Lasagna (Meatless)

Ingredients:

• 9-12 Lasagna Noodles
• 1 Pint Cottage Cheese
• 4 Eggs
• 1/4-1/2 C Grated Cheddar Cheese
• 1/4 C+ Grated Parmesan Cheese
• 1/3 C Parsley
• Salt and Pepper to Taste
• ~1 C Grated Mozzarella Cheese
• Spaghetti Sauce (We like Prego Mushroom)

Preheat oven to 375* F.  Cook Lasagna noodles about 1/2-2/3 recommended cook time (~6 minutes) and drain.  Meanwhile, combine eggs, cottage cheese, cheddar cheese, Parmesan cheese, parsley, salt, and pepper.  In pan, layer two repetitions of noodle, cottage cheese mixture, spaghetti sauce, and mozzarella topped with a layer of noodle, spaghetti sauce and Parmesan cheese.  I won’t tell you what size of pan because you might prefer two thin layers or two or more thicker layers.  We like to use small loaf pans and make individual lasagnas.  They look really classy and are easy to serve and portion.  Bake 30 minutes at 375*.  Consider aluminum foil or a cookie sheet beneath pan in case of spilling over.

 

Barbecue Beef Ribs

Ingredients

• Beef Ribs
• Barbecue Sauce

While it’s not rocket science, making good Barbecue Beef Ribs may seem a little daunting to the novice.  Some people promote pre-boiling, baking, or marinating.  I promise that it’s not hard–you just have to be willing to get your hands dirty.  If you are grilling your ribs, slice them apart, cover ribs with barbecue sauce, and place on grill on medium heat.  They should cook for 45 minutes to an hour.  Periodically (every 15 minutes or so) turn and baste with additional barbecue sauce.  If you are using the oven, preheat to 325*.  Leave ribs together and cover entire rack with barbecue sauce.  In a roasting pan, place rack of ribs on rack of pan and cook for 45 minutes to an hour, basting every 15 minutes or so (no need to turn).  Cut apart before serving.

 

Foil Dinners

A fun activity as everyone should assemble their own!  Generally, a foil dinner consists of a meat, a few vegetables, a ‘liquid’ (oil, water, or condensed soup), and a few seasonings.  There is no ‘one way’ to assemble a foil dinner, so I have included our family’s favorite combination.

Ingredients:

• 3-4 oz hamburger meat/person
• Sliced Mushrooms
• Diced and peeled potatoes (russet, red, or yukon golds)
• Diced Onion
• 1/2 T Margarine/person
• Garlic
• Oregano
• Salt

Form meat into a patty and place in the center of a 1.5-2 ft square of aluminum foil (use two layers of foil, shiny side up to direct heat inward).  Top with vegetables, margarine, and seasonings.  Bring two opposite sides of foil together and roll.  Roll up remaining two sides.  On a third sheet of shiny side up foil, place dinner upside-down and repeat wrapping maneuver.  Mark the top with name/initials using a permanent marker to identify after cooking.  Place in firepit or on the grill turned on high for about 30 minutes.  Peel away foil to check for doneness.

 

Teriyaki Chicken

I have made this recipe for years in a frying pan, but an extremely warm day a few weeks ago lead me to try it as shish kabobs on the grill.  We were even able to cook the rice outdoors on our grill’s side burner.  Wonderful both ways!

Ingredients:

• Chicken Tenders (about 4 oz per person)
• Teriyaki Sauce (a generous amount)
• A Squirt of BBQ Sauce
• A Squirt of Dijon Mustard
• A Dollop of Orange Juice
• 1 Can of Pineapple Chunks
• Rice (about 1/2 C uncooked rice per person)

In a bowl, combine Teriyaki Sauce, BBQ Sauce, Dijon Mustard, Orange Juice, and juice from can of Pineapple.  Tear chicken into large chunks and place in Sauce.  Let marinate for at least 30 minutes.  About ten minutes before returning to the chicken, begin cooking your rice.

Here is where the recipes deviate.  If cooking indoors, heat frying pan to med-high.  Add chicken pieces and small amount of sauce.  Stir while frying.  When chicken is done, set aside and in the same pan combine remaining sauce, a small amount of flour (less than 1/2 T), and pineapple chunks.  Bring to a boil and stir continuously.  Serve chicken over rice topped with pineapple and sauce.  Serve with broccoli.

If you are cooking outdoors, skewer alternating chicken and pineapple chunks.  Place on grill on a very low heat.  Using a basting brush, baste with teriyaki sauce occasionally.  Serve over rice with broccoli.

 

Pork Roast with Potatoes and Onions

• Boneless Pork Roast (any cut you prefer) .5lb/person
• Medium Russet Potatoes 1.5/person
• Medium Yellow Onions .3/person
• Flour
• Salt
• Pepper
• Mustard
• Olive Oil

Preheat oven to 35o*F.  Peel and quarter potatoes and onions and place in the bottom of a large roasting pan.  Generously cover roast with salt and pepper.  Then cover roast with flour.  Finally, smear roast with mustard.  Place roast on rack over potatoes and onions.  Cook until internal temperature is 170*F (2-3 hours for a 3-4 lb roast), basting every 30 minutes (if there is no liquid in the bottom of the roast pan to baste with, use a mixture of salt, pepper, olive oil, and water).

 

Shredded Beef Enchiladas

Ingredients:

• 2 T Shortening
• 3 T Flour
• 2 T Chili powder
• 1 t Cumin
• 1 t Garlic powder
• 2 C Water
• 4 oz Tomato paste
• Beef (such as Country Style Beef Ribs)
• Tortillas
• Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Heat and blend shortening and flour in sauce pan.  Add chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, water, and tomato paste.  Stir until blended and cook another 2-3 minutes.  If you start early enough in the day, you can put the sauce and the beef in a slow cooker/crock pot on low for 5-8 hours.  This variation makes the beef easier to shred (plus the house smells like Mexican food all day).  If you don’t have all day, however, you can add the beef to the sauce pan and let it simmer for 1.5 hours.  Remove the beef and shred it using two forks.  Wrap the shredded beef in tortillas.  Top with enchilada sauce and shredded cheese and warm in the oven.  I like to serve this with refried beans and Mexican rice.

 

Creamed Tuna on Toast

• 1 C Milk
• 2 Tb Margarine
• 2 Tb Flour
• 2 cans of Tuna
• 1 can of Peas -or- equivalent amount of frozen peas
• Salt and Pepper
• Bread
• Margarine

Make cream sauce in sauce pan. Add tuna and peas; mix well. Salt and pepper to taste. Toast bread and spread margarine on top. Put tuna mixture on toast and serve.

 

Chili

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 C diced onion
• 3/4 C diced green pepper
• 1 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
• 1 14.5 oz can pinto beans
• 1 8 oz can tomato sauce
• 1 t salt
• 2 t chili powder
• 1 bay leaf

Brown beef in large pot.  Add onion and green pepper (cook until tender).  Stir in remaining ingredients.  Cover and simmer for approximately 1 hour, stirring every 15 to 20 minutes.

 

All-American Stirfry ~or~ Beef Stew

One day, Matt felt like having stir-fry and I wanted something more…American, so we decided to make stir-fry but replace each Asian ingredient with its American equivalent (noodles become potatoes, chicken becomes beef, and so forth).  When we were finished, it turned out that we had some very good beef stew.

Ingredients

• 1/2 lb Country Style Beef Ribs (chopped in bite-sized pieces)
• 1 Medium Onion (minced as small as possible to encourage boiling away)
• 6-8 Mushrooms (sliced)
• 4-6 Medium Potatoes (cubed)
• 1 8-ounce can of Cream of Mushroom Soup
• 1 Cup Milk
• Olive Oil
• Oregano
• Garlic
• Salt
• Pepper
• Paprika

Brown beef in olive oil and seasonings in a large stew pot.  Add onions and cook until onions are soft.  Add mushrooms and sautee until mushrooms are cooked.  Add potatoes, condensed cream of mushroom, milk, and 1/2 C water.  Cover and simmer approximately 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.  Add additional milk or water if stew gets too dry.  Serve with rolls or buttered bread.

 

Cheddar and Broccoli Soup

Ingredients:

• 5 Medium Potatoes
• 1 Quart Half and Half
• 2 T Margarine
• 4 T Flour
• 2.5-3 C Grated Cheddar
• 1 T Chicken Bouillon
• Frozen Broccoli Florets
• Salt and Pepper

Dice, boil, and drain potatoes.  Make a cream sauce from half and half, margarine, and flour.  Melt cheddar in cream sauce.  Add potatoes and broccoli.  Heat slowly (should thicken slightly).  Salt and pepper to taste.  This recipe can also be done in the crockpot.  Just put all ingredients (add 1 C water) in crockpot and heat on low for >6 hours.  Serve with rolls or buttered bread.  About 6 servings