Microwave Beef Stew

Let me begin by saying that this is not a quick recipe.  It is cooked in the microwave, but on a lower power.  I know it seems odd to use a microwave for lengthy cooking, but this beef stew is delicious and worth it!  It's very easy, you just layer the ingredients in the casserole, pour the liquid mixture over the top, pop it in the microwave and let it cook.  No checking, no peeking!  Do be sure you have a large covered casserole before undertaking this recipe.

I got this recipe from my mother, who received it when she took a class after purchasing her new microwave well over 15 years ago.  A local appliance store offered a class with the purchase of a new microwave.  I don't know that I've known of any stores doing that then or since that time.  Between mom and I we have made this stew dozens of times. 

The stew is perfect for chilly winter evenings,  Pair it with a nice salad and some crusty bread for a hearty meal.

Mexican Casserole

This is a lovely casserole.  It has really nice robust flavors and is very filling.

Someone special in my life is vegetarian, but does eat dairy, so this is a perfect dish to serve for an easy supper with a side salad and there's enough leftovers for lunches too!

I'm sure many of you have heard of "meatless Mondays" as an option of cutting meat out of one supper a week to help relieve some pressure on the grocery bill!  Seriously, while we meat eaters love our steak, chops, etc. meat is getting more and more expensive!  This helps stretch your grocery dollar and gets a good supply of fresh, healthy veggies into your diet!

Roasted Red Bell Pepper Soup

Soup for Supper?  Absolutely!  Brrr, it is cold here in Kansas and a nice hot soup that is thick and as smooth as velvet is just the ticket.  I typically don't get very excited about cream or bisque soups, but this one is absolutely yummy.  A bowl of this is perfect for family suppers yet stunning and impressive enough to serve dinner guests.

You can adjust the hot sauce to your taste, but it has a nice "after burn" to it as written.  Serve it with grilled sandwiches made with my Pimento Cheese Spread or make a grown up grilled cheese (cheddar, mozzarella, provolone and bacon on ciabatta bread with a smidgen of mayo and yellow mustard) or simply serve it with some Ritz or your favorite crackers.

I won't lie, this recipe takes a bit of time to make, but I assure you that if you do make a batch, your tastebuds will be tickled pink.  Besides, what's better than spending time in the kitchen on a cold winter day making a tummy warming soup?

Be on the lookout for bell peppers on sale.  My local grocery occasionally has red bell peppers on sale 10/$10 and when that happens, you can guarantee that this will be on my weekly menu.  As written, this recipe is perfect for one or two people.  However, it  is easily doubled, so don't hesitate to double it for a larger batch if you have more mouths to feed or want leftovers (trust me, you will).

I hope you enjoy this recipe and keep warm this winter!

Fresh Green Beans

I was visiting the local Sprout's Farmer's Market this weekend and they had some of the best looking fresh green beans I've seen in a while.   I couldn't resist and bought a huge bag of beans.    Today I'm cooking them up and I'm here to tell you that I am already looking forward to having a good size portion for supper!

I shouldn't tell, but I did have a sample as part of the taste test, to determine seasoning adjustment and they were yummy!

This recipe is far from exotic or complicated.  I have often not posted very simple recipes but a friend of mine kindly reminded me that not everyone knows how to cook.  So with that in mind, here's how I cook fresh green beans.

Lentil and Sausage Soup

What are lentils anyway?  They sort of look like split peas, flat and about a quarter of an inch in size.
Lentils have been around for a very long time.  Lentil artifacts have been found on archaeological digs dating back 8,000 years.  The Bible also has various references to lentils. So they have quite a history.

Lentils belong to the legume family (peas, beans, soybeans and peanuts) and are a tasty and plentiful source of protein and have loads of fiber. They come in many varieties.

I used what was readily available in my local supermarket which are pictured above.  You can find them with the dry beans.  Since I really like this soup, I am inclined to branch out and try other varieties and other methods of preparation.

This hearty soup is an excellent way to try lentils for the first time!

Dressing

I know we're past Thanksgiving now, but I wanted to share my dressing recipe.  When I grew up Thanksgiving dinner was usually ham or roast.  I don't recall ever having turkey.  I know, I know, before you write me off,  we did have all the other fixin's.

Although we didn't have a bird, we did have dressing.  Where I come from in southern Indiana, stuffing is prepared in the bird, dressing is prepared and baked in a pan independent from the bird.  Myself, I prefer the outside the bird method because I like all the crispy edges you get.

This is my mom's recipe, with a few minor adjustments.  Yep, can't leave a recipe alone, I have to tweak it just a bit.

You need to plan a bit ahead of time to dry the bread for this recipe.  I've never used croutons because I just don't see the need of trying to soften up rock hard bread cubes.  It's more inexpensive to dry your own bread anyway.

For this recipe you will need 2 loaves of white bread.  If you have time to poke holes in the bag and let it set and dry out, that's great.  If not, tear the pieces into hunks and let the bread set out overnight on a couple of cookie sheets or into a warm oven after baking your holiday pie.  If you prefer to make a 9x9 pan, just half the ingredients.  The bake time will be the same.

Sweet Potato Casserole

Friends have asked and I'm sharing  my "go-to" recipe for sweet potatoes.

For many years, I never really was a Sweet Potato Casserole fan until I found and tried this recipe and immediately fell in love.  It is awesomeness in a casserole dish!

Prior to finding the recipe, I relied on the ever popular candied sweet potatoes, minus the marshmallows. Gasp!  Yes, no marshmallows for me, it was just too sweet.

To change things up, give this recipe a try for your next holiday gathering.  Nah, don't wait, you really don't need a reason, just try it and you'll be hooked.

Loaded Potato Cakes

Tonight I am getting ready to go out of town for a few days.  I'm busy and don't really want to cook, but there are leftovers in the fridge.  What do I do....not enough for a real meal.  I open the door to the fridge and look at what is there.  My eyes come to rest on the bowl containing the leftover mashed potatoes.  There isn't much, maybe a cup.    I pull them out, open the dish and debate, do I throw them away, or....then inspiration struck!

Potato Cakes.  I haven't had potato cakes in a long long time.  So I grabbed the ingredients and went to work.

Since there wasn't much to accompany them, I thought why not spiff them up a bit. I have bacon, onion, cheese...so let's load 'em up!

Since I just pulled these together on the fly, I don't have a recipe, but will do my best to describe my steps so you can make your own loaded potato cakes.

Squash and Sweet Corn with Pasta

Looking for something a little different to fix with the bounty of zucchini and yellow squash from your garden?  Give this recipe a try, I think you will like it.  Like many of you, I read through the ingredient list and thought, okay, I like everything in this recipe, but was a bit skeptical about having everything mixed together.   The recipe is one that I  found on The Kitchn, but I made a variety of substitutions as I altered it for my own taste.

This makes a great light companion for anything you pair it up with, whether it is burgers, grilled chicken or seafood.

Pasta Salad

On these hot summer days, I find a nice cool salad is a great side dish.

I like salads made with lettuce, but after a while I get bored with them even when I vary the types of lettuce and ingredients and dressings.  

So, to combat my lettuce boredom, today I'm making a pasta salad.  This is not the normal mayonnaise laden macaroni salad, but instead, a lighter version full of colorful crisp veggies and dressed with a home prepared Italian dressing.  

Mom's Baked Beans

Long before baked beans came in a can, you made your own.  I remember when mom would make these, and serve them hot and bubbly from the oven.


I've served my share of baked beans from a can, and some are even pretty good.  However, this Memorial Day, I decided to dig back into my recipe archives; the card file with the recipes written in "little girl" handwriting and make mom's baked beans to enjoy  later this Memorial Day with traditional grilled burgers and dogs and homemade potato salad!


This recipe is very easy and most nearly all ingredients are ones you would have in your pantry or fridge.  The exception maybe the molasses.  I had just enough molasses for this batch of beans and my shopping list has been updated to buy a new bottle on my next trip to the grocery.

Stuffed Peppers

Stuffed peppers is not something we ever had when I was growing up, or at least not that I can remember, but they are something that I really like and they are easy to make, taste good and are good for you!

I was having a craving for stuffed peppers and like many of the things I make, my stuffed peppers are something I just throw together and as a result they never taste quite the same way twice.  Today's recipe was no different, but now that I'm blogging to share recipes that I make, adapt or create, I keep a notepad and pen alongside the camera in the kitchen so I can easily jot down the ingredients and measurements I go.

Maybe this time I was so hungry for  stuffed peppers that the filling tasted extra good, or maybe I just hit upon a combo that is extra special.  I have to admit that I had enough filling to fill another pepper, so what to do with the leftover filling?  Hum..I must confess that I got myself a spoon and shamelessly ate the rest of the filling while standing over the kitchen sink. 

I cooked the filling and baked these peppers in my new Le Creuset 3 1/2 quart Buffet Pan.  If you have something similar, this recipe makes and bakes in one pan and clean up is a whiz!

Some recipes you find will instructions to preboil the peppers.  Personally, I like my veggies to be a bit more crispy and less wimpy, so I prefer to just let mine cook in the oven. If you prefer yours precooked, you can certainly do that in addition to steps listed below.  If you do precook the peppers, lower the oven temperature to 325 degrees F and reduce baking time to approximately 30 minutes.

I did not specify the color of the peppers.  I will leave that choice up to you. I personally prefer the red, yellow or orange to the green, but any color will do. You will see from the photos that I used mostly red but did have a green one thrown in for variation. 

Give this recipe a try.  I hope you like it as much as I do!

Stuffed Peppers

Ingredients:

5 Bell Peppers, any color
1 Tablespoon Garlic Infused Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 medium Onion, chopped
1.25 lbs. lean ground Turkey
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Cumin
1 teaspoon medium Chili Powder
1 cup shredded Carrot
1 box of frozen shoe peg corn (or 2 ears of fresh cut corn)
1/4 cup Taco Sauce (your favorite)
1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Wash and cut bell peppers in half, top to bottom so you have 2 halves to fill later.
3. Remove the seeds and membranes and rinse to remove all the seeds.
4. Heat a heavy oven proof skillet over medium heat.  Drizzle in the garlic infused extra virgin olive oil.
5. Add the onions, ground turkey, salt, cumin and chili powder and stir, cooking until turkey is done. Continue to cook until all liquid (water) has evaporated.
6. Chop one of the 5 bell peppers and add it to the turkey along with the carrots, corn and taco sauce.
7. Mix over medium heat just to warm everything through.
8. Remove stuffing mixture to another bowl.
9. Spoon stuffing into each bell pepper half and arrange them in the heavy ovenproof skillet or a separate casserole dish, repeating until all of the peppers are full.
10. Put an extra teaspoon of taco sauce on the top of each pepper (my sauce has a squirt top, so I just squirt some on).
11. Top with shredded cheese.
12. Bake uncovered in the preheated oven for 45 minutes.

Enjoy!

Cathy's Vegetable Soup

Most of us think of soup as a winter dish.  However, with the modern convenience of air conditioning, soup is really appropriate all year round. 

I love soups and make them often.  It makes preparing supper a breeze after a long day at work and because it makes so much, I enjoy the leftovers packed for my lunch.

This soup is quick, easy and healthy. I threw it together one afternoon when I didn't know what to fix for dinner. 

This recipe and chili are the soups I most frequently prepare.
You can easily adjust this to use ingredients what you have on hand.  I typically use both ground beef and ground turkey, but you can also use all ground beef if you prefer. 
Like my chili, I always just make this, never following a written recipe (not that I'd necessarily follow it precisely if I had one).  Today, while making the soup, I decided to measure and write down the ingredients and directions so I could share it with you.

I missed adding beef soup base to my shopping list so I had to use beef broth today. It isn't necessary to use soup base but it adds a richer flavor to the soup that I prefer.

Like many soups, this one gets better with age, so get out your biggest soup pot and make it a day ahead so the flavors have a chance to fully develop.

Cathy's Vegetable Soup

Ingredients:

1 lb. lean ground turkey
1 lb. lean ground beef
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
2 cups shredded carrots (I buy them pre-shredded)
6 cups shredded cabbage (1/2 a medium sized head)
3 15 oz. cans of pinto beans
1 15 oz. can of tomato sauce
8 cups of beef soup base
1 1/2 teaspoons thyme
1/2 teaspoon fennel seed

Directions:

1. Add the olive oil to a large stock pot.  Place over medium heat. 
2. Add the ground turkey, ground beef, chopped onion, salt and pepper to the pot and cook, crumbling meat until it is browned.
3. Drain any fat from the pan.
4. Add carrots, pinto beans, tomato sauce and beef broth to the pan, stirring to mix ingredients.
5. Add fennel seed and thyme and shredded cabbage.
6. Stir to mix well.
7. Reduce heat to low and simmer until cabbage and carrots are cooked.
8. Sample and adjust seasonings to taste.

Serve with a sprinkling of freshly grated parmesan and crusty loaf of bread.