Steak Sandwiches

I've been posting about food a lot lately.  Apparently it's on my mind.  Perhaps because I've been trying to be healthier, I think more about what I eat.  I'm not sure this is the healthiest recipe in the world, but I paired it with a salad, so that helps, right?

Last week, I was watching The Chew.  It's become one of my favorite daytime shows and I have to admit, I'm going to miss it when school starts back up.  On this particular day, Mario Batali was making Skirt Steak sandwiches.  I have been thinking about them ever since and decided to create my own.

They. Were. Awesome.  Like, pat myself on the back, awesome.

First, I started with a one pound flank steak.  I seasoned it with the Adobo seasoning that I made last week and set aside to come up closer to room temperature.

In a small saucepan, I added a half tablespoon of butter and turned it to medium low.  In the meantime, I cut 2 slices out of a yellow onion, separated the rings, and added that to the pan.  You want to cook these low and slow so that they just turn golden and sweet.  Make sure to flip them every so often, but otherwise, leave 'em alone.

I was originally going to grill the flank steak but as it turns out, the grill grate was sitting on the counter waiting to be cleaned (my awesome husband does the cleaning since I do the cooking) so I got out my large skillet, drizzled some olive oil in the bottom and turned it to med-high (7 on my electric stove).

As soon as it was hot enough (the oil will run like water around the pan), I added the flank steak. It's important to get the temperature hot enough so that you get a good sear.  This locks in the juices as well as gives it a nice crust.  You'll know it's done when it has a little give to the touch, but isn't squishy (technical term), and has developed a nice black crust like so.....

Don't forget to turn the onions...

While the steak was cooking, I made a spread to go on the bread:

2 tbs mayo (I like Helmann's)

1/4 tsp garlic paste

1/2 tsp creamy horseradish

1/2 tsp dijon mustard

Mix together and set aside.  

In between flipping the steak and the onions, I cut some tomato and grabbed a couple of leaves of lettuce.

When the steak was done, I pulled it onto a cutting board to rest and turned the onions down to low.

While everything was hanging out, I got out my Foreman grill to preheat, then cut my big loaf of ciabatta into sandwich sized pieces and then cut each one in half.  Once the grill was preheated, I put the bread down to toast.

While it was toasting, I cut the meat.  When cutting flank steak, make sure to cut against the grain so that you get nice tender pieces.

At this point, I of course had to sample the meat to make sure it was perfect.  It took several samples to be sure....

And then I assembled the sandwiches.  The girls' got meat and swiss.  

Mine was meat, swiss, onions, and the horseradish/mayo spread.

And my husband had the granddaddy of them all - All the same ingreadients as mine, plus lettuce and tomato.

The verdict: SUCCESS!  This might be one of the best things I've made in quite a while.  The girls, who won't eat a regular ham and cheese, loved theirs, and Ryan and I were just sad when ours was gone.  I will definitely be making these again in the near future!!!!