Lesson #47: Susan’s Sizzling Steak Salad

Low Carb Cooking 101

The inspiration for tonight’s menu comes from Susan M., someone I’ve known from various low carb lists and a CarbSmart Magazine reader. The Sizzling Steak Salad she suggested sounded so good that I asked her if I could use her idea for Low Carb Cooking 101. Thank goodness she said yes, because I really wanted to share it with all of you. Thanks, Susan!

This salad is great for a family meal and, since everything in the meal except cooking the steak) can be made ahead of time, it’s great to fix for company, too. It’s always nice to have a company meal that’s prepared ahead of time so that you can enjoy your company rather than being stuck in the kitchen.

Here’s this evening’s menu:

• Susan’s Sizzling Steak Salad
• Deviled Eggs
• Cucumber Bullseyes
• Simply Strawberries

Here’s the shopping list for the meal:

You may already have some of these things on hand.

• 1 1/2 pounds flank steak (or your favorite steak)
• 2 4-ounce packages chipped beef
• 2 16-ounce bags mixed salad greens (or salad greens of your choice)
• 1 medium tomato or 2 – 3 Roma tomatoes
• 1/4 mild onion
• 1 bunch green onions
• 2 – 3 large, straight cucumbers
• 4 ounces crumbled blue cheese or 4 ounces shredded cheese of your choice
• butter or vegetable oil
• 1 8-ounce package cream cheese
• 1 dozen eggs
• mayonnaise
• salad dressing or salad dressings of your choice
• salt
• black pepper
• paprika (optional – for garnish)
• Worcestershire sauce
• 1 pint strawberries
• sugar free DaVinci raspberry (or orange) syrup

Here’s the game plan:

I make everything for this meal ahead of tine, either the night before or the morning before I plan to serve the meal. You can do the prep work anytime that’s convenient for you.

First, hard-boil the eggs for the deviled eggs. Let them cool, then slice them in half lengthwise. Take out the yolks with a spoon and mix them with the other ingredients according to the recipe directions. Put the mixture in a bowl, cover it with plastic wrap, and put it in the refrigerator. Put the whites in a different Zip Lock bag and put them in the refrigerator, too.

Next, semi-freeze the steak, slice it thinly according to the recipe directions, and put it in a Zip Lock bag in the refrigerator until just before you plan to serve the meal.

Prepare the cheese ball for the Cucumber Bullseyes, cover it with plastic wrap, and put it in the refrigerator to chill.

Prepare all the vegetables for the salad, cover them with plastic wrap and put them in the refrigerator.

Prepare the Simply Strawberries and put them in a bowl with a tight-fitting lid in the refrigerator.

Core the cucumbers, then stuff them with the chilled cheese ball. Wrap each stuffed cucumber tightly with plastic wrap and put them in the refrigerator.

About a half an or to 45 minutes before you plan to serve the meal, slice the Cucumber Bullseyes, put them on a serving plate, and put them on the table or serving buffet.

Fill the cooked egg whites with the yolk mixture, put them on a serving plate, sprinkle them with paprika if you wish, and put them on the table or serving buffet.

Set the table. Put the individual bowls of salad fixings, the large salad bowl of mixed greens, and the Simply Strawberries on the table or serving buffet.

Cook the steak according to the recipe directions, then put the serving plate of steak slices on the table or serving buffet. Call everyone to the table and have them serve themselves.

Serve yourself and sit down to a well-deserved, relaxing meal.

And, finally, here’s the recipes:

Susan’s Sizzling Steak Salad

• 1 1/2 pounds flank steak (or your favorite steak)
• 1 – 2 tablespoons butter or vegetable oil
• 2 16-ounce bags mixed salad greens (or salad greens of your choice)
• 1/2 cucumber, sliced and quartered
• 1 medium tomato or 2 – 3 Roma tomatoes, seeded and chopped
• 1/4 mild onion, sliced into bite-sized pieces
• 2 – 3 green onions, sliced
• 4 ounces crumbled blue cheese or 4 ounces shredded cheese of your choice
• salad dressing or salad dressings of your choice

Place the steak in the freezer for 20 to 30 minutes, or until it is semi-frozen but not hard. (This will make it easier to slice.)

Using an electric carving knife or a good, sharp kitchen knife, slice the steak into the thinnest strips possible. If the slices are wide and too big to be bite-sized, slice them in half.

Put the steak strips in the refrigerator until it is time to prepare the meal.

Prepare the cucumber, tomato, onion, and green onions as indicated above. Place each vegetable in a separate small bowl. Place the cheese or cheeses of your choice in separate small bowls as well. Put the bowls on the table or on a serving buffet.

Put the salad greens in a large salad bowl. Put the bowl in the center of the table or the serving buffet.

Put the salad dressings on the table or serving buffet.

Heat 1 tablespoon of butter or vegetable oil in a large heavy skillet. Place half the steak strips in the heated oil and stir fry briefly until they are done to your taste. DO NOT walk away from the stove at this point; the steak strips will cook very quickly!

Place the steak strips on a serving plate and repeat the process with the second table spoon of butter or vegetable oil and the remainder of the steak strips.

Place the serving plate full of steak strips on the table or serving buffet along with the rest of the salad fixings and let people construct their own salads.

Serves 4 to 5.

Deviled Eggs

Some people like some dry mustard or pickle relish in their deviled eggs, but I don’t. If you like them, add them.

• 1 dozen eggs
• mayonnaise (to taste)
• salt (just a little – to taste)
• black pepper (a lot!)
• paprika (optional – for garnish)

Eggs for deviled eggs are best if they’re not extremely fresh. Buy the eggs a few days to a week before you want to make the deviled eggs.

Place the eggs in a large pan or Dutch oven. Cover them with cold water, making sure that the water comes up an inch or two above the eggs. Discard any eggs that float to the surface!

Place the pan or Dutch oven on the stove and turn the burner to high. As soon as the water reaches a rolling boil, turn the heat down to medium and set the kitchen timer for 10 minutes.

When the timer goes off, remove the eggs from the heat. With kitchen tongs, take the eggs out of the water and place them in a colander.

Wait until the eggs are just cool enough to handle and shell the eggs under running water to remove any bits of shell. Place the shelled eggs back into the colander to cool and dry.

*** Note: At this point you can put the eggs in a Zip Lock bag in the refrigerator, or you can halve them, devil the yolks, and refrigerate the whites and the deviled yolks separately until you want to put everything together. They’re much easier to store this way than they are once they’re filled. You can even take them separately to the party and fill the whites there.

Slice the whites in half and remove the yolks to a bowl. (It’s easiest if you use a spoon to pry the yolks out of the whites.) Put the yolks in a bowl and add several tablespoons of the mayonnaise, the salt, and the black pepper. Use a hand mixer to whip the ingredients together.

Once the ingredients are thoroughly blended, continue to add mayonnaise a tablespoon at a time until the yolk mixture is the consistency that you prefer.

Spoon the yolk mixture back into the egg white halves and sprinkle them with paprika if you choose. Cover and refrigerate the deviled eggs until it’s time to serve them.

Cucumber Bullseyes

Yeah, I know I gave this recipe to you before, but I love these things!

• large, straight cucumbers
• favorite cheese ball, softened (I like Rod’s Favorite Spread best. See the recipe below.)

Slice the ends off the cucumbers. With a vegetable peeler, take off alternating strips of the cucumber skin. Then, with an apple corer, core the seeds from the center of the cucumbers, leaving as much of the flesh as possible. (If the cucumbers are very long, it is best to cut them into 6-inch sections to do this.)

Push the cheese ball mixture down into the cored sections of the cucumbers. Be sure that it is firmly packed in with no gaps. Wrap each section in plastic wrap and chill.

Before serving, slice the stuffed cucumbers into 1/4-inch slices.

Rod’s Favorite Spread

Yet another worthwhile recipe repeat.

• 1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
• 2 4-ounce packages chipped beef, shredded
• 1 bunch green onions, chopped (green parts only)
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce (or to taste)

Use an electric mixer to blend all the ingredients together. Place the spread in a decorative bowl and cover it tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate until time to serve. Can be made up to 2 days ahead of time.

Simply Strawberries

These berries don’t need whipped cream! Don’t you dare bother to make any!

• 1 pint strawberries
• 1/2 cup sugar free DaVinci raspberry syrup

Rinse the strawberries and drain them thoroughly. Slice off the tops and any hard tips, then halve the smaller berries and quarter the larger ones. Place all the berries in a plastic bowl with a right-fitting lid.

Pour the sugar free raspberry syrup over the strawberries, tightly cover the bowl with the lid, and gently shake it to coat all the berries with syrup.

Store in the refrigerator until it’s time to serve the berries.

Serves 4 – 6.

***Note: Leftover Simply Strawberries will keep 2 or 3 days in the refrigerator if tightly covered, but don’t count on them being there that long. These are good! Try some of the leftovers over low carb pancakes in the morning, or in a salad with a raspberry vinaigrette salad dressing for lunch tomorrow.

***Variation: Sugar free DaVinci orange syrup is also very good on strawberries, too.