Beef Enchiladas

Grace was also nice enough to share her Enchilada recipe. She served these at Christmas and they were the best ever! I have yet to make them, but I can't wait to tackle it!

Enchiladas:

Makes 12 enchiladas

Ingredients:
1 lb ground mean
1/2 onion, chopped
2 T taco seasoning mix (mild, medium, or hot depending on your taste)
Ground Cumin
12 tortillas (enchilada size)
Enchilada sauce
Cheddar or Mexican Cheese (shredded)
Olives

Brown 1 lb gr. meat, with 1/2 onion chopped, add salt and pepper to taste,
when done add about 2 tablespoons taco seasoning mix, powdered, the kind in the envelope I used Pace Taco Seasoning mix and also a couple dashes of ground Cumin....
in a frying pan with some oil, put each tortilla in for a few seconds on both sides just till it softens, take out and drain on paper towels, do all 12
Put a small amount of some Mild Enchilada sauce in the bottom of a 9 X 12 pan, take one tortilla dip in a separate dish with some of the enchilada sauce in it, it will be messy, put enough meat in to fill, also some cheddar or Mexican cheese (and you can put in olives if you want) then roll up and put in pan, do all 12. Pour the rest of the Enchilada sauce on top of all, sprinkle with lots of cheese and bake @350 for 30-40 min, till heated thru, eat and enjoy
It sounds like a lot of work but it really is not, make an assembly line and it will be easy.

Sloppy Joe's

Grace was kind enough to share this recipe with me. Everyone likes a Sloppy Joe every now and again and this is a great tasting recipe!

Thanks for sharing Grace!!

Sloppy Joes
Serves 4

1 lb ground beef
2-3 stalks of celery, chopped
1 small onion chopped
1 8 ounce can tomato sauce
1/4 C ketchup
1/4 C barbecue sauce (your favorite)
1 tbl. firmly packed brown sugar
1 tea dry mustard
salt and pepper
1 tbl. Worcestershire sauce
1 tbl. vinegar

In a large skillet, brown ground beef, celery and oinion. Drain the fat. Stir in remaining ingredients. Simmer covered 15-20 min, stirring occasionally. If it appears to loose, leave cover off and let moisture evaporate. Cook until it's the consistency you like, serve on toasted buns.

Crock Pot Lemon-Garlic Chicken

I never would have thought this would work, but it has great flavor. It is another slow cooker meal. . . I am planning for my week to take the stress off. Someone asked me about when I prep the crock pot meals since mornings are so hectic. I have found that for me it is easiest to prep the slow cooker at night. I put everything in and place it in the fridge overnight. In the morning all I have to dois take it out and turn it on. With two kiddos and jobs to make it to it really helps me.

Supplies:
Crock Pot

Ingredients:
1 lemon
3 tbsp of minced garlic in oil
1 four pound whole chicken (with the insides removed)

1. Slice the lemon into thin pieces.
2. Season the cavity (the inside) of the chicken liberally with salt and pepper.
3. Rub the outside of the chicken with the minced garlic, salt and pepper. (rub top and bottom)
4. Place breast side up into the crock pot.
5. Place the lemon slices on top of the chicken. Any extra slices can be placed into the cavity of the chicken.

Cook on low 6 to 7 hours, or until the juices run clear. Serve with rice and a vegetable for a wonderful light meal.

Crock Pot Roast

School is back in sessions and things are busier than they were, but I am going to keep trying to post things. Sorry for the long wait. This is one of my favorites. I have always done my pot roast with the same ingredients, but my friend Amanda add the cream of mushroom soup and it takes it from good to great. My family loves it too.

Supplies:
Crock pot or Slow Cooker

Ingredients:
4 medium potatoes
2 cups of baby carrots
1 cup of celery (optional)
1 Lipton Onion Soup Mix
1 can of cream of mushroom soup
1 medium pot roast

1. Slice potatoes and place on the bottom of the crock pot (I don't peel them, but some prefer peeled potatoes)
2. Lay the pot roast on top of the potatoes.
3. Fill in around the pot roast with carrots and celery
4. Mix the cream of mushroom soup and the onion soup mix in a bowl and pour over the roast and other ingredients
5. Salt and pepper to taste

Cook on low 7 to 8 hours in the crock pot.

You can do the same recipe with chicken for 6 to 7 hours on low.

Cracker Barrel's Hashbrown Casserole

Don't ask just enjoy. . .

2 lbs. frozen hashbrowns
1/2 cup melted butter
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 pt. sour cream
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 cups grated cheddar
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
2 cups crushed cornflakes
1/4 cup melted butter

DEFROST hashbrowns.
COMBINE next 7 ingr. and mix with hashbrowns.
PUT all in a 3 qt. casserole.
SAUTE cornflakes in butter and sprinkle on top.
COVER and BAKE at 350 for about 40 min.

Old World Manicotti

A little more time so another one for your collection:

Submitted by: John Gibbons (Fort Smith, AR)

12 Lg Manicotti Shells
4 Cups Shredded Mozzarella
2 Cups Ricotta Cheese
2 Tbs Dried Basil or 6 Tbs Fresh Basil Finely chopped
1 26 Oz Jar Spaghetti Sauce Divided(we make our own sauce which is another recipe)
1/2 Cup Grated Parmesan or Romano Cheese

Preheat oven to 350, spray 13x9 baking dish with nonstick spray or butter the bottom and sides of dish. Cook pasta shells according to package instructions. DON'T OVERCOOK the shells. If the shells become too soft they are useless. Drain, rinse and set on paper towels to dry.Filling:In medium bowl, stir together the Mozzarella, Ricotta, and basil. Using a tsp. CAREFULLY stuff pasta shells with cheese mixture. Spoon 2 cups of the spaghetti sauce into prepared baking dish. Arrange stuffed pasta over sauce. Pour remaining sauce over top of pasta. Sprinkle with remaining Mozzarella. Bake for 15 min, sprinkle with Parmesan, and bake for an additional 10 min. Serve immediately.These are from my wife's grandmother. We always use additional cheese and our own sauce. Soon I'll get some of the German recipes and even some Indonesian recipes!

Pork Chops and Rice

This is from a good friend on mine, Amanda. She told me about this recipe and I have been bugging her to send it to me. Thanks Amanda!

Submitted by: Amanda Mulhearn (Conway, AR)

Ingredients:
9x13 pan
Season salt
Bone-in pork chops (enough to cover pan)
1 cup rice
1 can french onion soup
water

Directions:
Season salt each side of pork chops and brown each side of chops.
Preheat oven 350. Dump rice and soup in bottom of pan, spread evenly. Layer pork chops over rice. Add water to cover rice completely. May come over side of pork chops. Cover with aluminum foil and bake 30 minutes. Remove cover and cook additional 15 min.

BBQ Pork Loin

Joe and I had some Peguin Ed's bbq sauce from our last trip to Fayetteville, so we knew we had to make something really good with it. Joe suggested that we bbq a Pork Loin. It turned out really good and it was super easy!

Supplies:
Crockpot
Good BBQ Sauce (Penguin Ed's is fab)
Pork Loin

Place defrosted Pork Loin in the bottom of you Crockpot. Cover with plenty of bbq sauce (save some to add to the meat once you serve). Cook on low for 2-3 hours (that is for a 2-3 pound pork loin - you want the inside temperature to cook to 160F). Top with the leftover bbq sauce and Serve! Delicious!

The crockpot cooks the meat slowly which makes it very tender. The bbq sauce gives the meat a great flavor. The best part is that I put the crockpot on a timer and when I got home from work, it was ready to go!!

Old World Lasagna

A friend of mine from high school contacted me, via Facebook, with this recipe. His wife's grandmother is Italain. This is one of her recipes. It looks delicious. We are hoping he sends us some of his family's German recipes. He has a house full of "good eats." Enjoy! Thanks John!

Recipe Submitted by John Gibbons (Fort Smith, AR)


Meat sauce Bolognese
1 Pkg Lasagna Noodles (6)
1 Lg Container Cottage Cheese
Parmesan Cheese
American Cheese (12 oz)
3 Cup Shredded Mozzarella Cheese

Heat sauce (made a day ahead). Put thin layer of sauce in 9x13 oblong pan. Build Lasagna w/ layers of noodles, sauce and cheese. Repeat process ending with cheese. Bake at 375 for 35 to 40 min. until hot and cheese is melted. Let sit 10 min to firm up.

Meat Sauce Bolognese

6 Slices bacon, diced
2 onion, chopped
1 carrot, shredded
2 Tbs Margarine
1 1/2 Lb ground steak
1 tsp salt
1 Stalk Celery, chopped
1 1/4 tsp Nutmegpepper, to taste
1 Lg tomato or 1/4 Cup tomato sauce
1 1/2 cup beef bullion
1 Box sliced mushrooms
1/2 Cup Dry White Wine

In Large heavy pan, fry bacon and drain off most of the fat. Add onions celery and carrot. Cook over low heat till veg. are soft. Push to side of pan. Add Margarine, and slowly add beef. Cook and stir until browned. (10- 15 min) Season with salt, nutmeg, and plenty of fresh ground pepper. Stir in tomato and bullion. Cover and simmer gently for 30 min. While simmering, saute mushrooms in margarine and wine. Add to sauce, and simmer an additional 30 min. Let cool, cover, and refrigerate at least 24 hrs.

Easy Meat Loaf

Well, I am finishing up the week of cooking. I have to say that it was rewarding, as my freezer is now full. That is a good feeling as I go into the week, and go back to work. That will take care of one or two meals a week for a while. I will still try to make a meal a week to replenish, so I will be adding other recipes as I do that. I realized tonight, as I was taking a chicken pot pie to a friend, something that would help me, and I thought I should pass it on. Since I hadn't put the cooking time or length on the "package," I had to run to the computer and check on the blog how long it should cook. From now on I am going to try to label these things on the aluminum foil.

• Recipe
• Date
• Temp for cooking
• Length of cooking

So, here is the last meal for this week experiment.

Supplies

2 Loaf Pans

Ingredients

• 2 lbs ground beef
• 1 cup of oatmeal, uncooked
• 1 cup of onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup of ketchup
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 tsp prepared mustard
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp of pepper

Combine all ingredients together in a bowl. Then split in half into two loaf pans. Form into loaf shapes so the excess grease will go down the sides.

Fresh Loaf: Bake at 375 degrees for 1 hour

Freezer Loaf: Thaw in refrigerator. Bake at 375 degrees for 1 hour.

Ham Glaze

This is a glaze I put on ham last Easter that was really tasty. My mother-in-law Debbie sent me the recipe to post. She used it this year on the Christmas ham.

Ingredients:
¼ cup Worcestershire Sauce
2 cans coke

Simmer for 1 hour

Add:
½ cup of brown sugar
1 Tbs dry mustard until dissolved

Baste on ham every 15 minutes Serve remainder on side.

Mexican Pie

Okay, I have to admit, I am getting tired of cooking every night now, but I said that I would do it, and so I am going to finish out the week. That being said, I have never done this all in one week before. Typically, I try to make one freezer meal a week. That way I have a constant supply in the freezer for choices. I find that a lot less stressful than a different one each day. Tonight I made a Mexican Pie that is pretty easy considering you take the ingredients and layer them. The kids enjoyed it- and I put one in the freezer for later.



Supplies:


2 aluminum pie tins


Ingredients:


1 lb of group beef
1 envelope of taco seasoning
1/2 cup of chopped onion
4 large flour tortillas/ or about six medium ones
1 large can of refried beans
1 cup of sour cream
1 can of corn, drained
1 jar of salsa
2 cups of grated cheese



Brown ground beef and onions. Prepare per directions on taco seasoning. Spray pie pans with cooking spray to prevent sticking. In a bowl mix sour cream and corn together.



Layer the following into each of the pie tins:

• tortilla (large ones will fill the pie tin)
• refried beans (1/2 in each tin)
• corn and sour cream (1/2 in each tin)
• thin layer of salsa
• thin layer of cheese
• tortilla
• meat/onion mix (1/2 in each tin)
• thin layer of salsa
• remainder of the cheese

Fresh Pie: Bake in the oven at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes.

Freezer Pie: Cover tightly with aluminum foil, label and date, and place directly in the freezer. When you choose to eat them, thaw in the refrigerator and bake 30-45 minutes, until the center is warm. (I would eat them within two months of freezing them.)

Spare Ribs with Mashed Potatoes

Day four of stock the freezer. I felt the need to branch out from chicken. I had a rack of spare ribs in the freezer, so I pulled them out and found a recipe that I had the ingredients for! I decided to put the on a bed of mashed potatoes, just like the local "Make A Meal." I get a lot of my freezer meal ideas from them, since I am basically doing the same thing. So, here we go-


Supplies:

2 Aluminum Casserole Pans (or lasagna pans)
1 Slow Cooker (Crock Pot)


Ingredients:


1 rack of ribs (4 to 5 pounds) cut into quarters
1 large onion sliced
2 tablespoons oil (optional)
2 cups of beef broth (I use bullion with water)
1 packet of onion soup mix
1 can of diced tomatoes

1 box of instant mashed potatoes (serving for 8)
minced garlic
salt
pepper



Ribs


Add sliced onion to the bottom of a 4-5 quart slow cooker. Season ribs with salt, pepper, and garlic by rubbing on the ribs. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Working in batches brown all sides of he ribs. (OPTIONAL STEP) Place into slow cooker on top of the onion.


In a bowl mix together beef broth, onion soup mix, and tomatoes. Pour mixture over the ribs in the slow cooker. Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 9 to 10 hours or on high-heat setting for 3-4 hours.

Mashed Potatoes

Prepare as directed on the box. I add 4 tablespoons of butter, one tablespoon of garlic, and replace two of the cups of water with chicken broth. (Very Tasty!) Salt and Pepper to taste.

Fresh Ribs: Serve ribs with a side of mashed potatoes

Freezer Ribs: Put a layer of mashed potatoes on the bottom of the casserole dish, then lay the ribs on top of it, along with the onions, tomatoes, and some of the "gravy" from the slow cooker. Cover with aluminum foil, date and label, and place in freezer. Store up to two months. Defrost in the refrigerator the day you plan on cooking it. Heat for 30 to 40 minutes until the meal is warm.

Banana Cake

This is another recipe sent to me by Todd Burris. I tasted this myself and found it delicious! I look forward to trying this one myself. He better watch out, or he is going to become the resident baker!

Ingredients:

1 ½ cups of sugar
½ cup butter
2 eggs
3 mashed bananas
2 cups flour
2 Tablespoons buttermilk
1 level tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla

Cream butter & sugar, add eggs and then mashed bananas. Beat well add soda with flour, sift, then add buttermilk to above mixture. Finally add vanilla.

Bake in 9x13 pan (greased) at 350 till done.

*Since I never have buttermilk I use 1 ¾ tablespoons of milk and ¼ tablespoon of vinegar.