Guacamole is so good, I firmly believe it is wasted on tortilla chips.

So I decided to come up with a suitable platform on which it could truly shine. And since fatty foods - even healthy ones like avocados - have a delicious affinity for salty foods, I decided to play with steaks.

What I came up with was a simple marinated sirloin - started on the stove and finished in the oven - topped with a spicy, creamy guacamole. If you're a beef purist, you can skip the marinating of the steaks, but I found the vinaigrette added a wonderful zing to the meat that worked so well with the avocado.

This recipe is incredibly versatile. It's easily started ahead - the steak can be marinated overnight. And it can be served as a generous entree (as described in this recipe), or cut into thin strips across the grain and served on toasted baguette rounds and topped with the guacamole for a party.

Vinaigrette-marinated sirloin with spicy guacamole

Start to finish: 1 hour 15 minutes (15 minutes active)

Servings: 4 entrees or 16 appetizers

For the steak:

1/4 cup red wine vinegar

1/4 cup olive oil

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

3 cloves garlic, minced

Two 1-pound sirloin steaks

For the guacamole:

2 avocados, pitted and skinned

1 small plum tomato, cored, seeded and finely chopped

2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

1/2 fresh jalapeno pepper, seeded and minced

Juice of 1/2 lime

Salt and ground black pepper

1 tablespoon canola or vegetable oil

In a large bowl, whisk together the vinegar, oil, salt, black pepper and garlic.

Trim the steaks of any visible fat, then cut each into 2 portions. Add the steaks to the marinade and turn to coat well. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.

When the steaks are nearly finished, heat the oven to 400 degrees.

To prepare the guacamole. In a medium bowl, combine the avocados, tomato, cilantro, jalapeno and lime juice. Use a fork to mash until chunky smooth, then season with salt and pepper. Cover, pressing plastic wrap onto the surface of the guacamole, then set aside.

Heat a large cast-iron or other heavy, oven-safe skillet over medium-high. Add the canola oil and heat for 30 seconds. Add the steaks and sear on the first side for 4 to 5 minutes, then flip and sear on the second side for 3 to 4 minutes.

Transfer the skillet to the oven and roast for 4 to 5 minutes for medium-rare, or until the steak reach desired doneness.

Transfer the steaks to a cutting board, cover with foil and let rest for 5 minutes. Serve each topped with guacamole.

Nutrition information per main serving (values are rounded to the nearest whole number): 534 calories; 290 calories from fat (54 percent of total calories); 32 g fat (7 g saturated; 0 g trans fats); 107 mg cholesterol; 10 g carbohydrate; 52 g protein; 7 g fiber; 389 mg sodium.

Food Editor J.M. Hirsch is author of the cookbook "High Flavor, Low Labor: Reinventing Weeknight Cooking." He can be emailed at jhirsch@ap.org.