Q: I read that you offered a program on cooking with beef last week. I had to work, so I didn’t get to sign up. Did you share any recipes that you could pass on?

A: Yes! May is Beef Month in the state of Kansas — as proclaimed by Gov. Mark Parkinson. Before I focus on the recipes that were prepared and sampled by the participants last week, allow me to share some Kansas beef facts that were provided by the Kansas Agriculture Statistics:

• Beef is the largest agricultural commodity in the state of Kansas.

• Kansas ranked third nationally with 6 million cattle on ranches and in feedyards as of Jan. 1, 2010. That is a little over twice the states’s human population of over 2.8 million.

• Cattle represented 45 percent of the 2008 Kansas agricultural cash receipts.

• Cattle consume 72 percent of the corn, 16 percent of the soybeans and 60 percent of the hay grown in Kansas.

Now let’s talk about how beef can fit into a healthy meal plan.

During the Kansas Nutrition Council Annual Conference in April, the keynote speaker, Georgia Kostas, founder and former director of the Cooper Clinic’s Nutrition Program in Dallas, shared a list of top nutrient-rich foods. Her first food on the list was seafood, emphasizing the importance of consuming it at least twice a week. She highlighted salmon, rich in omega-3 fatty acids, which help our brain, vision, heart and arteries. (Choose trout and herring also for omega-3s).

Her list also included lean protein from 29 lean beef cuts, lean pork and bison. Yes, there are now 29 cuts of beef that are less than 10 grams of total fat, 4.5 grams or less saturated fat and less than 95 milligrams cholesterol per 3-ounce cooked serving. In fact, half (50.3 percent) of the fatty acids in lean beef are monounsaturated (the same heart-healthy type found in olive oil), 45.6 percent are saturated, and 4.1 percent are polyunsaturated.

So, we know that beef is an excellent source of protein, zinc, vitamin B-12, selenium, and phosphorus. Plus, it is a good source of niacin, vitamin B-6, iron and riboflavin. But, the reality is that we have a tendency to overconsume it. As I discussed in my column a couple of weeks ago, based on a 2,000 calorie pattern, an individual can include a total of 5-1/2 ounce equivalents from the meat and beans group per day. Even though the amount you need depends on age, gender and level of physical activity, here’s the specific ounce equivalents recommended daily:

Children

2-3 years old: 2 ounces

4-8 years old: 3 to 4 ounces

Girls

9-13 years old: 5 ounces

14-18 years old: 5 ounces

Boys

9-13 years old: 5 ounces

14-18 years old: 6 ounces

Women

19-30 years old: 5-1/2 ounces

31-50 years old: 5 ounces

51-plus years old: 5 ounces

Men

19-30 years old: 6-1/2 ounces

31-50 years old: 6 ounces

51+ years old: 5-1/2 ounces

That’s not a lot of beef! And, be sure to focus on the 29 lean cuts included in the “hot-off-the-press” 2010 publication, “Confident Cooking with Beef” provided by the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association (view on our website at www.douglas.

ksu.edu or call 843-7058 for a hard copy). Four of the recipes that were prepared and sampled during the beef program last week came from this publication. Here’s one of the favorites which we revised a little — we used the newer cut of beef, the flat iron steak:

Top Loin Steaks with Red Wine Sauce

2 boneless beef top loin (strip) steaks, cut 1-inch thick, OR beef shoulder top blade steaks (flat-iron) (about 8 ounces each)

1 teaspoon lemon pepper

Red Wine Sauce:

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 cup sliced cremini or button mushrooms

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 cup dry red wine (we used apple juice)

1/3 cup ready-to-serve beef broth

1/3 cup whipping cream

1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Salt

Press lemon pepper evenly onto beef steaks. Heat large skillet (if possible, do not use a nonstick skillet) over medium to medium-high heat until hot. Place steaks in skillet; cook shoulder top blade steaks (flat iron) 13 to 15 minutes (top loin steaks 12 to 15 minutes) for medium rare to medium doneness, turning occasionally. Remove to platter; keep warm.

To prepare Red Wine Sauce, add oil to same skillet and heat over medium heat until hot. Add mushrooms; cook and stir 1 to 2 minutes. Add garlic; cook and stir 20 to 30 seconds or until fragrant. Add wine (or apple juice); cook and stir 1 to 2 minutes or until browned bits are dissolved and liquid is reduced by half. Stir in broth, cream and black pepper. Continue cooking 5 to 7 minutes or until sauce thickens, stirring occasionally. Season with salt, as desired. Spoon sauce over steaks.

Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition facts per serving (using top loin strip steaks): 292 calories; 17 grams total fat, 7 grams saturated fat, 7 grams monosaturated fat, 83 milligrams cholesterol, 166 milligrams sodium, 3 grams carbohydrate; 0.2 gram fiber, 26 grams protein.

— Susan Krumm is an Extension agent in family and consumer sciences with K-State Research and Extension-Douglas County, 2110 Harper St. She can be reached at 843-7058.