I often have to alter a recipe after I decide to make it. Brandon is a little picky and we have very different spice level preferences. For this recipe, I made the following adjustments:

1 sweet potato + 1 russet potato (Brandon doesn’t like sweet potato) Prepared the potatoes in the same way but added some cayenne to the russet potato for Brandon

Used Sunflower seeds instead of Pumpkin. It’s what I had on hand.

Used Top Round instead of Eye Round. Also used 16oz not 8oz. I wanted to make sure I had leftovers.

Added radishes for Brandon’s salad (because he hates onion).

I also split this into separate salads.

Recipe from The Dude Diet pg 181

Salad:

One 8-ounce eye round steak [I used 16oz of top round]

1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cut into 3/4 inch cubes [I used 1 sweet potato + 1 russet.. added cayenne to the russet]

3 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

4 ounces baby spring mix [I didn’t measure the greens, and used baby romaine, “power greens”, and spinach]

1/2 small red onion, thinly sliced [Only on mine]

1/4 cup pepitas (aka shelled pumpkin seeds) [I used sunflower]

2 ounces goat cheese, crumbled

Dressing:

[Instead of mixing this in a large bowl for one big tossed salad, I made this in a jar to put over the two seperate salads I’d be making]

4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

2 garlic cloves, grated or finely minced

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

Instructions (From the Dude Diet Book): 

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Take your steak out of the fridge, and let it hang out on the counter. You want the meat to come up to room temperature before you cook it, which will take about 25 minutes. (This is optional, but it will  yield a much more tender steak, dudes.) [I, Cassidy, don’t think this makes much of a difference, but you do as you want]
3. Arrange the sweet potatoes [or sweet + russet in my case] in an even layer on the prepared baking sheet. Drizzle with 2 teaspoons of the olive oil and sprinkle with cinnamon and a pinch of kosher salt [+ cayenne if using]. Toss to coat. Roast the sweet potatoes for 25 minutes, turning them once with a spatula halfway through the cooking time, until tender. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly.
4. Meanwhile, whisk together all the ingredients for the dressing in a large bowl [or separate container like I did]. Set aside
5. Preheat a medium skillet (preferably cast iron) over medium high heat until it’s very hot. Rub both sides of your steak with the remaining 1 teaspoon olive oil, and season it generously with salt and black pepper. Place the steak in the hot pan and cook for 5 to 6 minutes on each side for medium-rare. (If you’re into medium or medium-well meat, let it cook for an extra couple of minutes per side.) Transfer to a cutting board. Let the steak rest for 10 minutes to allow the juices to redistribute, then slice it very thinly against the grain.
6. Add the spring mix, roasted sweet potatoes, red onion, and pepitas to the bowl with the dressing and toss to coat.
7. Divide the salad between two plates. Fan half of the sliced steak over each salad and sprinkle with goat cheese. Serve immediately.