Ingredients

* 3 lbs boneless chuck steak, 2 inches thick, patted dry
* 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
* 1/2 tsp salt
* 1/4 tsp pepper
* 3 Tbl vegetable oil
* ! medium sized yellow onion, thickly sliced
* 1 medium sized stalk of celery, thickly sliced
* 2 medium sized green bell peppers, cored. seeded, and sliced
* 2 cloves garlic, minced
* 1 and 1/2 cups beef stock or beef broth
* 1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
* 1 tsp brown sugar
* 1/2 tsp dried basil
* 1/2 tsp thyme
* 1/2 tsp oregano
* 1 bay leaf
* 1/8 tsp ground cayenne pepper
* For the grits:
* 3 cups water
* 1/4 tsp salt
* 1 cup hominy grits
* 1 Tbl butter or margarine
* 1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
* 1 large egg, lightly beaten
* 1/4 tsp paprika

Directions

1. Dredge steak in flour, shaking off any excess, and sprinkle with half the salt and pepper. Heat the oil for 1 minute in a 3 quart casserole dish over moderately high heat. Add the steak and brown for 6-7 minutes on each side. Remove the steak and set aside.
2. Preheat oven to 350F. Add the onion, celery, green peppers, and remaining salt and pepper to the casserole, and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic, stock, tomato sauce, sugar, basil, thyme, oregano, bay leaf, and red pepper, and bring to a boil. Return the steak to the casserole dish, and spoon some of the vegetable mixture over it. Cover, transfer to the oven, and bake until steak is tender, 1 and 1/2 to 2 hours.
3. For the grits: Bring the water to a boil in a medium sized saucepan over medium high heat. Add the salt and grits, reduce heat to low, and simmer, stirring constantly, until thickened - about 15 minutes. Remove form heat, beat in butter, cheese, and the egg, and let cool for 15 minutes.
4. Raise oven temperature to 400F. Remove casserole from oven, skim off any fat from the drippings, and remove bay leaf. Spoon some of the sauce from bottom of casserole over the steak, arrange the grits in mounds around the steak, and sprinkle with paprika.
5. Return casserole to the oven and bake, uncovered, for 25 to 30 minutes or until bubbling.