A taco a day keeps the doctor away!
Ugh! Wow, the past few weeks have been really tough for me. My beloved dog Handsome Hans got brain cancer, started having seizures and passed away all within a three week time frame. It was pretty devastating for all of us but he is in a good place right now hanging out with his best dog and cat buddies. The cooking thing was the furthest thing from my mind and after a quick trip to New Jersey to visit family and a super busy week at my “real” job. I’m back and it’s feeling pretty good. I was getting hungry! Ha!
So just in time for Cinco De Mayo, which this year it comes the day after Margarita Monday and actually falls on Taco Tuesday. What could be better? Cinco De Mayo on Taco Tuesday. Not much in my book! What’s a gal to do? I was craving tacos (eh, hem..something that happens often) and steak so I made Carne Asada. One of my favorite ways to eat a skirt steak. My version is a little spicy, garlicky and a little sweet. It’s a perfect marinade for the steak to soak up all the yummy Mexican flavors. I made my into tacos but you could put this steak in just about anything that your little heart desires. Heck you could even just serve it with your favorite potatoes and a salad but why would you do that? Tacos my friends. Eat tacos..
Denver is known for having a large Hispanic population which in my book is a good thing. Besides the cultural diversity and the best Mexican restaurants in the West, the community puts on the most fun festivals in the city and the Cinco De Mayo festival is no exception. It’s a two day celebration filled with food, fun and culture. We headed down yesterday with about 400,000 of our other Mile High friends and enjoyed awesome food, great music and just an all around good time. Next year, put it on your “must do” list of things to do in Denver. It’s great for the whole family and a fun way to celebrate Cinco De Mayo!
- 1 1/2-2 pounds skirt steak (or flank steak)
- 2 cloves of garlic
- 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded
- 1 cup fresh orange juice
- 1/4 cup olive oil
- 1 cup loosely packed cilantro leaves
- 2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 2 tsp cumin
- 2 tbs honey
- extras: queso fresco, grilled spring onions, cabbage, avocado, radishes, corn tortillas
- Place steak in a large zip lock bag.
- In a food processor add the garlic, jalapeno, cilantro, orange juice, olive oil, cumin, honey, salt and pepper. Blend until smooth.
- Add marinade to zip lock bag and marinate meat for at least four hours or up to overnight in the refrigerator.
- Heat up your grill to high heat (it needs to be hot to get the meat a little crispy on the out side)
- Cook until preferred temperature. I like mine medium rare, so 5 minutes a side on my grill.
- Serve with tortillas, salsa, cheese, grilled vegetables or anyway that you like!
- Also, I reserved some of the marinade and put on top of the steak in the tacos.
Tons of flavor and easy to incorporate in salads or tacos or burritos. Yum-me!
My big beautiful boy, Handsome Hans. He was in his happy place in this picture. Gosh I miss him.