My children love to talk. They talk to themselves, each other and my husband and I, frequently and incessantly. I've often wondered if all children are like this, or if I happen to have a particularly verbal pair. When speaking, they both use an amusing lexicon that is as completely unique as each of their personalities. My eldest son in particular has quite a way with words. For example, instead of saying that "Team A is playing versus Team B", he says "they are going to verse each other"...instead of saying there are "many" he says there are "much". You get the idea. Aside from being very verbal, my first born is also witty, and when the two are combined, it provides even more amusement for us when he speaks.
One day, while trying to cajole me into staying on the playground for longer than the pre-determined time (in minus 30 degree temperatures, with high winds and blowing snow) he told me I could stay out there longer and just "take-it-like-a-man". My friend, who was braving the elements in the playground with me, was very amused by this and we refer to "taking-things-like-a-man" quite often.
Fast forward to this past week, when everyone was home for March Break, and I was in need of a dinner that would fill the boys up, despite my dismal supply of food. I did have a steak in the fridge, and I decided I would make a "take-it-like-a-man" meal for dinner...BBQ steak sandwiches made with baguette, caramelized onions and melted cheese. Filling enough to please the man of the house, yummy enough to please the children of the house and easy enough to please the cook of the house (me).
Of course, being the Mommy that I am, it couldn't be strictly a manly meal, so we rounded it out with some carrot sticks and apple slices and everyone seemed to enjoy the combination. Although I didn't have my guys work on this dinner with me, they easily could have and will, the next time we put this simple dinner together.
"Take-it-like-a-Man Steak Sandwiches", my recipe
1 pkg of lean steak (any type will do), sliced thinly against the grain for tender pieces
2 tbsp. of butter
1 large onion, sliced
1 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup of barbecue sauce
1/4 cup of beef stock
1 large baguette
1/2 cup shredded Monterrey jack cheese (cheddar and mozzarella will work just fine)
~ In a small saucepan, melt the butter over med-high heat. Add the sliced onion, turn the heat down to low, cover and allow to simmer for about 25 minutes.
~ While the onions are cookies, slice the beef and set aside. Add olive oil to a large pan, and turn on to medium-heat heat.
~ Add the beef and cook until browned (approx. 2 minutes), turn meat over and cook the other side for the same amount of time.
~ Add the beef stock to deglaze the pan, and then add the barbecue sauce, stirring well to combine.
~ Turn the heat to the lowest setting and leave to simmer.
~ Once the onions have caramelized, remove from the pot and add to the beef mixture. Mix everything until well combined.
~ Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees
~ Slice a large baguette lengthwise. Spread the beef mixture over the bread and top with the shredded cheese.
~ Place baguette in pre-heated oven and bake until bread is lightly toasted brown and the cheese has melted. Remove from the oven, slice and serve with carrot sticks, apple slices or a side salad.
~Enjoy!
Comments