My niece and nephew came to stay with my husband and I for a few days in 1985 during their summer vacation. They were I'd say, about 8 and 10 years old. I wanted their stay to be as enjoyable as possible since this was their first time visiting me since my move to the metro area in 1972.
One of the things I asked, being the gracious host and wonderful Aunt that I am (:o) was what types of food they liked. I got the usual answers of course, chicken fingers, french fries, hot dogs, etc. Well I told them, I'll certainly fix you what you like, but you have to also eat what I fix, including vegetables, among other things I had up my sleeve.
On the second night they were here I took out beef liver to fix for dinner. The children gasped when they saw it laying on the kitchen counter. "What IS that?" I replied it is beef liver. They immediately said, almost in unison, "I don't like liver". I said oh really? They said yes, and we don't eat liver. I said "okay, then I will fix something else instead. How about steak?" I asked. They said oh yeah, they liked steak.
When dinner was ready, I had them set the table and I placed all of the dishes on the table. We sat down to eat mashed potatoes, sweet corn and "steak". They said how much they liked my dinner and complimented me on the delicious steak. They even asked for second helpings! I thanked them from the bottom of my heart for the nice compliment, trying not to gigle at the same time. They really did enjoy the dinner!
Here is how I prepared the "steak": Four pieces of beef liver rinsed off with cold water, dried with paper towels and cut in half. Have ready in separate dishes around 1-1/2 cups of flour, two eggs beaten vigorously with one cup of milk, and the last dish 1-1/2 cups of Italian Seasoned Bread Crumbs mixed with one half cup of flour. Place around two feet of paper towels on the counter and sprinkle each piece of liver with a little seasoned salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste. Dredge each piece of liver through the flour, patting off excess, dip into the egg mixture or "egg wash" and finally into the seasoned bread crumb mixture. Place each prepared piece on the waxed paper to dry out a bit.
Heat a large nonstick skillet on medium heat one half cup of canola oil. When the pan is hot, place four pieces of the liver and fry each side until golden brown, about 3 minutes, depending on your stove (gas or electric). Drain on paper towels and keep warm until ready to serve.
Oh, I also made a dipping sauce consisting of a steak sauce combined with honey. (I've found out that children will most likely eat a food item if they had something to dip it in!)
