Southwestern Beef Wraps

This is a great slow-cooker meal. Theoretically it should be quick and easy, but with a three week old it took me much longer to make than I'd like to admit (what with the fussing, diaper changes, feedings, and everything else interspersed). If you don't have a three week old to worry about, then you can probably get it all ready in about 15 minutes. My husband and I both really enjoyed this meal and it made plenty so we had leftovers to use in salads and quesadillas over the next week.

Southwestern Beef Wraps
Adapted from Our Best Bites

1 beef roast (approx 2 lbs)
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. salt
fresh ground black pepper, to taste
smoked paprika, to taste
juice of 1 lime
1 can (14 1/2 oz) diced tomatoes with chipotle chiles, or diced tomates with green chiles
1 medium sweet onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
tortillas, lettuce, salsa, avocado, cheese, sour cream, etc. for topping

1. Combine spices in small bowl. Rub all over roast, making sure it is completely coated. Place in slow cooker.
2. Top roast with onions, peppers, lime juice, and tomatoes (with juices). Cover and cook on low 7- 8 hours or high 5 - 6 hours or until meat is completely cooked and tender. Remove beef from crock pot, shred or slice, and place back in juices for at least 30 minutes.
3. Serve in flour tortillas topped with your choice of toppings.

One Pan Taco Dinner

Sorry, no picture today. I'm currently on bed rest (have been for the past week and a half) so I haven't been able to do much cooking lately. This is one of our favorite quick and easy meals. It's fast, flavorful, and we always have the ingredients on hand. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do!

One Pan Taco Dinner

1 lb. ground beef

1 medium onion, chopped

1 pkg. taco seasoning mix

1 cup salsa

2 cups minute white rice, uncooked

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

2 cups shredded lettuce

1 large tomato, chopped

Optional Toppings

sour cream

avocado

tortilla chips

cilantro

olives

1. Brown meat and onion in large skillet on medium-high heat; drain.

2. Add 2 cups water, seasoning mix, and salsa. Bring to a boil.

3. Stir in rice. Sprinkle with cheese; cover. Cook on low heat 5 minutes, until rice is completely cooked and soft. Top with lettuce, tomato, and desired optional toppings just before serving.

Philly Steak Sandwiches

It's rare that I make steak, so if I'm going to take the time to make it I want it to be good. Juicy. Delicious. And worth my time. I was craving Philly steak sandwiches the other day and decided to whip these up. They turned out fantastic. I topped mine with some homemade pickled peppers that my sister brought me and in my own humble opinion it made them even better. Yum.


Philly Steak Sandwiches
makes 4 sandwiches

1 lb. good quality steak
1/2 tsp. smoked paprika
1 tsp. garlic powder
1/2 tsp. chipotle chili powder
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. onion powder

1 Tb. vegetable oil
1/4 cup barbecue sauce
2 Tb. soy sauce
1 Tb. Worcestershire sauce
1 red or green bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 Anaheim pepper, seeds removed and thinly sliced (optional, if you want it spicier)

4 hoagie rolls
1 cup sliced sharp white cheddar cheese

1. Combine spices. Rub evenly into steak. Grill over medium-high heat until medium (140 degrees F on thermometer), about 8-10 minutes on each side, depending on thickness. Remove steak from grill, set aside.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and peppers. Saute for 5 minutes. Slice steak thinly on the bias. Add to skillet, along with barbecue sauce, soy sauce, and Worcestershire sauce. Cook 2-3 more minutes, until heated through.
3. Fill hoagie rolls with steak/pepper mixture. Top with cheese. Enjoy!

Stuffed Bell Peppers

This is a simple recipe that can be adapted in numerous ways. My mom always used to make these when we were growing up, and it's kind of a sentimental recipe for me. My granddad also loved them, and I can't ever eat them without missing him. I hope you enjoy them as much as my family & I do!

Stuffed Peppers

4 large bell peppers (any color)
1/2 pound lean ground beef
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 tsp. garlic salt
1 1/2 cups cooked rice
1 can (15 oz) diced tomatoes (variety of your choice)
1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce
salt & freshly ground pepper to taste
1 cup cheese (variety of your choice, I like mozzarella or colby jack)

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Clean peppers and cut lengthwise in half. Remove seeds & membrane. Place in sprayed 9 x 13 inch glass pan.
2. Cook ground beef and onion over medium-high heat until no longer pink. Drain well.
3. In food processor or mini chopper blend tomatoes to desired consistency. Add to ground beef, cooked rice, and spices. Add half of the tomato sauce. Mix well and heat through.
4. Spoon rice mixture evenly into peppers. Top each with a spoonful of tomato sauce. Cover with aluminum foil. Bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil, sprinkle cheese evenly over the tops of the peppers, and return to oven for 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Note: here are a couple good combinations:
*diced tomatoes with green chilis and sharp cheddar cheese (add a sprinkle of chili powder to the rice mixture),
*diced Italian style tomatoes and mozzarella cheese (add a sprinkle of basil and parsley to the rice mixture)

Taco Soup

This is a perfect, filling, and delicious dinner on a cold snowy night, and we've had a lot of those lately! One of my favorite parts of this is that you can put it in the crockpot before work and come home to a nice warm dinner with no preparation after!

Taco Soup

Soup
1 lb. hamburger
1/2 large onion or one small onion, chopped
1 1/2 pkg. taco seasoning mix
1 can corn, undrained
1 can black beans, undrained
1 can (14 oz) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can (14 oz) diced tomatoes with chipotle chiles, undrained
1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce

Garnish
sour cream
cheese
tortilla chips
avocado (optional)

1. Brown hamburger and onion in medium saucepan. Drain.
2. Combine all soup ingredients in medium to large crockpot. Mix well. Cook on low for 8 - 10 hours or on high for 4 - 5 hours.
3. Serve with sour cream, cheese, tortilla chips, and avocado. Enjoy!

Mother's Meatloaf

This is my favorite comfort food. It makes me feel all safe and warm and cuddly. Read all about my feelings on the subject here.

Mother's Oatmeal Meatloaf:

Ingredients-
1 1/2 lb ground beef
1 cup tomato sauce
2/3 cup oats, uncooked
1 egg, beaten
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper

Directions-
1- Combine ingredients in a mixing bowl (I also like to add a little minced garlic) until evenly mixed.
2- In a loaf pan, form the mixture into a loaf shape. (optionally top with some more tomato sauce)
3- Put into a preheated 350 degree oven for 1 hour.
4- Take out, let stand for 5 minutes.

My personal preference is to top it with a combination of cocktail sauce and ketchup. But that's not for everyone.

Goulash

For some reason I've been craving some good goulash like crazy for the past few weeks. Today I decided to make some...I'm not really sure what exactly is supposed to go in it, so I just threw some things together and it turned out great. Corey said I had to post it on here because it's the best goulash he's ever eaten.

Goulash

1/4 lb. small pasta, uncooked.

1/2 lb. ground beef

1/2 small onion, diced

1/2 bell pepper, diced (I used orange because that's what I had, but any color would be good)

1 can Italian diced tomatoes, undrained

1 small can tomato sauce

2 - 3 Tb. fresh parsley

1/2 tsp Italian seasoning

1/2 tsp garlic salt

dash oregano

grated cheese

1. Cook pasta according to package directions.

2. While pasta is cooking, cook ground beef, onions, and pepper in large saucepan. Drain well.

3. Combine pasta, ground beef mixture, and remaining ingredients (except cheese) in a large pot and cook for 5 - 10 minutes or until heated through.

4. Serve topped with cheese.

Yastrzemski Pot Roast

I cook five days a week at work. But I don't think that the recipes that go along with the menus are very good. So I tend to experiment a little bit to improve them. This doesn't always work out (Corn Nut Chicken, Ask Me How!), but most of the time, after some trial and error, we have something that's a huge improvement. So this is my version of pot roast, which I think is a great improvement. It's technically a Yankee pot roast, but I'm opposed to all things Yankee so I renamed it after Carl Yastrzemski (Yaz!).

Ingredients-

One beef roast, about 4 lbs (I like to use round, but chuck would work too- figure about 1/2 lb per person if you want to make the recipe smaller)
1 1/2 tablespoons Flour
2 teaspoons Kosher or Sea Salt
1 teaspoon Black Pepper (fresh ground is much better)
1/2 teaspoon Sugar
2ish tablespoons Butter (or olive oil if you're trying to be a little healthier)

Can of tomato juice or vegetable juice cocktail (I use the spicy V8)
Worcestershire Sauce
Dijon Mustard (you better have some of this on hand it is Essential after all)
Basil
Thyme
Rosemary (just a tiny bit)
Onions, minced
Mushrooms, sliced
Garlic, minced

Red potatoes (I use Red Bliss ones), cut into chunk, usually just about quartered
Celery, chopped in 1-2 inch pieces on the bias
Carrots, about the same as the celery, maybe a little smaller
Onions, chopped
Parsley, chopped (only the fresh kind! no dried parsley!)

Directions-
1- Mix together the flour, salt, pepper and sugar. Coat the outside of the roast with the mixture. This will help with the browning process. Heat the butter (or oil) in a deep, heavy, pan (something that's oven safe if you plan to cook it in the oven). Brown the roast on all sides on a medium high heat. Remove the roast and set aside, tented with foil.

2- Mix tomato juice, Worcestershire sauce, mustard, and herbs together in a small bowl. Mix thoroughly, the mustard can be hard to incorporate. Set aside for the moment.

3- In the same pan (on medium high heat) that you browned the roast (there should be a tasty fond at the bottom now) you're going to caramelize the minced onions, mushrooms and garlic. Add in a little more butter (or oil) if there isn't enough left to coat the bottom of the pan. Then add the onions, mushrooms and garlic (in that order, you don't want the garlic to burn). When they have just started to caramelize (about 2-3 minutes) deglaze the pan with the tomato juice mixture you made in step 2. Stir constantly until the fond from the bottom of the pan has mostly incorporated into the liquid. Pour liquid into a large measuring cup or bowl.

4- Add the vegetables (potatoes, carrots, onions, celery) to the pan. If necessary, add a little more butter/oil. Cook on medium heat for 2-3 minutes, stirring constantly, you just want to soften the vegetables, not brown them!

5- Add the roast back into the pan, nestled right in amongst, and on top of, the vegetables. Pour the tomato juice/mushroom mixture on top, covering the meat and the vegetables. Top with the parsley.

6- Bring everything to a simmer, cover, and put into a pre-heated 325 degree oven. Cook for three hours, checking halfway through to see if meat is covered by liquid, if not, then turn the meat over at that point.

7- After three hours, take it out, slice the meat and serve with the vegetables. If you want to make the liquid into a gravy then add 2 tablespoons of flour into 1/2 cup of water, stirring it in until it is completely incorporated.

You could also finish this in a crock pot. All you'd have to do is, after step 4, take the vegetables, pour them into a large crock pot, add the roast, sauce and parsley and cook on medium for 5-6 hours, turning it up to high at the end if it's not quite done.

There's the possibilities for many variations on the recipe. Feel free to experiment with different herbs, or add in some beef stock to the sauce for that extra beefy flavor. Cooking is art, not science, so just try something! In fact I have an idea to use a pork roast and put an Asian spin on the recipe (a lime/soy sauce, maybe some daikon, ginger).

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

I got this recipe from my cousin Lori at my bridal shower, and it's been a staple in our menu ever since. It's simple but amazingly tasty. I hope you enjoy it!

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

Meatballs:
1 lb. extra lean ground beef
1 egg, slightly beaten
dash of pepper
1/3 cup milk
1/3 cup chopped onion
3/4 tsp. salt
1/2 cup oatmeal (quick cooking is best)
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce

Sauce:
1 cup brown sugar
2 tsp. mustard
2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup vinegar
1/2 cup barbecue sauce (we prefer Bulls-eye brand)

Combine all ingredients for meatballs. Mix well with hands and form into 1 - 1 1/2 inch balls. Place in a 9 x 13 pan. Mix all sauce ingredients with a whisk and pour over the meatballs (make sure you cover each meatball so the sauce bakes into them). Bake at 350 degrees for 25 - 30 minutes or until no longer pink in the middle. Serve with rice and stir fry vegetables or broccoli.

Sloppy Joe's

I think nearly everyone grew up on Sloppy Joe's. We weren't any different. The only weird thing I've noticed is that all Sloppy Joe's taste completely different. I love my mom's recipe because well....it's what I grew up on. I love Mom's Sloppy Joe's, when I try others I am always sorely disappointed.

Mom's Sloppy Joe's

1 lb. hamburger
1 onion
1 T. mustard
1 Cup ketchup
3/4 tsp. salt
2 T. Vinegar
1/4 tsp cloves

Brown and drain meat and onion. Combine other ingredients. Cover and simmer 10-15 minutes (may need to add more ketchup).

I always make extra because they are also great for leftovers with no complaints from the boys. We used to eat them with potato chips, but I can't bring myself to do that anymore with all the fat in the meat anyway...oh wait we aren't supposed to talk about fat on this blog. I served it with fresh asparagus cooked in a good quality olive oil and sprinkled with salt and freshly ground pepper.

Enjoy!