Beef Stew

There isn't anything all that special about this beef stew recipe.  It's just a classic stew, warm and filling.  But, it sure hits the spot on a cold winters night. 

·         2 lbs beef stew meat, cut into 1 inch pieces

·         1/4 cup flour

·         1/2 teaspoon pepper

·         1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

·         1 bay leaf

·         3 potatoes, diced

·         2 Medium Carrots

·         1 stalk celery, sliced

·         1 1/2 teaspoons salt

·         1 1/2 cups beef broth

·         1 garlic clove

·         1 teaspoon paprika

·         2 onions, chopped

 

Directions:

Prep Time: 15 mins

Total Time: 1/2 day

1.     1 Place meat in crock pot.

2.     2 Mix flour, salt, pepper and pour over meat.

3.     3 Stir to coat meat with flour.

4.     4 Add remaining ingredients and stir to mix well.

5.     5 Cover and cook on low for 10-12 hours or high for 4-6 hours.

6.     6 Stir stew thoroughly before serving

(you can add other veggies if you want, I normally throw in some peas and sometimes little pearl onions instead of the chopped onions)

Lasagna-Helen Rooks

I don't know how other families came up with menus for the week but, growing up we seemed to have the standards, Meatloaf, Roast, Fried Chicken, Vegetable Soup, Chicken Fried Steak, Hamburgers, Cold Cut Sandwiches, on endless rotation. Week after week it was as though variety was not our strong suit, oh of course there were your occasional Potato Soup, BLT's, Spaghetti or heaven forbid, Salmon Patty dinners (shudder) but, I don't recall that we ventured out-of-bounds too often.

My Mom was a great colletor of recipes. The recipe boxes are absolutely chocked full of recipes I never ate and I am fairly certain she never prepared. However, one recipe managed to slip through the ranks and Lasagna made an occasional appearance into the Rooks family menu rotation.

I LOVE this lasagna but, I will warn you, this isn't a traditional lasagna in the classic 'italian' sense. So, this may be more for my family to remember the traditional recipes that graced our table than, one for you to serve your Italian neighbors.  But, it is one of those dishes for me, that conjures up warm and fuzzy feelings of home.

     
8 oz package lasagna noodles
1 cup cottage cheese
1 cup sour cream
1 Tblsp shortening
1 lb ground beef
1/2 finely chopped onion
2 cups Traditional Ragu Sauce
1/4 tsp pepper
2 cups Mozzerella Cheese-Shredded

Cook noodles according to directions, drain. Mix cottage cheese and sour cream and pour over noodles, toss to coat.

Brown ground beef and onion in shortening. After browned drain and add Ragu and mix well.

In casserole dish arrange in alternate layers noodle mixture, sauce, cheese, repeat-beginning with noodles on the bottom and ending with cheese on top.

Bake 45mins at 350 degrees

Chalupas

My Sister-in-law, Ann and her husband... :), made a Chalupa recipe for a family gathering many years ago.  Through the years I have added a few things to make it crockpot friendly and to suit the tastes of my own family.  This is such an easy, comfort food meal.  It's definitely a favorite.

INGREDIENTS

1 lb. pork shoulder
1 lb. dry pinto beans (rinsed)
1 15-ounce can fire roasted tomatoes
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 jalapeno peppers minced 
2 teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
generous pinch or two of salt
1½ cups water
¾ cup shredded chedder cheese 
12+ flour tortillas

INSTRUCTIONS

Place the pork shoulder in the slow cooker. Cover with dry pinto beans, tomatoes, garlic, jalapenos, chili powder, cumin, cayenne, salt, and 1½ cup water. Cook on low heat for 6-8 hours or high heat for 4-6 hours. Don’t open the lid – it adds to the cooking time.Remove the lid after the cooking time and shred the pork using two forks. You can do this directly in the slow cooker. If it’s too runny, continue to cook with the cover off for a little while. If it’s too dry, add more water.Sprinkle cheese on top, replace the lid, and cook for another 30 minutes to allow the cheese to melt.

Meanwhile, preheat oven to 425. Place tortillas directly on the oven rack and bake for 2 minutes flip the tortillas and bake for another 2 minutes until bubbly yet soft. Be careful because they burn easily! 

Remove from oven and allow to cool.Top each tortilla with pork and bean mixture and sour cream.

 Other topping ideas include fresh tomatoes, lettuce, cilantro, sour cream or guacamole.

Cheeseburger Casserole

One time early on in my married life, kids were little, work was busy, dinner was a hassle and I bought 'Hamburger Helper' ack!! It was only once and I got over that real quick.  I still had a need for quick, cheap meals from time to time and this recipe found it's way into my arsneal. 

Ok I'll admit, this recipe is not rocket science.  It's good, it's not wonderful but, sometimes you just need hot, filling, quick, and cheap.  This fills those requirements.

Ingredients:

1 8oz pkg rotini pasta

2 tbls oil
1/4 cup onions, finely chopped

1 garlic clove, finely chopped
1 lb lean ground beef (95% lean)
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper

2 tbls ketchup

28 oz diced tomatoes
2 tbls Dijon Mustard

2 cups grated cheddar cheese

1/4 cup chopped dill pickles

1/4 cup bacon bits

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 9 x 13 inch baking dish with cooking spray. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook the pasta according to the package directions, drain well.

In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium-low heat. Add the onions and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Stir in ground beef and cook until browned; season with salt and pepper. Stir in the ketchup, add the tomatoes and mustard. Let the mixture bubble gently until it is slightly thickened, about 2 minutes. 

Toss the meat mixture with the pasta and spread it into the prepared dish. Top with the cheddar and bacon then bake until the cheese is melted, about 15 minutes. Sprinkle the chopped pickles over the top and serve. Makes about 9 cups*

9 very large cups, seriously with 1/2 the kids gone from home already this is easily three meals for us.  If you aren't a large family, you definitely need to make a 1/2 batch!!

Chicken n’ Biscuits

2 cups shredded cooked chicken

1 can cream of mushroom

1 can cream of chicken

1 can cram of celery

1 can water

½ cup frozen petite peas

1 Can biscuits

Mix together, chicken, soups, water peas and pour into 10x9 casserole dish. Bake at 375 for 35-45 min until crust forms on soup.

Remove from oven, add biscuits very lightly on top of soup. Adjust temperature and bake as direct on biscuit can.

When the biscuits have browned sufficiently, remove and eat!!

Egg Noodles

by
Helen Rooks

3 eggs beaten
3 tsp salt
All purpose flour

In a mixing bowl, beat eggs, add 1 cup flour mix together. Add Salt and add 1/2 cup flour until dough comes together. Turn out on a well floured surface and knead until smooth and no longer sticky. Begin to roll out dough, careful to keep floured on both sides well so dough does not stick to surface or rolling pin. Roll out thin and then cut into strips. Add to rapidly boiling broth and cover for 3-5 minutes. Watch carefully that this does not boil over. Remove cover and continue to cook until tender.