Beef Lettuce Wrap

It has been a long week it seems and today is one of those days when I wish someone else would cook dinner while I catch up on my reading & TV shows.  I'd be honest to say that there are days I think of the quiet, relaxing times I'd spend on my own doing whatever I want. On the other hand, motherhood has been wonderful that I would not exchange it for anything else.  There are times when I look back in the days and think, ' what did I do with my time before Sophia was born?'  Whatever it was seem to be meaningless compared to the Mommy things I do now even if it is just as simple as washing the dishes.

Now that my daughter is a little older and demands less attention I am excited to get back into cooking.  The past weeks I've been clipping recipes here and there and I am very eager to try them all.  For today  I could have ordered take-out or ordered food for delivery, but I have planned out our meals in advance and have bought all the ingredients that I feel guilty to not cook.  And so with my stack of printouts I pulled the quickest & easiest recipe - beef lettuce wraps.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 lb flank steak
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/4 teaspoon course salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
artisanal lettuce leaves (or iceberg lettuce)
1 cup thinly sliced onion
1 cup torn fresh mint leaves
1 cup persian cucumber (julienned)
1/2 cup fresh cilantro

For the sauce:
4 tablespoons sugar dissolved in 1/2 cup of water
2 tablespoons light soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
1 tablespoon fish sauce
juice of half a lemon
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons ketchup
1-2 teaspoon garlic-chili sauce

Directions:

1. Drizzle steak with olive oil then sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Grill steak on medium-high heat, about 5 minutes on each side for medium rare.  Let steak stand at least 5 minutes.  Cut steak diagonally across the grain into very thin slices.
2. Make the sauce while the meat rests. In a small bowl, dissolve sugar in water.  Add soy sauce, vinegar, lemon juice, fish sauce, ketchup, sesame oil and garlic-chili sauce.  Whisk and set aside.
3. To serve & eat, place sliced steaks in the center of each lettuce leaf; top with 1 tablespoon each of mint, cucumber, cilantro & onion.  Roll up and dip in sauce.

Cost:

$ 10.25 --- 100% Grass fed Flank Steak ($7/lb)

$   0.25 --- cilantro

$   0.30 --- persian cucumber

$   0.70 --- mint

$   0.20 --- onion

$   0.30 -- lemon

$   2.00 -- Lettuce

Total: $14.00