recipe: marinated steak fajitas

I have quite a few friends on Facebook who have recently decided to make healthy changes to their lives, be it by exercising, eating healthier or a combination of both (for the record, it should always be a combination of both, but that's a commercial). The fact that they announced this to the world, therefore allowing others to both hold them accountable as well as encourage them is fabulous. Nothing but good can come out of taking care of yourself and your family.

Children hear what you say, but imitate what you do.

That being said, it is time to wow you with another of my favorite recipes, this time adapted from the Food Network kitchens into mine. It has passed Baby Wonder's Taste Bud Test with flying colors (though let's be honest, there isn't much he won't eat) and my man claims, with every first bite, that this is one of his absolute favorites. There you have it, no further testimony required.

He wanted to wear my apron... he loves to help!

I don't have many pictures of this one since I decided last minute to post it. You'll have to figure out for yourselves how to cut your steak and veggies.

On top of being delicious, this is a pretty healthy meal. You can make it even more so by making small changes to your typical topping choices. Most brands offer a reduced fat version of the same type of shredded cheese, and the taste difference is minimal, if not non existent. A favorite for my family is the substitution of sour cream with Greek yogurt. Again, no taste difference, and no guilt when you pile it on. In fact, I've heard people say that they don't like plain Greek yogurt because it tastes like sour cream. Because it's naturally fat free, there aren't any weird substitutions to make it fat free, like in sour cream. I could go on for days about how wonderful Greek yogurt is.

Don't start this meal last minute, as it requires at least 4 hours to marinate. That is the longest part, as it only takes a few minutes to put the marinade together, and even less to cook it up. I usually make this the night before, after Baby Wonder goes to bed, and let it sit in the fridge until dinner the next day.

For the marinade:

• 1/2 cup orange juice (I use Simply Orange's mango infused orange juice)
• 1/4 extra virgin olive oil
• 2 large limes, squeezed. I'm not going to pretend my readers aren't as lazy as I am. 1-2 TBS of lime juice will work too.
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 TBS dried oregano
• 1 TBS chili powder
• 1 TBS cumin
• 1/2 tsp salt

For the meal: 

• 2-3 lbs of flank steak
• red and yellow bell peppers
• onion
• tortillas
• sour cream/ Greek yogurt
• cheese

 Because we eat a lot of chicken in our house, I use just steak for this meal. You can also use shredded chicken, and marinate and cook the same way, but my instructions will be for steak.

Cut the steak into long, thin strips, about 1/4 inch wide, small enough to put in a tortilla. Again, no picture, but I have faith that you can figure this part out.

Put cut steak strips into a gallon ziplock bag, and combine all marinade ingredients in the same bag. Shake to evenly coat the meat, then refrigerate for at least 4 hours.





Cut the peppers and onion into long strips, and add them to a saute pan with a little bit of olive oil. Saute until the veggies are as tender as you'd like them.







Meanwhile, add the meat mixture, marinade and all, to another pan. It won't take long for the meat to cook, but make sure the marinade bubbles for about 10 minutes in order to kill any bacteria left over from the raw meat.

Remove, putting the veggies and meat into pretty dishes, and serve! 

Sometimes I'm in the mood for tortillas, and sometimes I want to taco-salad my fajitas. I opted for a bowl this time.. doesn't it look yummy??