Tuesday, November 22, 2011

RECIPE: Eldon's Steak & Dressing

Best Blogger Tips
(I posted this recipe last Thanksgiving.  My grandmother died in December, so I updated the recipe history before posting today.  I will be making this recipe for Thanksgiving dinner in a few days.)

My grandfather, Eldon, was quite a character.  He was raised in the Sandhills of Nebraska and worked as a cattle rancher for many years.  While a golden brown, roast turkey is the centerpiece of most traditional Thanksgiving dinners, my grandpa refused to eat poultry. 

He always said, "There is a reason it is called 'fowl.'" 

My grandfather died five years ago, only six weeks after doctors diagnosed him with colon and liver cancer.  My grandmother, Elaine, passed right before Christmas last year.  Although both of them are gone, some of the traditions they established live on in our family.  At my grandparents' house, this dish was served every Thanksgiving beside the turkey. This year, the first Thanksgiving I will be hosting on my own, I will share both a traditional turkey and my grandfather's steak and dressing.

Most of time, I try to eat a vegetarian diet.  I make an exception during the holidays.


 The ingredients for the dressing.  You can chop the herbs, onion, and celery days in advance.

 The floured steak frying in the pan. 

  Browned steak in my Enamelware roasting pan.  I LOVE this baking pan and use it all of the time!


Eldon's Steak and Dressing. 
The blue and white marbling in the baking dish make it pretty enough for any table. 




ELDON'S STEAK AND DRESSING

Ingredients
*1 1/2 lb. round steak, cut into small steaks
*1 cup flour
*1 loaf wheat bread, cubed and dried in a 170 F oven
*2 Tb. fresh chopped sage or 2 tsp dried sage
*1/2 large yellow onion, chopped
*3 stalks celery, chopped


*1 1/2 Tb. baking powder
*3 cups beef broth
*1 egg
*Oil for frying steak




Directions:
1.  Preheat oven to 350 F.
2.  Dredge (lightly coat) both sides of steaks in flour, fry in skillet until lightly browned.  (Steak will finish cooking in dressing.)
3.  Place in baking dish.
4.  Put dried bread cubes, celery, onion, and sage in large mixing bowl.
5.  In separate bowl or blender, blend egg, baking soda, and broth.  (I used my Vita-Mix Vita Prep 3 on a medium low setting.) Pour over cubed bread in large mixing bowl. Mix well.  Mixture should be wet.
6.  Add dressing mixture to baking pan and cover steaks.  Cover dish with aluminum foil and bake in preheated oven for 1 hour. Due to the eggs and baking powder, dressing may puff up somewhat, but will fall after removing from the oven.


Serves 8-10.



Variations:
1.  You can try to make this recipe with vegetarian meat substitutes and vegetable broth.  Let me know how it goes!


Tips:
2.  I grow my sage in my windowsill.  The fresh herbs add lots of flavor to any recipe!
3.  A glass pie plate works great for flouring foods.

Did you like this recipe?  Do you have any other fun non-traditional recipes from your family?

Post your variation in the comments and I will add it to the recipe!

Come back tomorrow for What I Ate Wednesday and on Thanksgiving Day for Grandma Gladys' Apple Salad Recipe!
Pin It Best Blogger Tips

2 comments:

  1. I recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don't know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading. Nice blog. I will keep visiting this blog very often.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks for reading! I really appreciate the comments too! : )

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...