STEAK SALAD WITH HOMEMADE CREAMY AVOCADO DRESSING

You guys, I am so proud of myself.  I made salad dressing!  And it was so darn delicious.  I know, I know, people do it allllllll the time and I am no pioneer.  However, I think it deserves just a little bragging.  Okay, typing with one hand is too difficult.  Time to stop patting myself on the back and continue telling you about this meal!

There's just something about a cold, crunchy salad with slices of warm, juicy steak that makes people happy.  I've had my eye on this "homemade avocado ranch dressing" recipe ever since I spied it on Pinterest.  Not sure it officially qualifies as ranch, but then again what's the definition of ranch?  The dressing doesn't really have a ranchy flavor.  It tastes like avocados.  I know, mind blowing, right?

For the steak: season and grill.

For the dressing: avocados, Greek yogurt, lemon juice, fresh garlic, extra virgin olive oil, salt and hot sauce.  I used a handheld immersion blender (greatest invention ever), but a regular blender will work just as well.

Oh and since it's a STEAK salad, you should serve it with macaroni and cheese.  Right?  Doesn't everyone do it that way?  Seriously, it was the perfect accompaniment. 

Ingredients

Steak:
1 lb flank steak, trimmed
2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2-3 tablespoons Montreal Steak Seasoning
a pinch or two of coarse kosher salt

Salad dressing:
1 large avocado
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice (I squeezed about half the lemon in to avoid browning of avocado!)
1/2 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic
2 teaspoons salt
3 teaspoons hot sauce (I used red AND green Tabasco)

Rub steak all over with olive oil.  Sprinkle generously with steak seasoning and rub in.  Sprinkle on salt.  Repeat on other side.  Place in large ziploc bag and refrigerate for 30 minutes (or 8 hours if you've got a better memory than this blogger).  Preheat grill to medium high heat.  Cook on each side for about 5 minutes for medium rare.  Allow to rest for at least 10 minutes, then slice into strips.

Place all dressing ingredients in blender and blend until desired consistency.  Taste and adjust seasonings, if necessary.

Serve steak over romaine and tomatoes.  Sprinkle with blue cheese and drizzle with dressing.  Grind fresh salt and pepper all over salad. 

Perfectly mixed.

CHEESY RANCH TURKEY BURGERS

Remember when I said I wanted to use this cheese in new recipes?  Well, I did it!  I'm also still sticking to my vow of not grocery shopping, and only using what I've currently got in the kitchen.  I used the remainder of the delicious pimento cheese, but I think next time I'll use even more for ultimate cheese flavor.

This is a simple recipe.  One pound extra lean ground turkey, one packet Hidden Valley Ranch powder seasoning, and of course, Spicy White Cheddar pimento cheese.  These burgers had so much flavor that while cooking the second batch, we ate the first batch without toppings or buns!  Yum.  There were some ripe avocados and romaine lettuce leftover from salad night earlier this week.  By the way, I just realized that I bought the romaine on Monday, washed and dried it in my new salad spinner, and it's still fresh today.  I am now officially a salad spinner convert.

Begin by combining turkey, ranch seasoning and cheese in a large bowl with your hands.  Form and flatten into patties.  Heat some oil or butter in a large nonstick skillet, then cook burgers over medium heat.  Flip them after about 7 minutes, when they've got a nice brown crust.  Cook on other side until cooked through.  We had ours on delicious, soft pretzel slider rolls.

Moisten the tops with a little water...

then, sprinkle on some coarse salt.

Ingredients

1 lb extra lean ground turkey
1 packet Hidden Valley Ranch powder
Pimento cheese, anywhere from 1/3 cup to half the package*
Butter or oil for cooking
salt and pepper
toppings
buns

Using your hands, mix turkey, ranch powder, and cheese in large bowl.  Form into 4 patties for burgers, or 8 patties for sliders.  Season both sides with salt and pepper.  Heat large nonstick skillet over medium heat, then heat up oil or butter.  Cook burgers 2 or 3 at a time, and cook sliders 4 at a time.  You don't want to crowd them in the skillet.  Cook for about 15 minutes, flipping once halfway through.  Serve on hamburger buns or slider rolls.  Top with additional cheese, lettuce, avocado, thousand island, etc.

*Note: I've made the burgers using the entire container of cheese and it was a DISASTER.  I could barely form patties, and when I finally did they just fell apart.  Don't use more than half the package, unless you want a bowl of turkey crumbles for dinner.  It was still delicious!

CHOPPED TACO SALAD

A recipe for salad?  Yes, a recipe for salad.  I love love love Mexican food, but I'm not sure my pants would fit if I gave into my daily cravings.  When I'm in the mood for delicious tacos, burritos or enchiladas I whip up this "healthier" taco salad.  Now, I have a version that is not healthy at all, and another that is a bit more health conscious.

I always start with a big bunch of chopped romaine.  Brown a pound of extra lean ground turkey, then add a can of black beans and a packet of taco seasoning.  Let simmer until most liquid has evaporated. 

Brown ground turkey, add beans and taco seasoning

Now it's time for toppings!  Chopped tomatoes, cucumbers, green peppers and avocado are delicious in taco salad.

Now for the dressing: when in piggy mode, I use (coat the salad in) thousand island dressing.  It gives the meal such an unexpected tangy flavor.  It is SO good.  If you're going all the way with full fat thousand island, you may as well throw in some crushed up nacho cheese Doritos.  Totally makes the salad.  For the healthier version, I mix about a tablespoon of ranch dressing with a lot of salsa and hot sauce.  You still get that creamy ranch flavor, but without the calories of a bigger pour.  The salsa will coat your salad nicely, but with minimal calories.  If you still need the Doritos, get the baked kind!

"Healthier" dressing ingredients

Flavor!

Ingredients

Chopped romaine
1 lb extra lean ground turkey
1 can black beans, 15 oz
1 packet taco seasoning (I used Old El Paso)
tomatoes
avocado
green peppers
cucumber
Thousand Island salad dressing
OR
Ranch + Salsa + Hot sauce
OR
Nonfat greek yogurt + Salsa + Hot sauce

Brown ground turkey, add taco seasoning and undrained black beans.  Simmer until most liquid evaporates.  Plate lettuce and top with meat mixture.  Top with chopped veggies, dressing, and chips.  Enjoy!



Truth time: I always eat my salads out of a huge mixing bowl while hunkered down on the couch. Don't judge.

What my salad actually looks like.