Wednesday, November 28, 2007

Quesdadillas

These are a favorite around here and they are super easy! Here are my basic recipes - not sure of the exact measurements, if you need more of an idea, just e-mail me or leave a comment. :)

Vegetarian:
Saute onions and assorted peppers in oil until crisp tender. Add one can of black beans (rinsed and drained), fresh lime juice, cumin, chili powder, and salt to taste; toss until heated through. Place lg. flour tortilla in a skillet (coated with nonstick cooking spray) - top 1/2 of the tortilla with some of the pepper mixture and as much cheese as desired (monterey jack, co-jack, or a mexican blend are really good!). Fold tortilla over and cook until slightly crispy - turning once. Cut into wedges and serve with guacamole, salsa, and sourcream.

Fajita:
Cut chicken breast into strips and cook thoroughly. Remove from skillet, add onions and peppers to skillet and saute until tender crisp, add chicken back to pan with fresh lime juice, cumin, chili powder, and salt to taste. Follow directions above.

Catherine's Sweet Potato Cranberry Streusel

This is so good! It's a great side dish; my family loves it!

One 49 ounce can of sweet potatoes, drained (I use fresh and mash them)
one bag of fresh cranberries, washed and drained and sort out the bad ones
one stick butter, melted
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup oatmeal
3/4 cup flour
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Combine brown sugar, oatmeal, flour, and cinnamon in a bowl. In a 2.5 quart casserole dish, combine sweet potatoes and cranberries with half of the sugar mixture. Combine the rest of the sugar mixture with the melted butter and put it on top of the sweet potato mixture. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until bubbly. You can also make this in a crockpot, as I found out yesterday, but mix it all up rather than putting some of the streusel on top because it won't get crispy anyway.

Orange Salad

This is my original recipe.

Mixed greens, baby romaine, or whatever lettuce you prefer
dried cranberries
fresh orange slices (I peel and cut into "wheel" shape slices)
toasted walnuts

Dressing:
2 parts olive oil to 1 part vinegar (I use an orange champagne vinegar), honey to taste

Monday, November 26, 2007

Spaghetti & Meatballs (from Micah)

This recipe was sent to me by a good friend of mine. She said it originally came from allrecipes.com. Thanks Micah!

Meatballs:

1 lb ground beef
1/2 C Italian bread crumbs
1 T dried parsley
1/2 C grated parmesan cheese
1/4 t black pepper
1/8 t garlic powder
2 eggs, beaten

Sauce:
3/4 C chopped onion
5 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 C olive oil
2 (28oz) cans whole peeled tomatoes (I've used fresh and they are really good too!)
2 t salt
1 t sugar
1 bay leaf
1 (6oz) can tomato paste
3/4 t dried basil
1/2 t pepper

Directions:In a large bowl, combine ground beef, bread crumbs, parsley, parmesan, 1/4 t pepper, garlic powder, and eggs. Mix well and form into balls. Store until needed.

In a large saucepan over medium heat, saute onion and garlic in olive oil until onion is translucent. Stir in tomatoes, salt, sugar, and bay leaf. Cover. Reduce heat to low and simmer 90 minutes. Stir in tomato paste, basil, 1/2 t pepper and meatballs and simmer 30 minutes more. Enjoy!

Sweet Potato Lentil Stew

This is originally from Fix-It and Forget-It Lightly - I've changed a few things. :)

4 c. vegetable or chicken broth
3 c. sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 ½ c. lentils, rinsed
3 med. sized carrots, chopped
1 med. onion, chopped
½ c. celery, chopped (opt.)
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 - 1 ½ tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. ground ginger
¼ tsp. cayenne pepper
1-2 tsp. salt
¼ - 1/2 c. minced fresh cilantro or parsley
Shredded Monterey Jack (opt.)

Combine the first eleven ingredients in slow cooker. Cook on low 5-6 hours or just until vegetables are tender. Stir in cilantro just before serving. Top with shredded monterey jack if desired.

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

Apple Ham Bake

This is from a TOH insert sent with one of their magazines.

3 med. tart apples, peeled & sliced
2 med. sweet potatoes, peeled & thinly sliced
3 c. cubed ham (fully cooked)
3 Tb. Brown sugar
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. pepper
¼ tsp. curry powder
2 Tb. Cornstarch
1/3 c. apple juice
1 c. pancake mix
1 c. milk
2 Tb. Butter
½ tsp. ground mustard

In lg. skillet, combine apples, sweet potatoes, ham, brown sugar, salt, pepper, and curry. Cook over medium heat until apples are crisp-tender; drain. Combine cornstarch and apple juice until smooth; stir into apple mixture. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 1-2 minutes or until mixture is thickened.

Transfer to a greased 2 qt. baking dish. Cover and bake at 375 degrees for 10 min. or until sweet potatoes are tender. Meanwhile, in a bowl whisk together pancake mix, milk, butter, and mustard; pour over ham mixture. Bake, uncovered, for 25-30 min. or until puffed and golden brown.

8 servings

Cran-Orange Streusel Muffins

This is recipe is from Light & Tasty - Dec./Jan. '07. I changed a few things to make it work for us.

1/4 c. butter, softened
1/2 c. sugar
1 egg
1 c. milk
1/4 c. oil
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 c. flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. fresh or frozen cranberries, chopped
2 1/2 tsp. grated orange peel

Streusel topping:
2 Tb. flour
2 Tb. brown sugar
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
2 Tb. cold butter

Beat butter and sugar until crumbly, about 2 min. Add egg; mix well. Beat in milk, oil, and vanilla. Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Stir into butter mixture just until moistened. Fold in cranberries and orange peel.

Fill greased muffin cups (or use papers) 3/4 full. Combine the topping ingredients and then cut in the butter. Sprinkle over batter.

Bake at 400 degrees for 18-22 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool for 5 min.

Peach-Stuffed French Toast

I found this recipe in my newest Light and Tasty - I adapted it slightly for our taste.

1 loaf french bread, cut into 20 slices
1 can (15 oz.) sliced peaches, drained and chopped
¼ c. chopped pecans
6 eggs
1 ½ c. milk
3 Tb. Sugar
1 ¼ tsp. cinnamon, divided
1 tsp. vanilla extract
¼ c. flour
2 Tb. Brown sugar
2 Tb. Cold butter
syrup, opt.

Arrange ½ the bread in a greased 9x13 dish. Top with peaches, pecans, and remaining bread.
Combine eggs, milk, sugar, 1 tsp. cinnamon, and vanilla; pour over bread. Cover and refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.
Remove from the refrigerator 30 min. before baking. Bake, uncovered at 400 degrees for 20 min.
Combine the flour, brown sugar, and remaining cinnamon; cut in butter until crumbly. Sprinkle over french toast. Bake 5-10 min. longer or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Serve with syrup if desired.

Monday, November 12, 2007

Sweet ‘n’ Tangy Pot Roast

I'm not sure where this recipe came from - maybe Taste of Home? This is AMAZING!

1 boneless beef chuck roast (3 lbs. or so)
½ tsp. salt
½ tsp. pepper
1 c. water
1 c. ketchup
¼ c . red wine or beef broth
1 envelope au jous
2 tsp. dijon mustard
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/8 tsp. garlic powder
3 Tb. cornstarch
¼ c. cold water

Cut meat in ½ and place in crockpot. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. In a bowl, combine the water, ketchup, wine or broth, gravy mix, mustard, worcestershire sauce, and garlic powder; pour over meat. Cover and cook on low for 9-10 hours or until meat is tender.

Combine cornstarch and cold water until smooth. Stir into slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 30 minutes or until gravy is thickened. Remove meat from slow cooker. Slice and serve with gravy.

Yield: 8 servings