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Friday, May 21, 2010

May in the Wichita Mountains

I went for a walk today, around the area where I work. My workplace is located inside a Wildlife Reserve in the Wichita Mountains of Southwest Oklahoma.

Anyway, here are my photos:


Trail head near my work.



Wildflowers of the plains


More Wildflowers



Base of the Wichitas


An unusually wet winter and spring have allowed
greenery to grow on the rocks of the mountains.



Ancient smooth mountain stone and greenery.

Small lake near my work.


So serene... water in the dry plains...

Vibrant base of the mountains


More wildflowers


Impressive view of the Wichitas



Dual mountains, heading west on US 62.

Ancient stone of the Wichitas

Mountain, water, what a view!
Oklahoma's state wildflower. It's so lovely.
Prickly Pears, in bloom





Doesn't this look like the devil's foot?


Sunday, May 9, 2010

Playing With My Food - Love Me Tender (Chuck Steaks)

Chuck steaks were on sale this past week at the grocery. These particular ones were named "chuck tender steaks" and they looked a lot like filet mignon. They were nearly the same price as ground beef, and so, they got my attention. I bought a package, then wondered if I'd made a mistake.


I looked up chuck steaks online and on AllRecipes in particular, and most references to chuck steak talked about a tough cut of meat that needed to be beaten and slow-cooked into submission. However, these were called Chuck TENDER steaks... I decided to put my faith in labeling and see what happens. I marinated the little steaks in a favorite blend of mine- apple cidar vinegar, horseradish and Worcestershire sauce, for about an hour.





I then heated up my grill pan. I grill on it freqently because I live in an apartment complex that doesn't allow grills near the apartments for fear of fire.
Anyway, I grilled my precious Chuck Tender Steaks for about 5 minutes per side, while I made some steak fries and peas to go with them.


When they were done to my liking (medium rare), I removed them from the grill and let them rest for about 5 minutes.
I assembled my meal and cut into my steak...




Now, this was not a fork-cut tender steak. I am of the opinion that a steak should NOT be fork tender. It was not tough. In my mind it was a perfect little steak with great flavor and just enough 'chew' to let me know it was a steak. I was well-pleased with these little steaks and will look for them again. I hope they continue to be as inexpensive as they were this week!