I’m Back – With Beef Stroganoff Might I Add…

Sooooo I know it has been way too long…

Long story short…Hubs left his job, went to Ukraine, came home and I started back to work 3 days a week. Needless to say after all that and planning a pretty amazing (if I do say so myself) 1st birthday party for my youngest, I have been crazy (mad) busy in these last few months.

Will you forgive me? Pretty please?

Thanks 🙂

Now that we have gotten that out of the way….are you ready for a little (or a lot, depends how hungry you are) bit of Heaven???

A few weeks ago, for my husband’s birthday, I decided to try my hand at Beef Stroganoff, the “brown sauce way” as I like to refer to it. You see, when you grow up in a family where Beef Stroganoff is made with a tomato based pink sauce, you must differentiate between the two.

So the brown sauce….oh the brown sauce…..mmmmm, well really what can I say other than my husband had 3 helpings knowing that he also had an entire German chocolate Cake to eat! It was that good!

So, if you like creamy, saucy goodness, (and let’s be honest, what sane food-loving, living, breathing person doesn’t??) this is a must make recipe!!

What you Need:

1 lb Chuck Steak (diced into small cubes, fat trimmed)

1 tbsp Flour

1 tbsp butter

1 tbsp olive oil

1 medium onion, diced

1-2 cups sliced mushrooms

1/4 cup red wine

1 can (10 3/4oz) cream of mushroom soup

1 can (14.5oz) beef broth

1 tsp Lea & Perrin’s Worcestershire sauce

16 oz sour cream

salt and pepper to taste

What you Do:

Place the steak and the flour in a well sealed plastic bag and shake the heck out of it….

Enough having fun….you have work to do 😉

Throw the butter and olive oil into a pan and let it melt….ok, well, let the butter melt, oil doesn’t really melt….you picking up what I’m puttin down???

When the butter has melted, throw the flour-coated steak in….

Be careful not to splatter yourself!!! That oily, buttery goodness is hot!!!

Go ahead and throw in those onions and let them cook for a few minutes….just long enough to start browning the meat…

Toss in the mushrooms…..

Now comes the fun part….

Take a swig of that wine…and maybe another 🙂 go ahead, indulge….it’s been a long day…

If you have any wine left…hopefully you saved about a quarter cup…pour that into the pan and let it simmer for just a minute….

Scrape the bits off goodness from the bottom of the pan…you can never have too many bits of goodness….

Add the Cream of Mushroom soup….mmmm it just keeps getting better and better….

stir it around and add the Worcestershire Sauce….

Slowly add the beef broth while continuously stirring….It might seem too thin at this point….don’t worry….trust me….

Wow…I didn’t realize how awful and blurry these pictures were…just goes to show…no matter what kind of crazy, amazing “digital slr” app you have on your phone, your iphone is not a digital slr….

Add some salt and pepper to taste…

Let that concoction simmer uncovered on medium for about 15 minutes

Ok, now close your eyes and imagine a container of sour cream being poured into a pan of light brown liquid….

Hold that image in your head and pretend that it is actually a picture you are seeing right before your very eyes…yes, I forgot that one….

Contrary to what many believe, I too am not perfect….

Stir around that goodness until it looks like this

Now the hardest part of this entire recipe….simmer for another hour….yes this means that you have to wait to eat it….

I know. It is going to be difficult. Just know, this too shall pass….in no time at all you will be able to indulge yourself….

If you can make it through that hour….go ahead and pour some of that wonderful, amazingly delicious creamy, beefy mess onto some white rice (cooked of course) or maybe some wide egg noodles (again cooked….who eats uncooked pasta?)….your choice….

And eat….and eat….and eat until you need to unbutton your pants because you need to keep eating and you won’t let a pesky thing like the button of your pants get in your way….

I hope you enjoy this as much as we did!!

Here’s my version of a printable below:

Ingredients:

1 lb Chuck Steak (diced into small cubes, fat trimmed)

1 tbsp Flour

1 tbsp butter

1 tbsp olive oil

1 medium onion, diced

1-2 cups sliced mushrooms

1/4 cup red wine

1 can (10 3/4oz) cream of mushroom soup

1 can (14.5oz) beef broth

1 tsp Lea & Perrin’s Worcestershire sauce

16 oz sour cream

salt and pepper to taste

Preparation:

Place the steak and four in a well sealed plastic bag. Shake the bag until all of the meat is coated with flour. Set aside. In a large pan, heat the butter and oil on medium high. When the butter has melted, add the steak and stir. Add the onions and stir. When the steak has just started to brown, add the mushrooms and stir. Let the steak continue to brown (about another minute or two) then add the wine, lightly scraping the bottom of the pan. Add the cream of mushroom soup. Add the beef broth slowly and continue to stir. Add the salt and pepper and reduce heat to medium low. Let the sauce simmer for about 15 minutes. Mix in the sour cream. Let the sauce simmer on medium low heat, uncovered for about another hour, or until it has thickened. Serve over rice or pasta. Makes 6-8 servings

Last Night’s Meatloaf = Tonight’s Shepard’s Pie

So here’s the “haps” it is…short and sweet

I am a HUGE fan of taking last nights leftovers and using them to make something completely new…

Kind of like “She’s All That”… (Please tell me that you are a teenager of the ’90’s and know what I am talking about…if not, I will find another decade appropriate, coming of age, ugly duckling turns prom queen and gets the hot guy movie reference for you)

Take the boring (well, it was fun and tasty last night, but really, who wants leftovers again and again and again???)

and make it extraordinary!!!

And the beauty of it is….

It’s almost all made for you!!!! This cuts down the prep time by like 97%!!! It also cuts down the time that you have to find entertainment for those little rascals who want to “help” you cook by reaching for the ingredients on the cutting board right as you are chopping or trying to pour in the seasoning with the top completely off….

So here you have it…the only way I ever make Shepard’s Pie anymore…quick and simple.

What you need

Meatloaf (preferable last nights so you don’t have to make it now)

Mashed Potatoes (again, last nights would be nice)

Veggies (I use the frozen ones and pour em right on in…super duper quick and easy)

Shredded Cheese

What you do

Cut the leftover meatloaf into slices and throw it into the bottom of a casserole dish (size will depend on just how much you got left over) then chop it up a bit in the bottom of the dish so it’s not in “slices” anymore

Add a layer of veggies (I had leftover carrots so I started with those)

Then I threw in some frozen corn and peas…I like variety in my life….

well, with most things…I don’t in fact like variety when it comes to my hubs….I adore the one and only I have!!!

Add the mashed potatoes…

and the cheese…mmmm…..cheese….

and throw it in a preheated 400 degree oven for about 30-45 minutes (if you have just taken the stuff out of the fridge it may be more like 45 minutes to an hour)

Take it out, spoon it onto some plates and indulge in the goodness that is super duper easy comfort food!!!

Happy cooking!!!

Ingredients

Leftover meatloaf

Leftover mashed potatoes

Leftover Veggies

Shredded Cheese

Preparation

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Loosely chop leftover meatloaf and place in the bottom of a baking dish (size will vary depending upon how much leftover stuff you have). Place the leftover veggies in a layer over the meatloaf. Layer the leftover mashed potatoes over the veggies and smooth out on top. Toss shredded cheese over the top of the mashed potatoes and place in the oven. Bake for about 30-45 minutes, depending on size, until the center is hot. Serving size will vary depending on how much leftover stuff you have. Enjoy!

Mad House Wife Meatloaf

Who doesn’t like meat in a loaf???

Well, apparently a lot of people don’t; though I firmly believe it’s just that you haven’t had the right meatloaf….

Kind of like finding a bathing suit after having a baby…there’s one out there for you…it just might take a really long time to find it; you might have to go through MANY with a sour taste in your mouth about to gag before you discover perfection.

I’m pretty sure this meatloaf is the equivalent of the cute, well covering, bust lifting, goes slightly past your rear one piece that makes you feel like a kid (well, pre-kids) again.

Are you ready to experience meaty bliss???

Here. We. Go.

What you need:

2 lbs Ground Beef

1 1/4 cup bread crumbs with Italian Seasoning

2 Eggs

2 tbsp Parmesan Cheese

2 tbsp + 2 tbsp Ketchup

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp ground mustard

1/2 tsp garlic salt

What you do:

Pre heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Chop an onion and set it aside (I usually chop onions into fairly large pieces so I can pick them out of my son’s portion, but I would suggest teeny tiny pieces)

In a medium bowl, crack and pour both eggs; whisk just until the yolks are broken.

Add ground beef

I love you Trader Joe’s for you pre-packaged, hormone free beef squares!!!

Throw in your bread crumbs

Parmesan Cheese

Worcestershire sauce,

Ketchup

mustard (I used ground but I have used the yellow liquid stuff that you put on hot dogs before…I use what I got…)

garlic salt

pepper

and….remember those onions you so diligently chopped earlier?

Go ahead and toss those on in.

Now comes the fun part…

unless you find touching uncooked ground beef gross…

which I do not…

hence, the fun part.

Pretend you are back in kindergarten and that you have just opened a new package of slightly chunky Play-Doh…

If that doesn’t get you through, you may need to skip this step altogether and call in reinforcements.

Squeeze it!

Squish it!

Mix it all around…

you do the hokey pokey and you turn yourself around…

Grab your broiler pan (that thing that appeared inside your oven when you moved into your new house)

and form the meat into a loaf like shape

I am a loaf of beef

Drizzle some Ketchup on top (that’s where I got the other 2 tbsp of Ketchup) and…

throw it in the oven.

Cook it for about 45 minutes to an hour. Mine took 50, just in case you were wondering…..

Slice it up and serve with some garlic and herb mashed potatoes perhaps…

Oooohhhhh or you could put it on some grilled sourdough for meatloaf sandwiches mmmmm

Do what you will; just know, as soon as you take a bite, you will be forever changed!

Happy cooking! Or baking! Or whatever this is…

And the “printable” version below…

Ingredients:

2 lbs Ground Beef

1 1/4 cup bread crumbs with Italian Seasoning

2 Eggs

2 tbsp Parmesan Cheese

2 tbsp + 2 tbsp Ketchup

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp ground mustard

1/2 tsp garlic salt

Preparation

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Chop onion and set aside. In a medium bowl, crack and pour both eggs; whisk until smooth. Add ground beef, bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, 2 tbsp of ketchup, worscteshire sauce, onions, garlic salt, pepper, and mustard. Mix all ingredients with your hands until well blended. Break up any clumps of bread crumbs that may have formed. On a broiler pan, form the meat mixture into a loaf shape (if you don’t want to scrape the pan later, butter it ahead of time). Drizzle the remaining 2 tbsp of ketchup on top of the meatloaf. Place in the oven and bake for 45-60 minutes until the middle is no longer red. Yields about 10 servings.

So Easy Spanish Rice

So I don’t know if this is technically Spanish rice….I mean what really makes Spanish rice Spanish rice?

Please don’t answer that and make me feel dumb for not really researching anything before I posted this blog.

Thank you.

So I guess I really should have called this “So Easy Jamie’s Spanish Rice”, but that is just a mouthful.

That’s what she said.

Tee Hee. I couldn’t help myself.

So, I think you will enjoy it anyway, even if the origins are unknown and the ingredients don’t hold any validity.

Just say you love me and we will move on (that’s what I ask my husband to do all the time. Although I think there is a “you’re right dear” in there somewhere)…

I started toying around with this idea after buying rice in a packet or box at the store. I wish I could say that my motives were derived from my desire to feed my family much healthier, non-packaged or highly processed, over salted food, but alas, they were really not.

My quest for saving a buck was the true force. Health is an added bonus!!!

Yippee for saving money AND being healthier. Who knew that the world could work that way?????

Enough rambling….On with the recipe….

Ingredients:

I apologize for this picture in particular…I really need to just have my husband teach my how to use that darn camera…

2 Cups Rice

4 Cups Water

1 Can Southwest Style Diced Tomatoes

2 Tbsp Taco Seasoning

2 Stalks Celery (please use the neon green variety…does that picture not make it look like I went shopping in a radioactive field???)

1 Onion

This is how you do it:

Get out your handy-dandy rice cooker with flowers on it (don’t worry if yours doesn’t have flowers it will taste ok, mine just came from an Asian market and for some reason it has flowers on it…) oh and if you don’t have one at all, you could always use the slow cooker or a pot on the stove

Pour in the rice… I used brown, long grain rice cause it was on sale!!! you can use whatever you want 🙂

and the water…

and the tomatoes…

the taco seasoning… (if you don’t have taco seasoning here is a good recipe that I use all the time for tacos, fajitas, rice…you name it!! Taco Seasoning

Chop some of that radioactive celery and throw it in…

Chop some onion…cry….throw it in the cooker

Now here is the had part…

Push the cook button on the rice cooker and wait!!!

I told you it was hard…well it’s hard for me to wait for anything because I have the same level of patience as my 3-year-old son, but if you are not in fact like me, then this might not be the most difficult step.

When it’s all done…

Eat it because it is amazing. And you have been waiting for it for so long…. 🙂

I made some super yummy grilled bean and cheese burritos too. They were delicious. And easy. and cheap. The triple threat.

Finished product…

Happy Cooking!!!

Printable Version

Ingredients

2 Cups Rice

4 Cups Water

1 Can Southwest Style Diced Tomatoes

2 Tbsp Taco Seasoning

2 Stalks Celery (please use the neon green variety…does that picture not make it look like I went shopping in a radioactive field???)

1 Onion

Preparation

Chop onion and celery into bite size pieces. Pour all ingredients into a rice cooker. Turn to cook. Serve with something yummy.

If you don’t have a rice cooker, pour all ingredients into a pot on the stove. Cook on high until boiling. Cover and reduce heat to low or medium low until rice is tender. Usually about 30-45 minutes.