Wednesday, August 27, 2014

Flank Steak with Mediterranean-Inspired Orzo

When working the night shift, it can be hard to balance sleep, your work schedule, and your personal life, especially on the end of the seasons' beautiful sunny days, which makes you feel the need to be up and enjoying the day rather than sleeping a rational amount of hours. This recipe is perfect for days like these because it's fast, easy, healthy, and most of the leg-work can be done ahead of time. The other great thing about steak, is that it can be marinated ahead of time, and then taken out of the fridge and brought to room temperature before you're ready to cook, giving you ample time to prepare the rest of the ingredients. 



Flank Steak with Mediterranean-Inspired Orzo
(makes two servings)

10 oz. flank steak
2 tbsp. aged balsamic vinegar
3 tbsp. olive oil
2 pinches sea salt
cracked pepper
3 cloves chopped garlic
4 oz. orzo pasta
1 tbsp. butter
1/2 white onion, chopped
1/2 cup grape tomatoes (sliced in half)
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1/8 cut feta cheese
1/8 cup slivered almonds (optional, but I had these lying around)

1. Marinate flank steak with balsamic, olive oil, chopped garlic, and salt and pepper for approx. 2 hours

2. Boil water, and cook orzo approx. 8-10 minutes, or until al dente. Simultaneously, heat a pan with butter, and cook onions and grape tomatoes until fragrant. When the orzo is done, rinse with cool water, drain, and set aside. 

3. Make sure the pan you cook your steak in is HOT - place your hand over the pan - is it radiating heat? Perfect! Depending on the thickness of your steak, sear flank steak for approx. 4-6 minutes on each side - this should give you a perfect medium rare steak. Remove the steak from heat, and let sit for approx. 5 minutes - it should cook an additional 5 degrees in this time, so you'll have to adjust the cooking times depending on your preferred level of doneness. 

4. Add cooked orzo to onion/tomato mixture, and mix well. If you want to gild the lily, add an additional pat of butter to the orzo mixture. 

5. Add dried cranberries, slivered almonds (if you use them) and feta cheese to the orzo. Slice steak in slivers against the grain, and place on top of orzo, and enjoy! 

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