GREEK MINUTE STEAK (or Pork Cutlet) SANDWICH

As promised last post…The amazingly good Greek Minute Steak Sandwich! Please excuse the photo, I had beautifully and wonderfully assembled this sandwich and when I closed the top I realized that I had made the sandwich upside down!  I did my best to right my wrong, though it looks a bit of a mess, the taste of the sandwich is sooo on point (DDD fans know what I'm sayin').

I was inspired by the young fella who was checking me out at the grocery store.  Perhaps I should clarify that he was the cashier at the grocery store, unfortunately he was checking my groceries out, not me.  No the young fellas now call me “mam”; I’m not sure when that started happening, but now it’s the norm.  He looked at the cubed steak I was taking home with relish and asked if I was making sandwiches.  I told him I hadn’t made plans for my steak yet.  He wistfully told me that his mom always made sandwiches with that kind of meat, I’m not sure if he was wistful for his mom or the sandwich, but it got me to thinking.

Now a great sandwich can’t just be slapped together; it needs layer upon layer of flavor. 

The first layer of flavor is the grilling of the bread in the same pan that the meat was cooked in; not only does the bread get toasty, but it absorbs all kinds of flavor that the meat has left in the bottom of the pan. 

The second layer is a savory sandwich spread with Kalamata olives, and I also used some Greek yogurt to cut some of the fat.  

The third layer is some lettuce for freshness and texture.

 

The fourth layer is of course the meat, which is well seasoned.  I actually asked the butcher for cubed steak, and when I got home I realized that he had given me pork cutlets that were labeled beef.  Beef or pork is equally delish.  

The fifth layer is these sweet and succulent Roasted Grape Tomatoes. 

The final layer is creamy and salty Feta cheese, cuz no self-respective “Greek” sandwich would be without it!

This sandwich is a combination of sweet, salt, savory, creamy, and crispy which makes every bite absolute perfection!

Here’s what you do.

Cut the cubed (aka minute) steak or pork cutlets in half and season both sides with a little salt and pepper.

On a plate or a pie pan, mix 1/2 cup of flour with 1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder, 1/2 teaspoon of dried oregano, a pinch or salt and pepper.

Dredge the meat in the seasoned flour, shake off any excess flour.

Heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat. 

Brown both sides of the meat, add a little more oil if necessary to keep the meat from sticking to the pan.

All of those bits in the bottom of the pan are yumminess!  Now you don't have to do this next step, but it adds another layer of flavor.  If needed add just a touch of oil to the pan...

...And then grill the inside of the bread in the pan.  The bread will toast, and absorb that flavor the meat left behind.

The Kalamata Olive Sandwich Spread goes together in just a couple of minutes, you can make it while the meat is cooking.  It starts with 1/3 cup of Greek yogurt and 1/3 cup of mayonnaise.

Add to that 1/2 cup of finely chopped Kalamata olives, 2 cloves of roasted garlic (or 1 clove of raw garlic), and two tablespoons of flat leaf parsley.

And give it a stir.  For this sandwich I like having bits of olives, but I may like it smooth for another sandwich; in that case I would blitz the ingredients in the mini food processor.

These are the beautiful ingredients.  Pan fried minute steak, French bread, lettuce, Roasted Grape Tomatoes, Feta cheese, and Kalamata Olive Sandwich Spread.

Layer the ingredients on the bread...

...For this delectable Greek Minute Steak Sandwich.  Hearty enough for dinner, or make a few to feed to a crowd.  It's sure to be a crowd pleaser!

GREEK MINUTE STEAK (or Pork Cutlet) SANDWICH

1              lb.           Cubed (minute) steak or pork cutlets; cut in half

                             Salt and pepper

½             cup         All-purpose flour

¼             tsp.         Garlic powder

½             tsp.         Dried oregano

3              Tbsp.        Olive oil

1                            Loaf French or Italian bread, sliced in half lengthwise

1              recipe      Roasted Grape Tomatoes

1              recipe      Kalamata Olive Sandwich Spread (recipe follows)

2              cups        Lettuce

3            oz.           Feta cheese, crumbled

  1.        Season both sides of the meat with a little salt and pepper.

  2.       In a shallow dish such as a pie plate, mix together the flour, garlic powder, oregano, a pinch of salt and pepper.

  3.       Dredge both sides of the meat in the seasoned flour, shake off the excess flour.

  4.       Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large skillet over medium high heat; add the meat to the hot skillet.  Brown the meat on both sides; you may need to add 1 more tablespoon of oil to the pan to keep the meat from sticking.

  5.       Remove the cooked meat from the pan.  Place the bread face side down into the skillet to toast just the inside of the bread; you may have to cut the loaf of bread in half to get it to fit in the skillet.  If the skillet is dry, add a touch more oil.

  6.       Spread the Kalamata Olive Sandwich Spread on both sides of the toasted bread, place some lettuce on the bottom piece of bread, lay the meat on top of the lettuce, top the meat with the Roasted Grape Tomatoes, and crumble the feta cheese over the tomatoes, place the top on the sandwich and enjoy!

*Note, jarred roasted red peppers would be a good substitution for the Roasted Grape Tomatoes.

KALAMATA SANDWICH SPREAD

1/3         cup         Plain Greek yogurt

1/3         cup         Mayonnaise

½           cup         Kalamata olives, pitted and finely chopped

1            clove       Garlic, minced (or 2 cloves of roasted garlic)

2            Tbsp.       Flat leaf parsley

  1.        Mix all the ingredients together in a medium bowl.  Refrigerate until ready to use.

*Note, for a smoother texture, use a food processor.

This recipe was shared at:

ROASTED GRAPE (Cherry, or Campari) TOMATOES

Ya know; sometimes the simplest dishes are my favorite.  Roasted Grape Tomatoes is one of those dishes.  I'm gonna call it, minimal effort for maximum flavor.  Roasting the tomatoes gives the tomatoes a richer, deeper and sweeter tomato flavor, that doesn’t even compare to a raw tomato. 

 

This is one dish that everyone should have in their repertoire, because it’s so gosh darned easy to make and totally versatile.  I like to use Campari tomatoes when I serve this for a side dish; it goes great with poultry, beef, pork, ham and seafood.  I use the smaller grape or cherry tomatoes, to toss into pasta, or to serve over fish, shrimp, or scallops.  When I made the  tomato dish this particular day, it was to use as a condiment on a Greek Minute Steak Sandwich, which turned out amazingly good (look for it soon)!  Roasted Grape Tomatoes would be great on a burger; even as an appetizer on crostada or crostini.  See, I told you, you need to know this recipe, look at everything you can do with it!

Here's what you do.

Pre heat the oven to 375 degrees.

A Pyrex pie plate is the perfect size to roast a pint of tomatoes.  To the tomatoes add a couple of cloves of sliced garlic and a tablespoon of fresh thyme.  Oregano would also be yummy.

Drizzle about a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil over the tomatoes.

Season with about 1/4 teaspoon each of salt and pepper.

Roast in a hot oven for 15 to 20 minutes, just until the skins of the tomatoes begin to burst.

I removed the garlic from the tomatoes because it had released its flavor into the oil and juices; you can leave the garlic if you choose.  Roasted Grape Tomatoes can be served at any temperature, with a multitude of uses.

ROASTED GRAPE (Cherry, or Campari) TOMATOES

Serves 2-4

1              pint      Grape, cherry, or Campari tomatoes

2              cloves   Garlic, sliced

1              Tbsp.     Fresh thyme

1              Tbsp.     Olive oil

¼             tsp.       Salt

¼             tsp.       Pepper

  1.        Pre heat oven to 375 degrees.

  2.       Toss all the ingredients together in Pyrex pie plate, or an 8 x 8 baking dish; be sure the tomatoes are well coated.

  3.       Roast in the hot oven for 15 to 20 minutes, until the skin on the tomatoes begins to burst.

The tomatoes taste great at any temperature.  Serve Roasted Grape Tomatoes as a side dish, a condiment in a sandwich or burger, toss them into pasta, pour the tomatoes over fish, serve over crostada, or crostini.

*Note, the Campari tomatoes work great for a side dish, but are too large to work well as a condiment, stick with the cherry or grape tomatoes.

BIOTIN FOR HAIR- Health and Beauty

I’ve gotten to that point in life where things are falling apart, falling down, and falling out!  

What’s that?  

I’m getting old.  The body and mind of my youth are beginning to vacate, leave, never to be seen again.  Am I going to stand idly by and watch it go?  No!  I’m going to fight it tooth and nail; I’m going to do what I can to delay the inevitable.  I’m not talking about Botox (at least not yet); today I’m talking supplements, and another day I’ll be talking about something else.

About a year ago I started to notice that I was losing A LOT of hair.  Whenever I washed my hair, there would be a giant handful of hair in the bottom of the tub; everywhere I went I’d leave a trail of hair.   I was discussing the matter with my girlfriends, (cuz that’s what we girls do) and a couple of them had gone through the same thing.  One of my friends mentioned that her hair stylist told her to use Biotin, a supplement.  She told me that her hair loss had dramatically improved since taking it. 

I was skeptical, but figured I had nothing to lose; it’s a supplement after all, not a drug, and it’s affordable (Walmart sells it for $6).  I thought to myself that if Biotin helped to lessen my hair loss that I would blog about it.  I made myself the guinea pig for you!  

According to Wikipedia; Biotin is also known as Vitamin H, or Vitamin B7.  Biotin is necessary for cell growth, the production of fatty acids, and the metabolism of fats and amino acids.  Foods that are relatively high in Biotin are Swiss chard, raw egg yolks, liver, Saskatoon berries, leafy greens, and peanuts.

Now that we go the healthy part about Biotin out of the way, lets get on to the vanity part.

These are my results, after about 8 weeks of taking one 5000 MCG per day I noticed a dramatic difference in my hair loss.  I am losing 60% to 70% less hair then I was before the Biotin, and there is no longer a trail of hair everywhere I go.  I actually took a photo of the clump of hair, intending to post it, but the photo looks pretty gross; I thought I’d spare you the grossness.

So Biotin worked for me, I am in no way pushing it on you; I’m just sharing my findings.  I wish that I could say that it would work for everyone, if it worked for everyone, everyone would be taking it. 

Please if you are pregnant, nursing, on medication, or have a health condition consult your doctor before taking any supplement.

So I have a lot less things falling out; and I’m gonna do what I can to fight the falling apart, and falling down!  I'll keep you posted.

P.S.  Billy has just started taking Biotin as well...it's good for boys too!