Easy Steak and Potatoes with Jalapeno Salsa

A good staple for the Paleo diet is a nice juicy steak. At least for me it is. Chicken is delicious and all, but when the carnivore in me comes out, chewing on some red meat really gets my mouth watering!

I started out being a vegetarian (6 years of it!) then went to only eating chicken as a meat. Red meat was a little hard for me to get used to at first. But, I'm in love now, and it's in most of my dinners I make!

This recipe is really super duper simple for those nights you don't really feel like cooking, but you need a substantial amount of food in your belly.

Today is the 30th day of our 30-day strict Paleo diet. At the end of our trek, he lost 13 lbs and I lost 10 lbs! (thank you, thank you!). Had to get that out, now back to the recipe...

Easy Steak and (Sweet) Potatoes with Jalapeno Salsa
For the steaks:
2 top sirloin steaks
salt/pepper to taste

Sweet Potatoes:
4 large sweet potatoes, sliced into fries
2 TBL olive oil
1 tsp black pepper
1 tsp cinnamon

Jalapeno Salsa:
5 fresh jalapenos, seeded and diced
1/2 yellow onion, diced
1 roma tomato, diced
3 cloves of garlic, diced
1 TBL olive oil
1 TBL vinegar
juice of 1 lime
pinch of cayenne pepper
salt/pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Slice sweet potatoes into fries, and set them in a oven-safe pan or dish. Sprinkle with the olive oil, black pepper, and cinnamon. Bake for 30-35 min, or until the middle is soft and the outside is a little crunchy (just like normal french fries).

While the fries are cooking, make your salsa. Cut all of your veggies and mix well in a bowl. Add olive oil, vinegar, lime, and cayenne pepper and mix again. Salt and pepper it to your taste. Set aside. (You want the flavors to kind of melt together)

When the potatoes have about 10 min left to cook, start grilling your steaks. Salt and pepper the steaks to your liking. I have a cast-iron grill pan, but if you have an actual grill, that will work as well. Heat up the pan (or grill) and place steaks on it. Grill for about 5 min each side (more for more well-done steaks, and less for more rare steaks). I like my steaks medium to medium rare, so I cooked them for about 5-6 minutes each side.

The sweet potatoes should be perfectly done by the time your steaks are done. Serve immediately with the jalapeno salsa!

We had left-over salsa, so I put the remainder in a left-over jalapeno jar!