Do you ever find a new recipe and decide you have to make it immediately? Even if you don't have all of the ingredients? Knowing that you will be making a few substitutions?

This morning, I was reading an article about the importance of eating lean protein particularly if you are involved in a strength training program. It is an interesting article, but I was drawn in by the recipe. After skimming the ingredients list, I decided to make it for lunch. Of course, I didn't make this decision until about thirty minutes before lunchtime. I grabbed my chef's knife and got to work!

After a few minutes I realized a little substitution would be in order. The original recipe calls for five-spice powder. I planned to serve this to the kids and knew it would be too spicy-hot for them, so I omitted it. I did leave the crushed red pepper in the sauce, so there was still a bit of a kick in the finished dish. The original recipe also uses snow peas, which I thought I had, but alas, I was mistaken. Next time I will definitely include snow peas! Also, I think I will add a bit of ginger the next time I make this recipe. My only other alteration was using brown rice instead of white rice.

Final verdict? Delicious! The sauce is quite flavorful, the beef is tender, and the veggies have a little crunch. The kids all enjoyed it. My husband wasn't home for lunch today...so I had a second serving!

1. Combine first 3 ingredients in a bowl, stirring well; sprinkle evenly over steak.
2. Combine cornstarch, sugar, and red pepper in a medium bowl, stirring well with a whisk. Stir in broth and soy sauce.
3. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
4. Add carrot to pan; stir-fry 2 minutes.
5. Add steak and broccoli; stir-fry 1 minute.
6. Stir in broth mixture; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly.
7. Add snow peas; cook 30 seconds or until desired degree of doneness.
8. Serve with rice.