Veggie Steak Salad

Week 381. Summer 2023. I am 40 years old and standing in my kitchen — the Bench house kitchen, the one that held cancer and divorce and cinnamon rolls — and the stove is on and something is cooking and the house smells like grilled food and garden herbs and this is my life. This is the life I built.

The clinic was busy this week — spring puppies and summer emergencies and the constant, comforting cycle of animals who need care and humans who love them enough to bring them in.

Mason is 12 and reading everything he can find and examining the world under a microscope with the intensity of a tenured researcher.

Lily is 10 and riding horses with the fearlessness of someone who has never considered the possibility of falling.

I made watermelon feta salad this week. The food continues. The food always continues. It is the thread that connects every week to every other week, every year to every other year, every version of me to every other version — the woman on the kitchen floor, the woman at the chemo recliner, the woman at the grill, the woman at the outdoor table under the string lights. All of them, connected by the food they made with their hands. All of them, me.

That same week I made the watermelon feta salad, I also pulled this veggie steak salad together — because summer in this kitchen means the grill is always on and there is always something green to cut and something warm to lay across it. It felt like the right meal for a week that was full and steady and good: something that takes a little effort, rewards you simply, and looks beautiful on the table under the string lights where all of us sat together, just living our ordinary, extraordinary life.

Prep Time: 15 min | Cook Time: 15 min | Total Time: 30 min | Servings: 4

Ingredients

1 lb flank steak or sirloin
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
6 cups mixed greens or romaine, chopped
1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
1 cup cucumber, sliced
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/4 cup balsamic vinaigrette or dressing of choice

Instructions

Season the steak. Pat steak dry and rub with 1 tablespoon olive oil, garlic powder, smoked paprika, salt, and pepper. Let rest at room temperature for 10 minutes.
Grill the steak. Heat grill or grill pan over medium-high heat. Cook steak 5–7 minutes per side for medium, or until it reaches your desired doneness. Remove from heat and let rest 5 minutes before slicing thinly against the grain.
Prep the vegetables. While the steak rests, arrange greens on a large serving platter or in individual bowls. Top with cherry tomatoes, cucumber, red onion, and bell pepper.
Assemble the salad. Lay the sliced steak over the vegetables. Scatter crumbled feta over the top.
Dress and serve. Drizzle with balsamic vinaigrette just before serving. Toss lightly or serve undressed and let everyone add their own.

Nutrition (per serving)

Veggie Steak Salad — The Food Always Continues