Skirt Steak and Broccoli Rabe

I really like Skirt Steaks. My brother-in-law Tommy got me into them years ago but I don't make them that often. They tend to be fatty but the fat is visible and easy to trim. Steve didn't think he liked them so I shied away for them for a long time. Since I've been in the spirit of getting "The Boss" to try more things I like I decided to give them a shot. To my surprise, he actually approved of them. I love when I am able to get him to try (and like) new things. We have both been able to do this for each other. Steve got me into Sushi, Guacamole and Egg Drop soup! The soup is actually a funny/cute story. On one of our first few dates Steve and I decided to do Chinese Take-Out and a movie. When Steve took out the menu for his favorite Chinese Restaurant he went right to the Egg Drop - Wonton Mix soup and said that we have to get this because it's so good. I never had Egg Drop soup. One of my coworkers used to call it Phlegm Drop Soup and that's all I could think of. "Do you like that?" he asked. "Yes, yes, it's fine." I told him. I didn't want to seem like I was difficult. When the food came I was hesitant to try it but didn't let him know. So, I tasted it and LOVED it! From that moment on it's been my favorite thing to order at a Chinese Restaurant. I'll never order plain Wonton Soup again! Sometimes I'll even get just plain egg drop!

Wow, I certainly went off topic. Anyway, I came up with this marinade after looking at a few marinade recipes in my Weber cookbook. None of them jumped out at me so I used some of their ideas in combination with what I had in my pantry and spice cabinet. I was very happy with the result. It was a little on the salty side so don't add any salt to this at all. Marinate the steaks for an hour or longer. I have a nifty marinator from Tupperware that can be flipped over without leaking. It's great for steaks. A good tip whenever you are using a thick saucy marinade is to pat the meat dry before you grill it, especially if you are using a grill pan like I did. This prevents the sauce from burning and causing smoke which will set off the smoke alarm. Yes, I am talking from experience. It happens to the best of us, right? So besides the marinade there really isn't a recipe because we all like our steaks cooked differently. I cooked these for about 8 minutes on each side and they were nice and red in the center. Leftovers are great for fajitas the next day (as long as you don't overcook them on day one)!


Marinade

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp garlic
1 tsp cumin
t tsp smoked paprika
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp terriyaki sauce
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp honey

Skirt Steak and Broccoli Rabe

I really like Skirt Steaks. My brother-in-law Tommy got me into them years ago but I don't make them that often. They tend to be fatty but the fat is visible and easy to trim. Steve didn't think he liked them so I shied away for them for a long time. Since I've been in the spirit of getting "The Boss" to try more things I like I decided to give them a shot. To my surprise, he actually approved of them. I love when I am able to get him to try (and like) new things. We have both been able to do this for each other. Steve got me into Sushi, Guacamole and Egg Drop soup! The soup is actually a funny/cute story. On one of our first few dates Steve and I decided to do Chinese Take-Out and a movie. When Steve took out the menu for his favorite Chinese Restaurant he went right to the Egg Drop - Wonton Mix soup and said that we have to get this because it's so good. I never had Egg Drop soup. One of my coworkers used to call it Phlegm Drop Soup and that's all I could think of. "Do you like that?" he asked. "Yes, yes, it's fine." I told him. I didn't want to seem like I was difficult. When the food came I was hesitant to try it but didn't let him know. So, I tasted it and LOVED it! From that moment on it's been my favorite thing to order at a Chinese Restaurant. I'll never order plain Wonton Soup again! Sometimes I'll even get just plain egg drop!

Wow, I certainly went off topic. Anyway, I came up with this marinade after looking at a few marinade recipes in my Weber cookbook. None of them jumped out at me so I used some of their ideas in combination with what I had in my pantry and spice cabinet. I was very happy with the result. It was a little on the salty side so don't add any salt to this at all. Marinate the steaks for an hour or longer. I have a nifty marinator from Tupperware that can be flipped over without leaking. It's great for steaks. A good tip whenever you are using a thick saucy marinade is to pat the meat dry before you grill it, especially if you are using a grill pan like I did. This prevents the sauce from burning and causing smoke which will set off the smoke alarm. Yes, I am talking from experience. It happens to the best of us, right? So besides the marinade there really isn't a recipe because we all like our steaks cooked differently. I cooked these for about 8 minutes on each side and they were nice and red in the center. Leftovers are great for fajitas the next day (as long as you don't overcook them on day one)!


Marinade

2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp garlic
1 tsp cumin
t tsp smoked paprika
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp terriyaki sauce
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp honey

Pasta with Sausage and Broccoli Rabe

I know, I know, I've been a bad girl. I haven't posted a recipe in weeks! I've been pretty busy with parties and showers and all kinds of things going on. All happy celebrations so I don't mind it. With all the craziness that went on I did remember to snap a photo so I could blog about this wonderful dish. I made this for Steve's Aunt's Baby Shower last week and everyone liked it which makes me very happy!

Before I go on to post this recipe I just want to say Congratulations Melissa and Salvatore and Congratulations to Dana and Lenny!!! Both couples will be parents for the very first time!!!

Okay so here goes...it's really very easy and you can add as much or as little garlic as you like or even use hot sausage or a mixture of sweet and hot. This recipe was written to feed a crowd but you can certainly make this for one pound of pasta and use only one bunch of broccoli rabe and half the amount of sausage. I hope you like it! I'd love to hear your variation on this very popular dish so feel free to comment!

Pasta with Sausage and Broccoli Rabe

Ingredients:

1 lb sweet Italian sausage (6 links)
2 bunches, broccoli rabe
4-5 cloves garlic
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Crushed red pepper, to taste
Salt and peppr
Romano cheese, to taste
2 lbs pasta

Directions:

1. Remove stems from broccoli rabe and discard. Cut into bite sized pieces.
Boil broccoli rabe in a large pot of salted water for about 8-10 minutes. Drain (reserve 2 cups of water) and put into an ice cold water bath to stop the cooking process and set aside.

2. While broccoli rabe is cooking, remove sausage from casing and crumble. Saute sausage in oil with garlic and red pepper, constantly breaking it up. Once sausage is cooked add in broccoli rabe and toss to coat with oil. Let it cook together with a few minutes so the broccoli rabe picks up the flavors. At this point you can refrigerate overnight or until ready to cook the pasta.

3. Boil pasta (chose one that won’t fall apart such as orrechiette, cellantani, cavatappi, etc.) in salted water while reheating sausage and broccoli rabe mixture. Add some reserved water from the broccoli rabe to moisten the mixture. Add cooked pasta and toss while continuing to add more water as needed. It shouldn’t be soupy but should not be dry. Toss with cheese and a little more extra virgin olive oil.

Enjoy!

Pasta with Sausage and Broccoli Rabe

I know, I know, I've been a bad girl. I haven't posted a recipe in weeks! I've been pretty busy with parties and showers and all kinds of things going on. All happy celebrations so I don't mind it. With all the craziness that went on I did remember to snap a photo so I could blog about this wonderful dish. I made this for Steve's Aunt's Baby Shower last week and everyone liked it which makes me very happy!

Before I go on to post this recipe I just want to say Congratulations Melissa and Salvatore and Congratulations to Dana and Lenny!!! Both couples will be parents for the very first time!!!

Okay so here goes...it's really very easy and you can add as much or as little garlic as you like or even use hot sausage or a mixture of sweet and hot. This recipe was written to feed a crowd but you can certainly make this for one pound of pasta and use only one bunch of broccoli rabe and half the amount of sausage. I hope you like it! I'd love to hear your variation on this very popular dish so feel free to comment!

Pasta with Sausage and Broccoli Rabe

Ingredients:

1 lb sweet Italian sausage (6 links)
2 bunches, broccoli rabe
4-5 cloves garlic
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Crushed red pepper, to taste
Salt and peppr
Romano cheese, to taste
2 lbs pasta

Directions:

1. Remove stems from broccoli rabe and discard. Cut into bite sized pieces.
Boil broccoli rabe in a large pot of salted water for about 8-10 minutes. Drain (reserve 2 cups of water) and put into an ice cold water bath to stop the cooking process and set aside.

2. While broccoli rabe is cooking, remove sausage from casing and crumble. Saute sausage in oil with garlic and red pepper, constantly breaking it up. Once sausage is cooked add in broccoli rabe and toss to coat with oil. Let it cook together with a few minutes so the broccoli rabe picks up the flavors. At this point you can refrigerate overnight or until ready to cook the pasta.

3. Boil pasta (chose one that won’t fall apart such as orrechiette, cellantani, cavatappi, etc.) in salted water while reheating sausage and broccoli rabe mixture. Add some reserved water from the broccoli rabe to moisten the mixture. Add cooked pasta and toss while continuing to add more water as needed. It shouldn’t be soupy but should not be dry. Toss with cheese and a little more extra virgin olive oil.

Enjoy!