Sloppy Joes

I stole this from Jody...cook extraordinaire. I made it with ground beef because I'm not as health conscience as she is. Maybe next time I'll try to be and purchase ground turkey instead ;-). Thanks for a fast, easy meal, Jody! 

Adapted from The Food Nanny Rescues Dinner 

INGREDIENTS:

1 tablespoon butter
1 pound lean ground turkey or beef
1 cup ketchup
1/2 cup to 1 cup water (depends on how runny you like it)
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoon dehydrated onions (optional)

6 lightly buttered hamburger buns

DIRECTIONS:
Jody says: "In a skillet cook meat until done. Drain. Return meat to pan and add all the rest of the ingredients. Cook over med heat for 10 minutes stirring occasionally. Add more water if too thick. Toast buns on electric skillet until nice and brown. Serve up this Manwich to all the hungry men in your house and watch them smile!"

Beef Taquitos

I got this from Family Fun Magazine. As soon as my oldest had a bite he said, "These are delicious!!! I want them for breakfast, lunch AND dinner!" So, folks, if you're looking for a kid-friendly recipe...this is it. For my allergic-kid, I left out the cheese in his Taquitos and served his with soy sour cream. I did change the recipe slightly using corn tortillas in place of the flour tortillas and Pam instead of vegetable oil.

INGREDIENTS:

1 tablespoon vegetable oil, plus more for brushing on the taquitos
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
3/4 pound lean ground beef
1 cup salsa, plus more for dipping
2 teaspoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
20 corn tortillas
1/2 cup shredded Cheddar or Monterey Jack
Sour cream

DIRECTIONS:

1. Heat the oven to 400º. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook them for 3 minutes, stirring often. Add the beef and use a wooden spoon or a spatula to break it up while it cooks, until it is no longer red, about 3 minutes. Stir in 1/2 cup of the salsa, the chili powder, and the salt and pepper. Cook the mixture over low heat, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes.
2. Place the tortillas on a plate and cover them with damp paper towels. Microwave them until warm and pliable, about 45 seconds. Top each tortilla with 2-3 tablespoons of the beef mixture, spreading it to an inch from the edges. Sprinkle cheese evenly over the beef.
3. Roll up the tortillas and place them on a foil-lined baking sheet with the seam sides down. Spray the taquitos lightly with Pam, then bake them until the filling is heated through and the tortillas are lightly browned, about 8 to 12 minutes. Serve them hot with sour cream and/or salsa. Serves 4 to 6.
   

Cheree's Beef Stew

INGREDIENTS:

1/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1-2 lbs beef stew meat, cut into 3/4 inch cubes
2 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped
6 cloves garlic, minced
4-5 medium potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4 inch cubes
5 medium carrots, sliced
1, 14 ounce can petite diced tomatoes
1 small can tomato sauce
2 cups beef broth or 2 cups water and 2 beef bullion cubes
1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary


DIRECTIONS:

1. Place flour, garlic powder, thyme, basil, salt and pepper in a plastic bag. Add meat pieces, a few at a time, shaking to coat. In a large skillet, brown meat, half at a time in hot oil; drain fat.
   
2. In a 5 quart crockery cooker layer meat, onion, potatoes, and carrots. Add garlic, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, beef broth, and rosemary.
3. Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 10-12 hours or on high heat setting for 5-6 hours or until meat and vegetables are tender.
   

Beef and Potato Burritos

This is adapted from Martha Stewart's Every Day Food magazine. Basically I've eliminated the jalapeno. My husband can't tolerate the heat. You can find the original recipe here.

Serves 4
INGREDIENTS:
1 large baking potato (You can also use dehydrated potatoes here. Just rehydrate beforehand and follow the same instructions)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil, such as safflower
3/4 pound ground beef
1 onion, chopped
1 can (14 ounces) chopped tomatoes with juice
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
2 teaspoons paprika
Coarse salt
4 flour tortillas (10-inch)
1/4 cup sour cream
1/2 head iceberg lettuce, shredded
1/4 cup grated Monterey Jack
1/4 cup fresh cilantro (optional)
1 lime, plus wedges for garnish

DIRECTIONS:

1. Peel potatoes; cut into 1/2-inch dice. In a large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat. Add potato; cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 6 minutes.
2. Add beef and onion; cook, breaking up meat with a spoon, until beef is thoroughly browned, about 4 minutes. Add tomatoes and juice, cumin, paprika, and 1 teaspoon salt; cook until liquid has evaporated, about 6 minutes.
3. Heat tortillas, one at a time, in a dry skillet over medium-high heat, turning once, until lightly browned, about 10 seconds.
4. Leaving space on bottom and sides, layer tortillas with sour cream, lettuce, beef mixture, cheese, and cilantro, if using; squeeze lime juice on top. Fold bottom upward, covering filling by 2 inches. Fold each side to overlap, leaving the top end open. Serve garnished with lime wedges.

5 Can Soup

INGREDIENTS:
1 can diced stewed tomatoes
1 can sliced potatoes
1 can carrots or Veg-All
1 can green beans
1 can creamed corn or corn
1 lb. cooked ground hamburger, or 1 can cooked beef OR 2 cups shredded chicken or 1 can cooked chicken
2-4 cups beef broth OR 2-4 cups chicken broth
Seasonings as desired (salt, pepper, bay leaf, onion powder, garlic powder, etc.)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Drain water from canned vegetables except tomatoes
2. Mix all ingredients in a large stock pot.
3. Heat and simmer for 30 minutes
4. Serve.
   

Waikiki Meat on Rice by Esther Dick

INGREDIENTS:
Meat:

1 lb ground beef
2/3 C crushed saltine cracker crumbs
1/3 C minced onion
1 and 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ginger
1/4 C milk (may use cow, goat, soy or rice)

Sauce:

4 tbsp cornstarch
1 C brown sugar
1 can pineapple chunks, drained with juice reserved
add water if too thick
2/3 cup vinegar
2 tbsp soy sauce

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a large bowl, combine ground beef, cracker crumbs, onion, milk, ginger and salt.
2. Brown meat mixture.
3. In a small saucepan, combine the cornstarch, brown sugar, reserved pineapple juice, vinegar and soy sauce. Mix until smooth. Cook, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and boils, about 5 minutes. Stir in the pineapple chunks and add the meat mixture. Heat through.
4. Serve over rice.