Baked Ziti

1 lb. dry ziti noodles, I use rigatoni
1 onion, chopped
1 lb. ground beef
2 jars spaghetti sauce
6 oz. provolone cheese, sliced
1 1/2 c. sour cream
6 oz. mozzarella cheese, shredded
2 T. grated parmesan cheese

Cook ziti 8 minutes until al dente. Drain and rinse. Brown onion and beef on medium heat. Add spaghetti sauce and simmer for 15 minutes. Grease a 9x13 dish and layer ziti, provolone cheese, sour cream 1/2 sauce mixture, ziti, mozzarella, and sauce mixture. Top with parmesan cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Layers:
ziti
provolone cheese
sour cream
1/2 sauce mixture
ziti
mozzarella
sauce
parmesan cheese

**Half this recipe and it still makes a ton!!

Best Meatloaf Ever

It is the sauce that makes this meatloaf what it is!

2 eggs
2/3 c. milk
3 slices bread, torn into pieces
1/2 c. chopped onion
1/2 c. grated carrot
1 c. shredded Cheddar or Mozzarella
2 T. Worcestershire sauce
1 t. dried parsley
1 t. salt
1/2 t. garlic powder
1/2 t. ground thyme
1/2 t. coarse ground black pepper
1/4 t. ground sage
1 1/2 lb. hamburger

Topping:
1/2 c. ketchup
1/2 c. brown sugar
2 t. prepared mustard

Beat eggs. Add milk and bread--let sit for a few minutes. Stir in onion, carrot, cheese, Worcestershire, herbs and seasonings. Add beef. Put in greased loaf pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. Combine topping ingredients. Bake for 30 minutes more, occasionally spooning topping over beef. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

*This will make 1 very very large meat loaf or 2 medium size meatloafs and you can freeze one!

Fresh Fettuccine with Quick Meat Sauce

Serves 4

coarse salt & pepper
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 lb. ground pork
1/2 lb. ground beef chuck
1 c. dry white wine (I used combo: white wine, white wine vinegar & apple juice)
1 can (28 oz.) whole peeled tomatoes in juice, chopped
1 can (6 oz.) tomato paste
1/2 t. dried oregano
1/4 t. red pepper flakes
18 oz. fresh fettuccine
grated Parmesan cheese, for serving

1. Set a large pot of salted water to boil. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high. Add onion & garlic; season with salt & pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion softens, about 3-4 minutes. Add pork & beef; cook, breaking meat up with a spoon, until no longer pink, 2-3 minutes. Add wine; cook until evaporated, about 7 minutes. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, oregano and red pepper flakes; cook until sauce is slightly thickened, 2-3 minutes.
2. Cook pasta in boiling water until al dente, according to package instructions. Drain, and return to pot; add meat sauce, and toss to coat. Serve immediately, topped with parmesan, if desired.
** I only used half the fettuccine and half the sauce, freezes nicely for another meal!

Meatballs with Cream Sauce

1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 c. milk
2 T. ketchup
1 t. Worcestershire sauce
3/4 c. quick cooking oats
1/4 c. finely chopped onion
1/4 c. minced fresh parsley
1 t. salt
1/4 t. pepper
1 1/2 lbs. ground beef
3 T. flour

Cream Sauce:
2 T. butter
2 T. flour
1/4 t. dried thyme
salt and pepper to taste
14 oz. chicken broth
2/3 c. heavy whipping cream
2 T. minced fresh parsley

1. In a large bowl, combine the first nine ingredients. Crumble beef over mixture and mix well. Shape into 1 1/2" balls. Roll in flour, shaking off excess. Place 1" apart on greased 15x10x1" baking pans.
2. Bake uncovered at 400 degrees for 10 minutes. Turn meatballs, bake 12-15 minutes longer or until meat is no longer pink.
3. Meanwhile, for sauce, melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Stir in the flour, thyme, salt and pepper until smooth. Gradually add broth and cream. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.
4. Drain meatballs on paper towels; transfer to a serving dish. Top with sauce; sprinkle with parsley.

*You can also put the shaped meatballs on a rack in a shallow baking pan. Bake at 400 degrees until no longer pink, about 20 minutes.
**Serve over mashed potatoes!

Porcupine Meatballs

In the interest of fun things to do with rice . . . I give you the kid friendly, Porcupine Meatballs!

1 pound ground meat

¼ cup uncooked rice (regular, not minute)

1 slightly beaten egg

2 T finely chopped onion (optional)

½ tsp salt

Dash of pepper

¼ cup tomato soup

Mix and shape into about 20 small balls. Put balls in skillet.

Below is one idea for a sauce, but you can use pretty much any sauce. We've done BBQ sauce and sweet and sour sauce . . . use whatever you have or whatever you are in the mood for.

Mix:

1 cup tomato soup

½ cup water

1 tsp soy sauce

Pour over meatballs. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 40 minutes. Stir often. Makes 4-5 servings.

Beef Taco Bake

I just made this for dinner tonight and I am already craving it again. I scaled down the original recipe so it would be just the right amount for Paul and I. This is like a real taco from Puerto Vallarta meets enchilada from Cabo meets nachos from Cancun. Okay, so I don't know my authentic mexican flavor histories very well, but I do know these are really awesome taco-enchilada-nachos! You must try them soon! I of course forgot to take a picture, but when I make it again, I'll add one then.

Makes 4

1 (10 oz.) can Ro-Tel tomatoes, juice reserved
1 (16 oz.) can refried beans
2 T. hot sauce, or to taste
1/4 c. chopped fresh cilantro
2 c. shredded Mexican cheese blend
1 lb. ground beef
3-4 t. taco seasoning
4 taco shells
4 green onions, sliced thin
1 avocado
sour cream
extra taco or hot sauce

1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees with oven rack in middle position. Combine half of tomatoes (without juice), most of beans, hot sauce, and cilantro in bowl. Spread evenly in baking dish. (I actually baked mine in a bread pan.) Sprinkle with 1 cup of cheese.
2. cook beef in skillet over medium-high heat until no longer pink, about 5 minutes. Pour off fat, then stir in taco seasoning, remaining tomatoes and reserved tomato juice. Simmer over medium-low heat until thickened and nearly dry, about 5 minutes.
3. Spoon 1 T.+ cheese into each taco shell and top with beef mixture. Arrange tacos standing up in the bean mixture, cover with foil and bake until bubbling, about 10 minutes. Remove foil, top with remaining cheese and bake until cheese is melted, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle with scallions.
4. Scoop out onto pasta bowl, top with dollops of sour cream, chopped avocado, and shots of hot sauce. When done with the first one, enjoy the second!

Frito Burritos

Well, obviously I am not being very healthy lately with all these recipes I'm posting, but they are all so good! Do any of you remember getting the ever-so-delicious Frito Burrito from Taco Bell before they discontinued it? I have missed it every day since! I love Taco Bell, but they got major points deducted when they stopped serving this. So what did they go and make me do? Create my own frito burrito. I've heard people call it a "furrito" but that just sounds like something hairy that fell in your burrito. Not a pretty picture. I'll stick with good ole frito burrito for now.

Frito Casserole:
Half bag Fritos
1 can chili with beans
2 tomatoes, diced (or canned)
half can red enchilada sauce
one small can tomato sauce
1 c.+ grated cheddar cheese

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl, leaving some chips and cheese out for end. Place in small square greased baking dish. Sprinkle with chips and cheese. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees until warmed through and cheese is melted, about 30 minutes. Remove foil for the last 10 minutes of baking.

Enchilada Sauce:
If you do not have canned enchilada sauce, like I hardy do--here is a recipe for you.
1 c. chicken broth
2 T. chili powder
1 t. ground cumin
1 t. garlic powder
1/2 t. salt
1 pinch ground cinnamon
1/4 t. sugar
3 T. cold water
3 T. white flour

In a small sauce pan, add the chicken broth, chili powder, garlic powder, cumin, salt, cinnamon, and sugar. Whisk everything well together. Heat to a boil, reduce heat to a low boil and cook for 3 minutes.

While the sauce is on a slow simmer, add the water in a small bowl. With another whisk (or fork), mix in 1 T. of flour at a time. Whisk constantly to avoid lumps.

After 3 minutes of cooking sauce, turn heat up to high. Very slowly, pour the flour mixture into the boiling sauce. Once again, whisk constantly to avoid those lumps. After the flour is added, continue to whisk for one more minute. You can turn the heat down too a medium during this time. Just make sure the sauce is boiling. Turn heat off and it is ready!

Burrito Time!
Scoop some of that yummy Frito gooey goodness into the middle of your tortilla. I like to use fresh or kind from CostCo you cook yourself. Sprinkle some chopped onion on top. Then sprinkle some cheddar cheese. Then add a few more very crunchy Fritos. And don't forget to top it all off with some nice hot sauce. And there you have it, a FRITO BURRITO!!

Annette's Amazing Chili

This is an amazing recipe I got from one of those old Relief Society Cookbooks. Annette (whose recipe this is) was actually my Young Woman's leader, and this woman could cook! Mmmm! This Chili is really tasty- I like that it actually tastes homemade, and I think the sugar gives it a fun twist. Hope you enjoy.

Annette's Amazing Chili
1 lb. hamburger
1 lb. ground sausage
1 onion, chopped
1 to 2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 quart jar tomatoes, diced and undrained (or 2 cans diced tomatoes)
2-3 stalks celery, chopped
1-2 tsp chili powder
2 tsp salt
1 T sugar (I used brown sugar)
1-2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 (15 oz) can kidney beans
1 (15 oz) can pinto beans
*I also added 1/2 to 1 cup of salsa and to make it go further, three more cans of beans: black and 2 chili beans. I drained some, but not the chili beans.)

Cook and stir hamburger, sausage, onion, and garlic is saucepan until cooked through. Drain. Stir in tomatoes with liquid, celery, chili powder, salt, sugar and Worcestershire sauce. Heat to boiling; reduce heat. Cover and simmer 1 hour. Stir in beans, heat to boiling, reduce heat. Simmer until thick and heated through. (I threw it all in the Crockpot to simmer for quite a while- you could just do that after you brown the meat.)

Aussie Burgers

So having served his mission in Australia, Mike likes to make burgers the "Aussie" way. We go all out for these babies at our house. I was skeptical at first, but they are so good! If you're going to BBQ hamburgers, you may as well do it right.


Toppings for a fantastic, EVERYTHING burger:

Ketchup
Mayo
Mustard
Lettuce
Pickle
Onion
Tomato
Pickled canned beets
Bacon
Sliced Pineapple
A fried egg
Cheese
A hamburger patty
A bun toasted with butter (because all my recipes have butter ;)

Enjoy

Lasagne

1 lb sausage or ground beef
½ onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 large can or jar spaghetti sauce
1 tub (2 cups) ricotta cheese
2 cups mozzarella cheese
½ cup Parmesan cheese
1 package frozen spinach, thawed and drained
½ cup shredded carrot
1 Tbl parsley
9 lasagna noodles, cooked and drained
Brown the meat with the onion and garlic, add in the sauce and let it simmer a few minutes. Mix the ricotta cheese, 1 cup mozzarrella, parmesan, spinach, carrot, and parsley in a bowl. Layer in a 9x13 pan: sauce, noodles, cheese mixture, noodles, sauce, cheese mix, noodles, sauce, and then top with the rest of the mozzarella. Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes.

St. Louis style Philly cheesesteaks

Here is one of the many favorites my husband has. I'll try to post the rest of them later when I don't have an 18 month-old crawling all over me.

1 package thinly sliced breakfast steak (or any steak, just cut it really thin--I like the breakfast steak because it is already thinly sliced.) I now have my butcher slice about one pound of ribeye thin enough that you can pretty much see through it. It only takes about 45 seconds on each side to get a fantastic sear that way.
1 yellow onion
garlic cloves
baguette, sliced in half longways
ranch dressing
monterey jack cheese slices

Preheat oven to 375F

In a big skillet, season the steak with salt, pepper, and minced garlic (quantity is up to you and how long you want your breath to smell like garlic. I usually use 2 cloves.)
Sear with about a Tbsp of olive oil. Once it is seared on both sides, remove from pan to a cutting board and let it rest.

In the same skillet, add sliced onions and cook until golden.

Slice meat into small strips, and add back to the skillet.

Place bread on cookie sheet and spread ranch dressing on the bread, then top with cheese. Bake in oven until cheese bubbles.

Remove from oven. Add meat and onion mixture and top with bread. Slice and serve warm.

*My friend and I made this up one day when our husbands were watching football and we didn't want to leave to get them Quiznos. They ended up liking these way better, and it only ends up costing about 2.50 per person to eat. You can add bell pepper if you want. Our husbands just don't like it that way.

Spicy Sloppy Joe's

1 to 1 & 1/2 pounds ground beef
1 sweet or yellow onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped (optional)
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
(**or tomato sauce, just reduce water to 1/2 c.)
1 cup water
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon coarse salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
8 hamburger buns, split

In a large skillet over medium-high heat, saute the ground beef and onion for 5 minutes or until the onion is tender. Drain the fat and return to skillet.

Mix in tomato paste and warm water, stirring until paste is completely dissolved. Stir in garlic, chili powder, paprika, cumin, vinegar, brown sugar, oregano, salt and pepper. Add to cooked meat/onion mixture. Continue to heat for 5 to 10 minutes, or until desired thickness is reached.

Steak & Everything Sandwiches

I guess I'll once again get us started this month. Mike's absolute favorite meal is Ham and Funeral Potatoes, but most people I know already have a recipe they like for that, so I'm putting this instead. It runs a close second and is one of my top 5 favs as well. Later this month, I'll be putting his favorite desserts. :-)

Uncooked Beef sliced so thin it's falling apart

(I usually go to the meat department and buy a few steaks and have them
slice them for me. Just tell them to slice it so thin that it only has
one side. But you can slice it yourself as well. Just get a few lean
steaks (about one small steak per person) and slice across the grain. One
large flank steak is the best, but they are expensive as well)

Cream Cheese
Sliced Provolone Cheese
Chopped Green Peppers
Chopped Tomatoes
Chopped Onions
Salt and Pepper
Hoagie Rolls (The fresh ones you get in the Bakery Dept)

Cook the meat in a frying pan with a generous sprinkle of salt and pepper. Once browned, remove from pan and drain juices.

Make each sandwich to order. Put enough meat for one sandwich back in the frying pan. Top with 3-ish tablespoons of cream cheese, whatever veggies you want, and a slice of provolone. Cover with a lid and cook until cheeses are melted. With a spatula, mix until the cheeses and veggies are evenly spaced in the meat. Put in a hoagie (toasted if you would like) and serve immediately. Then move on to make the next person's sandwich.

Hickory-Smoked Brisket

Place a 3 - 4 lb. brisket on a large piece of aluminum foil. Sprinkle generously with 1/4 cup of liquid smoke and 1/2 tsp. each: celery salt, onion salt and garlic salt. Wrap well and put into crock pot. Cover and cook on Low for 8-11 hours (High 4-6 hours). Serve warm with juices over each slice.

OR - (this is how we love to make it!)
Refrigerate overnight and then slice thinly along grain of brisket. Place in crock pot and add 2 cups of your favorite BBQ sauce. (We like Bull's Eye Hickory or a mixture of 2 different kinds)
This is so yummy and especially nice so you can take care of the last minute meal details while the meat just cooks away!

I miss all of you and can't wait to try your recipes!

Park City Stew

This stew is flavorful and hearty. Serve with fresh bread.



1 lb. Stew meat
3 potatoes
5 carrots
1 celery stalk
1 onion
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of celery soup
1 packet onion soup mix
8 oz. Tomato sauce
1 bay leaf
3 cups beef broth (I just use boillion and water)

Chop the veggies and combine it all in a crock-pot. Some people like to brown the meat but I just throw it in raw. Stew for several hours.