Skirt Steak with Red Pepper Chimichurri Sauce & Spicy Sweet Potato Mash

So we decided to have skirt steak tonight and I thought what better thing to marinate/top them with than chimichurri sauce.  I went to the aisle, looked for a jar, found it, scrunched my nose and said the heck with this jarred crap.  So simple to make, not to mention cost effective, why not make it from scratch?  Below is my recipe.  In most chimichurri sauce recipes, parsley is the main ingredient.  In my recipe, the red bell pepper shares an equal spotlight with parsley.  Aside from a marinade and/or topping for meat, this makes a great dipping sauce for bread....not to mention a great pizza topper.  Our little guy wanted cheese pizza tonight, so my husband and I made a little appetizer out of the rest of the pizza, topping each piece with the chimichurri.  De-li-cious. Recipes listed below.  Oh...and there are PICTURES! FINALLY :).

 

Skirt Steak with Red Pepper Chimichurri Sauce

 2 lbs. skirt steak

1 bunch flat leaf parsley (1/2 inch chopped off the bottom)

1 small red bell pepper

6 large cloves garlic, peeled

1/4 cup cider or red wine vinegar

1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

1 tsp. onion powder

1 tsp. kosher salt

1/2 tsp. fresh ground black pepper

1/2 tsp. smoked paprika

1/4 tsp. coriander

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

Begin by coring and seeding your red bell pepper.  Put it in the food processor and pulse until pepper is minced.   Squeeze and drain the excess liquid from the minced pepper and place in small mixing bowl.  Add parsley and garlic to your food processor and pulse until very finely minced.  Add this to the pepper in the mixing bowl.  Add your vinegar, spices and olive oil to the bowl and stir until all ingredients are mixed.  Spoon chimichurri over skirt steaks and let marinate at least 1 hour, preferably 2 (and overnight is best).  Grill until your desired temperature and serve the remainder of the fresh chimichurri on the side.

Spicy Sweet Potato Mash

2 very large sweet potatoes (cooked until soft, skin removed and mashed)

2 tbsp. salted butter

1/4 cup maple syrup

2 tsp. honey

3 shakes cayenne pepper

2 tbsp. marshmallow fluff

Combine hot sweet potatoes, butter, maple syrup and honey in a medium sized mixing bowl.  Swirl in marshmallow fluff and serve!


This meal serves 4.


Here is what the finished product looked like....before and during :).  In case you are wondering what is in the shot glass, I served the steak with a "chimichurri shooter." Highly recommend a wine called "Apothic Red" to accompany and compliment this meal.  Enjoy!