Mr. 8 and I hosted his parents for dinner on Saturday night and, in the bustle of trying to get everything on the table and be a warm and friendly host, I totally failed to take pictures of the food. I’m kicking myself because IT WAS SOOOO GOOD.
We decided to go with fajitas because they are a) easy, b) versatile and c) good for meat lovers and vegetarians alike.
Early Saturday morning, we headed out to the Kansas Grown Farmer’s Market and I admittedly went a bit overboard. But seriously guys, there was so much gorgeous produce and there were delicious homemade baked goods and even eggs that were collected that morning. I managed to fill two large reusable shopping totes with all of the goodies.
The big splurge? Grass-fed beef. Yep, I bought beef. I even sampled a bite or two (or three). While my goal is absolutely to eat as much plant-based food as possible, one of the big motivators is that I refuse to support factory farming (which is where most of our grocery stores get their meat). Yet here we had sirloin steaks from locally raised, grass-fed (no grains or corn!) cows. If I am going to serve my meat-loving guests some steak, I’m going to serve them steak that I feel good about buying. Was it cheap? No. Was it more than you’d pay at good restaurant? No. In fact, $20 fed three people with leftovers.
After we brought everything home, I scoured the web for a good marinade recipe for the meat and the veggies. Using what I found as inspiration, I mixed together my own concoction and let everything marinate for about 5 hours. Then I whipped up some guacamole (easy and ohmygod so very good) and salsa (ditto).
While our meal was outstanding, I also felt like I’d achieved my goal of being as much of a locavore as possible. Everything except the red bell pepper, avocados, cilantro, limes and canned tomatoes (for the salsa) were made in Kansas. Even the tortilla chips!
And now, the recipes:
Fajitas
We used two large sirloin steaks, but skirt steak would work well too. Or chicken or pork or whatever floats your meat-eating boat. For the veggie lovers, zucchini, summer squash, mushrooms, red and green bell peppers and yellow onions are perfect.
The marinade:
4 limes, juiced
1/4 cup vegetable/canola/olive oil
1 tsp. ground cumin
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
Pinch of cayenne pepper
2-3 dashes (or more) Tabasco sauce
1 tsp. salt.
Mix in a medium sized bowl. Separate meat and veggies into separate baking dishes and cover generously with the marinade. Refrigerate for 4-5 hours (or more).
You can grill, broil or sautee the ingredients. It’s up to you. We grilled them (except for the mushrooms, onions and peppers, which I cooked on the stove on a grill pan) and they were fantastic.
Serve with warm tortillas and lots of toppings: salsa, cheese, guacamole, sour cream, and whatever else floats your boat.
Guacamole
This has been my go-to guacamole recipe for a few years now and it’s a bit of an improvisation, so consider the measurements to be an approximation.
Ingredients:
3 ripe (that’s the key) avocados
1/2 jalapeno, seeded and diced
1-2 handfuls cilantro, chopped
1/2 medium red onion, diced
1 tsp kosher salt (or to taste)
1/2 lime, juiced
Using a fork, mash the avocado in a medium sized bowl. Add the jalapeno, cilantro, onion, salt and lime and mix well. Serve immediately or cover with plastic wrap by pressing the wrap onto the guacamole to prevent oxidation and refrigerate for up to one hour before serving.
Salsa
Making salsa is easier than it may seem, especially if you are already making guacamole since so many of the ingredients are the same. I make mine using a food processor and recommend that you do the same for this recipe.
Ingredients:
1 can of whole tomatoes, drained
1/2 lime, juiced
1/2 red onion, chopped
1-2 handfuls cilantro
1/2 to 1 whole jalapeno, chopped
2-3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 tsp. kosher salt (or to taste)
Add all ingredients to a food processor and pulse until well-blended. Serve immediately or refrigerate for a few hours to let the flavors combine further.
