Steak Wraps with Avocado Chimichurri Sauce

Fresh flour tortillas piled with tender juicy steak, sliced cucumber, grated carrots, sliced radishes and cotija cheese. And for a real punch of flavor, Avocado Chimichurri Sauce. This sauce. It’s entirely versatile. You can change it to suit your tastes or leave it as is, which to me, is perfect. Have it on chicken, fish, pork, beef, vegetables, in wraps and sandwiches--I could go on and on. Oh, on roasted potatoes? My gosh, yes. On pizza! Yes, we’ve done this, too, and it’s fantastic!

It’s no secret how much I love Tortilla Land Fresh Uncooked Tortillas. I’m completely in love with them and they’ve spoiled all other tortillas for me. Seriously. They’re fresh--you have to cook them, which takes all of 30 seconds, maybe a minute. That quick cooking time insures a flavorful tortilla that’s never doughy, cold, or rubbery. Don’t you hate that? It’s so aggravating to order a fabulous wrap only to have it arrive in a cold, doughy tortilla that’s only going to turn to mush as you eat. Gross! I can’t use a flour tortilla for anything without crisping it up a bit in a hot pan first. It should be a law! Tortilla Land tortillas are the ones you’d make at home if you did that sort of thing. They have five ingredients in them. FIVE: unbleached wheat flour, water, canola oil, salt and just a pinch of sugar. That’s it, folks!

The sauce is super easy to throw together. Literally, you just throw the ingredients in your food processor and turn it on. Drizzle in the olive oil and you’re all set to use it. And oh, will you ever use it. You’ll want to use it on everything. You may even want to eat it by the spoonful. I won’t judge.

Steak Wraps with Avocado Chimichurri Sauce

Measurements are up to you. How hungry are you? How big is your crowd? You really don't need a whole lot of steak in each wrap, so slice your steak thinly. I had a little over a pound, I believe, and we had enough for 7-8 wraps.

These can be grilled, which is fabulous, or if it’s just too hot to be outside or it’s raining, they can easily be done in the house. As was the case when I made these. There’s a fantastic method for cooking a steak in the oven on TheKitchn. This is how these steaks were cooked. Proceed with your method of choice.

Tortilla Land Fresh Flour Tortillas (or what you have on hand)
Avocado Chimichurri Sauce (recipe below)
Steak (your favorite cut) cooked, rested, sliced and set aside (or try chicken!)
Sliced cucumbers
Shredded carrots
Sliced radishes
Cotija Cheese, crumbled 
Sliced limes for squeezing over the top, optional

Cook the tortillas on your grill, or in a hot pan on your stovetop. Let them get some nice color and a little char on them if that’s your thing. It’s definitely my thing!

On each tortilla, spoon a little sauce down the center, top with steak, cucumbers, carrots, radishes and cheese. I like to drizzle a little more sauce over the top, too. Squeeze a little lime juice over the top, if you like.

Serve with ice cold drinks!

Avocado Chimichurri Sauce

Makes approximately 2 3/4 cups

Like I said, this is versatile and forgiving. Don't worry too much on the amounts of the herbs, just go with the flow.

1 bunch of parsley (you know, the size of the bunch they sell in stores) 
about 1/2 cup of cilantro (if you absolutely hate cilantro, skip it)
1 small carrot (or a handful of pre-shredded carrots, which I always have on hand)
1 clove garlic
5 tbsp white wine vinegar
5 tbsp water
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
1/2 - 3/4 cup avocado (depending on the size of your avocado, of course-don't sweat the amount, just toss some in)
1 cup olive oil

In your food processor, toss in the parsley, cilantro, carrot, garlic, vinegar, water, salt, oregano, pepper and avocado. Pulse a few times, but don't process the heck out of it. Turn it on and while it's running, drizzle the olive oil in and give it a few seconds, then shut it off. It's done.

Store in an airtight container in the fridge for about a week to two weeks. Try it on everything!

Thanks again to Tortilla Land Fresh Flour Tortillas. I love you guys! See if they’re available in your area. If not, bug the heck out of your local grocer to carry them! I’m on a mission to get them here in NH. I’ll also have another recipe using their tortillas coming up later this week!

Tortilla Wrapped Burgers and My Weird Dog

Tortilla Wrapped Burgers. Is that a good name? I don’t know. I actually sat at my desk for a while, staring at the blank “title” field in Live Writer. It doesn’t help that I have a headache. That tends to make me stare off into space instead of concentrating. They’re burgers, shaped more like a sausage so they roll up well in the tortillas. I added fresh guacamole, sliced tomato, queso blanco, sliced shallots and cilantro to top off the taco seasoned burger/sausage-type patties. We had these over the Memorial Day weekend. Still making our way through a delicious stack of Tortilla Land tortillas in the fridge, these are a fun twist on burgers with buns.

We also watched The Hunt for Red October over the weekend. Come on, it’s a classic! When my husband and I were dating, he dragged me, kicking and screaming, to see this movie. I didn’t want to see it. I thought a root canal sounded more entertaining. But I went. Playing the sweet girlfriend role. Because that’s how you get things in return. Like cameras and shoes and shiny things. It’s all give and take.

And then I sat on the edge of my freaking seat! The cat and mouse games. The stealthy hunter, stalking it’s prey. When that sub came out of the water? Whoa. They can DO that? The good looking guys in uniforms probably helped, too.

I loved it!

Still do.

Where am I going with this? I do have a point, I promise. One of our Corgis, Hamilton, has been doing something odd lately. It’s only at night, when they go out for the last time before bed. The dogs will do their thing, and then wait on the deck to come back in. They all come right in, except Hammy. He waits to be asked back in.

Hello?! I know! Quite often, he’ll just sit there and look at us like we’re crazy. My husband started giving him titles, like “Come in, Dr. Hamilton.”

“Sir Hamilton.”

“Lord Hamilton.”

“Your Highness Hamilton.”

“General Hamilton.”

“Colonel Hamilton.”

“Admiral Hamilton.” <--He especially likes that one. Why? I have no idea. But it does have a certain ring to it, yes?

When he hears one he likes, he’ll come in. What a goof! Sooo…while we were watching Red October, we get to the scene where Ramius is addressing the crew for the first time on the voyage. Hear that whistle right at the beginning? Hammy was asleep on the floor and as soon as that whistle sounded, he was on all four paws, straight at attention. Billy looked down and said “Oh, sorry for startling you, Admiral Hamilton!”

Totally cracked us up! Was Hammy an admiral in another life? Does he watch too much TV when we’re not home? Does he just have a damn good imagination for a dog?

Not a clue. He is entertaining, though. And although he looks sort of admiral-ish in that photo, he’s not. He’s a huge, snuggly, hairy bozo. With a personality complex.

Tortilla Wrapped Burgers

These are great for those of you that don’t want to fill up on a big burger bun because you’ve been snacking on all the other goodies at your cookout. This isn't so much of a recipe, as it is a guideline. Use your own amounts and toppings according to what you like. I was going to use red onion, but it had decided to turn green, so shallot was the lucky choice for the day.

-ground beef, about a pound or so
-taco seasoning or your favorite burger seasoning
-guacamole 
-sliced tomatoes
-queso blanco, shredded, or your favorite cheese
-thinly sliced shallots (or red onion)
-fresh cilantro
-tortillas
-hot sauce

Add the taco seasoning to the ground beef and  mix well. Shape into sausage type shapes. And yes, I'm well aware of what they look like. Ha! Shhh. Quit it. Grill until they're done to your liking. Remove from the grill and set aside.

Heat the tortillas on the grill until they're warm and you get nice grill marks and delicious char marks on them. Spread each tortilla with some guacamole, add your burger next...and speaking of the burgers, we cut them in half down the middle so they didn't look like, well, you know.

So add the burger, cheese, tomatoes and all of the other goodies. Roll up and serve with something ice cold, and some crunchy corn chips. Oh, some extra guacamole on the side would be awesome, too. For the chips!

Grilled Hawaiian Teriyaki Steak Wraps

Grilled marinated steak, crunchy veggies, grilled pineapple, and a miso Greek yogurt sauce, all wrapped up in the most delicious grilled flour tortilla my taste buds have ever had (thank you very much, Tortilla Land!). We had this last weekend, and as I’m writing this, I find myself wishing we still had some! 

Someone asked the other day, on Twitter I believe, what everyone's favorite grilled food was. I gave it some very brief thought and answered chicken. But now I realize I can’t choose just one. I absolutely adore grilled vegetables--if you’ve never tried grilled leeks, DO IT SOON. Pure heaven! We eat way less meat than we used to, so it’s easy for us to have a big old plate of grilled veggies and a small serving of some meat. If you put a grilled steak in front of me, it makes me a very happy Elle. Simple burger? Yeah! If you add sliced garden tomatoes to that burger, you could probably get me to do almost anything. Almost.

We like to get our vegetables and fruits at a place called Tendercrop Farm in Newbury, MA. They have a huge selection of their own (and other local) fresh produce, as well as their own hormone-free and antibiotic-free chickens, Black Angus beef, and turkeys. It’s good to know that even if we do have some beef or poultry, that it’s great quality. They also make their own sausage and hot dogs! We got some killer Andouille sausage that’s going to star in an upcoming post, so stay tuned for that.

Last week, I received a box of fresh, uncooked flour tortillas from Tortilla Land. When they asked if I’d like to try some, I couldn’t say no. We love flour tortillas. You’re only limited by your imagination as to what to put in them. One of my favorite ways to have them, courtesy of Billy, is just lightly browned in a bit of oil, and then brushed with butter. Have them alongside any meal where you might want bread. So unbelievably simple, but a tasty alternative to bread! The big difference with Tortilla Land’s tortillas, is that they’re uncooked. You simply toss them in a hot pan (or on a hot grill) and after just a few seconds one each side, they’re like you made them at home. With spots of browned goodness that add flavor to each and every bite. Now fill them with something, or have them as a side, and you’ll be totally satisfied.

Tortilla Land’s tortillas are also all natural, have no trans fats, no cholesterol, and no saturated fats. What’s in them? Wheat Flour, Water, Canola Oil, Salt,and Sugar. That’s it. They’re what you would make at home yourself, only you can have them on the table faster. You know how some store bought tortillas can be thick and doughy, and kind of sweet? These are none of those. They’re addictive, especially with the little charred areas that you can get if you let them get that way, which I do.

So! While at the farm last weekend, we picked up some of their steak, which was marinated in their Hawaiian Teriyaki Sauce. It was a perfect match for the tortillas.

Grilled Hawaiian Teriyaki Steak Wraps

makes 4-5 wraps

You can use your favorite marinade here. Ours just happened to be already marinated from Tendercrop Farm. Feel free to use whatever extras you like in the wraps--don't feel limited to what we used in ours. If you can't find the seasoning that I used in the yogurt sauce, you can add more sesame oil, sesame seeds, and ginger to taste.

-about 3/4 to one pound of steak, marinated for at least a couple of hours, but overnight is always better
-fresh pineapple slices
-shredded carrots
-sliced cucumber (I used 2 smallish cukes)
-sliced green onions
-hot sauce (optional)
-Tortilla Land Flour Tortillas

Miso Yogurt Sauce:
makes about 8-9 ounces

7 oz container Greek Yogurt
1/4 tsp ground ginger
2 tsp light Miso
a few drops of sesame oil
1 tsp honey
1/2 tsp Toasted Sesame Ginger Seasoning

Make the yogurt sauce:
Whisk all sauce ingredients in a small bowl and set in the fridge until you're ready to serve.

Grill your steaks until done to your liking, or you can also cook them on the stove-again, till done the way you like them. Let the meat rest for at least 5 minutes before you slice it. After the steak is grilled, grill your pineapple slices. They only take a few minutes. Set those aside.

Just before assembling the wraps, place the tortillas on the grill. Let them get toasty on one side, then flip them-watching carefully so you don't burn them. The charred spots just add to the overall flavor, so don't be afraid to let them get some good color! They cook very quickly.

Spread some of the yogurt sauce down the middle of the tortillas, then top with the sliced steak, carrots, cucumber, green onion, and the grilled pineapple. Drizzle with some hot sauce if you like. We like! Roll the tortillas up and serve.

BONUS: The Miso Yogurt Sauce makes a fabulous veggie dip! We dipped all of the leftover cucumber slices in the sauce and truthfully, I could enjoy just that as a snack--anytime! Try it on other sandwiches and wraps, as well.

I’m sure I’ll have more tortilla recipes coming up. When Tortilla Land’s rep, Alexis, told me that I’d probably receive enough tortillas to share with friends, she wasn’t kidding!

And just look a the gorgeous color on those tortillas. Seriously. If you can get your hands on some Tortilla Land Tortillas, you’ve got to try them!