Recipe: Lime-Marinated Flank Steak with Guacamole Salad

It's grilling time in Cleveland! "R" and I have officially dusted off the grill, and used it twice this week. I'm thrilled. One recipe that we tried was from Cuisine Tonight- Fresh & Fabulous for some steak tacos topped with an avocado and mango salad and lime vinaigrette. It was so zesty and refreshing, and we'll certainly be making these again. Warning: Must love lime juice!

Lime-Marinated Flank Steak with creamy lime vinaigrette (Makes 4 servings, Total time = 30 minutes)

For the Steak, Combine:
3 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
2 Tbsp. minced garlic
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil
salt and black pepper
1 flank steak, trimmed (1 lb.)
steamed flour tortillas

For the Vinaigrette, Whisk:
1/2 cup fresh lime juice
1/4 cup sour cream
4 tsp. sugar
2 tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
2/3 cup vegetable oil

For the steak, combine 3 Tbsp. lime juice, 2 Tbsp. garlic, and 2 Tbsp. oil in a resealable plastic bag; season with salt and pepper,
Add steak to marinade and marinate at least 15 minutes or up to 4 hours (Note: We marinated for about 3 hours).
Chill steak if marinated longer than 1 hour.
Preheat grill to high.
Brush grill grate with oil.
Grill steak, covered, to medium-rare, 3-4 minutes per side.
Let steak rest 5 minutes, then thinly slice against the grain on a bias.

For the vinaigrette, whisk together 1/2 cup lime juice, sour cream, 2 tsp. garlic, 1 tsp. salt, pepper flakes, and cumin.
Slowly drizzle in 2/3 cup oil, whisking to emulsify.
To serve, wrap steak slices in tortillas and top with vinaigrette and Guacamole Salad. (Note: We also topped our tacos with freshly grated cheddar cheese.)

The real star of this dish was the Guacamole Salad. We loved it! My only complaint was that the vinaigrette was thinner than I'd like (certainly NOT creamy as the title suggests), and it made it very messy to eat the tacos.

Guacamole Salad (Makes 4 servings- 2 1/2 cups, Total Time = 15 minutes)

1/2 mango, pitted, peeled, and cubed
1/4 pineapple, peeled and cut into sticks
1/2 cup halved grape tomatoes
1/2 cup slivered white onion (Note: We used red onion.)
3 Tbsp. thinly sliced fresh basil
2 Tbsp. fresh lime juice
1 Tbsp. seeded, minced jalapeno
1 avocado, peeled, pitted, and sliced
salt and black pepper to taste

Combine everything in a large bowl, season with salt and pepper, and serve with creamy lime vinaigrette.

I'm already dreaming of other things that we can use this Guacamole Salad for this summer. It was so bright and full of flavor.