Beef Stroganoff

I decided to make this last week when my husband and I realized that we were getting rather sick of chicken. I knew this would be something my husband would like, so I thought I'd give it a try. I knew this wouldn't be the most elegant of meals, but I was hoping it would have some flavor at least!

I chose this particular recipe because it didn't have a can of cream of who knows what soup in it, which I'm personally not a huge fan of. Overall this was a great recipe. Yeah, it was perhaps one of the ugliest meals I've made, but it was good! And it was a definite husband pleaser!!! Homey, comforting, and hearty - this is a great fall/winter meal.

Ingredients
Adapted from Allrecipes.com

1 pound ground beef
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 (4.5 ounce) can mushrooms, drained (I omitted)
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon mustard powder
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/2 cup beef broth
2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce (I added this)
1 (8 ounce) package wide egg noodles
salt
pepper

Directions

Break up ground meat into a large skillet and brown until cooked through. Drain off excess fat. Add onion, mushrooms, garlic powder, and mustard powder. Cook and stir over medium heat until the onion is tender.

In a small bowl, combine sour cream, mayonnaise, Worcestershire sauce and beef broth. Stir into beef mixture, and cook over low heat for 10 to 15 minutes. Do not stir too much. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Meanwhile, cook pasta in a large pot of boiling water until done. Drain. Serve sauce over hot noodles.

Steak & Guinness Pie

I decided to try and make my husband an Irish meal for St. Patrick's Day this year. I'm not Irish at all, but he is. Neither of us like the traditional St. Patrick's day fare of "Corned Beef & Cabbage" so I went on the hunt for a meal with Guinness. He likes Guinness to drink, and I like it to cook with. So when I found Jamie Oliver's recipe I thought it looked like a winner.

Besides the fact that this isn't the prettiest meal I've made, it was certainly delicious. I swapped out the puff pastry for my pie dough because my husband requested it that way (he loves my pie dough) and added a few more carrots and celery then what was called for. But besides that, I followed the recipe as it was. I have to say, when I saw that the recipe called for cheese I was a little hesitant but it added SO much complexity and depth of flavor. I absolutely loved the cheese in it. I got an imported Irish Stout cheese and it was very strong, but lent itself perfectly to this pie. This was a meal my husband and I both loved and I'm pretty sure I'll be making it again next year!
Ingredients
Adapted from: Jamie Oliver

olive oil
3 medium red onions, peeled and chopped
3 cloves of garlic, peeled and chopped
30g butter, plus extra for greasing (This is 2 tablespoons)
2 carrots, peeled and chopped (I used 4 small carrots)
2 sticks of celery, trimmed and chopped (I used 2 sticks)
4 field mushrooms, peeled and sliced (I omitted)
1kg brisket of beef or stewing beef, cut into 2cm cubes (I used venison)
a few sprigs of fresh rosemary, leaves picked and chopped
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 x 440ml can of Guinness (no lager, please!)
2 heaped tablespoons plain flour
200g freshly grated Cheddar cheese (I used Kerrygold Dubliner with Irish stout cheese)
500g best-quality ready-made all-butter puff pastry (I used 1 recipe Pie Dough)
1 large free-range or organic egg, beaten
Directions

Preheat the oven to 190ºC/375ºF/gas 5. In a large ovenproof pan, heat a glug of olive oil on a low heat. Add the onions and fry gently for about 10 minutes – try not to colour them too much. Turn the heat up, add the garlic, butter, carrots and celery and scatter in the mushrooms. Mix everything together before stirring in the beef, rosemary, a pinch of salt and a level teaspoon of pepper.

Fry fast for 3 or 4 minutes, then pour in the Guinness, stir in the flour and add just enough water (I used about 2.5 cups) to cover. Bring to a simmer, cover the pan with a lid and place in the preheated oven for about 1½ hours. Remove the pan from the oven and give the stew a stir. Put it back into the oven and continue to cook it for another hour, or until the meat is very tender and the stew is rich, dark and thick. A perfect pie filling needs to be robust, so if it’s still quite liquidy, place the pan on the hob and reduce until the sauce thickens. Remove from the heat and stir in half the cheese, then season carefully and leave to cool slightly.

Cut about a third of the pastry off the block (or half of the pie dough). Dust a clean work surface with flour and roll both pieces of pastry out evenly with a floured rolling pin to the thickness of a pound coin. Butter a deep pie dish, then line with the larger sheet, leaving the edges dangling over the side. Tip the stew into your lined dish and even it out before sprinkling over the remaining cheese. Brush the edges of the pastry with a little beaten egg.

Cut the other rolled sheet of pastry to fit the top of the pie dish and criss-cross it lightly with a sharp knife. Place it over the top of the pie and fold the overhanging pastry on to the pastry lid to make it look nice and rustic. Brush the top with beaten egg, then bake the pie directly on the bottom of the oven for 45 minutes, until the pastry is cooked, puffed and golden. Delicious served simply with peas.

Julia Child's Beef Bourguignon

Confession: I decided I wanted to make this after having watched the movie Julie & Julia. After seeing this movie, I was totally inspired to make a Julia Child's recipe since I've never done so and the beef bourguignon looked like something I could actually handle.

This was simply really, really, really good beef stew (well, in my case a venison stew since I used venison). It was certainly much more complex then the beef stew that I usually make in the crock pot. It required careful timing and a good deal of prep work, but it certainly was a very manageable recipe. But I honestly have to say that my favorite part of the whole recipe was the brown braised onions. OH MY GOSH. Amazing is all I have to say. Those onions were melt in your mouth, perfectly cooked, flavorful perfection. I found myself picking the onions out of the stew to eat them by themselves. Yum.

But this really was a great recipe. I had a lot of fun making it, especially knowing how many other people have made it before me. Oh, and of course I skipped the mushrooms in this. Because we all know how I feel about mushrooms.

I found the link to the recipe on Pantry Raid and instead of typing the whole thing out, I'll just link you to the PDF so you can see the recipe right out of the book, and so I don't mess anything up by typing it. Enjoy!

Julia Child's Beef Bourguignon

Brown Braised Onions

Individual Beef Wellingtons

Beef wellington is hands down my favorite food ever. Well, after Escargots but I don't consider escargots a real "meal" so I think Beef Wellington can take the prize (in this post at least). After I first tried Beef Wellington at a very nice local restaurant in my early teens I soon became addicted and ordered it whenever it was on the menu at whatever restaurant I went to. I still do, actually. But for the longest time it was never something I thought of to make at home. I always thought of it as a very special meal that I'd order out. However, last year for Christmas I said enough's enough and decided to try my hand at making it myself and it came out great! Last year I made it with venison and this year I made it with beef and really the beef is better in my opinion, but both versions were just wonderful.

So here is the recipe I use. I've made some changes to it. Mainly because I can't bring myself to buy mushrooms for the top. When they are already in there at the restaurant that's fine because I honestly can't taste them, but when I actually cook, cut or even touch them and have to smell them it makes me want to vomit so I just don't bring mushrooms into my home. Period.

Also, the first year I made this I used the pate but for some reason this year I couldn't find it at the store so I just left it out. I liked it with the pate but honestly I didn't really miss not having it either. So it's up to you whether you want to use it or not.

The reason I chose to make this recipe in the first place is because I love beef wellington when the pastry wraps the whole filet of beef. I am most definitely a puff pastry fan so the more pastry you give me the better! So even though I made some changes to this recipe, I do like it as a starting point and it really is a simple recipe to follow and one that will surly wow your guests.

Ingredients
Adapted from Rachel Ray

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, 1 turn of the pan, plus extra for drizzling
1 tablespoon butter
1 shallot, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced (I add this)
3-4 springs flat leave parsley, finely chopped (I add this)
2 slices of bacon, chopped (I add this)
1/2 pound button mushrooms and stems, cleaned and finely chopped in food processor (I omit these)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons dry cooking sherry, 2 splashes (I omit this)
4 tournedos of beef filet mignon, 1-inch thick
8 ounces mousse pate, available in specialty cheese and appetizer cases of larger markets (Optional)
1 sheet frozen prepared puff pastry, 11 by 17, defrosted
1 egg, beaten with a splash of water
Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Heat a small skillet over medium heat. Add oil, butter, shallot and chopped mushrooms. Season mushrooms with salt and pepper and saute 5 minutes. Add sherry to the mushrooms and let the liquid evaporate. Remove mushrooms from the heat. (I skip this step entirely)

In a small pan over medium heat, add bacon and cook until crispy. Put cooked bacon on a paper towl to drain off the fat, and put the bacon in a small bowl. Add shallots, garlic and parsely. Mix together and set aside (This can be done in advance and put in the refrigerator). This is a step that I add.

In a nonstick skillet over high heat, sear meat 2 minutes on each side in a drizzle of oil. Remove skillet from the heat and season meat with salt and pepper.

Cut mousse into 4 pieces, 2 ounces each sliced in 1/2 horizontally. Spread the puff pastry sheet out on to a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper. Quarter the dough with a sharp knife. Roll each piece of dough into a 10 by 6-inch rectangle. On each rectangle of dough, place 1/4 of the cooked mushrooms. I omit the mushrooms but add the bacon and shallot mixture instead. Top mushrooms (or shallot mixture) with 2 ounces pate (if using) and 1 tournedo of beef. Wrap dough up and over the meat. Seal the dough with egg wash and trim excess. Use leftover dough bits to make decorative garnishes for the tops of your Wellingtons. Turn the wrapped Wellingtons over and cover with egg wash using a pastry brush. Affix dough garnishes with egg wash. For a simple decoration, roll dough bits into a long, thin spaghetti like string and make swirls on each Wellington. Bake beef Wellingtons 10 minutes or until golden (I usually keep it in the oven longer then 10 minutes...more like 15-20). Let stand 5 minutes, then serve with au jus or gravy.

Roast Beef with Yorkshire Pudding

I chose to make this dish for Christmas dinner this year. My in laws and brother in law came over, and I was really brainstorming for a meal that would be impressive without being too time consuming so I wouldn't have to be a slave to the kitchen. I found this in a cookbook and thought it would be perfect and it truly was.

The beef was incredible...tender, flavorful and delicious. The Yorkshire pudding came out great...perfect texture and flavor and it rose nice and high in the oven like a big popover which made for a lovely presentation.

The introduction to this recipe in my cookbook truly says it best... "This is the perfect recipe for the first holiday feast you host as a married couple. It's impressive, but it's also extremely easy to prepare..."

This was definitely a winner in my book and truly impressed my husband and guests.

(Oh and I apologize for the quality of the photos...people were ready to eat!)

Ingredients
Source: Williams-Sonoma Bride & Groom Cookbook, page 98

For the roast beef:
5 lb beef rip or sirloin tip roast (I used a 6 lb. rib roast, bone in)
2 1/2 tsp. kosher salt
freshly ground pepper

For the Yorkshire pudding:
2 large eggs
1 1/4 cups milk
3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp. flour
pinch of kosher salt

Directions
One day before serving, season the roast with the salt and pepper to taste. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Let the roast sit at room temperature to temper for 1-2 hours before roasting. This will help the meat cook more evenly.

To roast the beef, preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place beef in a large roasting pan and place in oven (I placed my beef on a wire rack in the roasting pan so I'd have better access to the pan juices while basting). Roast for 15 minutes and then lower the heat to 375 degrees. Continue roasting, basting the meat frequently with the pan juices, until an instant read thermometer inserted into the center of the roast away from the bone registers 135 degrees for medium rare (we left it in until it reached about 145 degrees as all of our guests preferred their meat to be medium), about 1 1/4 hours (for a 5lb roast). Also remember that the temperature of the meat will continue to rise outside of the oven. If using a boneless roast, start checking temperature a little earlier. When the roast reaches the desired temperature, transfer it to a carving board and let rest, loosely covered with foil, for 30 minutes. This allows time for the juices to distribute evenly throughout the meat and makes carving easier. Reserve the roasting pan with the drippings and keep the oven on. While the roast rests, make the Yorkshire pudding.

To make the Yorkshire pudding, place a 9 inch cast iron frying pan or Pyrex pie dish (I used the pie dish) in the oven to preheat. Meanwhile in a bowl, whisk the eggs and milk together until well blended. Add the flour a little at a time and continue to whisk constantly until smooth. The batter should have the consistency of heavy cream. Add the salt. Remove the pan from the oven and transfer 2 tbsp of beef fat from the roasting pan into the frying pan. To do this, tilt the roasting pan and spoon off the clear fat from the brown drippings. Pour the batter into the pan with the fat and place the pan in the oven (keeping the oven temperature at 375 degrees). Bake until the pudding is puffy and crisp, about 25 minutes. Cut the pudding into wedges and serve at once with slices of roast beef.

Brie Cheese and Roast Beef Panini

When my mom and I visited one of our favorite restaurants for lunch, I decided to try the special of the day. A roast beef panini with brie cheese and caramelized onions on sourdough bread. After the first bite, I was in panini heaven. The tender beef, soft onions and melty brie cheese all harmonized in one truly amazing panini. As soon as I finished it I knew I had to make it for my husband. It's really an easy panini to make and results in a great and hearty lunch.

Ingredinets
Adapted from one of my favorite restaurants

4 slices sourdough bread (for 2 sandwiches)
1 small onion, sliced
aprox. 1/2 circle brie cheese cut into think chunch and with the rind removed
thinly sliced roast beef
aprox. 1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
pinch of sugar
butter, softened

Directions
In a small saucepan over medium heat, add about 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil. Add onions and a pinch of sugar. Cook for about 10-20 minutes, stirring frequently, until onions are wilted and caramelized. Set aside.

Butter 1 side of each piece of bread, and on the other side add roast beef, caramelized onions and pieces of brie cheese. Add as much as you want to each sandwich. Top with other slice of bread, buttered side out.

Place each sandwich on a preheated panini maker, and cook for about 5-10 minutes, until the outside of the sandwich is golden brown. Remove, and using a serated knife cut sandiwich on an angle. Serve hot, and with horseradish if desired.

Taco Dip

This is a recipe I learned from my favorite aunt, who makes it for every family function! Let me just say that this is always a huge hit. You will find that you have to start doubling the recipe just to keep people happy! It's perfect for making ahead of time (which is always important for big gatherings) and it's really quite addicting!!! This appetizer is delicious and crowd pleasing!

Ingredients
Source: My favorite Aunt

1 8 oz. block of cream cheese, softened ( you can use reduced fat)
1 16 oz. container sour cream (you can use light)
1 lb. ground beef
1 package of taco seasoning
1 small jar of taco sauce (whatever heat you want)
1 bag of Mexican shredded cheese
shredded lettuce
chopped tomatoes
tortilla chips

Directions
In a medium skillet, cook ground beef over medium high heat until cooked through and thoroughly crumbled. Add taco seasoning packet with the amount of water directed on the back of the package. Set aside to cool.

In a large bowl or in the bowl of your stand mixer, add sour cream and cream cheese. Blend together thoroughly (I find that using the whisk attachment on your Kitchen Aid mixer works the best).

Spread cream cheese/sour cream mixture on the bottom of a 13x9 baking dish or pan. Spread taco sauce over that, and the ground beef mixture over that, creating even layers. Top with shredded cheese, then lettuce then tomatoes. Serve with tortilla chips. Enjoy!

Bacon Wrapped Filet Mignon with Bearnaise Sauce

Sounds fancy, right? Actually this is so simple to make I'm almost embarrassed blogging about it. Honestly, I don't eat much steak. It's always so tough and dry, especially when my husband makes it on the grill (sorry honey, but it's true). The only cut of beef I really like is the filet, so for our anniversary I thought I'd give my husband a treat and make him a steak my way (no grills involved). I've seen the Food Network chefs make it before, so I didn't bother to look at a recipe. Looking back, this was probably stupid...thank goodness it worked out! But this came out just like how you get it at a restaurant. Fork tender delicious melt in our mouth filet. And now that I know how easy this is to make, I think I'll treat us with it more often!

I really had to get creative with the bearnaise sauce recipe since I pretty much didn't have any of the main ingredients at home! But it worked out and the sauce turned out great (even though I don't know how true to the actual flavor of bearnaise it was!) It was perfect with the filet!

Ingredients
2 servings of beef tenderloin (filet mignon) between 6 and 8 oz. each
4 slices bacon
salt
pepper
extra virgin olive oil

For the Bearnaise Sauce
Adapted from Martha Stewart

1 shallot, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons dried tarragon (Unfortunately when I got home I realized I didn't have any tarragon, so I used herbes de provance instead! It still tasted great!)
2/3 cup white-wine vinegar (Again, I didn't have any of this. So I used 1/3 cup white wine and 1/3 cup white vinegar!)
4 large egg yolks (I only had 3 so I used them!)
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
Coarse salt

Directions
Let the beef come up to room temperature and season with salt and pepper on both sides. Pour extra virgin olive oil into a large skillet so it completely coats the bottom. Heat on medium high until almost smoking, and then add the beef. Cover and sear for about 3-4 minutes. Turn beef over and sear the other side for another 3-4 minutes, or until browned to your liking. Remove from pan and cover with foil. Let sit for a few minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with foil and cover with non stick spray, set aside. Wrap 2 slices of bacon around each filet, and secure the bacon to itself (do not poke holes in your beef!) with a toothpick. Place beef on the top rack of your oven and bake until beef is cooked to your liking. For us (our steaks were about 6 oz.) this took 15 minutes for medium, and 20 minutes for medium well. Let sit for about 5 minutes before cutting into it.

While letting the steaks cook in the oven, you can make the bearnaise sauce. In a small saucepan, bring shallot, tarragon, and vinegar to boil over medium. Cook until liquid reduces to 2 tablespoons, about 4 minutes; strain. Rinse pan; return mixture to pan. Whisk together egg yolks and 2 tablespoons water. Add to pan. Cook over low, whisking, until mixture thickens and forms thick ribbons when lifted with whisk, 3 to 4 minutes. Gradually whisk in butter (if sauce bubbles at any time, remove from heat, and whisk in a piece of butter). Continue whisking until all butter is incorporated, about 3 minutes. Transfer to a bowl. Season with salt.

Brown Sugar Glazed Meatloaf

Last weekend I was totally uninspired to make anything great for my Sunday Night dinner. I usually try and make something new and exciting on Sunday nights, but really couldn't think of anything. So I looked around at what I had and just decided to make a meatloaf, but I wanted to try a new version. So I went online and found this recipe, had everything, and made it.

All I can say is WOW was this good!!! My husband thinks it's the best meatloaf he's ever had and he's a man who loves his meatloaf! I totally agree, this was a great meatloaf. I like it because it was different in a really good way. It's not the meatloaf your grandmother made! (Well, maybe yours did, but mine didn't)! The only thing I'll change next time is I'll add a 1/2 tsp. of ginger, just because I felt like you couldn't really taste it with just 1/4 tsp and I love ginger!

Ingredients
Adapted from AllRecipes.com

1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup ketchup
1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef (I used ground venison)
3/4 cup milk (I used about 1/2 cup)
2 eggs (I used 1 whole egg and 1 egg white)
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 small onion, chopped
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
3/4 cup finely crushed saltine cracker crumbs (I used Reduced fat Ritz and also some breadcrumbs because I didn't think there was enough dry ingredients with just the crackers)
2-3 cloves garlic, minced (I added this)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease a standard loaf pan.

In a large bowl, mix together Beef, milk, eggs, salt, pepper, onion, garlic, ginger and cracker crumbs. Using your hands, mix everything together until thoroughly combined. Press into your loaf pan.

In a small bowl mix together brown sugar and ketchup until thoroughly combined. Drizzle over the top of the meatloaf until the loaf is completely coated with the glaze.

Cover with foil and bake for 1 hour. (after the first 40 minutes of cooking, you can remove the foil and then cook for an additional 20 minutes). Enjoy!

Venison Stew

This is one of the few things I make with my Crockpot. I rarely use my crockpot at all, but it's perfect for stew! My husband and I make this a lot during hunting season, but on Sunday we both really had a taste for it. It fills your house with such a heavenly aroma, that by dinner time your mouth is watering! So this is "our" recipe, we've been making it for years now and never really had an actual recipe, but I think it's pretty darn great! And again, you can sub beef for venison but we personally love the flavor the venison brings. And because we don't have a "real" recipe for this, all measurements are aproximate. We usually just throw in "a little of this" and "a little of that" and it works well!

Ingredients
Aprox. 1-2 lb. venison stew meat
1 large onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
3 celery stalks, chopped
2 carrots chopped, or a few handfuls of baby carrots
2-3 potatoes, roughly chopped
1 Beef Stew seasoning packet (we usually use McCormick)
1 32 oz. carton of beef broth (we use Swanson)
Aprox. 1/4 cup all purpose flour

Directions
Put first 7 ingredients in Crockpot on low heat and stir until well combined. Cook for about 8 hours. I have never made this stew and have left for the day (I make it on weekends because I refuse to keep my crockpot on during the day while I'm at work), so I stir it every so often during the day. About an hour before you are ready to eat, whisk together the flour and a bit of water until it forms a thick but pourable paste. Pour into stew and mix until thoroughly combined. If you prefer a thicker gravy, you can keep adding more flour/water mixture but keep in mind that the stew thickens the longer it cooks. So we usually pour in the initial flour/water mixture, wait about 5 minutes, and then add more until the stew reaches your desired consistancy. Serve with some crusty french bread or homemade biscuits.

Meatballs

I really love spaghetti and meatballs, but I rarely get to make it because my husband doesn't think it's a real "meal". He needs a slab of meat in order for it to be considered dinner...meatballs just won't do. But lately he said he's been in the mood for a meatball sub so I jumped on the chance of making meatballs for both of us! He used his on his sub (which he said was delicious!) and I made myself a big plate of homemade fettuccini & Meatballs!
I don't have a recipe for this...I just make it like I'm going to make a meatloaf or something. So here is "my" recipe for this classic!

Ingredients
1 lb ground beef
1 small onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 egg
1 tbsp ranch dressing
1 tbsp ketchup
aprox. 1/2 - 3/4 cup Italian style breadcrumbs... I really never measure this, you just need enough to hold the meat together.
salt
pepper
italian style dried herbs
marinara sauce

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl combine all ingredients except for the marinara sauce. Mix by hand until all ingredients are thoroughly incorporated. Roll into balls. On a large skillet sprayed with non-stick spray over medium-high heat, brown the meatballs on all sides. Work in batches if necessary. In a 13x9 baking dish sprayed with nonstick spray, pour marinara sauce until it completely and thoroughly coats the bottom. Place meatballs in the dish and cover with more marinara sauce. Cover with foil and bake for 1 hour.

Ground Beef Enchiladas

Every morning I have an idea of what I want to make for dinner that night, and then take out a meat to defrost during the day while I'm at work. So I decided I wanted to make enchiladas a few days ago and took out ground beef. Come to find out, while searching for a recipe online, most enchilada's are made with chicken! Obviously I don't know much about Mexican cuisine. So when I got home I just threw a few things together and my ground beef "enchiladas" came out great! They were really easy to make, a very quick clean-up and overall a very pleasing weeknight meal. Keep in mind that I hate spicy food, so these were very mild. If you like a lot of spice, chopped jalepenos would be great in this.

Ingredients
1 lb ground beef
1 medium-large onion, chopped
1 taco seasoning packet
1 oz. cream cheese
6 flour tortilla's (or more if you want)
1 cup instant white rice
1 can enchilada sauce
Mexican shredded cheese
water

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a small saucepan, bring 1 cup of salted water to a boil. Add instant rice, stir briefly, cover and set aside. In a large sautee pan, brown ground beef until cooked through and crumbled. Drain fat if necessary. Add chopped onion and cook with beef until onion is tender, about 10 minutes. Then add taco seasoning packet and however much water it calls for on the packet. Mine called for 3/4 cup. Stir until the sauce is well combined. Add cream cheese and stir until melted and mixed in with the ground beef, about another 5 minutes. Then add your cooked instant rice and 2 tbsp of enchilada sauce to the ground beef mixture and stir until everything is combined.

On a seperate plate, lay out your tortilla's. In the center of each tortilla, add ground beef/rice mixture. You can make them as full as you want. Fold them up and place into a greased 13x9 baking dish. Once you have all of your enchilada's in the baking dish, cover them with the rest of the enchilada sauce. Top with Mexican shredded cheese, and cover with foil. Bake for 20 minutes, then remove the foil and bake for an additional 10 minutes. Enjoy!

Brian's Venison Casserole

With Christmas cookie making, cleaning and wrapping gifts on Sunday, I was beat when it came time to make dinner. So my darling husband offered to make dinner for me! He can make one dish, and it's pretty good! So he calls it "his" casserole. There's really no recipe for it...he just throws it all together! I'm really not even sure how he thought of it. So here are the basics...but feel free to change it up to make it your own. It's great comfort food and a really good weeknight meal.

Ingredients
1 lb ground venison (we always use venison but you could easily sub. ground beef)
1 medium onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 can of whole kernel corn
1/2 cup of peas (thawed, if necessary)
cheddar cheese...as much as you want!
aprox. 3/4 cup jiffy mix
aprox. 3/4 cup milk
salt
Pepper

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brown venison in a large skillet until cooked through. If you use ground beef, you might have to drain the fat. Venison is so lean you usually don't have to. In the same skillet as the ground venison, add chopped onion, garlic, salt, pepper, corn and peas. Cook about 5-6 minutes, or until onions are translucent. Then add about 1/2 cup of cheddar cheese (or more if you want!) and stir until melted. Remove from heat and set aside.
In a large mixing bowl, combine milk and jiffy mix until it reaches your desired consistency. Brian likes his on the thin side...about the same consistency as pancake batter. Pour about 1/4-1/2 the batter on the bottom of a greased 13x9 casserole dish (I use a 2 1/2 quart casserole dish). Then add your meat mixture. Sprinkle a little cheddar on top of that. Finally, pour the rest of the jiffy mix batter until it covers all of the meat/cheese mixture. If you need to make more batter, that is fine. Just make sure it covers the meat mixture.
Bake for aprox 40-45 minutes until top is golden brown. If you're unsure if the jiffy mix is cooked through, poke a toothpick in the center. When it comes out dry, it is done.

Mexican Stuffed Shells

Sounds weird, right? Mexican+Italian= ??? But let me just tell you these are just awesome!!! Who would have thought that a "Mexican" style filling would work so well with stuffed shells!!!

I found this fabulous recipe on the Love deliciousness blog and all I can say is they were just awesome. I'm embarrassed to admit that my husband and I devoured them until we felt sick from eating so much. So make this and enjoy it...I promise you will!!!

Ingredients

1 lb. ground beef

1 package taco seasoning

4 oz. cream cheese (we used non-fat)

12 jumbo pasta shells (we used about 20)

1 cup salsa (omitted-my husband doesn't like "chunky" stuff...weird I know)

1 cup taco sauce (I used an entire small jar)

1 cup cheddar cheese

1 cup monterey jack cheese

(we used 2 cups mexican blend cheese)

1 1/2 cups crushed tortilla chips (we omitted)
3 green onions (omitted because I didn't have any)

Sour cream

Directions

1. In a frying pan cook ground beef; add taco seasoning and prepare according to package directions.

2. Add cream cheese, cover and simmer until cheese is melted. Blend well. Set aside and cool completely.

3. While ground beef is cooking, cook the pasta shells according to directions; drain. Set shells out individually on cutting board/baking sheet so that they don't stick together.

4. Pour salsa (I used taco sauce) on bottom of 9x13 baking dish.

5. Stuff each shell with the meat mixture. Place shells in 9x13 pan open side up. Cover shells with taco sauce.

6. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.

7. After 30 minutes, add shredded cheese and bake for 10-15 more minutes.

8. Add any condiments you'd like (onions, black olives, etc.) Serve with sour cream and/or more salsa. Enjoy!