When traveling, we always stop at Elway's Steakhouse at DIA. One of these visits introduced us to our favorite salad. We probably make this salad once a week and it's still not enough!
Ingredients:
Salad
-4 cups arugula
-1/2 small red onion, diced
-4 sun dried tomatoes, diced
-1/3 cup chopped spiced pecans
-2 sliced crispy bacon, chopped
-3 tablespoons garlic dressing (I like using Marie's Garlic Parmesan Italian Vinaigrette Dressing, when I can't make it from scratch)
-1 teaspoon salt
-1 teaspoon pepper
-1 tablespoon olive oil
-8 oz Ribeye Steak
Garlic Dressing
-2 cloves garlic, finely grated
-3 tbsp lemon juice
-3 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
-1 tsp ground black pepper
-6 tbsp olive oil
-1/4 cup mild mayonnaise
-1/4 tsp salt to taste
-1/4-1 cup Water, to thin
Instructions:
Dressing
1. Combine all ingredients in a dressing shaker like this one, or in a bowl.
2. Shake ingredients, or stir together with a whisk.
3. Add water to thin out a little at a time. Shake after each bit added.
4. That's it!
Salad
1. In a large bowl, add arugula, onion, sun-dried tomatoes, pecans, and bacon. Mix all the ingredients together well.
2. On a plate, coat steak with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Rub the spices into the steak evenly.
3. In a cast iron skillet or on the grill, cook your steak to your liking. We like our steak medium rare. Once your steak is cooked, set on a cutting board and let rest for about 4 minutes. Cut the steak into even slices.
4. Toss the salad with Garlic Dressing and coat the ingredients completely.
5. Serve the salad onto plates evenly and top with the steak evenly.
For Spiced Pecans (Thanks Alton Brown):
Ingredients:
-1 teaspoon kosher salt
-1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
-1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
-1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
-1 pound pecan halves
-4 tablespoons unsalted butter
-1/4 cup packed brown sugar
-2 tablespoons water
Instructions:
1. Line a pan with parchment paper and set aside.
2. Mix salt, cumin, cayenne, and cinnamon together in a small bowl and set aside.
3. Place the nuts in a cast iron skillet and set on medium high heat. Cook, stirring frequently, for 5 minutes until the nuts just start to brown and smell toasted. Pay close attention as they will burn if you are not watching. Add the butter and stir until the butter is all melted. Pour in the spice combination and combine completely. Once combined, add brown sugar and water, stir until the mixture thickens and coat the nuts completely.
4. Move the nuts to the prepared pan with parchment paper and separate them so they do not touch. Allow the nuts to cool and then move them to an airtight container.