Ingredients: |
Ingredients: Meat
4 lbs. round steak, cut 1½-in. thick
1 medium onion, chopped
2 Tbsp.shortening
1 bay leaf
4 whole cloves
4 whole peppercorns
1 Tbsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. paprika
Gravy
1 pint half-half
½ pint whipping cream
3 Tbsp. white vinegar
1 Tbsp. flour
Dumplings
4 eggs
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
¼ cup milk
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Directions: |
Directions:Sauté onion in shortening until golden brown. Add steak, which has been cut in serving pieces, and brown thoroughly. Add salt, pepper, paprika, bay leaf, cloves, and peppercorn. Cook slowly under low heat adding water sparingly if meat begins to stick. Cook slowly for about three hours.
Gravy
About 30 minutes before serving time, combine half and half, whipping cream, vinegar, and flour. Beat this mixture with a rotary beater until blended. Bring meat mixture to boil, add cream mixture. Turn down heat and let simmer slowly until ready to serve.
Dumplings
Boil large pot of water.
Beat eggs in large mixing bowl, Sift together flour, baking powder, salt, and milk. Combine flour mixture with eggs. Beat until fairly stiff.
Drop from large spoon into boiling water. Cook 25 to 30 minutes. |
Personal
Notes: |
Personal
Notes: Periodically, Grandma and Grandpa Van would come to our house on a Tuesday (the day my dad had to work late or had a meeting after work) and they would make Steak and Cream Gravy. This happened maybe once or twice a year in the late 1950's early 1960's. It was a real treat because we really liked this dish. They would bring their own mixing bowls and other kitchen equipment. I remember Grandma cutting up the ingredients using a tiny little round wooden cutting board and Grandpa beating the dumplings by hand. Gradually Mom took over making Steak and Cream Gravy and invited Grandma and Grandpa over to enjoy it with us. In 1978 Mom submitted the recipe to the publication Who's Cooking What in Illinois, a hard copy book of 485 pages filled with recipes of cooks throughout Illinois. I'm copying this recipe from that book.
Up until now, I didn't realize how long it took to make the recipe and why it was so rich-tasting and why we all loved it...the half and half AND whipping cream!!!
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This recipe for Grandma Van's Steak and Cream Gravy is from