For the next few weeks I’m going to be posting some old recipes I grew up with.  My Mom’s name was Geri, and she was a great cook.  When I had a little catering business, she was my helper.  It never failed that I would cook for weeks, and she would swoop in at the end and bring one of her Homestyle dishes, and it would be the hit of the party!

This Recipe really reminds me of home in our little house.  She always used Round Steak (what ever happened to Round Steak???). I asked the butcher and he said they don’t call it that anymore, but the next closest thing would be a London Broil.  So, here’s Geri’s recipe for an old Favorite.

SWISS STEAK

1 1/2 lbs. London Broil beef steak (Cut into serving sizes)

1 large can crushed tomatoes (or you can use a jar of prepared marinara and you won’t have to do much seasoning.)

1 large sliced onion

4 stalks celery, sliced

1 bell pepper (Mom used green.  I like red)

1 pkg. Lipton dry onion soup

Now, the method (or methods).  We try to save calories, so we skip the part about dredging the meat in seasoned flour and browning in hot oil.  AND, you have a choice of how you’d like to cook it.  We haven’t talked much about Pressure Cookers, but I’m getting kind of used to mine now.  My daughter talked me into one, and once I got over the fear (I remember Mom tiptoeing around the kitchen, afraid to open the pot).  I just ended up putting the untreated meat in the bottom, and covering with everything else.  I pressured it for 45 minutes and it was Dee-Lish!  The only thing different, though was the juice is much thinner.  We ALWAYS served it on mashed potatoes, but for my hubby’s lo-carb diet, he just ate it more like a soup in a bowl.  He loved it, and we served it with coleslaw.  Nice little dinner!

GERI’S METHOD (from the 1950’s)

Dredge the meat in seasoned flour.  Set aside, add more oil to the pan and saute the onion, peppers, and celery for about 5 minutes.  In a very large skillet, (she used a cast iron), put the meat on the bottom, add the veggies, and pour the tomatoes over all.  Cover and cook on medium low for at least 1 1/2 hours (to tenderize the meat).  You could also bake it at 325 degrees for a couple of hours.  This method will make your sauce a little thicker.  But it does add carbs and calories!