Thursday, February 25, 2010

Cheesesteaks baby!!



Ok...first I have to say that this may sound a little "fancy" in comparison to the king of all cheesesteaks and by that I mean "Philly Cheesesteaks" but I promise if you give it a whirl even the one that pays homage to "man food" in your house will be singing your praises and may even fold that basket of laundry that has been haunting you for the last week! I make this an open-faced sandwich so that you can pile on all the goodness and not fill your belly with too many carbs in the process!! Ingredients are pretty important to me....when I can I always opt for organic produce, whole grains and grass-fed beef (basically nothing with artificial fillers/ingredients or hormones) Yes it is true that these ingredients can be a bit pricier but my philosophy is you get one body so pay now or pay later!!

Serves 4 (can easily be doubled!)

Ingredients:
1 loaf of ciabatta bread
1 steak approx 1.5-2lbs (sirloin is fine but if you can swing it filet mignon is heavenly)
2 green peppers sliced
2 yellow peppers sliced
2 onions sliced
4 cloves garlic chopped
1 clove garlic cut in half
1 5 oz bag of arugula
1 package sliced mushrooms (optional)
4 oz sliced Jarlsberg cheese (or any other good swiss)
4 oz grated Gruyere cheese
crushed red pepper
salt and freshly ground pepper
2-3 tbsp Olive oil

Preheat grill/ grill pan to medium heat. In a separate pan heat olive oil in saute over medium heat, add sliced peppers, mushrooms and onions sprinkle with salt, pepper and crushed red pepper to taste. Saute over medium-low heat until peppers are soft and onions are translucent approx 10-15 min. While that cooks rub the steak with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper, grill medium heat 6 minutes first side, 5 minutes second side for medium rare (or until desired doneness but remember steak will cook a bit more when you broil the sandwich) Remove from grill, cover with foil and let rest for 5-10 min. Add chopped garlic to onion mixture and cook 5 minutes more being careful not to burn the garlic. Set aside, keep warm. Sliced the ciabatta bread in half lengthwise so you have two open-faced halves. Drizzle the cut side with olive oil and either toast oil side down on a grill pan or in broiler until golden brown. Remove from grill and rub toasted side with halves of garlic. Slice steak thin. Spread arugula evenly over both halves of bread, top with onion, pepper mixture, slices of steak, then top with sliced Jarlsberg then the grated Gruyere. Place until broiler at high heat for 5-10 minutes or until cheese is melted and golden. Cut each half in half again and serve with forks and knives, a yummy glass of vino (milk for the kids!!) Pop on some Michael Buble tunes, light a candle because we need a little ambiance after our day of work and kids and connect with whom ever you have decided to share this scrumptious meal with !! Enjoy!





8 comments:

  1. This cheesesteak is fantastic. Aside from the heart stoppers in Philly, this is by far the best I have ever had! Rem-bot cooked up a mean sangy on one of our dinner date nights and we had no problems finishing the entire meal, delicious!!! I am so excited for this blog and even more so now that I have the recipe! I'll have to think of a few winners to post here. Great blog idea as I too am a food lover!!

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  2. I am THRILLED you've started a blog! HOORAY! And I love you for making it a FOOD blog. We are SO cut from the same cloth, Maren. I will definitely be making this sometime in the next few days, and I promise to faithfully report back my thoughts. Keep 'em coming! xoxo

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  3. Wow! Love the blog and how much easier have you made my life that I can get dinner ideas at the click of a button. The kids will love you even more for this! Can't wait to see what's next....

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  4. Mama you are so crafty, I love you for that and so many other reasons! Love the blog and love that I don't have to think about what I need to cook anymore! <3 <3

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  5. Man, you are going to put me to work with these fancy recipe's!!! This is going to be fantastic!!!!!!

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  6. I'm proud to be sitting back watching where you're going, my sweet foodie. You'll have to make this for us when you visit. Who's going to write the wine blog?

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  7. I can step in on the wine blog =) Tonight is Pinot Noir but no Cheesesteaks =( because I worked till 2

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  8. Alright, lady. Made these the other night and they were HEAVEN. I'm serious. I totally underestimated the power of that gruyere. I loved the arugula with it (very clever touch) and the garlicy bread put it OVER THE EDGE. A complete winner- thanks for a fantastic new recipe for my repertoire!

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