January 24, 2012: Homemade Meatball Stew Recipe

Last year I shared an easy meatball soup recipe that uses convenience food items. I decided there was no excuse for being lazy and remade that recipe using homemade ingredients and keeping the calories as low as possible.

Homemade Meatball Stew

1 cup crushed Saltine crackers

¼ cup fat free half and half

1 egg

¼ cup ketchup

1 T. Worcestershire sauce

1 t. Italian seasoning

1 t. garlic salt

1 t. dried parsley

1 pound 93% lean ground beef

1 cup baby carrots, cut into small pieces

1 cup fresh green beans, cut into thirds

1 large Russet potato, peeled and cut into small chunks

1 celery heart, rib, greens and heart thinly sliced

1 cup canned corn (or fresh)

1 carton beef stock

1 cup water

2 cups dry macaroni or farfalle (bowtie) pasta

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Combine crushed crackers and half and half; let sit for five minutes to soften crackers. Add egg, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce and seasonings. Mix in ground beef with your hands. Shape into small balls.

Spray a Dutch oven with nonstick cooking spray. Place meatballs in the bottom of the Dutch oven and bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes, or until cooked through. Remove from oven and remove meatballs with a slotted spoon.

Add vegetables (with the exception of canned corn) to Dutch oven. Sauté for 2 – 3 minutes, scraping up bits of meatballs from bottom of pan. Add beef stock and water and bring to a boil. Cover and reduce heat to medium; boil gently for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to low and add reserved meatballs and corn. Cook for an hour, until vegetables are soft.

Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and add to meatball stew just before serving. Add water, if necessary, to thin stew.

Serves 6

January 18, 2012: Healthy Meatloaf Recipe

Here’s another of my favorite meals that I’ve slimmed down for the calorie conscious diner (me!). Although my husband groaned with he saw me using ground turkey, he enjoyed the finished product. If you want fewer calories, omit the ground beef (I added it so this meatloaf would taste more like the traditional recipe I usually prepare).

Healthy Meatloaf

1 slice whole wheat bread, torn into small pieces

1 T. dehydrated onions

1 T. dried parsley

2 T. fat free half and half

2 T. beef broth

1 egg

1 T. Worcestershire sauce

¼ cup ketchup

1 chile in adobo sauce, minced

1 t. each: oregano, sage, garlic salt

½ t. freshly ground black pepper

1 lb. 4 ounces ground turkey

12 ounces 80% lean ground beef

Spray a loaf pan with cooking spray. In a large mixing bowl, combine bread pieces, onions and parsley. Stir in half and half and beef broth; let sit for five minutes. Add egg, Worcestershire, ketchup, chile and seasonings; mix well. Add in ground meat and mix with your hands. Pat mixture into prepared loaf pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 90 minutes, or until completely cooked through the middle.

Serves 6 (per serving: 615 calories, 30 grams fat, 882 sodium)

November 11, 2011: Spaghetti Pie Recipe

Who doesn’t love spaghetti? Spaghetti, with or without meatballs, is a old-time favorite with families everywhere. And what’s not to like? It’s a dish that’s filled with the good homey flavors of garlic and tomatoes, it’s an economical dish, and it’s easy to make a large quantity to feed lots of hungry diners.

Next time you make spaghetti, try making it in a pie plate or quiche pan instead of serving the usual way and see what your family thinks.

Spaghetti Pie

6 ounces spaghetti

2 T. butter

1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 t. dried parsley

1 eggs, well beaten

1 cup cottage cheese (optional)

½ lb. lean ground beef

½ lb. pork sausage

½ cup chopped onion

¼ cup chopped Bell pepper

1 8-ounce can tomatoes, chopped

1 6-ounce can tomato paste

1 t. sugar

1 t. dried oregano

½ t. garlic salt

½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Cook the spaghetti according to package directions; drain. Sir butter into hot spaghetti; add Parmesan cheese, parsley and eggs. Spread spaghetti mixture in bottom and up the sides of greased 10-inch pie plate or quiche pan to form crust. Spread cottage cheese, if using, over the top of the spaghetti crust.

In skillet, cook ground beef and pork sausage until browned. Drain; add onion and peppers and cook an additional two minutes, until vegetables are softened. Stir in undrained tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar, and spices; heat through.

Spread meat mixture over prepared spaghetti crust. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 20 minutes. Remove from oven and sprinkle mozzarella cheese over the top. Return to oven and bake 5 minutes longer, until cheese I s melted.

Serves 6

October 30, 2011: Dinner in a Pumpkin Recipe

I’m in Mesa visiting my grandson and his family this weekend while they host a Halloween party. As their occasional “resident chef” I wanted to make something that would be truly memorable. I found this recipe online and with a few little Candy tweaks, found it to be the perfect dish for a potluck party. It would also be a great presentation for a Thanksgiving dinner. Try it and let me know what you think!

Dinner in a Pumpkin

1 large pumpkin (measure your oven if you want to double this recipe and use a really big pumpkin), top cut straight off and seeds scooped out

2 T. brown sugar

1 t. pumpkin pie spice

1 ½ lb. ground beef

1 lb. bulk pork sausage

1 yellow onion, finely minced (optional)

2 garlic cloves, finely minced

2 cans beef stock

1 package long grain and wild rice (such as Uncle Ben’s)

1 can cream of celery soup

1 can cream of mushroom soup

2 small cans mushrooms stems and pieces (optional)

2 cans French cut green beans

Mix together brown sugar and pumpkin pie spice; rub on inside of pumpkin.

Cook meat over medium heat in large skillet, seasoning with salt and pepper to taste. Mix in chicken stock and rice. Bring to a boil and reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 30 minutes, until rice is done.

Heat oven to 400 degrees.

Mix remaining ingredients with meat/rice mixture. Spoon into prepared pumpkin, replace top. Place pumpkin on a baking sheet and bake at least 2 hours, until pumpkin is tender. To serve, scoop out filling along with pieces of pumpkin.

October 25, 2011: Baked Meatballs Recipe

I’ve recently figured out that there’s an easier way to cook both bacon and meatballs – and that’s by baking them. Cooking these meats on a baking sheet in the oven results in less mess and actually should be healthier because you can drain away all of the grease.

I had a large jar of leftover homemade pizza sauce recently. In order to transform it into spaghetti sauce, I thinned it down with water and added these baked meatballs to give it extra Italian flavor.

Baked Meatballs

1 T. dehydrated minced onion

1 T. Italian seasoning

1 t. garlic salt

1 slice of day old sandwich bread, torn into small chunks (the heel works great)

¼ cup milk

1 egg

1 T. ketchup

1 pound 80% lean ground beef

Combine onion, garlic salt, Italian seasoning, bread cubes and milk in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Let stand for five minutes to rehydrated ingredients. Add remaining ingredients and mix with thoroughly with your hands.

Shape balls out of the meat mixture (make them small or large, depending on your preference. Mine were medium-sized and I made about 13 of them with this recipe; you'd get about twice as many by making them walnut-sized or half as many by making them the size of tennis balls).

Place on a baking sheet sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. Bake in a 400 degree oven about 20 minutes, or until completely browned. Add to spaghetti sauce during last half hour of simmering.

 Note: You can also use a half pound of ground beef and a half pound of Italian sausage, if desired.

September 11, 2011: Beef Enchilada Casserole Recipe

It’s hard to believe that 10 years have gone by since the tragic events of 9/11. Do you remember where you were that day the twin towers in New York City burned? I had just started working for the Hilton Phoenix East/Mesa hotel less than a month before and as I walked in to work, I noticed everyone’s somber countenances and the fact that all the TVs in the lobby were turned on to the news. My coworkers and I sat and watched the coverage for some time; our boss never asked us to get back to work. It was unbelievable – I remember thinking the images were surreal, like something from a movie.

I give thanks to all those brave men and women who were tasked with rescuing victims and then cleaning up the mess afterward. Did you know it took over half a year to find some of the victims?

Well… let’s move on to today’s recipe. I’ve got yet another version of enchiladas to share with you. I hope this doesn’t offend anybody, but this is the “gringo” version which uses a can of cream of chicken soup rather than a sauce made from scratch. This is the type of casserole my husband really enjoys because he doesn’t like the hotter, more authentic version.

Beef enchilada casserole served with a salad of arugula, cherry tomatoes, avocados and green onions.

Beef Enchilada Casserole

1 pound ground beef

2 cloves garlic, minced

½ cup onion (white or yellow), minced

1 T. dehydrated or fresh, chopped cilantro

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 small can mild, diced green chiles (or substitute 2 T. minced fresh jalapenos)

1/3 cup sour cream

¼ cup milk

1 t. cumin

Salt and pepper to taste

9 corn (or corn/flour) tortillas

Nonstick cooking spray (such as Pam)

1 ½ cups shredded cheese (such as Colby Jack)

Brown the ground beef in skillet over medium heat. Drain most of the grease. Add in the garlic, onion and cilantro and cook a few more minutes, until the vegetables have softened.

Add remaining ingredients, through salt and pepper, to make the sauce.

Spray a 9” square baking pan with Pam. Place three tortillas in the bottom of the pan (you may have to cut one tortilla in half to make them fit across the bottom of the pan). Spread one third of the sauce mixture on top, followed by one third of the shredded cheese. Repeat twice more.

Cover pan with foil and bake in a 350 degree oven for 35 – 40 minutes, until bubbly hot. Remove foil and cook five more minutes, until cheese is completely melted and a bit browned.

Serves 3 - 4

September 3, 2011: Spicy Inside Out Burgers Recipe

Are you planning on barbecuing burgers for your Labor Day celebration? Here’s a different kind of hamburger that will turn them from humdrum to exciting! It only takes a few ingredients to transform this grilling staple, including my favorite spice, garlic salt.

The cheese started to ooze out of this inside out burger when the top bun was in place.

Spicy Inside Out Hamburgers

1 pound 80% lean ground beef

1 T. bold steak sauce

1 t. tequila (your choice of varieties)

1 t. lemon juice

1 t. garlic salt

Pinch of sugar

4 slices pepper jack cheese

Montreal steak seasoning

Mix together the ground beef, steak sauce, tequila, lemon juice and garlic salt. Form into 6 or 8 thin patties (depending on how big you want your burgers to be). Cut cheese slices into fourths. Place one quartered cheese slice on top of one thin patty. Top with another hamburger patty. Press the edges together to seal. Sprinkle top with Montreal steak seasoning to taste. Continue with remaining ingredients so that you have 3 or 4 hamburgers.

Heat grill to 400+ degrees. Cook patties 7 to 10 minutes, until desired doneness. Serve with lettuce, slices of tomato, French fried onions, avocados, and green chiles or jalapenos, if desired.

August 27, 2011: Dog Food Recipe

This is a recipe I got from my mother-in-law. Her dog, Ebony, was prescribed this diet by her veterinarian, in order to keep track of the amount of protein she eats. I started making it for my dog, Colby Jack, and he loved it. The added benefit of making your own dog food is that you know exactly what’s in it – no fillers, just good, human grade food. Yes, it takes some time to prepare, but this recipe makes a three-week supply and you can freeze two-thirds of it in Ziploc bags or small containers (which also makes it easy to feed while traveling).

Yogi eating his food in a safe place - under the kitchen table!

Low Protein Dog Food

2 pounds 80% lean ground beef

8 eggs, blended (shells and all)

24 slices bread

5 cups white rice

1 cup olive oil

In a large pot, cook the rice in 10 cups water for 20 minutes. Brown the ground beef.

In a very large container, such as bucket, mix together all the ingredients.

Feed 10 to 12 ounces per day for a 60 pound dog, or more for an active dog.

Tip: You an easily add bits of leftover vegetables, such as carrots, potatoes, green beans, etc. to provide some variety.

August 25, 2011: Chili with Beans Recipe

I’ve been doing a lot of canning lately and my husband suggested that I try my hand at canning some more substantial food items, like chili. I don’t have any cans of chili in my cupboard so this seemed like an ideal time to make up a big batch that we could eat for dinner one night, then can the rest for later.

My dad is the “Chili King” as far as I’m concerned so I took a few hints from his recipe and created this one.

Chili with Beans

½ pound dry pinto beans

1 t. salt

1 pound ground beef

½ onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

½ red bell pepper, diced

10 roasted, peeled tomatoes

1 15 ounce can kidney beans, drained

1/3 cup red chili powder

2 t. oregano

2 t. cumin
1 t. garlic salt

1 t. black pepper

Several shakes of Tabasco sauce

Sort and wash the pinto beans. Place them in a crock pot, cover with water and soak overnight. The next morning, drain the water and add enough fresh water to cover the beans by about an inch. Heat the crock pot to high, add the salt, and let the beans cook by themselves until almost soft, about 3 hours.

Meanwhile, brown the ground beef with onion, garlic and red bell pepper. Drain the fat and add to the beans. Roast and peel the tomatoes as instructed in my Miscellaneous Kitchen Tips post. Crush them with your hands, discarding the tough core, over the crock pot and add the crushed tomato pieces to the mixture. Add remaining ingredients, except Tabasco sauce (it will make the beans tough) and let cook for another 3 to 4 hours, until pinto beans are completely soft. Sprinkle with Tabasco sauce to taste. Serve with Southwestern Cornbread and a simple tossed salad for a complete, hearty meal.

Tip: If you need to head off to work in the morning and can't add the ground beef mixture later, toss all the ingredients in the crock pot at the same time and let it cook all day while you're gone.