Nicole's 10th Birthday

Saturday was Nicole's 10th Birthday! I can't believe she is that old already! It feels like just yesterday that I brought her home from the hospital... Wow.
We have a tradition that the birthday person gets to pick the dinner menu for their birthday dinner, so, of course, Nini picked Red Beans and Rice...our little cajun queen...(when she was two and we were visiting the fam in New Orleans, she traded her scrambled eggs for Aunt Flora's seafood gumbo...yeah...TWO...yeah...SEAFOOD GUMBO... :)
So, I started the beans the night before, and cooked them half of Saturday, and then.... I burned them. On to plan B>>>>>> Bistec Empanizado...or better known to my anglo friends and family, breaded steak sandwiches...YUM! I have customized the traditional Miami version of these, and everyone around here gets glazed eyes when they hear we are having that for dinner. Now, for those of you who are skeptical of ANY variation from the traditional cuban fare, know that it took me a while to have any desire to try it differently than just lime and salt, but once I did...I will never go back...NEVER!!! oohoohoohoohahahahahaha....ahem, okay, so I was saying...
I'll post the recipe at the bottom...
Nicole got "Chronicles of Narnia" for her birthday from Noelle and Linda Griggs...they had been waiting to see it with us as a family, so we did that on Sunday night (with the exception of Chloe, who is too young, so she went to bed early).
She also got a game for her new Nintendo DS (she had saved ALL her Christmas money and money earned since then to buy it, and finally got that last week).
Timmy bought her a case for it...hence the brotherly love so apparant in the 3rd and 4th pictures below.
All in all, it was a prosperous, wonderful evening, the only thing lacking was all of YOU! :)

Bistec Empanizado a la Bailey

Very thin cut round steak

eggs (beaten)

breadcrumbs

Adobo seasoning or garlic powder

oil

salt

Cuban Bread (or soft french if cuban is not available...)

Pico mixture...recipe follows

Mayonnaise

Sliced Pickled Jalapenos

Heat oil in skillet on medium to medium high

Rinse meat thoroughly

Sprinkle liberally with Adobo or garlic powder

Dip in eggs

Dredge in breadcrumbs

Fry in oil (only for about 1-2 minutes per side)

Place on paper towels to drain

Sprinkle with salt

To make the pico:

Blend together the following

about 3-4 tomatoes , chopped

1/2 sweet onion, chopped

about 1/8 cup of chopped cilantro

NOW....

Warm bread so that outside is nice and toasty, but inside is slightly crusty.

Slice open longways and lay steak on bread

Add mayo on bread side

Add pico on top of meat

Then on top of the pico, add either sliced pickled jalapeno,

or just the juice for the timid tongues...

Close sandwich, smoosh it together and ENJOY!

PS. the jalapeno is the best part, just TRY it... :)