Steak N Shake

It's FINALLY winter break!!!!! It's relieving to be on break with no school work or projects or mandatory reading. It gives me plenty of time to cook! Tonight was the first time I made a Giada meal in a real kitchen. What a luxury :) Having counter space, an actual stove, all the necessary ingredients, and a dishwasher was the best...thing...EVER.

Tonight I ventured once again into the "Everyday Grills and Sautes" sections of the "Everyday Entrees" with Seared Rib-Eye Steak with Arugula-Roasted Pepper Salad. Cue the mouths watering.

First, I cut up the red peppers, seasoned them with salt, pepper, and EVOO spray, and roasted them in the oven. Giada recommends using her recipe for Roasted Red Peppers, but I have yet to reach that part of the book, so I did things my way (but what else is new?). Next, I prepared the steaks.

This was my first time making steak, and thankfully this recipe was simple enough for me not to mess up my first time (not to mention, with everything provided for me in my own home kitchen, I'm not really set up for disaster). I seasoned the steaks with salt, pepper, and EVOO as well and placed them in a heated pan. I cooked the steaks on each side for a little over five minutes each. Giada recommends not touching the steaks at all as they cook. This was easy to do considering I had to work on the rest of the meal. I was also cooking some macaroni and cheese for my niece (but of course, I didn't make the stuff from the box. I cooked some pasta then stirred in some milk, Parmesan, and mozzarella. I am so far from the average college student).

As the steaks cooked, I was making the pasta as I said, watching the peppers in the oven, and making the dressing for the salad. I started with some actual EVOO (shocker, I know) and balsamic vinegar. To this I added some salt and pepper. Once the steaks were done cooking, I removed them from the heat and let them rest for about 10 minutes. This is so the juices and settle within the meat to keep it nice and juicy. If you were to cut it right after cooking it, all the juices would spill out. And it wouldn't taste nearly as good.

I poured the steak juices from the pan into the dressing and whisked it all together. Now, for the assembly! I placed some arugula on each plate, then some of the roasted peppers on top of that. When the meat was done resting, I cut it into about 1 1/2 inch thick pieces and placed that on top of the salad along with some dressing.

Pretty simple, right? It was also very tasty. I was quite proud of my first steak dish. Had I attempted this at school, I feel as though it may not have gone as smoothly. Something would have been over-cooked, the would have forgotten an ingredient (as it is, I was supposed to put grated Parmesan on top of this, but it didn't really need it in my opinion), or some other catastrophe. Not to mention, when I cooked a type of steak in room (coughTUNAcough), it didn't go over so well.

My next day of cooking will be on Saturday when I attempt another vegetable dish. For now, I have an SNL Christmas special to watch and some crossword puzzles to show whose boss. You stay classy faithful readers :)

P.S. I forgot to take a picture of this lovely meal tonight (yes, I ate it too quickly) so please enjoy this random picture above.