It’s the first day of spring! This day makes me so happy every year.

It signals warmer weather ahead and that makes me utterly giddy.

And in honor of the spring season, just last week, we took a spring break trip with the kids to the Bahamas. They were off school for a week.  We’ve never done such a thing before and we didn’t know what to expect.

We usually travel to such exotic locales as:  Oklahoma City, Houston and Pearl, Mississippi. Don’t get me wrong, we have mad love for all those places – but let’s just say they aren’t featured on the Travel Channel very often.

We had been saving up for quite a while and when the day finally came for us to leave on our big trip, we were anxious, excited and thrilled.

While there, my husband and I decided we couldn’t leave without sampling a Bahamian steak. It had to happen.

What you see above is a Bahamian Kansas City strip steak. Medium.

Exquisite.

THIS made the trip even more memorable. And it proved to us that a quality steak is a quality steak no matter where you go in the world.

It all starts with a great cut of beef. If you don’t have that, it’s over.

Thank goodness this was incredible. They know how to do steak right on the island!

What an amazing way to welcome spring!!!

I love it when this . . .

…and this…

…is the evening’s entertainment.

Seriously, give us a ribeye and a Kansas City strip steak and my hubby and I are occupied for hours.

Preparing a marinade, letting them sit, grilling and anticipating, eating and THEN talking about how good the steaks were.

That takes, what, all day long?

Oh, the joy of eating a beautiful meal! It’s one of life’s best gifts. And when I can enjoy it at home – it’s even better.

Here’s to simple pleasures!

P.S. Do you like the blue lights on the grill? They don’t do anything but they sure are cool at night!

Get ready to welcome 2012!

To me, the best way to celebrate ANYTHING is with a steak. In fact, that’s what I will be doing Saturday night.

In this great article by the great Wolfgang Puck he refers to the strip steak as “beef’s equivalent to the tuxedo, clean-lined and elegant.”

THAT, he says, is the way to ring in the new year.

And I couldn’t agree more.

Click here to read Puck’s descriptive tale of the beautiful strip and take special note of his recipe for roasted strip steak with port wine mustard sauce.

Any time you can get your hands on a Wolfgang Puck recipe, you know it’s going to be good!

Have a wonderful new year celebration and I’ll catch you again in 2012 — after you’ve enjoyed an AMAZING strip steak!

Excerpt courtesy of Wolfgang Puck via ArkansasOnline.com.

Photo courtesy of KansasCitySteaks.com.