Wednesday, September 22

{the dish} flat iron steak with cilantro lime pesto & purple potatoes


Now I know for a fact that when I was growing up there was NO SUCH THING as a purple potatoes. Really where did all these wonderfully unique vegetables come from. We now have mini artichokes, purple artichokes, dragon beans, baby beets, yellow calliflower, easter egg radishes, heirloom tomatoes, honey crisp apples, champagne grapes, 20 kinds of lettuce, and 10 kinds of mushrooms, numerous peppers....... (please fill in the blank - you know where I am going on this one).


isn't it wonderful!


I think that these exotic branches of the traditional fruits and vegetables (that we grew up with) are kind of like the "punk rockers" of the 80s. They have died their hair pink and are wearing clothes that get our attention. They add spice, step up the bar so to speak, make us think differently. Don't we all long for that edginess .... but gravitate to what we know?

A push is always good!


Most of the time I go for my good ole friends... not because I can't move on ... mainly it is a price point difference (I mean these potatoes cost me $9 - hey they are potatoes for goodness sake) ... but they are pretty!


Then there is the issue of the flat iron steak. I don't recall this as an option when I was young. Really it was a t-bone for the special occasions and a patio steak for the everyday. Now-a-day when it comes to choosing a cut of meat ... well lets just say sometimes I just close my eyes and hope I have chosen well.

These flat iron steaks were delicious, inexpensive and cooked up so well. I added a little pesto that I easily could have mixed in with those potatoes too. enjoy!

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flat iron steak, purple potatoes and lime cilantro pesto by ann west

the steak

flat iron steak - these are a thin cut, they don't really need marinating and they are tender -
Sliced they would be great in salad as well!

salt and pepper your steak and rub with just a bit of olive oil. Grill to medium rare.


purple potatoes

slice your potatoes in half
oil your jelly roll pan
toss your potatoes in some oil and arrange cut side down
roast at 400 for 30 minutes or until tender

I salted these with some "truffle salt" I had. WOW delicious.


cilantro pesto

handful of cilantro
smaller handful of parsley
1 garlic clove - you really don't need any more
1/4 c maybe a little more macadamia nuts
olive oil
salt & pepper
lime juice
dash of sugar

blend all of this together and then add your olive oil slowly until it comes to the consistency you like. I prefer pesto a little chunky and not too much oil. maybe the photo shows best.

have fun and enjoy!



1 comment:

citymouse said...

It was the cilantro pesto that caught my eye (yum) but everything looks and sounds wonderful. The purple potatoes look like a work of art. I'm with you though. My kids can put down about 4 pounds of potatoes at a sitting... I'd go broke!