A Great and Easy combination: Inside-Out Stuffed Peppers and Garlic Parmesan Pull Apart Bread

A few months ago, at the Moms4Moms group I attend at Faith Community Church one of the specials was on kids helping in the kitchen.  A recipe on the handout was Inside-Out Stuffed Peppers, it is a great one to have in your menu plan and my girls have each helped make it.  I’ve even taken the recipe on the road and shared it with my Mom and one of my Aunts and Uncles when I was in Texas recently–they loved it too.  The only catch to the recipe is that it takes an hour in the oven.  So you have to plan a little in advance.

Then a friend posted a recipe for what looked like a delicious, easy bread from The Virtuous Wife on his facebook page and I thought….hmmm….that might be good with the Inside-Out Stuffed Peppers.

So this weekend, I tried them together and Y-U-M.  I served some fruit and it was an easy meal that pleased everyone at the table.

Inside-Out Stuffed Peppers

In a skillet brown and then drain:

• 1 lb ground beef

Add to the browned and drained ground beef:

• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1 can chopped stewed tomatoes (or diced if that is all you have…but stewed is a better flavor.  I chop them right in the can using kitchen shears.)
• 1 large green pepper chopped
• 1/2 cup uncooked long grain rice (I prefer Uncle Ben’s)
• 1/2 cup water
• 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper

Transfer to a greased 2 quart casserole dish

Cover and bake at 350° for 1 hour or until the rice is tender

Uncover and sprinkle with

• 1 c shredded cheddar cheese (or whatever kind of cheese you have on hand…mozzarella would be good, Italian blend or even colby-jack)

Return to the oven until cheese melts.

(This is a recipe you could prep the night before or even earlier in the day and then pop into the oven when you get home.  It could take a bit longer to warm but not too much.)

 

Garlic Parmesan Pull Apart Bread

Preheat oven to 350 degrees (but if you are cooking the Inside-Out Stuffed Peppers your oven is already at 350°!)

Place in a bundt pan:

• 1/2 stick of butter

Put bundt pan in oven and let it melt.

While the butter melts, cut into quarters:

• 1 can of refrigerated Grands biscuits (each biscuit will be cut into 4ths)

Toss the biscuit quarters in a bowl mixed with:

• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 tsp Italian seasoning

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

Bake at 350° for 20-22 minutes until golden brown.

Turn out on a dish (you may need to run a knife down the sides a bit) and enjoy!

It was light and fluffy and even warmed up well when we had leftovers.

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Mexican Casserole

It was a dark and stormy night…perfect for a warm, filling meal like Mexican Casserole!  This is a recipe that my mother-in-law wrote down in a cookbook she gave to us for our wedding.  So we have been eating this one for 18 years!  It doesn’t really fit with my “lean and healthy” recipes that I’ve been trying to make more of lately but the day was just screaming for something in our comfort food genre.  I had all the ingredients on hand.

Brown in a skillet:

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 medium onion, chopped

Drain off fat and return to the skillet.

Add to the meat mixture:

• 1 can Ranch Style beans
• 1 can cream of mushroom soup
• 1 can Ro-Tel
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp chili powder

Stir and then simmer for 10 minutes.

Layer in a greased 3 quart casserole dish

• Tortilla chips
• meat mixture
• grated cheddar cheese

Repeat layers.

Bake, uncovered for 30 minutes in a 300° oven.

We like to serve it with salsa, pico and/or sour cream.

If you live north of the Mason-Dixon line it might be hard to find the Ranch Style Beans.  KMart often carries them so try there.  I am thankful to my SIL who supplies me with them via the “if it fits it ships” boxes from the USPS.

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Chili Mac- quick and easy

Thursday nights at our house are just the girls and I for dinner.  Often times ( I must confess) I simply open up their favorite cans of dinner and heat and serve….yes the dreaded Chef Boyardee and Spaghettios.  OK, I said it—confession is good for the soul.

But this week, even though I had the cans in the pantry, I decided to make something for dinner.  I had a Chili Mac recipe that I’ve made before but I didn’t really follow it.  Here is what I did instead (these items are almost always in my pantry/refrigerator so this works for a good “throw down” meal)

Chili Mac

In a large skillet cook over medium heat:

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1/2 c chopped onion

Drain off fat from beef

Stir into meat and onions:

• 1 can of Ro-Tel
• chopped green bell pepper (I put about 3/4 cup in)
• 8 oz tomato sauce
• 1/2 of the tomato sauce can of water…so I guess that would be 4 oz!
• 2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cumin
• 1 cup dried elbow macaroni

Bring all of that to a boil

Cover, reduce heat to simmer and cook for 15-20 minutes or until the pasta is tender.

I cut up some strawberries and put out some raw mini-carrots and voila! dinner is served.

Enjoy

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Easy Meaty Ziti

I prepared this recently and it made the house smell divine and it was devoured at dinner.

Easy Meaty Ziti (with Spinach)

Don’t forget to defrost your 9 oz package of frozen, creamed spinach.  I always hate to get to the middle of the recipe and realize that something was to be defrosted already!!!

 

Boil water in a large pot to cook 8 oz ziti to al dente

• once water is boiling, add ziti and cook it half-way (for me that is about 6 minutes)
• drain once it is done

Cook in a large skillet over medium-high heat, stirring to break up the lumps:

• 1 lb ground beef

Stir into the beef just before it finishes browning:

• 2 to 4 cloves of crushed garlic
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1 tsp dried basil

Stir into the meat

• 1 large (24-26 oz) jar of marinara sauce
• 1 8oz can tomato sauce

Spoon 1 cup of the meat sauce on the bottom of a 9 x 13 glass/ceramic pan.

Arrange on top of the sauce in an even layer:

• 8 oz ziti (you have already prepped this)

Pour remaining meat sauce over the ziti

Spread evenly over the top:

• 9 oz package of creamed spinach

Make sure all the ziti is covered and happy in the sauce.

Cover the baking dish with foil

(You can make this dish 1 day ahead up to this point and then just refrigerate it until you are ready to bake)

Bake at 375, covered for about 30-45 minutes.  (I usually do close to 45)

Remove the baking dish from the oven and carefully remove the foil.

Scatter over the top of the ziti:

• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese or Italian cheese blend

Recover with foil (spray it with cooking spray if you are afraid the foil will stick to the cheese)

Bake for about 5 minutes.

Remove from oven and let it rest until all the cheese has melted…about 5 minutes more.

Serve it nice and hot!

 

 

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Porcupine Meatballs

This one is a fast one to whip together.  How do I know that?  Let me share….

Today I was up at the church sorting through some different curriculum things and craft items just minding my own business.  I glanced at my watch and saw that it was just 1:40 and thought, “Wow, I’m making good time.  I’ll go over to the other building and work on some things there.”  Later I happened to glance at a clock in one of the classrooms and it said 2:20.  NO, it can’t be….who set that clock ahead?  I looked at my watch and it still said 1:40 and I noticed the second hand was no longer moving….ugh.  Now I needed to get home, make dinner and be in the car line at school by 3:10.

Well, I made it.  Dinner was in the fridge and the prep work was all cleaned up by the time I left for the school.  So this recipe can be assembled quickly but it does take one hour to bake (45 covered and 15 uncovered).  I think we will have to start doubling the recipe though as everyone loves them and we have none leftover.  It feeds us all (four) nicely but as soon as one of my girls hits a growth spurt it won’t!

Mix together:

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1/2 cup uncooked, regular rice
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/3 cup chopped onion (I like to chop them small)
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon celery salt
• 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper

Shape mixture by rounded tablespoonfuls into balls.

Place meatballs into an ungreased baking dish.

Sprinkle over the meatballs:  (This isn’t in my original recipe..it is just my addition that I like!)

• Worcestershire sauce

Stir together:

• 2 cans of tomato sauce
• 1 cup water
• 2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

Pour the sauce over the meatballs.

Cover with aluminum foil

Place in oven, preheated to 350 degrees.

Bake 45 minutes covered.

Uncover and bake 15 minutes longer.

 

 

 

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Impossible Taco Pie

This is an easy twist on tacos if you are tired of the traditional taco!   I’ve had this recipe for years.  Tonight I enlisted the help of my 4th grader to help me prepare dinner.  We needed some time together and I thought this would help with that and I could continue to show her how to do some things in the kitchen.

Heat oven to 400 degrees.

Brown in a skillet:

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1/2 cup chopped onions

Drain meat and return to pan

Stir into meat/onions:

• one package of taco seasoning

Grease a 10 x 1 1/2 ” pie plate (That is what the recipe says….I have this Anchor Hocking round casserole dish that I’ve always used for this)

Spread meat mixture in the bottom of the greased  bakeware

Spread over the meat mixture:

• 1 can of diced green chilies (drained a tad if they are runny)

In a separate bowl mix until smooth (about 1 minute with a hand beater):

• 3/4 cup Bisquick
• 1 1/4 cup milk
• 3 eggs

Pour the Bisquick mixture over the green chilies

Bake for 25 minutes.

Top with

• sliced tomatoes
• shredded cheese

Bake for about 15 more minutes until a knife inserted between the center and edge comes out clean (well not counting the cheese!)

Serve with sour cream, lettuce and salsa if desired.

My kitchen helper then cut up strawberries and bananas for our fruit and our vegetable dish was just raw carrots.

Enjoy this easy dish.

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Messy Mexican Casserole

Here is one that is easy to throw together and in my house the ingredients are always on hand (or easy to substitute).

Brown in skillet:

• 1 lb ground beef (more if you have larger appetites to feed)

Drain fat and return beef to skillet.

Add to the beef:

• 1 can of Ro-Tel (or if you are out of Ro-Tel like I was….one can of diced tomatoes and one can of chopped chiles.  I know you are SHOCKED that I was out of Ro-Tel…so was I.  My handsome fella used the last can and didn’t tell me!)
• Taco Seasoning packet
• 1 can of corn, drained

Mix and heat thoroughly.

Prepare:

• one box of cornbread mix of your choice according to package directions  (mine requires an egg and 1/3 c of milk)

Place meat mixture in a baking dish.

Pour cornbread mix over the meat mixture.

Bake at 350 until the cornbread is golden. ( that was about 20-25 minutes for me)

Take out of the oven, break up the cornbread and stir it together with the ground beef mixture.

Sprinkle over the casserole:

• shredded cheese of your choice (I used taco blend)

Place the casserole back into the oven to melt the cheese.

I served it with my typical sides of fresh fruit and carrot sticks for a meal that made everyone happy.

Enjoy!

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Easy Stroganoff

This is a favorite at our house.  We eat it at least once a month if not twice.  It is nice to have a recipe that makes everyone smile when they hear what you are making for dinner.  I remember “Mama Post”  had a great recipe for stroganoff. (Mama Post is the mother of my best friend from High School).  I’m sure my recipe doesn’t hold up to her’s but we love it at our house nonetheless.  I can’t believe that I have never posted this recipe but when I recently wrote on old favorites, I couldn’t find it in any search or tag.  It is a quick one to throw together.

In a large skillet cook:

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 medium chopped onion

Drain the beef and return to the skillet.

(Prepare your water to boil the egg noodles)

Stir into the skillet mixture:

• 2 Tablespoons of flour
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 4 oz can sliced mushrooms with the liquid (don’t drain)

Cook, stirring for 1 minute

Stir in

• 1 can cream of mushroom soup
• salt to taste

Simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

At this time cook your noodles in the water you have been bringing to a boil.

After the meat mixture has simmered 10 minutes, add:

• 8 oz sour cream

Heat through.

Mix noodles in or serve over the noodles.

I have used turkey rather than beef for this recipe several times and as long as I remember to season the turkey with salt and pepper while browning everyone is happy with it.

 

Don’t forget as you sit around the table to enjoy the time…don’t sit in silence or fuss about the day….enjoy each other!

 

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Lasagna In a Crockpot!

It is that time of year when schedules get busy with baseball games, recitals and such.  Remember it is important that you sit down as a family and eat together.  It doesn’t matter if it is a homemade meal or  a Voila! frozen dinner, what matters is that you take time to connect as a family around the dinner table as often as you can.  Slow Cooker recipes can be nice when things are rushed.  My cousin sent me this recipe a while back.  I finally got around to making it today and I said to Brad as I made it….well, it will either be good or it will be another failure as most of my recent “new recipes” have been.  I have been on a string of loser recipes lately!  This one was a winner.  It was easy and I love that I put it in the crockpot and it was ready for us after a long day of work.

Now there are a few things I would do differently.  I would add a can of tomato sauce to the spaghetti sauce and I would also pour another 8 oz can of tomato sauce over the top of the lasagna.  So that is how I will write the recipe below!

Crockpot Lasagna

Brown on stovetop:

• 1 lb of ground beef
• Add seasonings to taste- I added pepper, oregano, dried basil, and a few dashes of cinnamon.
• Add a small jar of mushrooms (optional)

Combine in a bowl:

• 1  28-ounce jar of your favorite spaghetti sauce
• 1/3 cup water
• 1 8-ounce jar of tomato sauce

Lightly grease the bottom of the crockpot/slow cooker.

Make one layer with the following:

• Uncooked lasagna noodles (I put one long one down the middle and then broke 2 or 3 more to place in this layer)
• Beef mixture
• Spaghetti sauce mixture
• Half of a 15 oz container of ricotta cheese
• 1 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese

Put one more layer using up the rest of the beef, sauce and ricotta cheese.

Then I ended with one last layer of noodles and more cheese.

Cover the last layer of noodles with (make sure the noodles are covered with sauce, otherwise they will be hard when you are ready to eat.  You can leave off this layer  of noodles if you want.)

• 1 8-ounce can of tomato sauce.

Cook on high for 1 hour and the low for 4 hours. (My cousin said she cooked her’s on low for 6 hours and all was fine)

Heather said to put four smiley faces on the recipe so I know she approved.  It really is just your lasagna recipe cooked in the slow cooker.  But I would have never thought to do it that way.  I love having another recipe to throw together early in the day and sit down later to a meal that everyone will enjoy.

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Quick to Fix- Hamburger, Cheddar Mac

What a beautiful day it was today.  I know it was just a tease of Spring as the 70 degrees today will be 40 degrees tomorrow, but I will take it!  I forgot how noisy it was to wear flip-flops as it has been so long since the weather was nice enough to pull out my favorite footwear.  The day just seemed to move so effortlessly—even dinner was a breeze.

This is one of those easy recipes that you most likely have the ingredients in your pantry already.  I had to make a few changes tonight….I realized after getting all the way through preparing dinner that my handsome fella had used all the cheddar cheese to make mac and cheese earlier in the week.  So we used mozzarella instead.  I prefer cheddar, but the mozzarella worked just fine.  The recipe also calls for tomato paste but when I don’t have any, I just use tomato sauce and it does the trick.

Hamburger, Cheddar Mac

Prepare per package directions:

• 1 1/2 c uncooked elbow macaroni

Heat pan over medium-high heat and brown:

• 1 lb ground beef

Remove the beef from the pan, drain and place aside.

Add to the pan to saute for about 2 minutes:

• 1 onion (about 1  to 1 1/2 cups)
• 2 to 3 garlic cloves, minced

Stir into the pan:

• 2 T of tomato paste (or 4-8 oz of tomato sauce)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 can diced tomatoes with green peppers and onions, undrained (our can also had celery in it)
• pepper the top of the mixture well, to taste.
• Add a pinch of salt

Cook this mixture, stirring occasionally, for about two minutes or until it begins to thicken.

Stir in:

• cooked macaroni
• cooked beef
• 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese

Cook until the cheese is melted.

 

The base for this recipe came from a Cooking Light magazine back in August of 2004—but I’ve tweaked it to the above and I’m sure the calories and fat data no longer match up with what was printed with it!

I hope you enjoy it—I had it on the table in about 35 minutes- start to finish…even with walking down to get my girls from the neighbor’s house where they were enjoying the warm weather day.

 

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