Stuffed Flank Steak and Roasted Potatoes

here is part two of my valentine's day special for my special valentine! stuffed flank steak with prosciutto, mushrooms, provolone and watercress and heart shaped rosemary potatoes with a side of steamed green beans tossed in butter. bam! watch out food network, I may just be the next top chef.

I'm going to let you guess where I found my recipes. the winner will get the prize of knowing that I am a very predictable person.

okay, so when I saw this steak recipe on foodgawker a few weeks ago, I know immediately that it wasn't something I would just make on any day of the week so I figured I'd save it for something special! valentines day was the perfect opportunity. it. was. delicious. 

little know fact, I hate raw meat. hate it. will do anything in my willpower to avoid touching it, even if it means using a million forks to transfer it from styrofoam package to plate to pan, whatever. I hate it. well, I overcame that fear just for andrew. we went to the grocery store, I picked out a flank steak from the butcher's counter and the rest is history (or you know, what you see on the plate up there!)

this was easy. I expected a struggle but the toughest part was rolling the steak and tying it - I needed to recruit help from andrew!

stuffed flank steak, adapted from a spicy perspective

ingredients:

2 lbs. of flank steak

minced garlic (it's up to you how much you want to use!) 

4 mushrooms, sliced

8 slices of provolone

6 slices of prosciutto

a handful of watercress

kitchen twine

I started by pounding the steak with a rolling pin, then gave up and just started punching the heck out of it. the downstairs neighbours probably wondered what on earth was going on upstairs. I sautéed the mushrooms with a bit of garlic and oil in a frying pan until they were soft. after that I laid everything on the steak and rolled it, tying it with kitchen twine. the original recipe calls for a rub and I forgot to put it on until halfway through searing it, so I mixed together a handful of flour, a pinch of paprika and some salt and pepper and rubbed it on quickly. honestly, I rarely use my measuring cups when cooking. I seared it in a frying pan for 5 minutes and then put it in the oven for 50 minutes (our oven sucks) at 350*c. 

roasted rosemary potatoes, adapted from haniela's

ingredients:

4-6 medium size potatoes

rosemary seeds

a pinch of paprika

I sliced the potatoes and cut them into hearts with a cookie cutter, then boiled them for three minutes just to soften them. I marinated them in olive oil, paprika and rosemary for 20 minutes then popped them in the oven at 400*c for 15 minutes, then broiled them for 5 minutes. 

the beans were easy, steam fresh green beans and toss them in butter before serving! 

this dinner was lovely and such a nice treat from usual student food! I made just enough potatoes and beans to feed the two of us but there was leftover steak which tasted wonderful reheated the next day! hopefully more cooking will appear on this blog in the future. this semester seems to be extremely busy but after reading week (which starts today, yay!), andrew and I are going to work hard at cooking from scratch!

until next time, happy making!