Taco Chilli

For the first Ranger's game, that we unfortunately did not win, I made Taco chilli/soup for Cameron, Whit, Preston, and Courtney. This recipe is super easy and inexpensive. Most of the ingredients are canned and can easily be bought and stored for later use!

 

This can be either a soup or chilli. But it's great for cold nights (not like Dallas right now, 85 and the very end of October, what is that?!). Just make sure you have a nice couch to lay on and a good game or show to watch after, because you will want to take a long nap... Feeling very satisfied and full!

 

Taco Chilli

Ingredients:

• 1 lb lean beef or turkey (even healthier)
• 1 onion, diced
• 1 package hidden valley ranch dressing mix (1 oz)
• 1 package taco seasoning Mix (1 oz)
• 1 (16 oz.) can pinto beans (I bought one with jalapenos with it)
• 1 (16 oz) can chili beans, hot or regular
• 1 (16 oz) can whole kernel corn
• 1 (8 oz) can Mexican-style tomatoes (Rotel is delicious)
• 1 (8 oz) can diced tomatoes 

 Directions:

 

Saute beef and onion, drain fat and return to pan. Add both seasoning packages and mix into beef.

In a large pot, combine the beans, corn, and tomatoes (with all the sauces). Add beef and onions and simmer for an hour.

Garnish: Sour cream, chives, jalapenos, avacados, cheese, cornbread, tortilla chips (pretty much anything you would put on your taco!)

 

ENJOY!

Philly Cheese Steaks

My last unhealthy post... For now!

Cameron came in this weekend! After a week of storms and wind, it was beautiful this weekend, so we golfed and relaxed... and of course, cooked!

We made the best Philly Cheese Steak sandwiches. I don't think I will ever go out and order one again. This dish is a little bit time consuming, but it was so delicious, everyone ate every last bite.

I would make the ingredients in the following order. The cheese sauce will thicken as it cools, so make it first and it will be nice and thick by the time you pour it on top of your sandwich.

Ingredients:   

• 2 to 2 1/2 pound beef loin top sirloin steak boneless, trimmed
• Olive oil
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• Soft hoagie rolls, split 3/4 open
• Provolone Sauce, recipe follows
• Sauteed Mushrooms, recipe follows
• Caramelized Onions, recipe follows
• Sauteed Peppers, recipe follows

Directions

Heat griddle or grill pan over high heat. Brush steak with oil and season with salt and pepper. Cook until medium rare. Let the steak rest for 5-10 minutes and slice thinly.

Place several slices of the meat on the bottom half of the roll, spoon some of the cheese sauce over the meat, and top with the mushrooms, onions, and peppers.

Provolone Sauce:

• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 2 cups whole milk, heated
• 1 cup grated aged provolone cheese
• 1/4 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in the flour and cook for 1 minute. Slowly whisk in the warm milk, and cook, whisking constantly until thickened, about 4 to 5 minutes. Remove the mixture from the heat and whisk in the provolone and Parmesan until combined; season with the salt and pepper.

Sauteed Mushrooms:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 pounds mushrooms (examples: cremini and shiitake), coarsely chopped
• 3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley leaves
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

 Heat oil and butter in a large saute pan over high heat. Add the mushrooms and cook until the mushrooms are golden brown. Stir in the parsley and season with salt and pepper.

Caramelized Onions:

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 tablespoons canola oil
• 3 large Spanish onions, peeled, halved and thinly sliced (I used yellow and sweet onions)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Heat butter and oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the onions, season with salt and pepper, and cook slowly until golden brown and caramelized, stirring occasionally, approximately 30 to 40 minutes.

These onions were so delicious, we ate them as we cooked!

Sauteed Peppers:

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 poblano peppers, thinly sliced
• 2 Cubano peppers, thinly sliced (Cubano pepper are sweet peppers, they can be substituted for red or yellow bell peppers)
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

The easiest way to cut a pepper is to cut off the top and bottom, like shown below. This make taking out the center and cutting a lot simpler. 

Heat the oil in medium saute pan over high heat. Add the peppers and cook until soft. Season with salt and pepper.

Spaghetti and Meatballs

We're cooking up a storm in OKC! While tornadoes and hail storms circled Oklahoma City, my mom and I made tomato sauce and meatballs from scratch! We paired it with a great light herb salad and garlic bread.

Homemade Tomato Sauce and Spaghetti

My family has made this sauce several different times, each time tweaking it a bit to make it better. I love a nice kick to any dish, however my mother does not, so we half the spiciness so I don't miss it, and she doesn't start sweating in the middle of dinner.

My big tip for this recipe is to invest in the can tomatoes we used. They are only found at William-Sonoma, but they are filled with flavor and regular canned tomatoes just do not compare to these. The brand is Solonia, San Marzano Tomato and they are well worth the trip!

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 yellow onion, finely diced
• 4-6 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
• 2 Tbl fresh thyme (or 1/2 Tbl dried)
• 2 Tbl fresh oregano (or 1/2 Tbl dried)
• 1 Tbl red pepper flakes (don't use this if you don't like spicy food, or half the amount for medium heat)
• 1 medium carrot, finely grated
• 2 bay leaves 
• 2 (28-oz) cans peeled whole San Marzano tomatoes
• Salt and pepper
• Spaghetti, cooked al dente
• Whole basil leaves for garnish
• Grated fresh Parmesan

Directions:

Have two bowls ready. In the first bowl, strain the tomato juice. Crush the remaining tomatoes by hand and strain the juice into the first bowl. Put the pulp into the second bowl. Set both aside.

 

In a 3-quart saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes. add garlic and cook 3-5 more minutes, until soft and light golden brown.

Add the thyme, oregano, carrot, and red pepper (I put about 2 teaspoons into my sauce), and cooked 5 minutes more, until the carrot is soft.

Add the tomato juice and bay leaves. Bring to a boil, stirring often. Lower the heat and simmer for 15 minutes until the sauce begins to thicken. Add the remaining pulp and cook another 30 minutes, until the consistency is like oatmeal.

Use an immersion blender to adjust the consistency to your preference. If you like a chunky sauce, skip this step like I did!

Season with salt and pepper. Serve with fresh grated Parmesan cheese and fresh basil leaves over pasta. You'll have so much of this sauce left over, so make sure to store it in your fridge for up to a week, or freeze it for up to 6 months.

Top the spaghetti with the sauce and meatballs (recipe below) and serve with garlic bread and a side salad. Enjoy!

Meatballs

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup coarse fresh bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/2 lb. pork sausage
• 3/4 lb. ground beef
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup ricotta cheese
• 1/2 cups grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 large shallot, minced
• Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
• Pinch of ground cloves
• Fresh oregano leaves, chopped, plus whole
    sprigs for garnish
•   1-2 garlic cloves, minced
• Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
• Olive oil, as needed 

Directions:

To make the meatballs, in a large bowl, combine the bread crumbs and milk and mix well. Add the sausage, beef, egg, ricotta, one-third of the Parmesan cheese, the shallot, nutmeg, cloves, a good sprinkling of marjoram and garlic clove. Mix briefly with your hands just until the ingredients are well distributed. Season well with salt and pepper. Form the mixture into small balls 1/2 to 1 inch in diameter.

In a large fry pan over medium heat, pour in the olive oil to a depth of 1/4 inch. When it is hot, add the meatballs (in batches, if necessary) and brown well on all sides. Transfer to a paper towel-lined tray to drain.

Herb Salad

Since our dinner had so much flavor, we went simple on the salad. I bought a package of fresh spring lettuce mix and mixed it with some herbs from our herb garden.I think its very important to always have an herb garden in your home. It's so easy to maintain, and doesn't take up a lot of space. Currently, we have basil, thyme, flat-leaved parsley, rosemary, lemon thyme, mint, sage, and oregano. It's really fun to use, and fresh herbs at the store are usually very expensive.

To make the dressing, I used an old glass jam jar. It's a good way to reuse a jar, it easy to mix all the ingredients together, and it keeps the dressing fresh and easy to store.

Ingredients:

• 3 Tbl apple cider vinegar
• 2 Tbl honey
• 2 Tbl lemon juice
• 1 Tbl coarse-grained dijon mustard
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp white pepper
• 1/4 walnut oil (or hazelnut oil)
• 1/2 cup evoo

Directions:

Mix all together and blend with the herb salad!

 

SAE: My last meeting

Tuesday was my last SAE meeting ever! I am so sad that it is over, this has been one of my favorite parts of my college career. Definitely my favorite part about senior year! We announced the new Sweetheart later that night, and Elizabeth will do a great job! She's one lucky girl!

For my last meeting :( I made jalapeno poppers (because the boys love them), a tip I have for those is to make sure you only wrap the bacon around the jalapeno once, otherwise the bacon gets too thick and won't cook evenly. I also made spicy Mexican mini quiches, dog-food queso, and this incredible pineapple cake!

Spicy Mexican Mini Quiches

 INGREDIENTS

1 lb hot Italian sausage 1/2 cup shredded Cheddar cheese (2 oz) 1/2 cup mozzerella cheese (2 oz) 1/2 cup choped jalapeno chiles, seeds removed 6 eggs 6 Tbl Salsa 1 box refrigerated pie crusts DIRECTIONS Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a skillet, cook sausage over medium heat, stirring frequently, until browned and no longer pink; drain. Set aside to cool. In a medium bowl, mix both cheeses and chiles. Stir in cooled cooked sausage. In another medium bowl, beat eggs thoroughly with fork. Stir in salsa. Remove pie crusts from pouches; place flat on work surface. With rolling pin, roll each crust into 12-inch round. With a round cutter, cut around 40 mini rounds from the crusts, re-rolling scraps as necessary. Press each round into ungreased muffin cups or fluted tartlet pan. (I made this with a mini muffin tray, but you can make it with a regular sized muffin tin.) Spoon one heaping teaspoon (tablespoon for regular size) cheese mixture into each mini crusted-lined cup. Top each with about one teaspoon (tablespoon for regular) egg mixture, divide any remaining egg mixture between cups. Bake 14-18 minutes or until filling is set. If you want, garnish with fresh cilantro. Enjoy! Dog-Food Queso This is a little twist to regular queso. INGREDIENTS: 1 lb ground beef 1 (8 oz) packaged cream cheese, room temperature 1 (8 oz) jar prepared salsa 1 (1 lb) Velvetta cheese, sliced DIRECTIONS: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Place the ground beef in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook, stirring to crumble, until no longer pink, I seasoned it lightly with a grill seasoning. Drain off grease. Spread the cream cheese in an even layer in the bottom of a 9-inch square baking dish. Spread a layer of salsa over the cream cheese, then cover with a layer of ground beef. Top with slices of processed cheese and cover the dish with aluminum foil. Bake for 15 minutes in the preheated oven, or until heated through. Serve hot. Pineapple-Vanilla Cake This cake is so delicious and moist. You can make your own cake from scratch if desired. But since I was cooking for 60 boys, I took short cuts to make cooking easier and quicker. INGREDIENTS: 1 (18.25 oz) box yellow cake mix, plus ingredients to prepare 1 (20 oz) can crushed pineapple 1 1/3 cups sugar 1 (3.4-oz) box French vanilla pudding, plus ingredients to prepare 1 1/2 cups heavy cream (or premade whipped cream) 1 cup flaked, sweetened toasted coconuts INGREDIENTS: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare yellow cake mix as directed using a greased 13 by 9 by 2-inch pan and bake for 30 to 35 minutes. While cake is baking, combine the pineapple and 1 cup of sugar in a saucepan, and bring to a boil over medium heat stirring constantly. Remove from heat and allow to cool slightly. Remove cake from oven and using a fork, pierce holes into cake. Pour pineapple mixture over hot cake and set aside. Prepare pudding according to package directions. Spread pudding over cake and refrigerate until thoroughly chilled. Whip heavy cream and remaining sugar until stiff. Cover top of cake with whipped cream and sprinkle toasted coconut on top.  To toast the coconuts, put the oven on broiler and lay the flakes on a cookie sheet. Put the coconut flakes in the oven and watch closely, take out when they start to brown. Enjoy! My last SAE meeting was so much fun, I will miss being sweetheart so much! I can't wait to come back to watch them in Sing, I heard it's going to be a good one this year!

French Dip Sandwich

I have several new recipes to put up! But I've been on break and just finished rush... Sooo I thought I would post now!

This was so delicious! I made it with my mom at home. You just stick it in a crockpot and forget about it until dinner! We ate it with grapes and oranges, but chips or veggies would be great too!

French Dip Sandwiches:

Ingredients:

• 1 Can Beef Broth
• 1 Can Beer (I used Miller Lite)
• 1 Can of French Onion Soup
• 3 lbs Beef (Trim the fat) Makes about 6-8 sandwiches
• Whole Wheat Hoggies
• Provolone Cheese

Directions:

Trim the fat off the beef and add to the crock-pot the soup, broth, beer, and meat. Then cook for 8-10 hours on low, or until meat is cooked all the way through.

The lightly butter the hoggies and toast them in the oven (on broiler) for a bit (they brown really quickly, so you have to watch them carefully)

Then shred the beef, add the provolone cheese (you can reheat the bread with the cheese if you want the cheese to melt) and enjoy!!