Good happy Friday morning to you :)
I figured I'd throw something way, way off topic this morning on sumpt'n tasty that Chas and I built last night... that's right. built.. that's how I look at food. built. :)
I am one of those guys who can see something built and know I can build it.. Chas on the other hand, she can taste something and know exactly how to make it... like exactly. I've been wanting to make a shirt that says "Ma'bitch... can cook" cause she can! >D On occasion she and I will have the chance to create a dish together and last night happened to be one of those nights.
Small back story... at the beginning of December, Chas and I started the Keto lifestyle. Not so much diet, but lifestyle. Everyone was like "why the hell would you do that before the holidays?" Our take was that you're always going to say you want to start something but never do it because of X... or I need to wait until X - then I can...
So... we said F'it and committed. If you don't know, the Keto diet / lifestyle is a very low carb high fat, no sugar diet... like 75% fat. This was a challenge at the beginning as I'm a tortilla, bread eating, sammich loving mo-fo!... :D like anything wrapped in a tortilla was utter heaven and a total achilles' heel to me!
That being said, I approached it with an empty stomach and fully embraced it! Turns out really like it. The adjustment to Keto made my body mad at me and punished me for almost a week or so.. but I'm glad I stuck with it. The discipline it's given me to eat a certain way has trickled into other discipline things - which was a great byproduct. Since Chas and I have been married I've always been about 265-275lbs... that'll be 16 years this April.. man.. she's legit my ol'lady now! >D Today I'm ish, 255lbs... So I can't tell really how much I've lost, but my pants fit nicer and I feel better.. So that's the important thing.
To the awesome creation!
Philly Cheese-steak-no-bread-sammy's!
NOTE: If you don't like bell peppers, onions, or mushrooms... well... I feel bad for you and I really don't know what to tell you either.... I do however encourage you to read the rest of the story so you know exactly what kinda awesome'ass dish you're missing :)
Surprisingly the absence of bread wasn't bad at all! So even if you're not rocking Keto, it's a bomb dish! and was super easy to make!... So I figured I'd "spice" things up ( I'm so lame! >D) this Friday and wanted to share how we built these bomb ass sammy's so you could enjoy them yourself :)
Only 5.5 ingredients..
Bell peppers
Skirt steak
Mushrooms
Onion
Provolone cheese
Butter
First cut'm up!
The bell peppers need to be cut in half and gut the seeds out of them.
Mince your onions into 1/2" x 1/2" squares
Thinly slice your mushrooms (or buy sliced)
Cut your skirt steak down against the grain (so it tears easily in your mouth) in 1-2" strips ish and season to your liking.
Saucepan 1
Get a hot sauce pan with olive oil in it... have it a little on the hot side so the meat sears when it hits the pan.. cook the meat until all the water is cooked out of it.. stir so it doesn't burn, but cook it down until the water is all gone and starts to brown and tastefully char some... remnant's in the pan = flavor. Now put the cooked meat in a bowl or sumptn.
Oven 1
Bell peppers are going to take the longest to cook... so after the meat is cooked, put the bell peppers on a baking sheet on top of aluminum foil and put them in the oven and bake at 350 degrees. This will ensure they are soft enough to cook when the assembly happens.
Saucepan 2
Throw a chunk of butter on the pan... let that melt and absorb the meaty remnant goodness leftover in the pan.. toss the mushrooms and onions into the pan... cook these guys down until the water is gone as well..
Check yo'stuff!
By the time the onions and mushrooms are cooked it's likely that the bell peppers are soft. Check the oven and you want them a little squishy... there will be some water inside the bowls of the peppers... when this happens take'm out and put them on the counter..
Assembly
With the bell peppers out of the oven and on the counter, take a paper towel and dab out the water / moisture within the peppers.
While the peppers are still hot, place a piece of provolone cheese over the pepper and press down into it making a legit bowl...it'll look like a hot cheesy blanket... do this to all of them first before adding the goodness...
Load'em up!
With the cheese melting, I suggest a spoon full of onion first, shit load of meat, onions, again then a grip o'mushrooms, followed by maybe some more meat.
Top it off!
Once it's all filled up, top each pepper off with another piece of provolone cheese. This will encapsulate (like that word) >D all the goodness ensuring the product doesn't fall apart when it's consumption time.
Oven 2
Put them back in the oven an hurry up and wait it out... once you can start smelling the sammy's and your mouth waters with anticipation... open the oven and tease yourself.
Wait until the cheese is brown and pull them out.
Let'm rest
There's nothing worse than eating food that came from the middle of the earth like lava.. then unintentionally, totally kills your taste buds in a pissed off rage. Total custom dinner fail... so don't do that.
Devour'it!
Once they are warm enough to the touch, you're good to eat'm. Don't worry, they meaty goodness is still warm as the blanket of cheese has... wait for it... "encapsulated" the heat >D
That's right! I two-forked that pepper! I felt elegant and legit like the way the judges look on the cooking channels. >D Man it was amazing! Simple to cook and damn delish! I think I could kill 4 if I really, really wanted to, however, about 2.5 - 3 hits the spot.. but I'm craving more fi-sho! I hope you enjoyed the different topic and playful topic this Friday. I think I might do this again in the coming months or so. Chas is a gifted cook from heaven and can make damn near anything. There are some good keepers she's made.... like Gumbo, Jambalaya, Chicken Alfredo and a grip of others... They're worth sharing for sure. :) Until then friend :) I hope you enjoyed the Friday grateful email. If you have any questions about the cooking Chas would be happy to answer them...! >D In addition to that, should you or someone you know need help buying or selling a house, and would like yours/their house to smell like an insane home cooked meal at the same time... Chas and I are happy to break bread and lead you in your best decision. :) Just let us know. Enough about food now, here's a great picture from a good buddy of mine on what Spring looks like in Arizona :) is it wrong that I'm partial to the orange bike? :) Have a wonderful Friday! <3
-Josh & Chas
