Recipe: Pat's Family Favorite Swiss Steak (using tomato)

SWISS STEAK

"This may not be "gourmet" but it is good home eating. It's been passed down in my family for generations and I've updated it to meet today's health concerns.

This is obviously good served with pasta, but it with fluffy baked potatoes or mashed potatoes and sauteed zucchini on the side. This dish is guaranteed to cheer up a sullen teen or make a sick child feel a bit better."

6 eye of round steaks or 1 (2 lb.) round steak cut into 4-6 serving pieces
Flour (I use a great product for this - Wondra - shake it right out of the canister)
Olive oil
Italian seasoning or your own basil, oregano, garlic powder
1 (28 oz.) can plum tomatoes
1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce
1 large clove garlic
Salt and pepper, to taste

Put a sheet of wax paper on your cutting board. Sprinkle some flour on, place a steak on it and pound with a meat mallet, turning 2-3 times. (If you have a teenager who needs to get rid of some excess tension, call him/her into the kitchen and have them go at it!) Add flour and keep tenderizing (no need to make scallops out of it). As steaks are finished, move to a plate.

Heat 1 to 2 tablespoons olive oil over medium-high heat in a good sized fry pan with a lid. Cook 2 or 3 steaks at a time. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning while cooking. When browned, remove to platter. Add more olive oil to pan and finish browning rest of steaks. Remove.

Add the juices from the 28 oz. can of tomatoes to the pan and deglaze the brown bits, scraping the bottom of the pan. Stir well and add the tomatoes; break up with back of spoon. Add the 8 oz. can of tomato sauce. Using a garlic press, add the clove (or cloves) of garlic. Add salt and/or pepper if desired. Put the steaks in, getting them under the tomatoes, cover and reduce heat to simmer. Turn after 20 minutes. In my family, we let those steaks simmer in there for an hour or more.

From: Pat, CT - 01-04-98