I am by no means a perfect chef. I am not above documenting my screw-ups either. And boy, did I screw up last night.

There's a place in Playa Del Carmen, Mexico, where they serve the juiciest, most tender arrachera. It's called HC Monterrey and there are several locations around the town. It's cheap, quick and comes with a baked potato or a baked onion, fresh tortillas, avocado slices, a lovely roasted pepper and lime wedges. The arrachera itself is fall-apart delicious and just the tiniest bit pink in the middle.

So, on Sunday, I was shopping with my boys at the Great Canadian Superstore, when a giant flank steak caught my attention. It was crazy cheap and being as I am in love with the act of grilling meat, I thought, 'hey, let's try arrachera this week!'. So we bought the huge chunk of flank steak. I looked up an arrachera recipe and, oddly, the first result on Google was a link to Playa.info which is the forum where all the people I used to know in Playa talked with each other. Someone had asked how to make arrachera like HC Monterrey, so I followed the responses and found a recipe. Marinate in lime, salt, pepper and cumin, then grill on high heat. Sounded easy enough. I'm not exactly a stranger to grilling meats, I could grill the perfect steak in my sleep, with one hand tied behind my back. But, we have to keep in mind, I do not have a grill at the moment (*cry*), so I had to use our cast-iron grill pan. No biggy. Done it before, worked out great.

Not so much this time. The steak was tougher than tough. It had picture-perfect grill marks, though. Luckily, the man made some guacamole and we had some tortilla chips on hand, or we would have starved.

There are a few things I know I can do next time to make it better:

1. Pummel it with a meat mallet first.
2. Marinade for longer, in more lime juice.
3. Use a real grill.

I was left with perfectly grill-marked pieces of super tough meat to do something with and all I could think of is to cook the heck out of it in a stew or a soup. I threw together a soupy-stew (sorry Rach, I refuse to say 'stoop') with the flank steak & corn. A Tex Mex twist on stew, with a hint of grill flavor. It's in the slow-cooker now, but I've made some homemade dinner rolls and from the smell of my house, I think I may have stumbled on a winner.

Has anyone else tried to make arrachera? Tell me about your successes and your failures!

mexico, recipe, cooking, food

This is a Sponsored Post written by me on behalf of henderson bas. All opinions are 100% mine.

I have a serious soft spot for Clubhouse Montreal steak spice seasoning. It usually fins it's way into my steak marinades, my from scratch hamburger patties and even as a marinade for chicken. Although I have recently crafted my own signature spice blend (because my ego in the kitchen can never be too huge), Clubhouse Montreal Steak Spice Seasoning is my go to seasoning anyway. It's just, well, perfect on anything. Anything.

But here's the thing. Clubhouse La Grille has a launched a new contest called La Serious griller Contest and all you have to do is fill out a few vitals and you could win a $300 gift certificate from Canadian Tire, and.... wait for it.... and a deluxe barbeque seasoning pack from Clubhouse La Grille. Including Montreal Steak Spice Seasoning!  What's better than your favorite seasoning? Your favorite seasoning for free! Sizzling on a brand new barbeque from Canadian Tire which you got with your gift card, 'cause really, let's face it, at this point you're pretty much obligated to buy a grill if you win the gift card, no?

So, enter the contest here: La Serious Griller Contest

and be sure to check out the steak grilling tips from Chef Michael below the contest entry button. He's got some fantastic tips, so don't miss it!

I'm rooting for you, Seared readers! Good luck! Oh, sorry, USAers, it's only open to Canadian residents.

steak, contest, recipe, tips, cooking, chef

I am a self-professed soup fiend. I also have a slight addiction to pickles. Luckily, the fact that I'm half Polish allows me to meld these two glorious things together – in doing so, I get pickle soup. You read right. Pickle soup.

If you’ve never had the pleasure of trying this mouthwatering medley, I suggest you keep reading and get cooking.

There are few things more delicious than rich, buttery, mouthwatering cupcakes. They’re so delectable they’re nearly sinful; after all, the calories alone are enough to throw you off your workout regime for a week or so, and the velvety, buttercream icing is so tasty that it’s hard to resist licking your fingers almost to the bone. For now, we must choose to focus on the latter – so put away your sneakers and get ready for some finger licking good cupcakes.

A few weeks ago, my stepdaughter, who had always been in love with books, told me she didn't like books anymore. Anyone even half awake would realize this is just peer pressure, because a child doesn't go from being an avid bookworm to hating all books overnight, but it crushed my book-loving soul anyway and I had to find a way to prove to her that she really did still like books. So, we took her to the library, much to her dismay. Just as I suspected, the moment we entered the door she'd found a book and was so deeply immersed into it that she didn't even hear us when we told her it was time to go. That time, it was easy, but it got me thinking about the inevitability of it happening again, with her or with my son. I'm a pretty laid back Mom, but giving up a love of books is not an option in my house. So, I've thought about how to make sure the kids keep loving the printed word and the best way, I think, is to act them out! And what better way to start this, than with Dr. Seuss' timeless classic, Green Eggs and Ham? Saturday is green eggs and ham day at our house, and here are some fantastic recipes:

- Two green eggs and ham recipes at Seussville.com
- For Mommies and Daddies with pesto and prosciutto: Green Eggs and Parma Ham
- Mouthwatering spinach and ham and parmesan stuffed eggs: Green Eggs and Ham

eggs, books, dr. seuss, recipe, cooking, chef, food, kids

Check out the Barack Obama Chocolate Bar for Change. I don't know how it'll change the world, but... it is a chocolate bar, so my hopes are high! On the website provided, you can get three bars for $7.50 US, which is actually a great price, as I paid almost $4.00 US for just one. So, if you want to make a difference, maybe you should go ahead and grab a few bars! While you're in the mood for world changing chocolate, take it an extra step further and try the Climate Change Chocolate.