Ginger Flank Steak and Braised Kale

Trying new things is important. Who wants to eat oatmeal and green beans their whole life? (Those are typically babies' first two foods) Though the word "braised" makes it sound like it's some fancy dish, it's not. It just means it's cooked in a covered pan with a tiny bit of liquid.

This week my family and I tried kale. It's one of those super greens that I constantly hear about from all the health and cooking shows. My son, husband and I ate all of ours, but my daughter had to be coaxed to eat a few bites. It wasn't the best thing we've ever eaten but it wasn't the worst either.  I'll probably cook it again for myself to eat but I'll skip it when it comes to cooking a family meal.

The steak on the other hand....I could have eaten the whole pound and a half myself! Delicious!!

Ginger Flank Steak

Flank Steak Marinade
1/2 cup gluten-free tamari sauce (San-J’s Wheat-Free Tamari Sauce is well worth the money)
2 Tablespoons rice vinegar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
2 Tablespoons ginger
2 Cloves Garlic
(Enough for two 1 lb flank steaks - I used a 1.5 pound steak for my family of 4 and we had leftovers)

DIRECTIONS:
Marinate the flank steak for about 2 hours (no more than eight hours). Preheat a gas grill to high. Place the steaks on the grill. Discard marinade. Grill the steak for about 8-10 minutes, turning once. Let the flank steak rest for 5 minutes. Slice against the grain into thin slices.

The most important thing to remember whether you grill or pan fry flank steak is that flank steak should only be cooked to medium rare. Cooking it any longer will result in a tougher piece of meat! I got distracted with this steak and cooked it just a minute too long. Remember that the steak will cook a little longer even after you take it off the grill.


BRAISED KALE WITH SESAME SEEDS
1 Tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup yellow onion, chopped
1 bunch of kale (about 6 cups chopped)
squeeze of lemon juice
1/2 cup vegetable stock or broth
1 Tablespoon of gluten-free Tamari Sauce (not sure how much for reg. soy sauce)
2 Tablespoons sesame seeds

DIRECTIONS:
In a large frying pan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until almost translucent. Add the garlic and cook for about a minute more. Stir in the kale, vegetable broth, and tamari sauce. Cover and cook until the kale is tender – about 10 minutes. Squeeze with lemon juice. Stir in the sesame seeds. This cooks down to 3 cups.

I skipped out on the sesame seeds (I forgot to buy them) but I didn't feel like we were missing out on anything.

Calorie Breakdown:
Steak: 2216 calories total; 8 3oz servings
Kale: 381 calories total; 3 1 cup servings

1 serving steak = 277 calories
1 serving kale = 127 calories

These two recipes are from: http://glutenfreemommy.com/ I did modify them slightly to fit myself and my family's tastes and meal sizes.