I'm getting hungry for...

..."Beef In A Leaf". I'm sure there's a cool Asian name for this meal but I don't know it. It's one of those fresh, easy meals that you can fix in a snap and it's so good, it's hard to stop eating! Here's the easy recipe.

Beef In A Leaf

Put on spaghetti pasta to boil in lightly salted water with a touch of olive oil in the pan to keep it from boiling over. I use enough for two or three servings, for Andy and I.

Saute about a lb. of beef strips in the following:
Olive oil, a couple Tablespoons
Red pepper flakes, to taste
(You can use round steak, but I prefer sirloin due to it's tenderness)

Add to the saute pan equal parts of :
Soy sauce
Honey (sometimes I go a little heavier on the honey, having this raging sweet tooth of mine!)
Balsamic vinegar
Probably around a half Cup of each...maybe 3/4th C. of honey if you're like me! You can do this part to taste too!

Continue to saute the beef until it's tender and no pink shows and the mixture in the pan thickens a bit. The meat takes on a rich dark color from the sugar in the honey caramelizing and the soy and Balsamic, especially if you use the dark Balsamic vinegar.

Prepare Romaine lettuce leaves by just taking a little off the connection end of the leaves. Wash and drain well...pat dry with a paper towel. We use a whole head of Romaine for this dish. We love to dip the leaves in the leftover sauce!

Drain the pasta when it's done.

Serve some pasta with the beef and sauce in a bowl and let everyone make their own leaves. Take a lettuce leaf, lay a couple slices of the beef in the leaf then a few strands of the pasta. Drizzle with the sauce. Eat it like you would a burrito or taco.

The flavor of the beef and the sauce is so wonderful with the cold lettuce leaf and the pasta adds body and holds the sauce wonderfully. I love the heat of the red pepper flakes in this dish, too. It's a great summer meal. Here's a photo so you get the idea of what it looks like.



My online-for-many-years-friend Sis has a new blog, It's called Cast Iron Kitchen. It's a place where she spotlights her favorite new and old recipes. She's really getting into Asian-style cooking and seems to have a real flare for it. That's what prompted me to think of my old favorite "Beef In A Leaf". Thanks, Sis! I love your new blog.