Cold Noodle Salad with Grilled Flank Steak

I adore noodles, especially the asian variety. Be it pad thai, pho, lo mein, or what ever else, I will absolutely gorge myself. So tasty. This recipe has been a work in progress for some time and after perfecting the dressing a few weeks ago, it has become one of my absolute favorite things to make (C's too!). It can also be turned into a vegan dish, just omit the beef!



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Ingredients
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Rice Noodles (amount should be based in the number of people.)
Baby spinach
Bean sprouts
Cabbage Mix
Red Onions
Flank Steak

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Rice noodles are amazing. They are super tasty, have a really nice texture and are very healthy.



Cook according to package directions (usually boil for 10 min or until done). Rice noodles are a little chewier than traditional pasta, so be careful not to over cook them, because they will get mushy.

Once they are cooked, drain and rinse with cold water. Run the cold water over them a little longer than normal. Doing this will chill them a bit - which makes this a "cold noodle" salad. Get it? Grab a big salad bowl and dump in the cold noodles.



Grab the veggies. You can use what ever veggies you like, but here's the stuff I like to use. Baby spinach, bean sprouts, cabbage mix (which is basically a mix for cole slaw that has green and red cabbage, carrots and broccoli all shredded realy fine) and thinly sliced red onions. Add how ever much or little you want into the bowl.



Now the best part. Grab a big meaty flank steak. Marinate it early in the day with a good asian flavored marinade - I use a store bought sesame ginger variety.



Grill the steak according to your preference. I usually grill med-rare, cause C is a carnivore and likes it a little bloody. Once it has cooked, let it rest for about 5 minutes.

A note on resting meat. It is a very important step when cooking steak or any other meat. Resting allows the juices to redistribute throughout and when you cut into it, you don't lose all that goodness that makes steak so yummy. So rest your meat. You will thank me.

After resting, slice the steak paper thin against the grain. This will yield a very soft and easily chewable piece. Take all that delicious juicy meat and plop it right on top of the veggies and noodles.



Now you can top it with Honey Ginger Lime dressing or any of your favorite asian sauces. After that, grab some chop sticks and dig in!

Sunrise Smoothie Recipe

Everyone loves a good smoothie. They are healthy and a great way to get your fruit and dairy intact for the day. Here is a really good recipe for one that I enjoy for b-fast.

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2 cups Ice
1 cup oj
1 cup vanilla yogurt
1 cup pineapple chunks
1/2 banana

*place all ingredients into blender and blend until smooth.
*Pour into a tall glass, insert straw and enjoy!


The great thing about smoothies is that they are totally customizable. You can add what ever combination of fruit you want! You can also add supplemental powders too!

Homemade Granola

I have a total fiend for granola. After extensive research and some tasty tries, I perfected this...



It's totally customizable and very easy to make.

3c Quaker old fashioned oats
1c Rice Krispies
1/2c Honey (try organic honey, the taste is so much better)
2 tbls vanilla
2tbls cinnamon sugar (i had a mixture of equal parts cinnamon and sugar for toast and C's daily bowl of oatmeal)
1tbls brownsugar
1/4tsp salt
1/2c butter; melted (please use real butter, unsalted, you can't bake with the fake healthy stuff. it's sacrilegious)
1/2c raisens*
1/2c glazed walnuts* (emerald nuts variety, love)
1/2c almond slivers*

* You can put what ever fruit and/or nut combination you prefer. I like to keep mine simple.

Pre-heat oven to 250.

Dump dry ingredients into a big bowl. Slowly pour melted butter and honey and vanilla
and stir with a spatula. Spread oats evenly on a large cookie sheet and pop into oven. Stir every 15 minutes or so, until it has cooked for 1 hour. Remove and set aside. Once the granola has gotten crispy and cooled off enough to nibble, break apart and store in an airtight container.

I like mine with some low-fat yogurt and sliced banana.

Super Awesome Turkey Burgers

One of my favorite things to cook for the fam is turkey burgers. They are healthy, tasy and kid-friendly. It has taken many attempts, but i have perfect the recipes and they are awesome.

No, they are super awesome.

Recipe:

1 lb. extra lean ground turkey meat
1/2 teaspoon soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon liquid smoke
dash of salt and pepper
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
2 green onion stalks, sliced
1 avocado
1 tablespoon mayo
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
lime juice (optional)
spinach
monterey jack cheese
red onion
bun

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Directions:

-Combine turkey, soy sauce, liquid smoke, s-n-p, garlic and green onion in large bowl. Mix thoroughly and divide into four equal balls.
-Form balls into large patties and either cook on a grill (heated to 350) or large skillet (with a bit of olive oil so they don't stick).
-Cook patties, flipping once after 6-8 minutes.
-Place on bun and top with avocado spread, cheese, spinach and red onions.

(Avocado spread - mash avo in a bowl and add mayo and mustard. splash a bit of lime juice for extra flavor)

C loves 'em