Date Night Will Never Be the Same (Now That we’ve Tried This Steak)

With just a few months to go until our son is born, Ryan and I are busy with preparations like touring the hospital, scheduling which labor & delivery class we’re going to attend, and looking online at a bazillion baby product reviews. Needless to say, this is very new territory for us!

We are enjoying the planning and can’t wait to meet our little boy, but we also recognize that our time as a family of two is quickly coming to a close. When again will we be able to go away to a cabin on the fly or decide to hit a movie just because we feel like it? Parents out there, I already know the answer: once your child is here, everything changes. That’s why we are setting aside at least one night of quality time each week this summer. A big part of that plan is sharing in what we call "Date Night Blog Night" – a weeknight where we try out a new recipe together from the Test Kitchens Blog and enjoy a quiet meal connecting about our day, and dreaming about our future as a family of three.

Ryan wants me to be clear that our very favorite Date Night meal so far has been the Southwestern Skirt Steak with Chile Lime Butter. This is so good, it’s ridiculous. It was easy to tackle and Ryan literally raved about it for days.

Now here’s my confession: I was skeptical about the whole butter-on-steak thing. Am I even allowed to write that for a blog that’s commissioned by a butter-making company?! Probably not. But it’s the truth. I felt apprehensive because I try to cut fat where I can (especially now that I’m considering what kind of effort it will take to lose the pregnancy weight after this kid shows up). I thought it might be the sort of thing that could be cut from this recipe because it was extra. I WAS WRONG. You can go light on the chile lime butter if you want to, but don’t skip it all together. It MAKES the recipe. The meal was delicious and you’re going to want to make it on Date Nights from now on. I know Ryan wants us to! Now my only problem is convincing him that we ought to give other new recipes a chance if we’re going to continue our Date Night tradition.

Here’s how to make Southwestern Skirt Steak with Chile Lime Butter:

Have the skirt or flank steaks thawed and ready for cooking. We found a better price on larger flank steaks, so I just trimmed off what fat I could and cut them into equal parts of approximately six ounces each.

Now collect the seasonings for the steak rub: chile lime seasoning (homemade or store-bought – no judgment here*) cumin, oregano and course ground pepper. You can either combine them all in a small bowl, or do what I did and mix them in a shallow glass dish that’s the right size for dropping the steak into.

*Note: There are many great pre-mixed seasonings at grocery stores and often they make your life – and cooking – much easier! However, I have so many seasonings squished in my cupboard that I am trying to mix my own rather than buy a new bottle whenever I can. In this recipe, I mixed my own chile lime seasoning based on a recipe I found online. But there is no pressure! If you can find an easy jar at the store, go ahead and grab it.

Rub each steak with olive oil, then rub in the mixed chile lime seasoning. Place the steaks on a platter and cover them with plastic wrap. Refrigerate the steaks for 30 minutes so that great flavor can get in there.

Meanwhile, combine all of the chile lime butter ingredients (softened butter, fresh cilantro, sliced green onion, more of the chile lime seasoning, finely chopped garlic, ground red pepper and salt) in a small bowl.

Use a hand mixer to beat the butter until well mixed. Then use a spatula to scrape all the butter from the sides. I jumped the gun here and went straight to refrigerating the butter (too excited to eat, I guess!). But, you’ll have a much easier time portioning out the butter if you grab a piece of plastic wrap and roll the butter out on top of it into a 1-inch diameter log. Wrap the butter up and chill it until firm. Then you’ll be able to slice off easy portions for your meal.

When you’ve almost hit the 30-minute mark of refrigerating the beef, get your grill fired up. If you grill with gas, you’ll want it heated to medium. If you grill with charcoal, the grill is ready when the coals are ash white. Place the steaks on the grill, turning once, and cook to desired doneness (about 8-10 minutes).

When the steaks are cooked, place them on a cutting board and cut them into thin slices. To serve, arrange several slices of steak on a plate and top them with a pat of that amazing chile lime butter. As the butter melts along that gorgeously grilled meat, you’ll be glad you set aside the time for a "grown-up meal."

Try Southwestern Skirt Steak with Chile Lime Butter for your next Date Night, then rate and review the recipe.

Check back in a few days when Liz will share a great way to use your summer veggies.

Amanda is paid to write for the Land O’Lakes Recipe Buzz® Blog.