A Mediterranean Meal From The Garden

Our garden produce is beginning to deliver the summer veggies in a big way and we were looking for a meal to use them when along came Mary’s recipe for Italian Balsamic Chicken Stir Fry from her Barefeet In The Kitchen Blog.  We adapted it to marry what we had on hand but the inspiration is totally form her.

Italian Balsamic Steak Stir Fry, Adapted from Barefeet In The Kitchen

Ingredients:

2 strip steaks, cut into 1" pieces 

Italian salad dressing, about 3/4 cup

1 T. cornstarch

1 small red pepper, julienned

1 small green pepper, julienned

1 small onion, sliced into thin rings

1 small yellow zucchini, sliced in rounds for contrast

Big handful of green filet beans, in bite sized pieces

1/4 C. garlic scapes, (I actually had these)

3 T. olive oil

kosher salt, to taste

freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1/4 C. balsamic vinegar

1 T. honey

1 t. dried oregano

Directions:

1. Cut the steak into bite sized pieces and marinate in Italian dressing for about 2 hours.

2. As Mary said, prep all ingredients prior to turning on the stove or grill side burner in our case.

3. Whisk together the balsamic and the honey, set aside.

4. Make skewers from the steak, coat the peppers, onions, and perhaps green beans with the cornstarch and preheat the grill and the wok with the oil in it.

5. When the grill is ready, add the steak and crank the wok heat to high.  I really wanted the grill flavor on the meat.  Cook the meat about a minute per side, then set aside while the veggies cook.

6. When the oil is shimmering, add the peppers, onions, and beans and toss with tongs until the vegetables are barely tender and still crisp.

7. Remove cooked vegetables to a bowl and add the squash, garlic scapes, and oregano to the wok.  Add a drizzle of oil if needed and stir fry, tossing and stirring constantly, just until the squash starts to soften.

8. Add the meat and other veggies back to the pan and pour in the balsamic sauce. Cook a couple of minutes, stirring constantly, until everything is coated with the sauce.

9. Serve over rice or plain, as we did – we can eat more of the good stuff that way.

It was a huge hit here and it’s really all about the sauce which we thought was delicious.  I don't know how much influence the grilled marinade on the meat had on the sauce but I’d serve this to company. Thanks Mary.

To complete the Mediterranean meal, we added an authentic Greek salad of cucumber*, green pepper*, red onion, cherry tomatoes* (we only had a few), dried oregano, kalamata olives, pickled pepperoncini pepper*, EVOO, lemon juice, S&P, and feta cheese.   * = from our garden.  Note – no lettuce in a Horiatiki Salata.

We only had crumbled feta vs. the more traditional slab so I loaded mine up with it - I really like it in case you can't tell. 

I used a standard pre-marked cruet for the dressing but used lemon juice in place of vinegar.  I just sprinkled the oregano over the salad and Bev said hers needed a little more.  It was quite different than what I normally consider a Greek salad and I enjoyed it a lot.

I'd have to call this a Mediterranean meal success.

All photos can be enlarged by clicking on them.

Have a great day and thanks for stopping by Almost Heaven South.

One year ago:  Blogger Party 2011 - Part 2

Two years ago:  Fathers Day Greekfest

Larry

6/16/12 meal date