Strip Steaks with Chipotle-Peach Glaze

When I first moved to Austin, almost 6 years ago, I lived with two guy roommates, Gabe & Eric. These guys were kind enough to let me move into the third bedroom for a few months while T finished up her apartment lease so we could get a house together. I was also in the beginning stages of really cooking. What does that mean? I had been cooking for a few years, but only in the preceding year had I really begun to experiment and try all sorts of new recipes. Living with two guys was definitely new for me, and being the caretaker type that I am, I felt like I needed to make homecooked meals for them, to make sure they were eating. Looking back, they could have eaten McDonald's every night and been perfectly content. But I tried anyway, and one of the recipes that debuted in that house was this one.

I remember clearly that I was at the house alone (they were both at work), and I ventured outside to light the charcoal grill. Never in my life had I, personally, lit a charcoal grill. I poured in the charcoal, doused it with lighter fluid, put some newspaper on top and used the long, barbecue lighter to start it up. It didn't flare up right away so, of course, I picked up the bottle of lighter fluid and sprayed some more on! Fortunately for me, this did not turn into a disaster, and it flamed up just right. The hardest part for me at this point was being patient while the flames died down enough to throw the steaks on.

Since I was home alone, I had to revel in my first successful attempt at grilling. I'm still pretty proud of myself, but prefer a gas grill to charcoal any day! I am normally one of "those" people who loves A1 sauce on their steaks. I also eat them medium-well. Many beef-eaters would gasp and say I ruin perfectly good steaks, and that A1 is only for steaks that aren't cooked well but I disagree. I like A1 and will eat it on a variety of things, so steak is really just an excuse to eat steak. Sort of like mustard and tator tots, but that's another story.

Anyway, the point is that this is not a steak that I would put A1 on,  because the chipotle-peach glaze that goes on it is delicious and it's a nice change from plain steak and A1. I should also note that it is rare that I eat a steak, let alone make one at home (but there is a bottle of A1 in my pantry). Not because I don't like steak, but it just isn't one of those everyday, weeknight meals for me. But, I felt like treating myself to something a little out of the ordinary, and here we are!

I will disclose that living in an apartment hinders the use of barbecue grills, so I cooked mine on a George Foreman grill, but it still turned out fantastic!

Strip Steaks with Chipotle-Peach Glaze
Source: Betty Crocker

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup peach preserves
• 1/4 cup lime juice
• 1 chipotle chile in adobo sauce, seeded & chopped
• 1 teaspoon adobo sauce (from can of chiles)
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
• 4 boneless beef strip steaks
• 1 teaspoon garlic-pepper blend
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Cilantro sprigs, if desired

Preparation

1. Heat coals or gas grill for direct heat (or you can use a George Foreman grill or skillet on the stove).
2. In 1-quart saucepan, heat preserves, lime juice, chile and adobo sauce over low heat, stirring occasionally, until preserves are melted. Stir in chopped cilantro; set aside.
3. Sprinkle each beef steak with garlic-pepper blend, cumin and salt. Cover and grill beef over medium heat to your desired doneness, turning once or twice and brushing top of beef with preserves mixture during last 2 minutes of grilling.
4. Heat any remaining preserves mixture to boiling; boil and stir 1 minute. Serve with over beef. Garnish with cilantro sprigs, if desired.