Italian Stuffed Steak

For this week's Food Adventure we went digging through Southern Living's Annual Recipes for 1988 and found this treasure of a recipe in October's section.  It isn't a quick fix recipe, but it is something you could make on the weekend and freeze to reheat later in the week.

Ingredients:

2 (3/4 lb.) lean, boneless top round steaks
1 1/2 c. water
3/4 c. uncooked risotto
1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
vegetable cooking spray
1/2 c. diced onion
1/2 c. diced green pepper
1/2 c. diced sweet red pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. dried Italian seasoning
1/4/ tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 (8 oz.) cans no-salt added tomato sauce
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. dried Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp. dried whole fennel seeds
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1 Tbsp. Parmesan cheese

1.  Trim fat from steaks; place each piece of meat between two sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap, and pound to 1/4 inch thickness, using a meat mallet.  Overlap edges of meat to make one large piece.

2.  Combine water, risotto, and turmeric in medium saucepan.  Bring to a boil; cover, reduce heat, and simmer 25-30 minutes or until tender; set aside.

3.  Coat a skillet with cooking spray; place over medium heat until hot.  Add onion, diced green and red pepper, and minced garlic; saute until tender.  Remove from heat.

4.  Add risotto, minced parsley, and next 3 ingredients; stir well.







5.  Spread stuffing mixture in center of meat within 1 inch of sides.

6.   Roll up jellyroll fashion, starting with the long side.  Secure at 2-inch intervals with string.  Place seam side down in a shallow roasting pan.





7.  Combine tomato sauce and next 4 ingredients in a small bowl; stir well.  Pour over steak roll.  Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour, basting occasionally.  Uncover and bake an additional 30 minutes, basting occasionally.

8.  Transfer steak to a serving platter.  Let stand 15 mintes; remove strings, and slice steak roll.  Spoon remaining sauce over meat and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Yield:  6 servings

Notes:

*  The top round steaks we bought were already trimmed of fat and sliced thin so we did not do step one.

*  We didn't use real risotto, instead we sauteed some garlic and onion with rice in butter and gradually added water and milk to get the creamy consistency.  It worked well.  I would probably make some extra to have a a side with the dish.

*  We rolled the steaks individually, not as one large roll.  I think it was more interesting this way, but it only made 7 due to the number of steaks in the packaging.  There are 3 in the freezer for a later date.

*  Because we rolled each small steak individually, we used toothpicks, which are much more manageable than string.

*  I don't buy Italian seasoning.  I didn't have everything that is usually in it, but I substituted half oregano and half basil for any amount of Italian seasoning.

*  We used a lot more garlic than it calls for.

Rating:

Sandy's rating:  4.0 stars
I really enjoyed this dish.  It tasted very much like meatloaf.  The meat was more tender than I expected after cooking for that long.  I think I would like a little more stuffing in it next time, possibly some spinach added to the stuffing as well.  I don't think I would ever make this as one roll like the recipe suggests, but I do think I would make it again.  It's definitely something you need to have the time to make.

Tony's rating:  4.5 stars
It tasted like meat loaf. The best meatloaf I ever had, but meatloaf none the less. I am interested in trying different variations. Maybe an Asian version with ginger and teriyaki or maybe a Italian version with cheese and garlic.

Cost: ~$15

top round steaks ~ $8
rice - $1.09
onion - .69
sweet red pepper - 1.99
green bell pepper - .99
tomato sauce - .89 a can

The remainder of the ingredients are staples in my kitchen and we didn't need to purchase them this time.