Girl's Trip (Steak Lover's Salad with Steak Sauce Vinaigrette)

They had me at "Steak Sauce Vinaigrette" - I recreated
the salad at Old Ebbitt Grill with a few tweaks of my own  

One of the things that most excited us when we moved to North Carolina was the opportunity to explore the "other" coast. As SoCal natives, had pretty much explored every nook and cranny of the western half of the country. The east coast, not so much. Moving to North Carolina was our chance to change that.  What I didn't anticipate was that we'd also expand the travel horizons of family and friends. 

Earlier this month I had the awesome opportunity to do just that, with my Bestie from the  Westie, Sheryl. Truly friends for life, Sheryl and I try to get away every year or so. And when I learned that she'd never experienced Our Nation's Capital, that pretty much cinched the destination for this year's trip. 

Besties for Life
Holly & Sheryl at Old Ebbitt Grill

Over the course of four days we walked, laughed, ate and drank our way though museums, monuments, and some amazing restaurants and watering holes. The salad recipe I'm sharing today was inspired by one of our favorite spots, Old Ebbitt Grill, which is located just a few blocks from the White House. 

An iconic DC restaurant and bar that is frequented by the powers that be, Old Ebbitt Grill is exactly what one might expect. Slightly Victorian with a bit of an "old boys club" air, but with a totally up to date vibe and menu.  

Picture perfect day at
The National Mall

Sheryl opted for the Steak Salad, and after one bite passed it over to me for a try. Wowzer! One taste of the Steak Sauce Vinaigrette and I had to figure out how to make it! 

Today, I had the opportunity to give it a shot, and deemed the result blog-worthy. The restaurant serves its version with bleu cheese and filet mignon, but we prefer New York strip and feta, so that's what you'll see below. I bet it would be good with chunks of a nice, aged cheddar or pieces of goat cheese as well. I honestly don't remember if they had pickled red onions on theirs, but I'm kinda on a picked onion kick and I gotta say, it adds a nice bit of zip. Ditto the pecans - seemed like a good way to add some crunch, so I sprinkled a few and really liked the result.

Here's how I did it:

Steak Lover's Salad with Steak Sauce Vinaigrette - Inspired by the Steak Salad at Old Ebitt Grill in Washington, DC

Serves 4

Ingredients

For the Salad:

• 2 New York strip steaks, seasoned with salt, pepper and olive oil and grilled to your liking - we like our medium rare (about 4-5 minutes on each side depending upon the thickness of the steaks) and allowed to rest under a loose piece of aluminum foil for 10 minutes. Cut the steak into bite sized pieces.
• 8 cups of mixed field greens (2 5oz bags)
• 12 asparagus spears, woody ends cut off and blanched in boiling salted water and then removed to a bowl of ice and water to chill and then cut into bite sized pieces
• 1 cup grape or cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
• 8-10 mushrooms, thinly sliced
• 4 oz feta cheese, cut into cubes

For the Steak Sauce Vinaigrette

• 1 5oz bottle of A1 Steak Sauce (about 2/3 cup)
• 1/3 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1/3 cup olive oil
• 1 TBS Dijon mustard
• 1 TBS honey
• 1/2 tsp Kosher salt
• 1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper

For the Pickled Onions:

• 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
• 1 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 TBS Kosher salt
• 1 TBS sugar

For garnish - this salad need some crunch!:

• 1/2 cup pecan halves, toasted in a dry pan

Method

• At least one hour before you assemble the salad, mix the ingredients for the pickled onions in a jar. If you are doing the day of this can rest on the kitchen counter for an hour. If you are doing it ahead, you can stash it in the ‘fridge. They should keep for a week or so.
• At the same time, shake the dressing ingredients in a small jar. It too can sit out for an hour or go into the fridge for a couple of weeks.
• When you are ready to serve, toss the salad ingredients in a large bowl with enough of the dressing to coat, but not drench the greens. 
• Portion the salad on four plates, and then top with the steak, pickled onions and pecans

Enjoy!