Steak Fajitas

My husband and I recently ate out and ordered steak fajitas. I'm a fan of most things that come in a tortilla, but I was blown away by the seasoning on the meat. I could have eaten the meat alone and been completely happy. When I realized how amazing a fajita could be with a great seasoned meat, I was determined to find a great fajita recipe. Luckily, it took me one look through Pinterest, and one try on the first recipe I found from Little Spice Jar to find a fantastic marinade. 

Now, as a relatively new newlywed, I don't have many spices. I don't have the space to store them, and for the first year and a half, all the spices I have were sitting loosely on our counter up against a wall. Finally I got a small wooden crate to contain them and make it look a bit nicer, but even that doesn't hold them all. So I hesitate to buy anymore spices than I already have because I just don't have the room. So when I made the recipe, I did not include the cumin, chili powder or cilantro, and I thought it was still amazing. 

Our favorites are orange and red peppers!

Tip about juices: The recipe did not state whether to use lime juice from concentrate (in the bottle) or fresh-squeezed juice. I used the juice in the bottle, but noticed that the lime taste was much stronger than the pineapple juice taste. I did add a bit more pineapple juice than it called for, but could still taste the lime. This was not a bad taste, as it added a tangy taste which was still delicious. However, when explaining this to my mother, she noted that any concentrate that you get in a bottle is going to be stronger than the fresh-squeezed juice. So next time I make this, I might use a bit less of the lime juice. Thanks for the knowledge mom!

One thing I struggle with when making meats is the time it takes to cook the meat. It always takes almost double the time to cook my meats than recipes state, and the only reason I can think of is that every stove is different. I also do not have a cast iron skillet that I hear is great for cooking any meat. But my meat took 10-15 minutes on each side, and it was still medium rare when done. I thought my meat was going to start moo-ing at me (something my family would say), so I stuck a few of the slices back in the pan for just a minute on each side, which was perfect. 

I added just a bit of the marinade in the pan so it didn't all go to waste

Cooking the veggies in the pan that the meat cooked in added a bit of that marinated flavor, and saved dishes. 

This is a simple and delicious recipe I will use again for fajitas! Enjoy!

Steak Fajitas
(My interpretation of directions. To find more explanation and detail, see Little Spice Jar's page.)
Marinade:
1/3 cup lime juice (less if concentrate)
1/4 cup pineapple juice
2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
3 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp minced garlic
2 tsp EACH cumin and chili powder
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
Fajitas:
1 1/2-2 lbs shirt or flank steak (I used flat iron steak)
1 Tbsp oil
2 medium white onions, sliced
2-3 bell peppers

1. Steak marinade: Combine ingredients for marinade in a bowl. Taste and adjust if needed. Coat steak in marinate and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight. Remove from fridge 30 minutes before cooking.
2. Set pan on high heat to warm up oil. Add steak to pan (and a little liquid marinade if desired) and fry on each side for ~3 minutes on each side. Remove the steak and allow to rest before cutting, tented with foil. Slice the meat against the grain.
3. Add remaining oil to the pan and add veggies. Cook until desired doneness. 
4. Serve in tortillas with preferred condiments such as sour cream, shredded cheese, lettuce, etc. 

Pasta-Filled Peppers

I saw this recipe in my Taste of Home Guilt-free Cooking book and thought it looked fancy. The directions looked simple enough, so I thought I'd try it. The lesson I learned from this recipe: Things are not always as simple as they seem!

On the first step, I encountered a technique of cooking that I have not done yet. Broiling. I didn't even know what a broiler was except that there is a broil setting on my oven temp dial. So I had to do a bit of research before I could even begin. 

Tip about broiling: In my oven (and most typical ovens) the broiler is on the top of the oven. So to broil a vegetable, you should put a rack as close to the top as possible. One thing I learned immediately is that whole peppers can be big, and despite the ability to put them on the top racks close to the broiler as possible, it may not be the best idea if the peppers touch the broiler because they instantly burn. Each time I took them out to turn them, they hit the broiler element. I also had to make sure they were spaced on the cookie sheet so that they strattled the elements while in the oven.

The directions state next to place them in a covered bowl for 10 minutes. When researching ways to roast whole peppers, I found an explanation here of why it is important to cover and let them set. However, they were not cool enough to handle in 10 minutes, so I placed the bowl in the refrigerator and took out 1 at a time to take off the skin. As you can see, it was not easy. The skin did not easily come off, so I resorted to a knife and my fingers to peel only the burnt parts off. 

The insides were easier to cut out than I thought, but I think to another time, I might just lob off the whole top to make a bigger opening. 

The pasta filling could be a whole delicious meal just by itself. It's easy, cheesy, and fantastic! 

The peppers were a bit droopy, so I elected to have my helpful husband scoop the pasta into the peppers while I held them up in a casserole dish. Some help might be in order for this step. 

Overall, I was really happy with the results, and we thought they were delicious! They even tasted great as leftovers up to 2 days later! 

I was so proud of how a few of them looked, I wanted to show a comparison of the cookbook picture and my final plating. All that to say, you can make a fancy-looking dish in a small apartment kitchen! Have fun!

The picture from the book

My final product!

Pasta-Filled Peppers

6 medium green, sweet red and/or yellow peppers

6 ounces uncooked spaghetti

3/4 cup diced onion 

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 tsp  canola oil

1 3/4 cup diced fresh tomatoes

1 Tbsp all-purpose flour

3/4 tsp salt

1 1/4 cup vegetable broth

3/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

1/4 cup minced fresh basil

3 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese

1. Place whole peppers on a broiler pan; broil 6 in. from the heat for 10-15 minutes or until skins are blistered and blackened, turning often. Immediately place peppers in a bowl; cover and let stand for 10 minutes. Peel off and discard charred skins. Carefully cut tops off peppers and discard; remove seeds. Set peppers aside.

2. Cook spaghetti according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large nonstick skillet, salute onion and garlic in oil until tender. Add tomatoes; cook for 1 minute. In a small bowl, combine the flour, salt and broth until smooth. Gradually stir into tomato mixture. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 1 minute or until slightly thickened.

3. Drain spaghetti; add to the tomato mixture and toss to coat. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese, basil and Parmesan; toss. Spoon into peppers. Place in a 3-qt. microwave-safe baking dish. Cover and microwave on high for 1-3 minutes or until heated through.