It's easy enough to slap a steak on the grill for dinner; but just a little extra work turns a humble hunk of beef into an actual "recipe" that should make your friends or family sit up and take notice. The uncooked steak is cut into thin slices, seasoned, and quickly stir-fried in herb-infused oil; then the pan is then deglazed with a touch of vinegar. The arugula requires no special attention, if you buy the packaged kind that is already rinsed clean. This flash-in-the-pan dinner is on the lighter side, so you may want to begin with a simple vegetable soup--like red bell pepper or mushroom--and offer cheesy garlic bread throughout the meal to satisfy any big appetites at your table. If dessert is on the menu, consider affogato--a shot of hot espresso poured over an ice-cold scoop of vanilla bean gelato.

It's easy enough to slap a steak on the grill for dinner; but just a little extra work turns a humble hunk of beef into an actual "recipe" that should make your friends or family sit up and take notice. The uncooked steak is cut into thin slices, seasoned, and quickly stir-fried in herb-infused oil; then the pan is then deglazed with a touch of vinegar. The arugula requires no special attention, if you buy the packaged kind that is already rinsed clean. This flash-in-the-pan dinner is on the lighter side, so you may want to begin with a simple vegetable soup--like red bell pepper or mushroom--and offer cheesy garlic bread throughout the meal to satisfy any big appetites at your table. If dessert is on the menu, consider affogato--a shot of hot espresso poured over an ice-cold scoop of vanilla bean gelato.

Instead of resorting to the jar of marinara kept on hand for harried weeknight dinners, this recipe offers a quick romesco sauce (sometimes called "the pesto of Spain") from bottled red peppers and other fairly standard ingredients. The sauce is easily assembled in the time it takes to cook the pasta, and provides a welcome change of pace. (If you are used to eating heavily-sauced pasta, you may want to double that part of the recipe--but I thought it was just fine.) I also incorporated two of my new favorite ingredients by using a good-quality multi-grain pasta and adding a 1/2 teaspoon of smoked paprika to the sauce. (If you have not yet tasted Spanish smoked paprika, definitely give it a try. It is a very different animal from the stuff your mother used to sprinkle over deviled eggs.) Every Spanish-inspired meal deserves good bread or rolls; and then maybe a soothing flan for dessert.

Instead of resorting to the jar of marinara kept on hand for harried weeknight dinners, this recipe offers a quick romesco sauce (sometimes called "the pesto of Spain") from bottled red peppers and other fairly standard ingredients. The sauce is easily assembled in the time it takes to cook the pasta, and provides a welcome change of pace. (If you are used to eating heavily-sauced pasta, you may want to double that part of the recipe--but I thought it was just fine.) I also incorporated two of my new favorite ingredients by using a good-quality multi-grain pasta and adding a 1/2 teaspoon of smoked paprika to the sauce. (If you have not yet tasted Spanish smoked paprika, definitely give it a try. It is a very different animal from the stuff your mother used to sprinkle over deviled eggs.) Every Spanish-inspired meal deserves good bread or rolls; and then maybe a soothing flan for dessert.

cooked week of 1/11/10. used onions instead of shallots. very good.

cooked week of 1/11/10. used onions instead of shallots. very good.