Hello from California, my new/old domicile!! A lot has happened since April 11th, and I’d like to tell you all exactly what has happened in excruciating detail. But I will spare you. Instead here is a succinct list that should pretty much cover it:
- I accepted a position at Summit Public Schools, and I couldn’t be happier here!
- Karl and I signed a lease for our first apartment together and reached another new relationship milestone – furniture shopping.
- I left my job at the NeuroCognition Lab, which was harder than a break-up, but I left Boston with a ton of new forever friends. Except, Ellie. We couldn’t take Ellie with us, and we’re still crippled by the heartache.
- We loaded up our apartment in Karl’s Saab (and also shipped a ton of boxes) and headed west for California, stopping in Kansas along the way to give hugs and kisses to family.
- We are happily settled in our cozy new home – all that is missing is a puppy!
- My baby sister graduated college – what?!
- We made it back in time for cherry picking season in Brentwood, CA! We picked 9 pounds in one afternoon and devoured it all, with very little help, in less than a week.
Now we’re just enjoying our new home, the company of family and old friends, and many meals out in San Francisco.
I had lunch at Fresca, a tiny Peruvian restaurant in SF, with my cousin to celebrate my return. I skimmed their menu and asked myself, “what looks like it is, at a minimum, superficially healthy?”. It didn’t take long for me to settled on the steak salad. My goodness – it was incredible, and I really wanted to save some for Karl, but I had no such restraint. I made it a goal to replicate the dish as best as possible, and here it is, my first blog post since the move!
Many Peruvian dishes have Asian influences, and so the meat in this dish is marinated with soy sauce and rice wine vinegar. The tender meat is juicy and flavorful, and served over a bed of crisp greens, dressed with a creamy cilantro avocado dressing (I didn’t attempt to make the dressing myself, as I couldn’t do better than Bolthouse Farms’ dressing). One of my favorite parts of this dish is the red onions that soak up the marinade and become so flavorful and soft after cooking. This dish is an extremely easy dinner – I could literally eat it every day!
- 1 pound sirloin steak, sliced into strips about 10 mm thick
- 1 medium red onion, sliced into wedges
- 84 grams mixed greens or 50/50 mixed greens, divided in half
- ⅓ cup creamy cilantro avocado dressing, divided in half (I highly recommend Bolthouse Farms', or you could make your own)
- 1 ripe avocado, halved, pitted, and sliced into wedges
- cilantro sprigs (optional, for garnish)
- 16 grams (6 cloves) garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 16 grams (1 tablespoon) sugar
- ½ teaspoon cumin
- ¼ cup rice vinegar
- ¼ cup soy sauce
- ¼ cup canola oil
- 1 jalapeno, seeded (for mild heat) and diced
- Place the meat in a medium mixing bowl, then add all the ingredients for the marinade. Mix well, cover, and chill for at least one hour. Leave the meat out at room temperature for 15 minutes before cooking.
- When the meat is done marinating, heat up ½ tablespoon canola oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Add the onions and saute until they're soft, about 4-5 minutes. Add the meat with all the marinade to the skillet, and saute for 4-5 minutes (or until your desired doneness). Remove from the heat, then set aside.
- Place the greens on two plates. Drizzle the creamy cilantro avocado dressing over the greens. Spoon the meat and some sauce over the greens. Place half of the avocado slices on each plate. Garnish with cilantro (optional), and serve warm.
Looks delicious and very healthful!
Sending love from Kansas,
Grandma
Glad you’re back to cooking & posting! The salad looks & sounds delicious. And also the salad dressing – I’ll have to look for that one here.
Love your photos as always!