Even though my kids are all-grown-up, nothing pleases me more than hearing them tell me how much they love my cooking, and often they will comment on the food they are eating, food that tastes “just like Grandma used to make.”
Grandma Anna, my mother-in-law, was “something else.” Born and raised in the then Yugoslavia, Anna was sent for and immigrated to Watsonville in the 1920s, alone and ready to marry Grandpa, who she had met as a very young girl in the “old” country.
Anna’s long kitchen counter was made of hardwood, and at its end rested two, sometimes three, medium-size “peck baskets” with handles, which held fresh fruit and vegetables from her kitchen garden. At the end of that counter was a countertop freezer, which held cuts of beef, lamb and chicken, and always a turkey or two, fresh from Kliewer’s turkey ranch, just down the road from Anna’s house.
By mid-morning there was always Anna’s white porcelain soup pot boiling away with beef or chicken to be made into delicious soups of Anna’s creation. No recipe, just a little of this and a little of that.
And then there was Anna’s cheese drawer. Under the kitchen counter was a very deep tin-lined drawer that held a wheel of parmesan cheese along with a roll or two of salami and smoked links of Croatian Kobasice sausage from the well-known Corralito’s Meat Market nearby. A loaf of Watsonville’s Sourdough French bread completed that drawer.
Weekdays for Anna’s sons, who had ranches just down the road apiece, meant stopping at Anna’s for a glass or two of grandpa’s homemade red wine and hunks of those delectables from the cheese drawer. When I saw their trucks parked in the driveway, I would walk over and listen to their stories of that day from those hard-working men whose clothes, faces and hair were covered with dirt from their orchards.
Neighbors on their way home from work would often stop in as well. Soon, Anna’s kitchen table would be surrounded by family and friends. Everyone was welcome. Anna’s mantra was “mi casa, et su casa”…my house is your house.
Anna cooked “by the seat of her pants,” no cookbooks were in her kitchen, and I have done my best to recreate Anna’s marinade recipe below, remembering her recipe amounts as being “just a little of this and a little of that.”
When I married Anna’s son, we built our little home next door to Anna’s, and in the mornings, you would find me walking the short path between our houses where we would share a cup of coffee and make plans for that day’s meal. I would walk the path back home, arms filled with food from Anna’s garden and sometimes, from that little freezer. Oh, how fortunate we were to live next to grandma and grandpa.
One important thing I learned from Anna is to always have a chicken, chuck roast, ground round and sausage in the freezer, as well as canned tomatoes, rice and pasta on my pantry shelf. Fresh carrots, potatoes, eggs and milk are a must have.
Today, I maintain a “summer” pantry of fruits and vegetables that are so plentiful during this time of year, as well as yogurts, buttermilk and fresh stems of dill and cilantro for that chilled cream of cucumber, leek or gazpacho soup. I make sure I have a good quality red or sherry wine on hand to be added to those pots just as Anna did.
The night before each Fourth of July, Anna’s table would have six or eight 20-inch-long skirt steaks stripped of the thin membrane that covers the underside of each steak. With a sharp meat fork, Anna would poke small holes up and down each strip of meat, which would allow her marinade to penetrate the meat.
Anna would pile the steaks in a large pan and pour her marinade sauce over them, cover and refrigerate them, leaving them to tenderize overnight. If not tenderized and marinated, these steaks can be tough, especially if overcooked. Follow the recipe below for tender and mouth-watering steaks for your Fourth of July celebration barbecue.
Yesterday I found myself humming Barbra Streisand’s song “The Way We Were,” where life was much simpler then, and were we happier then…and if we could, would we do it all over again? Yes, I believe I would!
If you have decided to spend the average price of $18.99 for a pound of skirt steak, which will serve 3-4 adults, buy it from a butcher shop and ask for the “outside cut.” Trust me, it is more tender than the “inside cut” that regular markets sell today.
Anna’s Marinade
(For ea. 1 ½ lbs. of meat)
¼ cup of Balsamic vinegar
2 Tbsp. olive oil
¼ cup Worcestershire Sauce
2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar
3 tsp. crushed garlic
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
½ tsp. ea. salt and black pepper
Mix well and pour over “tenderized” meat in a Ziplock bag. Marinade for at least 12 hours or overnight. Note: Sometimes Anna would use grandpa’s red wine in place of Balsamic vinegar.
Procedure:
Wipe grates with olive oil.
Over a 450deg. gas grill or high heat coals, grill on one side 5-7 min.
Turn meat over and grill for another 5-7 min.
Remove meat and tent with aluminum foil for 15 minutes.
Rare…remove meat at 120deg.
Med. rare…125deg.
Med. well…140deg.
Tent and rest 5-10 min.
For those who want their meat well done, grill over medium heat.
Colly Gruczelak, a Ben Lomond resident, loves people and loves to cook. Contact her at [email protected].
