthy" dressing.

I did find the dressing a little sweet for my taste buds. This may be because low-fat mayonnaise typically has sugar added to help recoup some of the flavor lost when the fat is removed. I stirred in an extra tablespoon of vinegar and was pleased with the results.

The dessert recipe comes from a recent Heart Healthy Cooking Class I conducted. The recipe was developed by the daughter of a staff member in an attempt to help her family fight the battle of the bulge, high triglycerides, et cetera. The class participants could not believe this dish was reduced in fat and sugar.

That's it; I'm out of recipes -- and confessions.

Place steak in shallow glass dish or pie pan. Combine remaining ingredients; spread evenly over both sides of steak. Let stand at room temperature 30 minutes or cover and refrigerate up to 8 hours. Prepare charcoal grill or preheat broiler. Grill or broil steak to desired doneness. Discard marinade. Slice steak into thin strips* and serve immediately.

* I use this marinade with regular sirloin steak and do not slice it to serve.

Yields 4 servings at 146 calories and 5 grams fat per serving.

Recipe from The New Family Cookbook For People With Diabetes.

Lightly film bottom of 10-inch nonstick skillet with olive oil. Add rice, onions, bell pepper, and garlic powder; cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, till rice is browned, about 10 minutes. Add tomatoes and break them up with the back of a spoon. Stir in broth and cayenne. Heat to boiling, cover, and simmer over low heat, about 25 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; uncover and fluff rice with fork.

Yields 4 servings.

Combine first 8 ingredients, stirring with a whisk. Stir in cheese. Cover and refrigerate at least 3 hours.

Yields 2 1/2 cups at 24 calories per 1 tablespoon serving.

Recipe adapted from Cooking Light magazine.

For crust, combine crumbs and sugar in medium-sized bowl. Stir in melted margarine till thoroughly blended. Pack crumb mixture firmly into 9- x 13-inch baking pan. Bake at 350° for 5-8 minutes; let cool before filling.

Meanwhile, soften cream cheese. Mix with powdered sugar and 1 cup cool whip. Spread over cooled crust. Chill in refrigerator while you continue. Mix vanilla pudding with 2 cups milk for 2 minutes. Spread over cream cheese layer and chill in refrigerator as you continue. Mix chocolate pudding with 2 cups milk for 2 minutes. Spread over vanilla pudding. Spread remaining cool whip over chocolate pudding. Sprinkle graham cracker crumbs over cool whip and refrigerate dessert for 30 minutes before serving.

Yields about 12 servings.

The use of brand names in this column does not imply endorsement by the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service of the products or services named or criticism of similar ones not mentioned.

E-mail address: Susan_Noble@ncsu.edu

Mailing Address:
P. O. Box 2280
Lumberton, NC 28359-2280

Phone: 910-671-3276
Fax: 910-671-6278

Date Created 4/30/04