Enchiladas

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Beef Tips and Mushrooms

Usually when I ask Jesse what he wants for dinner he says "I don't care" or "Whatever" and occasionally "Hamburger Helper" (Did you hear foodie hearts stop all over the world?) So when I ask him what he wants and he makes an actual suggestion - I run with it. That's what happened last week. He said he wanted beef tips and mashed potatoes. OK. I can do this. I mean I know I've had them before. But where to find a recipe... And that's where the trouble started. I couldn't find one that I liked. So I made one up. The sauce and the mushrooms were soooo good. The beef was tough. Really tough. If anyone has any suggestions on how to create tender beef tips, please leave me a comment. I'm not sure if it's the cut of meat I bought or my cooking technique. Oh well. The beef was edible and the rest was awesome. Maybe next time I'll skip the meat and just have mushrooms, gravy and potatoes for dinner!

Beef Tips and Mushrooms

1 lb beef (I used a sirloin beef tip type cut, obviously not the right choice)
3 tbsp olive oil plus enough to coat grill pan
2 tbsp butter
1 shallot finely chopped
1 package baby bella mushrooms
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp dry thyme
Black pepper to taste
1/2 cup red wine
3/4 cup low sodium beef broth
Splash of heavy cream

Start by seasoning beef with kosher salt and black pepper. Then heat the grill pan and coat with a little olive oil to keep meat from sticking.

Over medium heat melt butter and mix with olive oil. When the pan is hot add the shallots and cook for a few minutes. When the shallots start to turn a golden color add the baby bella mushrooms and seasonings. While the mushrooms are cooking put the beef on the grill pan.

After letting the mushrooms cook for 5 minutes (keep an eye on them) add the red wine to the pan and let it reduce by half(also scrape the bottom of the pan to get any brown bits that are sticking). Then add the beef broth and let simmer. Keep an eye on the beef and flip when ready.

When the beef is cooked to about medium remove from the grill pan and let sit for a few minutes. Then slice the beef on the diagonal and add the slices to the sauce pan. Let the beef simmer for a few minutes then add the heavy cream. Serve over mashed potatoes or egg noddles.

Copy Cat P.F. Chang's

This is actually another dinner inspired by my friend Christy. She made it a few nights ago and I just knew that Jesse would love it. He is a big fan of Chinese food. The recipe turned out pretty good. My only issue with it was my own fault. Out of habit I seasoned the beef while cooking so the end result was pretty salty. I plan on trying this again, but with chicken and WITHOUT the additional salt. I think I'll be retaining water for a month! Ha!

P.F. Chang's Mongolian Beef
(Source: recipezaar, directions re-written by me)
Ingredients

* 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
* 1/2 teaspoon ginger, minced
* 1 tablespoon garlic, chopped
* 1/2 cup soy sauce
* 1/2 cup water
* 3/4 cup dark brown sugar
* vegetable oil, for frying (about 1 cup)
* 1 lb flank steak
* 1/4 cup cornstarch
* 2 large green onions

Heat 2 teaspoons of vegetable oil in a small sauce pan. Add the garlic and ginger and saute on medium heat for about 2 minutes (careful not to burn your garlic!). After 2 minutes add the soy sauce and water and bring to a boil. Once boiling add the brown sugar and reduce heat. Let simmer and thicken while you prepare the beef.

Heat vegetable oil in a wok until it is hot but not smoking. While the oil is heating cut the flank steak into 1/4-1/1 inch strips, against the grain. Coat the the strips in cornstarch and let sit for a few minutes. Next carefully drop the beef strips into the hot oil and cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally to cook evenly. After 2 minutes remove the beef with a slotted a spoon and place on paper towels while you drain the oil from the wok. Put the now empty wok back on the burner add return the beef to the pan. Cook over medium heat. After 2 or 3 minutes add the sauce to the wok and simmer for 10 minutes. Then add the chopped green onions. Serve the beef over rice.

Stuffed Pepper Stew

I love stuffed peppers but I never think to make them. This recipe was so easy that I had no choice but to make it. I actually got it from a woman I work with. She was heating up leftovers one day for lunch and they looked and smelled so good. Of course having a total food addiction I had to ask her what it was and subsequently steal the recipe. I am so glad I did because this turned out to be a quick and delicious week night meal. Just a warning, this makes a TON. I didn't think to cut it in half but I definitely will the next time I make it. This could easily feed a family of six!


Stuffed Pepper Stew
(This is a Rachael Ray recipe but I'm not sure which cookbook it comes from)

2 tbsp EVOO
1 1/2 lbs ground sirloin
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 tsp allspice (I omitted and used a tsp of chili powder)
4 cloves garlic
1 lg onion cut into bite size pieces
3 green peppers, seeded and cut (I used red and yellow)
1 bay leaf
1 quart chicken stock
1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
1 cup orzo pasta
12-15 basil leaves,torn
Grated Parmesan to top

Heat medium soup pot over medium high heat with EVOO. When oil is hot add onions, beef, salt, pepper and allspice (or in my case chili powder). Brown the meat for about 5 minutes then add garlic, peppers and bay leaf and cook 7-8 minutes or until veggies are tender. Stir in stock and tomatoes and bring to a boil. Add pasta and cook to al dente. Turn off heat and fold in basil. Serve in shallow bowls with grated cheese on top. *I topped with cheese and put under the broiler until the cheese was bubbly and starting to brown.

Garlic Studded Pot Roast

Saturday evening we had my in-laws over for dinner. We had some errands to run so I wanted to make something that didn't take a long time to prep. It also had to be something that I KNEW would be good but also blog worthy (since I haven't updated at all in October). The recipe that fit the bill was my Aunt Ari's Garlic studded pot roast (and I'm adding this post at work so the recipe below is how I remember it not the way she wrote it). I served it with mashed potatoes and snow peas.

Ari's Garlic Studded Pot Roast
3-4 lb chuck roast
24 cloves of garlic, peeled
2 tbsp olive oil
salt
pepper
1 cube of beef bouillon and 2/3 cup hot water or 2/3 cup beef broth
fresh thyme and rosemary

Start by using a knife to create 24 holes in the roast, about an inch and a half deep. Stuff the garlic cloves into the holes. Season the outside of the roast with salt and pepper. In a dutch oven, heat the olive oil until it ripples. Brown each side of the roast for 4-5 minutes. Don't be afraid to let the meat get really brown, this is what makes it so good! When the meat is brown pour beef broth over the meat (to come up about an inch) and put the fresh herbs around the meat. Reduce heat to medium low and cook for 3 to 4 hours or until meat is tender.

Cooks note - I do not have a dutch oven so I just browned the meat and transferred to a covered dish in my oven. I cooked it at 425 for 20 minutes then reduced the heat to 325 and cooked for 3 1/2 hours. I also made a gravy with the pan drippings!

It tastes like fall!!

With it being the first day of September I decided to make a roast. There are a few things that just scream fall to me; jeans, sweatshirts, pumpkin spice lattes, pumpkin anything, leaves, and a good pot roast! I pretty much look forward to fall starting January 1st. It's my favorite time of year. So many great things happen between labor day and Christmas. It makes me happy just thinking about it. Anyway, this post was about food right? This is a really basic roast that takes about 5 minutes to throw together and 6 hours to cook. The flavor is amazing and it pairs perfectly with mashed potatoes (then again I think everything pairs well with mashed potatoes ;))

1.5 pounds english cut roast (beef)
1 small onion cut into chunks
1 small package mushrooms, cleaned with a damp cloth
1/2 can chicken broth
1 packet onion-mushroom soup
1/2 cup white wine (although this time I forgot and left it out)

Lay out the onions and mushrooms in the bottom of your crock pot. Sprinkle with half of the soup packet. Lay the meat over top of the veggies, then sprinkle with the other half of the packet. Pour the wine and chicken broth over top of everything and cook on high for about 6 hours. You could cook it on low for longer.

Once the roast is finished I like to skim the fat off the remaining liquid and then use the liquid to make a gravy. Mmmm mmmm!

Feta stuffed burger and greek pasta salad

This was just a great summer grilling meal. The pasta salad was light and refreshing and the burger was flavorful. We will probably have this a couple more times before the summer is over. I actually stuffed Jesse's with Monteray Jack cheese because he isn't a huge fan feta and since there was feta in the pasta salad I didn't want to over load him.

Feta Stuffed Burger:
Recipe courtesy of me :)

1/2 pound lean ground beef
2 tbsp worcester sauce
Dry onion flakes
Grill seasoning
2 tbsp crumbled feta cheese

WIth your hands combine the ground beef, worcester, dry onion flakes and grill seasoning. Then form 4 thin burgers. In the middle of one of the burgers put the feta cheese. Top with another thin burger and use your hands to form one solid burger, with the cheese on the inside. Grill for about 4 minutes on each side. We had these burgers on wheat buns with ketchup and onion.

Greek Pasta Salad:
Recipe courtesy of me :)

1/2 box tri-color rotini pasta
15 cherry tomatoes cut in half
1/2 of a cucumber cut into bite size pieces
1/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
1 cup greek vinegarette dressing

Cook pasta according to package and drain well. Then combine the remaining ingredients a bowl with a lid. Put the lid on and shake the salad up until the dressing is evenly distributed.

Filet mignon....mmmmm

Jesse was in the mood for a good steak and who am I to deny that request! When I was at the grocery store the butcher had just brought out 2 really good lookingfilet's so I went with it! I served the filets with twice baked potatoes and grilled veggies.

For my filet I just used a little Montreal steak seasoning. I like my flavor to be pretty simple when it comes to steak. Jesse likes his with a little "Allegro"- which is basically like the kitchen sink of flavorings. It has soy sauce and garlic and all sorts of other stuff (It's pretty high in sodium though so I don't care for it). We grilled them for about 5-6 minutes on each side and they came out a perfect medium!

My recipe for twice baked potatoes

2 good size baking potatoes
2 tbsp butter
2 tsp dry onion flakes
2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 cup milk
2 tbsp sour cream
1/3 cup Vermont extra sharp white cheddar
1/3 cup extra sharp cheddar cheese
salt and pepper to season

Bake
the potatoes at 350 degrees for about an hour to an hour and 15
minutes. Take the potatoes out of the oven and let cool for about 10
minutes. While the potatoes are cooling heat a small pot and start
melting the butter. Add the onion flakes and garlic powder to the
melted butter. Then add the milk and cheese and stir until the cheese
is melted through. Next cut the potatoes in half length wise and scoop
out the middle, leaving about 1/4 inch around the edges. Add the
scooped out potatoes to the cheese and milk mixture. Add the sour cream
and whip with a hand mixer for about a minute. If they are too thick
add a little more milk. Then fill the potato shells with the potato
mixture. To finish off bake at 350 for 10 more minutes.

For the grilled veggies I used a fresh zucchini from our garden, an orange bell pepper, a red bell pepper and a 1/2 of a red onion. I cut the veggies into equal size chunks and marinated inEVOO and Montreal steak seasoning for about 20 minutes. Then I made a foil pouch and grilled for about 10 minutes. They were so good!!

Just call me Rachel Ray!

So how many of you can relate to me? Every night you try and prepare a nice, fairly healthy dinner. Trying to avoid things that are over processed and high in sodium. Always challenging your culinary abilities. Then on Sunday night you ask your husband, "What would you like for dinner" and he replies "Hamburger Helper" SMACKING MY FOREHEAD! I figured there has to be something I can do to recreate this childhood treasure of his in a less processed way. Well, just call me Rachel Ray because in less than 30 minutes I prepared a healthy, okay, I will use that term loosely when refering to this recipe instead lets say "healthier" version of boxed family classic!

Jessica's cheesy hamburger mac

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef - I recommend Laura's Lean 8% fat
Half of a small onion finely chopped
1 1/2 tbsp butter (I actually used Flieschmans Olive Oil Spread, it has less fat)
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp grill seasoning
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp fresh ground pepper
2 tbsps flour
3/4 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup milk
1 cup shredded cheese (I used extra sharp white vermont cheddar, sharp cheddar and colby jack, just whatever you have on had ;))
1/2 box Elbow noodles

Start a pot of water, bring to a boil. In a family sized non-stick skillet on medium high heat drop your butter and your diced onion. Once the onions are translucent add the flour and let it absorb the butter (this will help to thicken things later). Then add the ground beef to the skillet and using a wooden spatula start to break up the meat while it is cooking. Next add your spices. When the meat is halfway cooked drop your noodles in the boiling water. When the meat is all the way cooked add the chicken broth and cook down by half. Turn the heat down to low-medium then add the milk and cheese and stir well . Cook noodles just to al dente then drain and drop into the skillet with the meat mixture. Let simmer for about 5 minutes then serve.

Okay, so I won't win any culinary awards for this recipe but Jesse gave it 2 thumbs up!

Mmmm, comfort food!

My personal definition of comfort food - mashed potatoes. It really doesn't get much better than nice fluffy, starchy, mashed potatoes, unless of course you add a little cheese and a lot of garlic :)

My sister, Emilie, is in town and tonight I had her over for dinner. She has been living in a dorm since August and I know that all she wants when she comes home is REAL food. Nothing too fancy, just comfort food. One of her favorites is meatloaf one of my favorites is mashed potatoes and that is where I came up with the menu!

Meatloaf Muffins

1-1 1/2 pounds ground beef (I like using ground sirloin 90/10)
1/2 of an onion finely chopped
2 eggs lightly beaten
1 cup breadcrumbs
1 can tomato sauce (divided)
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
fresh ground pepper
2 tsp parsley flakes
1 tsp Worcester sauce

Meatloaf:
Combine ground beef with 1/2 can tomato sauce, eggs, bread crumbs, onion, salt, pepper and 1/2 tsp garlic powder. Using an ice cream scoop portion into a lightly sprayed muffin tin. Bake at 350 for 25-30 minutes. Remove from oven and cover with sauce. Cook for an additional 5 minutes.

Sauce:
Combine remaining tomato sauce with parsley flakes, Worcester sauce and 1/2 tsp garlic powder.

Makes 12 meatloaf muffins

Garlic Cheddar Mashed Potatoes

4-5 Idaho potatoes peeled and cubed
3 cloves fresh garlic crushed
2 1/2 tbsp butter
1/3 cup sour cream
1/4 cup milk
1/3 cup cheddar cheese
1/2 tsp garlic powder
Salt and pepper to taste

Bring water to a boil. Add the 3 cloves crushed garlic and the cubed potatoes. Boil until fork tender (about 15-20 minutes depending on size of cubes and how starchy the potatoes are). Drain the potatoes and put back in the hot pot. Add the butter, sour cream, milk and salt. Using a hand mixer blend until smooth (about 2 minutes). Add the cheddar cheese, garlic powder and pepper. Use a spoon to incorporate and let sit for about 5 minutes or until the cheese is completely melted. Use the taste test (aka my favorite part) to determine how much more salt and pepper to add

Marinated Flank Steak, roasted brussel sprouts and potatoes

Another pic I came across. For this meal I used my "go to marinade" (check out "Kabobs!" for marinade recipe) for a flank steak. The flank steak was grilled for about 8 minutes on each side. The middle was still nice and pink and the outside was full of flavor. You barely even needed a knife.

Roasted brussel sprouts and potatoes-

15-20 brussel sprouts (I peel off the first layer or 2 or leaves and cut off the bottom)

3-4 potatoes cubed (to about brussel sprout size)

EVOO

Salt

Fresh ground pepper

Garlic powder

A pinch of rosemary

Toss all the ingredients in a Ziploc baggie until evenly coated.

Spread potatoes and brussel sprouts out on cookie sheet (I used my pizza stone)

Bake at 400 for 45 minutes or until brussel sprouts are nice and brown on the outside and potatoes are tender.

Half way through it is a good idea to flip the brussel sprouts so they get evenly browned on both sides.

Kabobs!

Well... tonight I was so hungry when I got home that I forgot to take a picture before I devoured dinner. Needless to say, dinner was delicious. We had kabobs. I used steak, onion, orange bell pepper and zucchini. And I got my husband to eat the peppers and zucchini!! He is going to be so healthy! I marinated everything over night and he assembled and grilled the kabobs as I was driving home from teaching dance.

The marinade - This is my go to marinade. Not sure what to do with your meat? Let them soak in this marinade for an hour or so and dinner is good to go. I love it. It can be used on anything. My favorite is flank steak.

1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
2 tbsp or so lemon juice
2 tbsp honey
2-4 cloves of garlic (depending on size of clove and your love of garlic)
1 tsp ginger

Philly cheese steak

I have always loved baked sandwiches. There is just something extra delicious about melted, gooey cheese. This recipe fits the

Philly Cheese Steak and oven fries.

INGREDIENTS

2 steaks cut into really thin strips
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
1/2 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
2 tbsp Olive Oil
1 onion, sliced
1 bell pepper, sliced
1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
6 slices provolone cheese
3 hoagie rolls, split lengthwise

DIRECTIONS

In a small bowl, mix together salt, pepper, paprika, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, thyme and basil. Sprinkle over beef. Let chill in refrigerator for at least an hour
Heat oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Saute beef, onion, and pepper until meat is done and onions are slightly caramelized.
Preheat oven on broiler setting.
Divide the meat between the 3 rolls, layer with onion then top with sliced cheese. Place on cookie sheet, and broil until cheese is melted. Cover with tops of rolls, and serve.

Oven Fries -

2-3 russet potatoes
Olive oil spray
Salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste

Cut potatoes into chunky fries. Drop them in boiling water for 2 and half minutes (to help cut down on baking time). Lay dry fries out on stone (or baking sheet) that has been sprayed with olive oil spray. Spray the tops of the potatoes with olive oil spray then sprinkle with salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Bake at 425 for approx. 30 minutes.