Chipotle-Rubbed Flank Steak

Nate picked out this recipe for Chipotle-Rubbed Flank Steak in the June issue of Cooking Light. I'm not usually a steak fan, but the chipotle part intrigued me and I knew it wouldn't be a huge slab of steak, so I agreed to it! We also made the side dishes suggested: couscous (just regular couscous made with vegetable broth) and spinach with toasted almonds (recipe below).

The entire meal was very straightforward and easy to make. we followed the recipe fairly closely, but changed a few things:

• We couldn't find flank steak at Outpost, so we used something similar (I can't remember what Nate picked out).


• I also couldn't find shallots so we just used part of a yellow onion we had.


• We used skim rather than 1% just because it's what we buy.


• We don't have a broiler pan and, frankly, I think we're both a bit nervous to try broiling anything. So we just cooked the steak in a skillet.

The steak was really good, and the Gorgonzola sauce paired nicely with the chipotle spice.

Here's what you do for the spinach with toasted almonds: Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add 6 oz. package baby spinach; saute 2 minutes or until spinach wilts. Add 1/8 teas. salt. Sprinkle with 3 Tbs. toasted sliced almonds.

The spinach was really good, and I liked the toasted almonds with it. However, I think I could eat the entire 6 oz. on my own! Spinach shrinks so much, that when it was cooked, there really wasn't a lot there (and it was supposed to be 4 servings!). Nate and I ate it all.