Bay Area Foodies. You Need To Know @ Oxbow Public Market

I had the most amazing day with my sister in Napa visiting the Oxbow Public Market. I heard about this fabulous
destination by reading one of my food magazines. I tore out the page and kept this piece of information hidden in one of my many piles.  I must have wanted to check out Annette’s Chocolates famous rocky road candy or her Italian Cherry Merlot Fudge. Yum! I could easily eat the whole jar with a spoon.

So you can imagine my surprise when driving through Napa, we happened upon the sign to Oxbow Public Market! Sure enough, my sister and I were in heaven. The first stop was Marshall’s Farm Honey stand. There we tasted all types of honey: cloves, orange blossom, CIA Greystone Herb Garden Honey, S.F. Bay Area’ Beekeeper’s Blend, Napa Valley Wildflower, and many more. I had to indulge and purchase two books on cooking and baking w honey “Taste of Honey” by Marie Simmons and “Backyard Beekeepers of the Bay Area” by Judith Adamson.

There was so much more to tickle your senses with the Hog Island Oyster Co and The Olive Press featuring different flavoured vinegars. My favourites were the Meyer lemon and Blenheim apricot varieties. But I also tried Marion berry vinegar which was delightful and would work well in any salad.

You will have to check this place out for yourself. It reminds me of the Ferry Building in San Francisco. If you go, be sure to grab a taco at Casa. For under $10.00 you can satisfy your palette with duck, skirt steak, salmon, or crab. I had the grilled skirt steak, with avocado, sautéed wild mushrooms, caramelized onions, lime crema and a corn tomato salsa. It was so fresh and juicy that it inspired me to make these at home for dinner. My husband couldn’t have been happier.

Skirt Steak with Red Onion and

Citrus Lime Mojo

 

1 Skirt Steak

1clove garlic

3 green onions

1/2 jalapeno/ remove seeds

1bunch cilantro, including stems/divided

3/4 cup canola oil or peanut   oil

1teaspoon ground cumin

1teaspoon Mexican oregano
1teaspoon ground mustard
1teaspoon kosher salt
1teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Juice and zest of 3 limes
2 large red onions, peeled and thickly sliced

 Chop the cilantro and reserve 3 tablespoons for garnish. Set aside.

On a clean, wide work surface, place skirt steak down between two pieces of plastic wrap (spray the plastic wrap with non-stick spray before placing steak). Using a flat-sided meat pounder, flatten each steak until tender, paying attention to the thicker side of the steak. Set aside.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the canola oil, the remaining cilantro, ground cumin, garlic, mustard, oregano, lime and salt and pepper. Process until the mixture is a smooth paste. Rub ½ the mixture over the steak and let marinate at room temperature for ½ hr.

TO COOK AND SERVE: Light a charcoal or gas grill, or have grill pan hot on stove top. When the grill is very hot, remove the steak from the marinade (discard the marinade), pat dry, and season with salt and pepper; cook 5 to 7 minutes on one side and 3 to 4 minutes on the other for medium rare. Remove from the grill and let rest for 5 minutes.  Grill the red onions at the same time as the strip steak 6 to 7 minutes per side.

Meanwhile, warm the reserved mojo over low heat. Slice the flank steak very thinly on the bias and serve with the reserved mojo, cilantro and grilled onions.

 

Nutrition Facts per Serving Yield: Yield:  Serves 4-6

Calories: 533 Fat. Total: 45g Fiber: 1g Carbohydrates, Total: 9g Sodium: 402mg % Cal. from Fat: 76% Cholesterol: 57mg Protein: 24g