Beef Pot Pies

                         

Beef Pot Pies

3 cups stew beef 
1/2 container of chopped mushrooms
1/4 cup butter
1/3 cup of flour
2 1/2 cups beef stock
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 10oz bag frozen mixed vegetables
2 foil pans *or casserole dishes*

Cook the mushrooms, beef, and onion in the butter, until meat is cooked through. 
Then add all the other ingredients and cook until bubbly and thickened, stirring frequently. 
Season with cajun seasoning (like I did) or salt/pepper. Once it's nice and thick, turn off the burner and let cool a bit.

Once cooled, pour into the small loaf pans (pictured here are two beef and two chicken pot pies).
I did the exact same thing for the chicken, only I used, uh, ya know...chicken. This recipe makes two beef pot pies.
Now at this point you can use store bought refrigerated pie dough ( I totally would have) or you can make your own...here's my recipe:

Place steel blade in food processor. 
Add 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour; 
1 cup butter, cut up;
 1/2 teaspoon salt. 
Cover; process with on/off turns until most of mixture resembles cornmeal but a few larger pieces remain. 
With processor running, quickly add 1/3 cup cold water through feed tube. 
Stop processor when all water is added; scrape sides. Process with 2 on/off turns. 
Remove from bowl; shape into a ball. Divide in half. If needed, wrap and chill until easy to handle. (Makes just enough to cover 4 pot-pies).

Cover each pan with crust. Cut a slit in the top. Wrap in tinfoil and freeze (label the tinfoil B for beef, C for Chicken).

To reheat, place frozen pot pie on baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes at 400 degrees with tinfoil on. Remove tinfoil and bake for another 30 minutes until crust browns and internal temp reads 165 degrees.

Taco Soup

I often forget about Taco Soup when it comes time for menu planning.  We were having tacos for dinner so I doubled the meat and set half of it aside for my Taco Soup freezer meal. It. Was. Awesome. It took less than 5 minutes to assemble and get into the freezer.This is also a great crock pot meal . Combine all ingredients in crock pot and set on low and let it go . easy Peasy Meal

Ingredients

1 1/2 pounds ground beef, browned
1 envelope taco seasoning
2 cans corn, undrained
2 cans ranch-style beans (pinto beans in seasoned tomato sauce)
2 cans diced tomatoes, undrained
Tortilla chips, shredded cheese, sour cream (for serving)

Step 1
In a labeled gallon-sized Ziploc bag, layer the beef, seasoning, corn, beans, and tomatoes (no particular order). Seal and freeze flat.

Step 2
The night before you plan on cooking it, move to fridge to thaw. Pour into slow cooker and cook on low for 4-6 hours.

Step 3
Serve over crush tortilla chips. Top with shredded cheese and sour cream.

Shepherd's Pie

This makes a great freezer meal. Just line your casserole with tinfoil and then saran wrap. Assemble the Shepherd's Pie like normal but instead of baking it, freeze it! To reheat, put the unwrapped frozen Shepherd's Pie back into the pan you froze it in, and let thaw in the fridge. Once thawed, bake as normal.

1lb lean ground beef

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup heavy cream

4 Tbs butter

2 cups frozen mixed veggies (I used 1/2 cup green beans, 1/2 peas, 1/2 cup carrots, and 1/2 cup corn)

1 can of cream of mushroom

Salt and pepper to taste

3 cups of mashed potatoes (seasoned with butter and salt/pepper to taste)

1/2 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

Step 1  

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a skillet, brown the ground beef, onions, and garlic together.

Step 2
Once the meat is browned, add the flour, cream, and 4 Tbl butter. Stir to combine.

Step 3
Add the frozen vegetables, stir to incorporate. Cook for 5-10 minutes.

Step 4

Add the cream of mushroom soup and cream corn.Stir to combine .Cook until heated through, season with salt and pepper.

Step 5
Pour the beef and veggie mixture into a greased casserole dish.

Step 6
Cover the beef and veggies with a thick layer of mashed potatoes. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese.

Step 7
Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes, until cheese is melted and bubbly.

Turkey Meatballs

                                                   

Ingredients 
 1 small onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 large egg
1/4-1/2 cup dried bread crumbs
3 tablespoons ketchup
1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley leaves (or 1 Tbs dried)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 pound ground turkey

To assemble:

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl, mix well. (Start with the 1/4 cup breadcrumbs and if it's too wet when you mix it all together, add another 1/4 cup of breadcrumbs).

Using a medium scoop or a tablespoon, scoop some of the mixture and roll into balls.

Place the raw meatballs on a cookie sheet and freeze.

Once frozen, put in labeled Ziploc bag.
To reheat:

Take out the desired number of meatballs and let them defrost on a plate in the fridge.

Once defrosted, place on a cookie sheet and bake at 400 degrees for 18-20 minutes, turning halfway through.

Add them to your favorite spaghetti sauce, toss with pasta, and dinner is served! Also makes great Meatball Subs! 

Turkey Ranch Burgers

Turkey Ranch Burgers

1lb ground turkey 
 1 pack of Ranch dip seasoning
 1 egg.
 Combine the ingredients and shape into patties. Place on wax paper lined baking sheet and "flash freeze." Once they are frozen, peel them off the wax paper and put them in a labeled Ziploc freezer bag. Then to cook, you can either allow them to thaw on a baking dish and bake them, or cook them in a skillet (I throw them in frozen and they thaw as they cook).

Serve on Toasted Buns , with lettuce, mayo , tomatoes and onion . 

Baked Ziti

Baked Ziti- a favorite "make ahead" meal.

I'm a huge pasta lover and this is a great make-ahead and freeze meal. This recipe is for a 9X13 inch pan, but I divided it into two smaller 8X8 pans. I only took photo's of the one I was baking for that night's dinner. The other one was assembled until right before it was to be baked, then covered with tinfoil and froze.

I substituted the ground beef for ground turkey,  =)

This makes a great freezer meal. Just line your casserole with tinfoil and then saran wrap. Assemble the Baked Ziti like normal but instead of baking it, freeze it! To reheat, put the unwrapped frozen Baked Ziti back into the pan you froze it in, and let thaw in the fridge. Once thawed, bake as normal.

Ingredients

1 pound dry ziti pasta*or penne pasta* 
1 onion, chopped
1 pound lean ground beef
2 (26 ounce) jars spaghetti sauce
6 ounces provolone cheese, sliced
1 1/2 cups sour cream
6 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Step 1
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 9x13 inch baking dish. Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add ziti pasta, and cook about 8 minutes; drain. 

Step 2 
Brown onion and ground beef over medium heat.

Step 3
Add spaghetti sauce, and simmer 15 minutes. 

Step 4
Layer as follows: 1/2 of the ziti.

Step 5
Then all the Provolone cheese and sour cream.

Step 6
Then 1/2 of the sauce mixture.

Step 7
Then remaining ziti.

Step 8

Then all the mozzarella cheese.

Step 9
Then the remaining sauce mixture.

Step 10
Top with grated Parmesan cheese. *If you are freezing this is the step where you would cover with foil and put in your freezer . *

Step 11

Cover with tinfoil and bake for 30 minutes. Enjoy! 

Beef Enchiladas

Beef Enchiladas- a recipe with ingredients you can keep on hand at all times.

Shown here with ground turkey as a substitute as we are trying to cut some red meat out of our diet. Recipe is the same either way.

This makes a great freezer meal. Just line your pan with tinfoil and then saran wrap. Assemble the enchiladas like normal but instead of baking it, freeze it! To reheat, put the unwrapped frozen enchiladas back into the pan you froze it in, and let thaw in the fridge. Once thawed, cover with tinfoil and bakes as normal.

Ingredients:

1 pack of flour tortillas (burrito sized)
1 lb ground beef (or turkey)
1 (19oz) can of red, mild, enchilada sauce
1 (16oz) can refried beans (optional)
1 (4.5oz) can chopped green chiles
1 pack of taco seasoning
8oz colby or a mexican mix cheese
Sour cream for serving
Tin foil for covering while baking



Step 1 Brown the ground beef (or turkey) on medium high heat.

Step2Drain any grease from the pan.
Step 3
Add the taco seasoning and stir.
Step 4

Add the chilies and stir.

Step 5 Add the can of re-fried beans. I add a whole can because I love re-fried beans, but you can omit them completely or add as much of the can as you like. The beans make a moister enchilada.

Step 6
Stir until the beans have "melted" into the beef mixture. Turn of the heat.
Step 7
Spray a 9X12 inch pan with cooking spray and pour half the can of enchilada sauce into bottom of dish.
Step 8

Spoon about 2 heaping tablespoons of the beef/bean mixture into the center of the tortilla.


Step 9

Roll up the tortilla and place into the pan, continue until all the enchiladas are done.
Step 10
Any leftover beef/bean mixture can be spread evenly over the top of the enchiladas. The pour remaining sauce over the enchiladas.


Step 11

 

Sprinkle the cheese over the enchiladas. Cover tightly with tinfoil and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes to an hour.
Step 12
Allow to cool for 15 minutes before cutting into them. Serve with sour cream if desired.

Sweet Lemon Pull-Apart Coffee Cake

Sweet Lemon Pull-Apart Coffee Cake

1/3 cup sugar

1/3 cup raisins

1/3 cup chopped pecans

2 tsp lemon zest

3 tsp butter, melted

1 can Grand's Biscuits, cut into quarters

2 Tbs lemon juice

1/2 cup powdered sugar

Step 1

In a bowl, combine the sugar, raisins, pecans, lemon zest, and butter.
Step 2
Add the quartered Grand's biscuits to the raisin/nut mixture. Stir to coat each piece. Place biscuit mixture into a greased bundt pan or a  bread pan which ever is easier for you .
Step 3
Bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes until browned on top. Turn out on plate. 
Step 4
Mix together the lemon juice and powdered sugar. Drizzle over the warm cake. Serve warm.

                               In a bowl, combine the sugar, raisins, pecans, lemon zest, and butter.

  There are multiple varitions of this pull apart cake . I will listing more later on including blueberry and cranberry orange . 

Chicken Club Casserole

Chicken Club Casserole

Ingredients 

1 lb spiral pasta, cooked
4 cups cubed cooked chicken
2 cans (10-3/4 ounces each) condensed cheddar cheese soup, undiluted
1 cup crumbled cooked bacon
1 cup milk
1 cup mayonnaise
4 medium tomatoes, seeded and chopped
3 cups fresh baby spinach, chopped
2 cups (8 ounces) shredded Colby-Monterey Jack cheese

Step 1

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. In a bowl, combine all of the ingredients EXCEPT the shredded cheese.

Step 2

Pour contents of bowl into the baking dish. Sprinkle with shredded cheese.

Step 3 
Bake at 375 degrees for 35-40 minutes or until bubbly and cheese is melted.

Garlic Fingers & My Pizza Dough

Fail-Proof Pizza Dough and Cheesy Garlic Bread Sticks

You will never need another pizza dough recipe after this one! 

 2-12 INCH PIZZA CRUSTS; ABOUT 1 LB. OF DOUGH

INGREDIENTS:

for the pizza dough-

1 cup warm water

2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast

1 tablespoon honey {or sugar}

2 teaspoons salt

2 tablespoons olive or canola oil

3 cups bread flour {give or take 1/2 cup...depending on the heat & humidity}

for the cheesy garlic bread sticks-

1/2 recipe Fail-Proof Pizza Dough from above

2 tablespoons softened salted butter

2 cloves garlic, finely minced

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese {use the real stuff!}

1/4 pound grated mozzarella cheese

{salt & pepper, if desired}

DIRECTIONS:

For the pizza dough--In a large mixing bowl, preferably that of a stand mixer, stir yeast and honey into warm water. Sit for 5-10 minutes or until bubbles form and mixture starts to foam. This tells you that the yeast is alive and kicking. Pour in salt, oil and half the flour and mix. Once that flour is incorporated, start adding flour in bit by bit until you get the pizza dough to the consistency you want: slightly tacky, but when you touch it it doesn't stick to your hands. Once you reach this stage, knead for 6 minutes. Turn a timer on and walk away! Resist the temptation to stop earlier than 6 minutes! That seems to be the magical number. The dough should be smooth and easy to work with. And the bowl should be clean! {*This is the point when you could freeze your dough!! Divide into portions, place into freezer bags, seal removing all air and freeze. To use, remove from freezer and let sit out to get to room temperature and double in size; 6-8 hours. Then use as you'd like.} Lightly grease the bowl & the dough so it doesn't dry out, cover with plastic wrap and let it rise 1-2 hours. That's it! Use as desired.

For the Cheesy Garlic Bread Sticks- Preheat oven to 500 degrees with pizza stone inside. You can use a baking sheet too ... Mix butter and garlic in a small bowl and set aside.

Spread pizza dough out into a 12-inch circle on parchment paper. {This makes it easier to transfer to the pizza stone.}

Spread the butter and garlic mixture over dough and top with parmesan and mozzarella cheeses. Top with a light sprinkling of salt and pepper, if desired. {That step is totally optional!}

Baked Garlic Brown Sugar Chicken

Baked Garlic Brown Sugar Chicken 

4 chicken breasts
garlic, minced 
4 T brown sugar, 
3 t olive oil 
heat oven to 500°F and grease a casserole dish. sauté garlic Remove from heat and stir in brown sugar. Place chicken breasts in a prepared baking dish and cover with the garlic and brown sugar mixture. Add salt and pepper. Bake uncovered for 15-30 minutes. added more brown sugar at the end. THIS RECIPE IS VERY VERSATILE . You can also do it with pork chops which honestly I find  lends it self even better . 

Garlic Parmesan pull-apart Bread

 *this is perfect for kids you can add pepperoni/pizza sauce etc into the layers and make it an entire meal*
Ingredients

1 can of refrigerated Grands biscuits (not the flaky layers)
1/2 stick of butter
3 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp Italian Seasoning (I omitted) 

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Throw the cold 1/2 stick of butter in a bundt pan and let it melt in the preheating oven.

Step 2
While the butter melts, cut the Grands biscuits into quarters. In a bowl, toss the biscuit pieces, garlic, Italian Seasoning, and Parmesan cheese together.

Step 3

Once the butter is melted, add the biscuit mixture, sprinkling with any cheese and garlic that gets let behind in the bowl.

Step 4

Bake at 350 degrees for 20- 22 minutes until golden brown. Turn out on a dish and enjoy!

Garlic Butter Shrimp Pasta

Serves 2-4

1 lb raw shrimp, peeled, deveined and tails removed
3 cloves garlic, minced – divided
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
3 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon basil, chopped fine
4 oz dry linguine

Grated parmesan

Place the shrimp in a bowl and add one teaspoon of garlic, the lemon zest and the vegetable oil.  Stir and let marinate while the pasta cooks.

Cook the pasta according to the package instructions, but cook for one minute less than instructed.

During the last three minutes of the pasta cooking time heat the butter in  a large skillet until it foams.  Add the remaining garlic and saute until fragrant, about 30 seconds.  Add the shrimp with the marinade and cook for 30 seconds, or until the shrimp are just turning pink.  Add the basil and stir to combine.

Reserve 1/4 cup of the cooking liquid, then drain the pasta and add it directly to the pan – work quickly or your shrimp will over cook.  Stir to combine, allowing the shrimp and past to cook the rest of the way, about one minute more.  If the sauce does not coat the pasta completely add a bit of the cooking liquid to thin it out. 

Top with grated parmesan and a spritz of lemon juice.  Enjoy.