Health Articles, Steak and a Side of Veggies

Lately I seem to be inundated with the opposing nutritional trends every where I look online, so it’s really no wonder that people have no idea what they should and shouldn’t be eating! You’ll read an article where they suggest that carbohydrates create fat stores in the body and therefore are bad for diets, while another article will insist that not eating carbohydrates will cause your body break down muscle because of low glycogen stores. Carbohydrate isn’t the only topic that’s targeted; sodium, protein and fat are highlighted just as often.

So how do we know if we’re eating a balanced nutritious meal with everything a body needs? Well it’s easy, firstly, STOP reading all those articles and secondly, eat a bit of everything (real food, not processed fried chicken or anything), like what the human population has been doing for eons. Of course, the only problem now a day is that people seem to be eating literally everything, without the thought of portion sizes. I wouldn’t doubt that reading those articles doesn’t help either.

For a while there I was confused and started breaking down and analyzing everything in my meals. Did I get enough protein with my carbs for breakfast? Or should I pack more healthy fats to ensure that I’m getting the most out of my vegetables for lunch? Maybe I need to lower the amount of salt and sugar that I’m taking in on a daily basis and cut out my beloved desserts? Eating just didn’t become enjoyable anymore and I started realizing that I never really ate that bad to start off with so why am I so concerned!


I realized that this had to stop because I was starting to become obsessed with food! I enjoy eating but really, what fun is it to sit there and calculate everything you’re ingesting. So the next thing I did, I stopped reading all the food articles and decided to make myself a delicious steak dinner with a lovely side of veggies and a yummy dessert.

So for all those out there that is following the Paleo, Atkins, or Vegan diets, kudos to you for being able to stick to your guns and know your path, but for the rest of us that can get confused with the information overload provided online now a days. Maybe it’s time to take a step back and realize that we just need to start with a healthier outlook on food. That eating all natural non processed foods are healthy for us and not everything has to be calculated to a tee as long as we understand that intake of all foods in moderation is the key (and yes that does include Alberta beef and dessert!).

Sautéed Beef Tenderloin with Arugula, Roasted Red Peppers and Asparagus(Recipe is adopted from the epicurious website)

I opted to change up the recipe a little bit and used beef tenderloin instead of flank steak. Beef tenderloin is a better cut of beef and still has relatively little fat, which allows the steak to remain juicy and tender (tenderloin, duh) after searing. Since I prefer to have my steak on its own, I also didn’t prepare the red pepper sauce that the original recipe called for. Instead I just added in a bit of Dijon mustard to the coating of the crust and left it at that.

Instead of cauliflower, I used Asparagus because they were sitting around lonely in my fridge and I figured that it would taste pretty delicious with the red peppers and arugula (which it did).

Ingredients:1 bunch asparagus
2 red bell peppers
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 1/2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 tsp fresh thyme, chopped
1 1/2 tsp coarse ground black pepper
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 pieces beef tenderloin
1/2 tsp canola oil
1 tbsp dijon mustard
3 oz baby arugula


Preparation:
Preheat oven to 500ºF.

In a baking pan, toss together, asparagus, red bell peppers, garlic, olive oil, 1 tsp chopped thyme, 1 tsp salt and 1/2 tsp pepper.

Place the pan in the oven and roast, occasionally rotating the vegetables until they are slightly charred. (I like the veggies a little under cooked so I only left them in there for 10 mins but you can leave them in there for up to 23-30 mins).

In the meantime, stir together the rest of the thyme, pepper, and salt in a small bowl. Add in the mustard and canola oil.

Pat the steaks dry and rub both sides with the mixture.

Add a bit of oil to the skillet and place the steak in to sear. If you want the steaks to be medium rare 3-4 mins per side should do it or until there’s a slight bounce back when poking the middle of the steak.

Remove from heat and let the steaks rest for 5 mins on the plates before serving.

At this time, remove the veggies from the oven and toss in the arugula so they will wilt slightly.

Transfer to steak plate and serve with a dash of pepper on top.

Enjoy!