Grilled Rosemary Merlot Flank Steak

If you hang in with this post long enough I promise that there is a pretty fabulous grilled steak recipe at the end, but in the meantime...the backstory!

At least once a year...sometimes more...the Southern husband and I head north to my favorite place on earth, otherwise known as Vermont.  Sometimes the teenager comes with us, even though there is no cell phone service whatsoever in our little neck of the Vermont hills.  (Believe me when i say that in the teenage world, there is no greater love for one's mama than going outside the zone of Verizon coverage.)

Other things that are not in our little corner of Vermont: Movie theaters.  Starbucks.  Kentucky Fried Chicken.  ATM's.   Etc.  They do have a lot of these though.

Here's the Southern husband scanning the area for a gas station that will take that little gizmo on his keychain that allows you to pay for your gas without actually taking out your wallet.

Nope.  As a matter of fact, finding ANY gas station is a wonderful thing.  It's one of the reasons I love the place.  We are Away From It All whenever we go up there.

So imagine my surprise when we stopped at the one local supermarket on the way to our cabin to pick up essentials (milk, eggs, Oreos) and discovered that they had put in a teeny tiny wine section.  We were so shocked and amazed that we automatically picked out a bottle, just to make sure we weren't dreaming.  And it instantly turned into our new favorite merlot...right there in the middle of Poultney, Vermont.

Once we got home, the Southern husband sprang into action and ordered a case of it, and ever since then it has been our merlot of choice.  So when the grill was back in service for the season, I pulled out this tried and true recipe to see if it was as good as a steak marinade as it is was in my wineglasss.

It was.  And so here you go (finally!)...this is a recipe that I have talked about before, but since it is one of my faves I am talking about it again with a little extra twist.  First,  grab a bottle of YOUR favorite merlot, and mix up 3/4 cup of it with some chopped fresh rosemary, some chopped onion,  some beef broth and a few spices.  Pour it all in a ziplock bag, add a flank steak and let it sit in the fridge while you make the grilled vegetable salad.

First you need some lettuce.  I grow my own in an AeroGarden and pretty soon it is going to need its own zip code, there's so much of it.  But I do have fresh fresh fresh lettuce whenever I need it.

Now gather up whatever veggies you have around that catch your fancy.  I had some frozen artichoke hearts that I thawed out...

(Okay, that's not a frozen artichoke heart, but it's the only artichoke picture I have, and there's an artichoke heart in there somewhere.)    The picture below IS the actual asparagus that I used...



...along with some cherry tomatoes that I cut in half.  Scatter them all on a cookie sheet that you have lined with foil and spray or drizzle them with a little olive oil.  Toss on a little salt and pepper and pop them in a 425 degree oven for about 10-15 minutes.

When they are done, set them aside to cool a little while you make the steak.  Send someone reliable outside to grill the steak, and while they are doing that, pour the marinade into a saucepan.   Add a little tomato paste and mustard and boil it up for about 5 minutes.  When the steak comes off the grill, let it sit for about 5 minutes and then slice it thinly across the grain.

Now!  Cover half of each plate with lettuce.  Spoon some nice roasted veggies on top.  I think they are just fine plain, but feel free to drizzle a little dressing on top if you like.  Lay some sliced steak on the other side of the plate and pour some of the merlot marinade sauce on top.

You are now in paradise.  Promise. 

Grilled Rosemary Merlot Flank Steak with Grilled Vegetable Salad, steak recipe from Cooking Light

• 1 cup finely chopped onion
• 3/4 cup low-salt beef broth
• 3/4 cup Merlot or other dry red wine
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 (1-pound) flank steak, trimmed
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard 

• lettuce
• your choice of vegetables to grill
• olive oil
• salt and pepper

1. Combine first 7 ingredients in a large zip-top plastic bag. Add steak; seal bag. Marinate in refrigerator 20 minutes, turning once.
2. Preheat oven to 425.  Line baking tray with foil and lay veggies in a single layer.  Spray or mix with a little olive oil and sprinkle salt and pepper on top.  Roast for 10-15 minutes.  Remove and let cool.
3. Remove steak from bag, reserving marinade.   Heat grill to high and cook steak  6 minutes on each side or until desired degree of doneness. Let stand 5 minutes. Cut steak diagonally across grain into thin slices; keep warm.
4. While steak cooks, combine reserved marinade, tomato paste, and mustard in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat, stirring well with a whisk. Bring to a boil, and cook until reduced to 1 cup (about 7 minutes).
5. Arrange grilled veggies over lettuce on each plate.  Place sliced steak alongside veggies, pouring a little merlot sauce over the top.

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