A beautiful day for grilling...

The weather this weekend has been a wonderful respite from the cold dreary fall we have had so far. Indeed yesterday was so nice that we decided to throw some steak on the grill, and to end the perfect day we spent some time lounging on the deck after dinner, Ben with a cigar and me with a glass of wine. What a wonderful evening, and probably one of the last uses of the deck for the year. I did not have to spend much time in the kitchen at all for this wonder repast - a flat iron steak with an easy marinade, simple steak fries, chopped romaine salad, and a whole grain baguette from the bakery. To make it completely decadent we had some of the Manchego left from the other evening, good olives, some cimichuri and a bottle of wine - dining heaven.

Red Wine and Rosemary Flat Iron Steaks

2 lb. or so flat iron steak (or other of choice)
1/3 cup dry red wine such as Cabernet Sauvignon
1 heaping tsp. dried rosemary, crumbled
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tsp. good quality salt
fresh ground black pepper, generous amount
1 tsp. dry mustard
1 tsp. dried parsley

Mix the wine and seasoning in a one gallon zippered bag; add the steak, seal the bag and turn to coat the steak. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour, and up to 6, turning the bag occasionally. One half hour before grilling set the steak on the counter to come to room temperature, then grill to desired doneness. Let the steak rest for 10 minutes, then slice thinly against the grain. A 2lb. steak will feed 6, but if not using it all, leave the remains unsliced. Once chilled it is possible to make almost paper thin slices - perfect for topping a salad or making a wonderful sandwich.

Easy Steak Fries

1 large potato for each person
cooking spray
seasoning of choice

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Spray a baking sheet generously with the cooking spray. Wash and scrub the potatoes (I actually use my kitchen scrubby for this) and dry well. Cut each potato in half lengthwise; place cut side down on your cutting board and cut in half again. Cut the halves again - you will have 4 fries of equal width from each potato half. This is perfect for steak fries, but if your potatoes are exceptionally large you may want to cut them a little thinner. Lay out on the baking sheet and spray the surface of the slices with the cooking spray. Season as desired and put into the middle of the oven for 15 minutes, flip the slices, season again, and return to the oven for another 10 minutes. If you would like the fries to be a little browner after the cooking time, just turn on the upper broiler for a minute or two. Serve hot.