Meatball Stew

You are going to look at this and see the herb pouch part , your nose is going to crinkle and you are going to think to yourself ... I dun wanna mess with that...BUT YOU DO AND YOU WILL!  It is not that hard and it makes all the difference in this dish. So straighten your " I am a cook" hat and let's do this.

 IF you do not have a handy dandy spice ball , pic below, then you get to be creative. I know you just LOVE being crafty in the kitchen and here are a few suggestions to give you a leg up on that.

- Cheesecloth of course , cut a square the size of your hand, place herbs in middle, tie that baby up into a nice little hobo pouch with string.
- This next one was used when we ran outa cheesecloth and worked very well I must say.... a couple emptied tea bags filled and tied closed. HEY when in need you go all Macgyver on it.

Just FYI remember when you are stirring this that you have a bundle of Herb Joy in there that needs to NOT get opened by assulting it with your spoon.... be gentle or the herb monster will bite you.

This is one of my families favorite fall stews.  It is hearty and is wonderful reheated.

If you want you can make your own meatballs... I of course have made this to be a quick and easy dish that feeds a team so I have used premade.

Meatball Stew

Ingredients

 

• 1 bag frozen meatballs , thawed ( can use all beef, italian or homestyle)
• 3 Tblsp EV Olive Oil
• 7 cups Beef Broth or Stock
• 2 cups Water
• 1/2 tsp Salt
• 1 small can Tomato Paste
• 1 cup Onion, Chopped
• 1 cup Carrots, Chopped
• 1 cup Celery, Chopped
• 1 cup Russet Potato with skin, cubed
• 1/2 pound Cabbage chopped into bite size pieces
• 2 cups Shredded Motzerella cheese  

        Herb pouch

• 4 Tblsp Fresh Parsley, Minced
• 2 whole Bay Leaves

Instructions

Gather 4 tablespoons parsley, bay leaves in a cheesecloth bundle or spice ball. Tie to secure.
In your skillet heat the olive oil over medium-low heat and briefly brown meatballs, then remove to a plate. This gives the meatballs a nice crust and texture for the stew.
To your stew pot add beef broth, water, salt, tomato paste, and herb bag. Bring this to a boil, then simmer 30 minutes.

To your pot now add onion, carrots, celery, and potatoes. Simmer 15 more minutes.

Now remove your herb pouch.

Add  the cabbage and meatballs. Bring to a boil, then simmer 8 to 10 minutes.

Serve with cheese sprinkled over the top. Also a nice crusty bread goes well with this.

 

 

 

Can not get enough Pumpkin Cobbler

Oh what a difference a day makes... 24 little hours. Yes I am singing. Why am I singing? Well is it not obvious? Summer is over and Oklahoma keeps getting these wonderful cold fronts that are just made for cups of coffee and warm fall desserts. This past weekend just happened to be my brothers birthday and he has the best request for his "cake"..... Pumpkin pie OR something that has pumpkin in it. Well if you read my blog ... and I know you do O.o , you know I am not a pastry chef and pie crust does not happen from scratch in my kitchen.... so Pie aint happening and I can not give him a store bought pie ... Noooooo! I have come across a few variations of this dessert and I have to say this is my favorite. It has a cobbler top so all the wonderful pumpkin is creamy and melt in your mouth on the bottom but the top has a buttery sweet slight crunch. Wonderful blend of the textures that are perfect for Autumn.

 

Pumpkin Cobbler

• 30 oz. of  solid Pumpkin , DO NOT USE PIE FLLING
• 3  large eggs
• 1½ cups  sugar
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon  salt
• 1 teaspoon  ginger
• ½ teaspoon  nutmeg
• 1 12 oz. can  evaporated milk
• 1 box yellow cake mix Dry
• 1/2 stick  butter, melted
• 2 Tblsp brown sugar

• Blend the first Eight ingredients on low spped with your mixter or by hand.
• Pour into greased 13x9  baking dish.
• Sprinkle dry cake mix evenly over top of pumpkin mixture.
• Drizzle melted butter over cake mix.
• Sprinkle brown sugar evenly over butter.

• Bake in 350F oven for about 1 hour and 20 minutes or until crust is golden brown.

         You can serve this warm with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

 

 

 

 

I have had my first Hooker moment!

I had 48 hours till the fall solstice and my daughters were already talking to me about the ideas they had for their Halloween costumes. All I could think about was how this year has flown by. Weren't we just watching money go up in the air and blow up into pretty bursts of sparkles? Now we are thinking about candy and turkey and ... OMG how many days do we have till Christmas??!!?? Yes time has flown by and that means one thing ......... I am getting old. No more years dragging on and the feeling of time to spare. Oh heck no! Valentines Day then ZOOOOOM " to old acquaintance be forgot". *sigh*

Now where was my train going? Oh ya! Costumes! Teh girls are going with a steam punk theme this year. I love that the girls coordinate their costumes. They have done it a few times and it is always so awesome. Beth will be Harliquin , not her sister LOL! and Harli will be Venus Mcflytrap who is like Ivy. Cool huh! I talked with them and got ideas on what they needed me to make and got started on the hats so we have time to find things to embellish them. Harli's was easy. I made it two tone green to give it a crushed velvet look from afar. Beth , oh boy I love her vision, I had to write a pattern for hers. I had to frog a few times but in the end I was VERY happy with it. I even posted it on my yarn Idol's facebook page AND guess what!!??!! He shared it and said it blew his mind!! I squeed when I saw this. * breaths *  One of my best Hooker moments! So you wanna see them?? Do ya do ya??

 

 

 
I can not wait to see what the girls do to embellish them. Next I make spats and corsets. Thank goodness they gave me a lot of time cause I have client orders AND a bazaar to get ready for. But I must remember that time flies. ZOOM!

Speaking of it is after 1am. EPPP! I am going to find my pillow.
Night my freaky darlings!! AND Happy Autumn Equinox!

Lasagna Soup

It is getting cooler outside and that means SOUPs and STEWs in our house. * Happy Dance * This is one of our favorites.

 

 

Ingredients :

• 1 lb ground beef 
• 1/2 an onion,diced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 tsp cheynne pepper
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 4 cups water ... (equalling 8 cups of fluid total)
• 14 ozs diced tomatoes
• 1 tbsp tomato paste
• 1/2 tsp oregano
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 lb pasta, I use radiatore pasta
• 2 cups shredded motzerella cheese for garnish

 

Directions :

• Brown ground beef in pan till no longer pink. Drain off fat.
• Add onion and saute until tender, about 5 min.
• To a stew pot add meat, onion, garlic, cheynne pepper, chicken broth, tomatoes, tomato paste, oregano, salt and pepper.
• Bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for 15 minutes ,  can simmer up to 45 min. 
• Add the pasta and cook until al-dente, remove from heat.

Serving :

 

Top each bowl with a small amount of motzerella cheese.

Slap my butt and call me Hestia

It was brought to my attention my children have not eaten a Gyro. I KNOW! How did this happen?? Well we live in a small town and the last time I saw a restaurant that sold Gyros was in the mall when I was in high school. We DO NOT need to do the math to figure how long it has been... we will leave it at it has been a while since we have had one here. o.O  I will one day get them the real deal but till then.....

I needed to fix this issue and fix it on a budget. Meaning I checked on what lamb costs and about passed out. So I did some research and found a possible solution. Now do not run away until you hear me out ok? ..... It is made with ground beef. Calm down calm down. I was VERY worried about how this was going to turn out until I tried it. It is a different texture of course but the flavor was very good. In fact we had NO leftovers it was so good. Was also told it was a do again meal FOR SURE. You know when I hear those words it was good.

So lets get our Greek on!

Ingredients for Tzatziki sauce :
8 ounces of plain Greek yogurt
1/3 c seeded cucumber, diced small
1 tsp onion powder
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp sugar

Ingredients for meat :
2.5 lb lean ground beef
2 tsp dried oregano
1.5 tsp garlic powder
1.5 tsp onion powder
1 tsp salt
3/4 teaspoon pepper

Toppings :
8 pita pockets OR flour tortillas
3 cups shredded lettuce
1 tomato, chopped
1 small onion, chopped

Directions:

•  In a bowl, combine first 5 ingredients. Cover and refrigerate.
•  In a separate bowl, combine ground beef and seasonings, Mix well. Allow the meat mixture to set in the fridge for 10 min. 
• set your oven to broil
•  Shape into 8  oval patties about 1/4 inch thick
•  Line a jelly roll pan with foil and cook in oven for 10 min , flipping them over once.
•  Cut patties into thin strips

Top with lettuce , tomatoes, onions. Drizzle Tzatziki sauce over top.

Serves 8

 


Serve with suggestions : Steamed zucchini , squash and carrots OR fried zucchini and squash to dip into Tzatziki sauce. YUM!

It's getting hot in here

Happy almost hump day my freaky darlings.

We got a cool front here in Oklahoma and it resulted in rain this eve!! It has been so nice in the house and the AC has not had to hardly run all day. LOVED IT! Now I am waiting with baited breath for Thursday and the 100% chance of rain it has. Speaking of ... My heart goes out to all those effected by the flooding in Colorado. I love the rain but not when it causes lives to be lost. :(

 

 

.......

 

 

So guess what I did today? I felt it was BRAVE and DARING and like living LIFE ON THE EDGE!!!!        ....

I turned the oven to burn that sh*t level. *flexes and grunts*

 

Something I normally do not do is turn the oven up above 375. Like honestly how many meals call for anything above that? No I do not need you to name 5 for me. *stinks toungue out in a bratty mannor*  ... so ya ... Normally anything higher is just to broil it for 3 to 5 min and I have a setting for that. Well with the possibility of rain and the stupid mosquitoes outside, I was not feeling the "Get ya Grill on"  like I normally would with the meal I had planned.... So what did I do?? Oh YA BABY  I cranked that oven to 450 and we roasted potatoes,onions and sausage indoors. Oh ya I was scared but I was living on the "that is really hot adrinaline". In the back of my mind I just knew we would have raw potatoes and charcoal brackets for meat. I was terrified we would be eating cheese sammiches for dinner not the yummy goodness known as smoked sausage. Once again I was wrong. The potatoes were perfect , the meat and onions had just the right amount of char on it to make it taste like it was grilled outside. I am totally bummed there were NO left overs to have for lunch tomorrow. Dang bottomless pits I call kids. LOL!

 

 Now this isn't a gourmet meal and there is not much to it. Just remember you CAN do this as long as you check on it in 15 min intervals if you are affraid of catching your kitchen on fire like I am...or 20 if you feel like Super Chef. But no matter what please check on this meal at this temp cause everyones oven is different and your oven may cause for a lower cook time... or more ya never know.

 

 

•  cut 5lbs of potaotes into 1/4 inch circles
•  cut two onions in half and then into 4 wedges
• cut 3 lbs of smoked sausage into smaller links , mine were about 2 inches in length cause I am sneaky and it looks like you have alot of meat on your plate with a large amount of veggies. 
• In a small bowl I mixed the sauce
• 2 tsp of garlic powder
• 2 Tbsp of EVOO or Canola oil
• 1/3 c apple cider vinegar
• 1/2 c beef broth
• salt and pepper to taste

 

As you can see by the picture I goofed but YOU are going to pile just the veggies onto 2 foiled and cooking sprayed Jelly roll pans. It is so close to being a hot mess now.....literally.

Once I had it spred out evenly on the 2 pans I drizzled the "suace" evenly over both pans. Let this cook in your 450 degree oven for 20 min then add the meat to the top and cook for an additional 25 min. CHECKING on it at the 15 min mark. The meat is going to have crisp edges and the onions as well. You can add your sausage at the begining but I was really lucky we were checking it cause it could have gone way wrong way fast.

 

I served this with BBQ sauce to dip in but you can eat it nakie it is so good.

 

Hope you enjoy and feel like an indoor roasting rebel like I do!!

 

 

 

Fastest dessert ever made

Need something quick for dessert? Do you have a cake mix and a can of fruit or pie filling in your pantry? Then you are going to be ok just follow these easy instructions.


 Use your brain ... most cake mixes will go with canned fruit... like strawberry cake and pears OR chocolate and fruit cocktail OR white cake and pineapple. If the combos sound like something you would enjoy then they should turn out ok ... if they sound like something you would not like then do not combine them.
Now when you mix your cake you might try including the fluid or juice from the can into your water amount the mix calls for. Also remember that you can use applesauce in place of oil to help make it have fewer calories. NOTE You will not be able to use the liquid from pie filling as part of your water the mix calls for due to it being a filling consistency.
Once your cake mix is made pour it into a cooking sprayed 13x9 dish.
Using a spoon drop the fruit evenly into the batter.
Bake according to cake mix directions

TADA a yummy dessert that did not take a lot of prep. PLUS you don't have to frost it! If you really want you can dust with powdered sugar but the fruit will add a sweetness on its own.

Oh also serving it warm is another treat or with a scoop of ice cream... wait that adds calories. Oh well just this once ... I won't tell.

 

My picture is of a spice cake with apple pie filly.

I think I am in love with our weatherman

Seriously what are the sexiest words I have been dieing to hear for a long time now?? Oh I know you know for I am betting , if I had any extra cash to bet that is, that you have all been waiting to hear them too. " summer heat looks to be a behind us." I swear on a cupcake if I could have crawled through my tv I would have placed a passionate kiss square on the lips of David Payne. Just the idea of not hitting 100 degrees has me all tingly inside. Ok well maybe the thought of not paying for the bought cold air has me tingly but either way it has me singing HaLaJaLuYa!!! So now you know why I think I am in love with our weatherman...or at least his good news.

So my freaky darlings what did you do this weekend? I cooked , finished two sets of wristers, made some progress on my Spin Me Right Round lapghan and had a small mental meltdown. I was due for one I guess.Yes my darlings it was over something not worthy. Just the stress of summer finally overflowed and came out in the form of anger and a fit. In other words the end result was me acting like a small child for a short while. I know you can relate. Sometimes we adult/mothers/parents just pack away stress and frustration a little too much and forget to release the pressure valve till Opps explosion.I am much better.... today. LOL! You think that maybe if I had gotten that kiss I would have been WAY better? * wicked evil grin *

So anywho here I sit. Posted three new dinner idea blogs so far and decided to write my update while I hear snoring from the bed. i also wanted to share my fail from this weekend. Besides my meltdown fail. * sticks tongue out *   Soooooo

As most of you know we are the biggest no bake cookie fans.... and we are tight on budget still * thank you summer * and if there is not something in house that cures sweet teeth all heck breaks loose. Well I had everything in house to make these awesome little oat filled noms and was excited to not have to buy a sweet this week. So Saturday afternoon Dragon and I make up a double batch like we always do BUT something is not right. It is gooey. Like way gooey. Like what the heck am I to do to fix this gooey. So we read the receipt three times each, like it is an exam paper we have to make an "A" on.Hmmm no we did this...ya we put all that in there....ya we boiled it for so long. What in the world!!! UGH! Ok so get the jelly roll pans out and let's see if this works. We can just make em into bars. Fast Forward to today.... ohhh they are awesome when you scoop some up with a spoon but oh heck no did they set up. AHHH! So I decide to go with my dream... yes I come up with my best stuff when I am asleep.... COCONUT!! Dragon removes the gooey oats from one pan with a spatula and puts it into a bowl and I stir in the flakes. It worked some what....ohhh shoot I forgot to tell you that I am out of oats. HAHA that would help you understand the story more huh. Opps! So I spoon the now Mound-ish no bake cookies onto more wax paper to be placed into the fridge again. Yes of course I tried one..pshhh like I would have let my dream go untasted. They are good like the candy bar. *grin* So now I look to Dragon who is protecting the other pan of gooey oat mess with his life. "Hun ... what are you going to do... eat it like a dip?" He looks at me and answers ..."If I have to yes but you aren't ruining them with that coconut." He hates flaked coconut... only fresh for him.  A light bulb goes off in my head just then and I turn to my youngest who has been watching this whole time.... In an excited tone I say, " Harli go see if Nana has some instant oatmeal in her lunch bag from school". I now have my fingers crossed. Harli returns with TWO original oatmeal packets. NANA to the rescue!!! I add them to the gooey mixture that dragon has repeated the spatula process on and I spoon cookies onto wax paper again. After the containers are placed in the fridge I sit back in my kitchen chair and sigh ...looking over towards the bakers rack where the kool aid containers sit....OH EM GEE!! What do I freaken see?? A brand freaken new container of OATS!! Well I guess we have some for next time now. UGH!  Oh and I still have no idea why they refused to set up all the way. *shrugs*  Or who put the Oat container with the kool aid containers. The cookies are still soft set and the fam don't care one bit that they are tasty little soft piles of oaty gooey cookie. LOL!


 
Well my freaky darlings I better get my rump to bed. I have class and more crocheting to do for the Bazaar. Happy Monday to you all!

Roast beef Yum

I know you all have seen the Hawaiian roll ham sliders by now. If not do a search for them and try them they are OH SO GOOD. Anywho Dragon and I wanted to use a different kind of meat and well it is kinda different all around. The only thing it has in common is it is made with meat , cheese and is slider style. From our test cook we learned that we needed to down size the amount of au ju and add a lot more onions but other then that they were yummy. Plus who does not love a meal that is ready to go the next day?? So my freaky darlings I give you.....


Dinner Roll Roast Beef Yum 

Ingredients-

24 premade dinner rolls
1 lb roast beef slice thin
12 slices Swiss cheese
2 onions sliced into rings
2 1/2 sticks butter
1 cup beef broth or au ju


Instructions-

In a saute pan melt 1/2 stick butter. Add onions and cook till caramelized.Set aside
Melt 2 sticks of butter into 1 cup of beef broth heat to bubbly. Set aside 
Cut rolls in half horizontally and place bottom half of rolls ( a dozen per dish) into a 13x9 dish that has been sprayed with cooking spray.
Layer the sliced roast beef and sliced cheese evenly on top of rolls
Spread onions evenly between the two dishes
Place the top halves of the rolls into the dish, making a sandwich.
Ladle the butter beef broth sauce evenly on top of the rolls.
Cover dishes with foil or plastic wrap and let sit in the fridge over night.
The next day place dishes into a preheated 350 degree oven and let cook for 25 min.


serves 8 ( 3 sliders each )

Serve with ideas:  potato or three bean salad or baked fries  YUM!

 

 

 

 

Mixed Berries French Toast bake

Harli picked this meal this week. Right before I started prepping it she asked if I had ever shared it on my blog. So I learned she likes cooking for the blog. I totally will take that as long as she keeps being my beautiful assistant.
 
This is awesome and is prepped the night before. Perfect for pot luck brunches, holiday mornings and of course DINNER! We loves us some breakfast for dinner. How about you?
 
Some side notes to keep in mind. i have been buying most my spices from the dollar store and this past month found that our store has a fridge section that is freshly stocked on a reg basis. guess what we found there... the mixed fruit! AND it was just as good as the mixed fruit at the grocery store except for one thing..... it cost me a buck a bag not almost four per bag. * happy budget dance time* So check your local dollar store and see what they carry to see if you too can stretch your budget even further.

 

Mixed Berries French Toast Bake

 

 

Ingredients-

 

• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 1/2 cups milk
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 6 eggs
• 2 loaves of french bread cut into 1" cubes
• 2 package (8oz) cream cheese cut into 1/2" cubes
• 2 bags frozen mixed berries, thawed
• powdered sugar, if desired
• berry or maple syrup, if desired

 

 Instructions-

• Spray a  9x13 dish with butter cooking spray.
• Beat flour, milk, sugar, vanilla, salt, and eggs in a large bowl.
• Place 3/4 the cubed bread into dish.
• Top evenly with cream cheese and berries.
• Pour egg mixture over bread,berries and cream cheese evenly
• Cover and refrigerate at least 4 hours or overnight.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Uncover and bake 25 minutes or until golden brown.
• Sprinkle with powdered sugar if desired.
• Serve with maple syrup or fruit syrup.

 

 

Chicken Bacon Panch Pasta

Hello my freaky darlings! I have another yummy dinner to share with you tonight. The reason I was drawn to this idea is because we are all addicted to chicken bacon ranch pizza. I started ordering this due to two members of the family who did better tummy wise with white sauce pizza but I quickly found out that ordering one was causing my family of 7 to fight over who got to have a 2nd slice and who would be left making due with pepperoni. So I saw this share the other day on ... you guessed it... Pinterest and in true Christi fashion made some changes to it to of course make it more affordable AND quicker. The original idea was cubed chicken and bacon which equal cook time and ,in the case of bacon prices right now ,expensive. I also happened upon a new Alfredo that meant totally being able to omit the bacon all together. I know I might have gotten struck by lightening for even typing that but it is the truth. I do not recommend bacon bits because it just does not work as far as texture profile... too many hard lumps. If you can not find the Alfredo sauce I did and need to add bacon I suggest the real deal, cooking it and crumbling it into small peices NOT tiny ones.

 

 So with out further ado.....

 
 
Chicken Bacon Ranch Pasta
 

Ingredients

 

• 2 lb. shredded chicken OR 1 rotisserie chicken,butter or orig flavor
• 2 tablespoons of ranch seasoning
• 1 cup onion mix (bell peppers,onion,parsley)
• 2 clove garlic, minced
• 2 lb. bow tie pasta, cooked al dente
• 2 jars Savory Bacon Prago Alfredo Sauce
• 1/3 cup milk
• 1 can diced tomatoes
• 4 cups shredded Italian style cheese blend

 

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees
• Cook pasta in a stock pot
• Shred chicken into a medium sized bowl, coat with the ranch seasoning. 
• Saute onion mix and garlic in a pan for 3 min to wake up the flavors.
• Add the veggies to the chicken and toss  with tongs to mix
• Spray two 13x9 baking dishes with cooking spray and place a spoonful of the Alfredo Sauce in each one.
• Begin the layers.Trying for 2 layers in each pan. Layer pasta, chicken, tomatoes and a laddle of sauce ( about a 1/3 of the jar will be used in layers rest is for the top).Sprinkle a small handful of cheese and repeat two more times ending with pasta.
• Cover with Alfredo Sauce and then remaining cheese evenly over the two dishes.
• Bake for 30 minutes

Of course this feeds 8 with leftovers for lunch