Balsamic Glazed Steak Rolls

I've taken quite a long sabbatical off from eating right/working out and it's really caught up with me. While it was nice to "check out" mentally and physically, I think I've had enough. I'm ready to get back into the business of being healthy again. I've regained a decent chunk of the the weight I lost previously, and I'm now getting into the no-turning-back scary zone if I keep eating like crap and not focusing on regular exercise. Anyway, all this means is that I'm being more conscious about what I eat and more focused with my exercise routine. As part of that focus, I've decided to go fairly low-carb/low-cal for the next 30 days. I'm hoping this will give me a jump start so I can start to see some positive results on the scale. This is also good news, because I'll be trying some new recipes as well. Hooray! The first new recipe was these steak rolls, which were magically delicious. Really. So freaking tasty. This was the perfect dinner to kick start my plan to get back into healthy living!


Balsamic Glazed Steak Rolls
Adapted From: Picture the Recipe website via Pinterest

Ingredients:
1 (2 lb) skirt steak OR 8-10 thin sliced sirloin
Salt & Pepper (according to taste)
3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
Any steak seasoning you like (I used Steak Magic)
1 tbsp olive oil

For the Veggie filling -
* 1 carrot
* 1 bell pepper
* 1/2-1 a zucchini (depending on size)
* 5-6 green onions
* 2 cloves of garlic
* 1 tsp Italian herb seasoning

For the Balsamic glaze sauce-
* 1-2 tsp bacon grease
* 2 tbsp finely chopped shallots
* 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
* 1 tbsp honey
* 1/4 cup beef broth

Directions:
- Start by prepping the steak. (I used skirt steak cos it’s what I had on hand, but in hind sight, I probably would have gone for a more leaner cut like flank steak or looked for thin sliced sirloin.) I trimmed as much fat as I could and cut the steak into 3 inch wide strips. I managed 8 strips and used the odd shaped ends to taste test my marinade and balsamic glaze. You can then tenderize the meat with a meat hammer (if you’re using sirloin it doesn’t need any tenderizing).
- Season the steak pieces generously on both sides with salt, pepper and Worcestershire sauce. And let them sit in the marinade for at least 30 minutes if not a couple hours.

- While the steak is marinating you can prep the filling for them. Chop up the carrot, bell pepper and zucchini into matchstick size pieces, little longer than the width of the steak strips. I used a mandolin slicer to jet thin sliced and hand cut them to make matchsticks. I then cut the green onion in a similar size and sliced them in half length wise. For the garlic, simply peel and crush the cloves with the flat side of your knife, just enough to bruise them.

- Now for the sauce, melt the bacon grease in a small sauce pan on medium heat.

- Add the finely chopped shallot and saute it for a minute or 2 until they turn soft and translucent.

- Add the balsamic vinegar, honey and beef stock and stir to mix everything well.

- Allow the sauce to come to a boil and reduce to almost half its volume. You’ll notice it starts becoming thicker and have the consistency of syrup. The butter also starts separating and comes to the top. Turn the heat off and transfer the sauce to a bowl.

- In the same pan (no need to wash it) add a touch of olive oil and toss in the garlic cloves to allow them to flavor the oil for a few minutes.

- Turn the heat up to high and toss in the carrots, bell pepper and zucchini (there’s no need to cook the green onion) and stir fry the veggies for no longer than 2-3 minutes.

- Season them with the the Italian herb seasoning and salt and transfer the veggies to a bowl.

- To assemble the steak rolls, simply take a strip of the marinated steak and lay it with the short side towards you. Place the veggies (don't forget the green onion!) in the middle and oil the beef up over the filling, securing it with toothpick. Repeat the same with the other rolls.

- Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add a touch of oil swirling to coat bottom. When hot, add beef rolls, seam side down, not touching and pan fry for a couple minutes. Then turn roll and cook it on all sides in the same way. Cook until you’re desired doneness. I cooked mine medium rare.

- Remove the toothpick and serve with the balsamic glaze sauce spooned over the top of each roll and any extra veggies.