Grilled Balsamic and Blue Steak

It is officially June, summer days and I cannot believe how fast time is going by already since school got out.  We are hitting 90 degrees today, which means no more kitchen cooking!!  It's grilling season!!  

During the summers, I "try" not to use the oven too much since it really heats up the house.  I am holding out as long as I can, being the penny pincher I am and refusing to turn on the air conditioner. That being said, it's been a lot of grilling, crock pot and salads this past week.

We made this Balsamic and Blue Cheese Steak a couple weeks ago and it truly is one of my all time favorites.  Super easy to prepare and really delicious.  I get the steak marinating before I go to work and when we come home, perfectly flavored and ready to grill.  We like to use the leftover steak (when there rarely is any) for taco Tuesday - awesome!

Grilled Balsamic and Blue Steak

Adapted from Traeger Grills

1-1/2 pounds Flat Iron Steak (or Top Round Steak)

3 Tbl. Olive Oil

6 Tbl. Balsamic Venigar

1 Tbl. Traeger Prime Rib Rub (or your favorite available brand)

1 tsp. fresh Thyme, chopped

1 tsp. fresh Rosemary, chopped

3 cloves  Garlic, minced

1/4 cup butter, softened

1/4 cup Blue Cheese crumbles

1 clove garlic, finely minced

1 green onion (white and green parts), chopped

In a large plastic zipper bag, add the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, prime rib rub, thyme, rosemary and 3 cloves of minced garlic.  Mix/whisk well in bag to combine.  Place the steak in the bag with mixture, seal the bag and marinate in the refrigerator for a minimum of 4 hours or overnight.  Remove the steak from the refrigerator 45 minutes before grilling to bring it to room temperature.

Combine the butter, blue cheese, 1 clove of garlic and the chopped green onion in a small bowl.  Mix well.  Refrigerate until ready to use.

When ready to cook, (at this point, you can heat your grill to the recommended directions for steak) or if using a Traeger Grill, start your Traeger on Smoke with lid open until the fire is established (4-5 minutes)., Set the temperature to High and preheat, lid closed (10-15 minutes).

Place the steak towards the front of the grill grate for 6 minutes on each side to give it a sear, for medium rare (place in the middle of the grill grate for a few more minutes if you prefer your steak medium or well).  Remove from the heat and rest for 10-15 minutes.

Slice the steak against the grain and add the blue cheese butter on top.  Enjoy with herb seasoned roasted baby potatoes and fresh garden salad.

Grilled Vegetable Salad

We just finished up our six months of student driver practicing, since our girls received their driver's permits on New Year's Eve.  My husband and I have tried to remain very cool, calm and collected during these driving outings.  I must admit that my husband has been much better at this than I have.

I am the worst passenger seat driver when it comes to my girls.  They are actually very good at this whole driving thing, I am just a nervous wreck, especially now that they are driving my new car.  I think it has gotten to the point now that when I try to give them motherly driving advice, they only hear "whaa-whaa-whaa" (like the trombone effect from Charlie Brown's teacher).  

I was so worried about them that I got the dealership to throw in at no extra charge, a back-up rear sensor that goes off if they get too close to something while they are backing up.  So now maybe they will listen to the constant beeping of a warning signal in the car while in reverse, instead of getting annoyed at me.

We have also told the girls that they cannot get their own car (to share) until they have both learned their way around town, from here to there and can find their way back home.  So, not only are we giving driving lessons, we are now teaching geography.

You would think that would be easy, yes?  Not so fast....I finally figured out why they weren't completely getting it at first...and it's our own fault (not an easy admission).  When my husband and I were growing up, we didn't have portable DVD players, cell phones, iPods, Kindles, or even walk-mans (I'm dating myself here) at that time.  All we had was the window at our side to look out of, stare and wonder "are we almost there?".  We took in every street name, landmark, tree and sign.  We knew exactly where we were at all times.

Today, kids, teens (and even some adults) are traveling with their heads facing down, enthralled in some electronic device.  It's no wonder they don't know how to get from A to B, they haven't been looking up and out.  Well, there's nothing like a little wager on the table to motivate a couple teenagers.  I'm here to tell you, they are learning very quickly now.

This grilled vegetable salad has absolutely nothing to do with driving lessons, but we made it last week and it was really good.  I have had this recipe forever and always keep going back to it, especially during the summer grilling months.

Thought for the weekend, "Get out there and see the world"...leave the electronics at home.

Grilled Vegetable Salad
Courtesy of Down Home with The Neelys

1/2 bunch asparagus, trimmed and cut into bite-size pieces
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1 medium red onion, cut into 1/2-inch rings
1 yellow bell pepper, quartered, seeds and ribs removed
1 red bell pepper, quartered, seeds and ribs removed

***I also added 1 zucchini, sliced
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, for brushing
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
1/4 pound feta cheese

Dressing:
1 medium clove garlic, chopped
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preheat grill to medium.

In a large bowl, toss the vegetables with olive oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill the vegetables, turning occasionally, until charred and tender, about 5 to 7 minutes. Remove to a platter. Sprinkle with basil and feta.

In a small bowl, mix garlic, balsamic vinegar, and olive oil. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle over vegetables.

Zip Lines and Homemade Luau

This week has been quite an adventurous one, to say the least.  We have already done waterfalls, rain forest hikes and kayaked through the Kohala Ditch Adventure.

Such a great trip to take on the northern Kohala Coast.  We were told about a stretch of highway at the edge of the island and walked to the end of the road where the original sugar cane fields once were and an old mule station.  Absolutely breathtaking.  We could even see the island of Maui on our drive there.

I conquered one of my greatest fears this week...heights!!  I searched out a company on the island near us that has zip line tours through the rain forest, near the same sugar cane ditches that we kayaked through.

Kohala Zipline offers various zip line adventures.  Since this was the first time for all of us, we went with the 9 line tour that also has a canopy experience like no other.

 Perched amongst the trees of Halawa, Kohala Zipline’s Kohala Canopy Adventure featured elevated suspension bridges, soaring tree platforms and thrilling zip lines. From the moment we entered the aerial trekking course, we were enthralled by the magic of Kohala.

They started us at what they call "flight school", which are 2 smaller lines just to see if we could get the feel of all the equipment and assure our instructors that we could graduate to the 1100 foot drop of the last line that took us to speeds up to 50 miles an hour.

 Their tag line is "Elevated Inspiration"...that about sums up how you feel when you have completed their course.  What an adrenaline rush!!!

Perfect remedy for a day in the forest - Mai Tai and Pina Colada.

Of course you cannot go to Hawaii without attending or having a Luau.  We made our own version this week with grilled pineapple and sweet bbq ribs, as we listened to the hula music from nearby hotels and resorts.