Lightend Up Chicken Fried Steak

I remember eating chicken fried steak a few times in the cafeteria in elementary school, it came in the form of weird oval with a side of mashed potatoes, I ate it, but I don't remember it being anything special.  Chicken fried steak is not a staple here in Arizona, so I wasn't really exposed to it other than in the cafeteria, that is until I found a local restaurant called Ranch House Grille.  I had never really thought of ordering chicken fried steak before, but it is what this restaurant is known for, so I figured I had to give it a try!  Well, let me just say, I should't have tried it...why you may ask?  Because I LOVED it!  Oh my goodness, I really didn't need to know about this delicious, calorie ladden piece of meaty goodness smothered in creamy gravy....but now that I knew about it....I craved it....I just had to have it!  I don't get to Ranch House very often, but when I do, I always get the chicken fried steak; so when I came across a lightened version in my Healthy Cooking magazine I just knew that I had to give it a try, so that I could enjoy it without the guilt!

I have to say, this was actually really easy to put together, and the breading was seasoned just perfectly!  The only minor problem that I had was that the breading didn't stick too well, so I think next time I would do a double coat in hopes of getting it to stick a bit better.  The gravy was a cinch to make as well, and in about 20 minutes I had a healthy and hearty dinner!  This version says that 1 serving is just 318 calories and 13 grams of fat....so I can enjoy my guilty pleasure with a little less guilt!

Makeover Country-Fried Steak

adapted from Taste of Home's Healthy Cooking Feb/Mar 2010

1 beef top round steak (1 lb.)  (I bought one that was already tenderized)

1/2 tsp. salt  (I used seasoned salt)

1/2 tsp. garlic powder, divided

1/2 tsp. pepper, divided

1/4 tsp. onion powder (I omitted)

1/2 c. buttermilk

3/4 c. plus 4 1/2 tsp. all-purpose flour, divided

1 Tbsp. canola oil

4 1/2 tsp. butter

1 c. 2% milk

Cut steak into four serving-size pieces; pound to 1/4 in. thickness with a meat mallet.  Combine the salt, 1/4 tsp. garlic powder, 1/4 tsp. pepper and onion powder; sprinkle over both sides of the steaks.

Place buttermilk and 3/4 cup of flour in separate shallow bowls.  Dip steaks in buttermilk, then flour. (Next time I will repeat this a second time.)  In a large skillet, cook steaks in oil over medium heat for 3 - 4 minutes on each side or until meat is no longer pink.  Remove and keep warm.

In a small saucepan, melt butter.  Stir in remaining flour until smooth; gradually add milk.  Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 1 minute or until thickened.  Stir in remaining garlic powder and pepper.  Serve over steak.