Sloppy Maple - BBQ Turkey Joes

I have to admit that I am a Sloppy Joe fan but not out of the can kind. I like mine made from scratch. I am always on the look out for a new one to try. This one is my latest.

1 1/2 lbs. ground turkey

1 onion chopped

1 tsp. poultry seasoning

Salt and pepper

1 red bell pepper, chopped

1 clove garlic, pressed

1 cup tomato sauce

1/4 cup pure maple syrup

3 Tbs. soy sauce

2 Tbs. cider vinegar

2 Tbs. brown sugar

1 Tbs. Dijon mustard

8 soft hamburger buns, my favorite are the potato ones

You can garnish it with cheese, any kind, chopped pickles. We like ours plain.

In a large skillet brown the ground turkey with the poultry seasoning, salt and pepper. Cook until browned, then stir in the pepper, onion and garlic and cook until tender. In a bowl combine the tomato sauce, maple syrup, soy sauce, vinegar, brown sugar, and mustard. Pour the sauce over the meat and simmer for a few minutes. Serve it on the rolls with the toppings. Enjoy!

Beef and Mushroom Tacos with Avocados

1 lb. ground beef (I used ground turkey)

1 onion, thinly sliced or chopped

1 jalapeno pepper, stemmed, seeded and finely chopped (you can use more if you want)

Salt and pepper

2 avocados, cubed

1/4 cup fresh lime juice

8 ounces sliced mushrooms

1 clove garlic, sliced or pressed

8 small flour tortillas

In a large skillet cook beef, onions, jalapenos. Season with salt and pepper. When done remove from pan. In same skillet cook mushrooms and garlic with a little bit of butter or olive oil if needed. When done put meat mixture back into pan and combine.

In a bowl combine the avocado with the lime juice.

Brown the tortillas or warm them up.

This is a super quick supper and really good. Besides layering the meat mixture and the avocados we put sour cream, cheese and salsa on ours. They are yummy! I got the recipe out of the Everyday with Rachael Ray Magazine and changed it up a little bit.

Enjoy!

Beef Stew

It's 2 for 1 Thursday.  I just posted a soup recipe and here is another that I would like to share.  It is cooling off and I just love eating soup on a cold night.  My mom posted a stew recipe a few weeks ago but this one is different.  Try them both!  I found this recipe on the blog For the Love of Cooking.  Here is the link to the recipe.  http://fortheloveofcooking-printablerecipes.blogspot.com/2008/03/beef-stew.html

I made a few changes to the recipe.  I like thicker soup so I added an extra can of diced tomatoes and omitted 2 cups of beef broth.  I also doubled the amount of vegetables and added 3/4 cups of mushrooms.  It was heavenly.  I don't have a large cast iron pot so I just cooked the first ingredients on the stove in a large pan for about 1 1/2 hours on medium high heat.  Then I transferred it to my crockpot and added the vegetables.  I cooked it on low for about 3 hours.  It was cooked perfectly. 

Beef Stew

1 lb stew meat (I use lean round cut into small chunks)
1 sweet yellow onion chopped into large pieces
6 cloves of garlic chopped
1 tbsp olive oil
1 can diced tomatoes
1-2 tsp dried thyme
Salt and pepper to taste
1 bay leaf
1 tsp garlic powder
6 cups of beef stock

Preheat oven to 250 degrees (you can also use stove top or crock-pot). In large cast iron (or baking pot) heat olive oil. Add stew meat and onion and cook for about 5 minutes. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds before adding tomatoes, seasonings and stock. Cover and cook in the oven (on stove top or in crock-pot) for at least 4 hours. Remove pot from oven place on stove top over medium heat.

1 cup diced carrots
1/2 cup diced celery
1 cup diced baby red potatoes (skin on)

Add vegetables to the stew and add more beef broth if low. Taste and add seasonings if needed. Cover and cook for 1 1/2 - 2 hours.

Beef and Mushroom Stew

This is a recipe that I got off of allrecipes.com and of course I changed a couple of things but we really liked it and thought it was even better the second day. Dave said that I could definitely make it again.

1 (1 1/2 lb.) chuck pot roast, cut into 1 inch pieces
ground black pepper
1/4 cup flour
2 T. olive oil
1 can French Onion Soup
1 cup beef broth
1 clove of garlic, minced
1 t. Italian seasoning, crushed
8 oz. mushrooms, cut in half
3 medium carrots, sliced (I used the baby carrots and just put in a bunch)
1 medium onion, cubed
5-6 red potatoes cut in half

Put the pepper in the flour and coat the meat. Brown the meat in the oil in a frying pan on medium heat.
Put the beef in the crock pot and add the rest of the ingredients and stir.
Cover and cook on low for 10-12 hours until your meat falls apart. It really does take this long.
It is a very easy recipe and so delicious!

Chile-rubbed Steak Tacos/Tomatillo Avocado Salsa

I found this recipe on The Sisters Cafe blog http://sisterscafe.blogspot.com/ and we loved it, especially the salsa. I will make the salsa just for plain burritos, tacos and any other reason I can think of to make it. It stayed overnight well and the avocados didn't turn dark. This recipe is the keeper for me.

2 cloves garlic
1 T salt plus 1/2 tsp. salt
2 T. chili powder
2 T. brown sugar
2 tsp. smoked or sweet paprika
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1 1/2 lbs. skirt steak (I used these really thin steaks I bought at Walmart and it worked great)
flour tortillas
Tomatillo Avocado Salsa
Chopped cilantro for serving
Grated jack cheese for serving
Sour cream for serving
Shredded lettuce for serving

Crush the garlic using the flat side of a large knife, sprinkle with 1/2 t. salt. Place the flat side of the knife blade on top of the garlic and salt; press firmly, pulling knife toward you. Repeat until a paste forms; transfer to a small bowl. Add chili powder, brown sugar, paprika, cumin, pepper and remaining salt. Stir to combine. I left this salt out and it tasted fine without it.
Rub mixture all over steak, both sides and place in a large plastic freezer bag to marinate for at least 30 minutes.
While the meat is marinating you can make your salsa.
3 tomatillos, husked, rinsed, and halved
1/2 white onion, halved
2 cloves garlic
1 jalapeno chili, stemmed and halved
1/2 cup loosely packed cilantro leaves
Juice of 1/2 lime, about 1 tablespoon
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. freshly ground black pepper
1 avocado, halved, pitted, peeled, and diced

Grill the tomatillos, onion, garlic and jalapeno. I actually broiled mine in the oven and they turned out great. Do it until they are lightly charred. Place the vegetables in a food processor, add cilantro, lime juice, salt and pepper and pulse until coarsely chopped. Transfer to a bowl and fold in avocado.

Grill your steak until you have your desired doneness and slice into strips. Heat up your tortillas and you are ready to serve. Fill with the meat, salsa, cheese, sour cream, lettuce and a sprinkle of cilantro. Enjoy!

California Steak

This is an easy crockpot recipe and is perfect when you're going to be gone for a few hours and want to eat almost immediately after you get home!



Round Steak
1 pkg of Onion Soup
1 1/4 cup of water
1/2 cup sour cream

Brown both sides of round steak with flour in a pan. Put Round steak, water, and onion soup in a crockpot on high and cook for 4 to 5 hours. Remove round steak and add sour cream to the sauce. If you want a little thicker sauce you can always use a flour or cornstarch and water mixture to thicken it a little more. Serve with rice or egg noodles.

Marinated Beef/Veggie Kabobs

I found this recipe in the Taste of Home Magazine this spring and changed it up a bit. It was a delicious recipe and the marinated vegetables were my favorite part.

Marinade
1 cup light grape juice
1/2 cup olive oil
4 tsp. Worchestershire sauce
4 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 Tbsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. seasoned salt
2 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. dried parsley flakes


1 flank steak 1 1/2 lbs.(cut into cubes)
8 cherry tomatoes
1 large red onion
1 large red pepper
1 large green pepper
1 yellow summer squash
1 medium zucchini
(You can do whatever vegetables you have - mushrooms would be good also and my kids added pineapple to their kabobs.)

In a small bowl combine marinade ingredients. Pour half the marinade in a large resealable plastic bag with the beef. Pour the rest of the marinade in another large resealable plastic bag with tomatoes and vegetables cut into 1 inch pieces. Refrigerate the beef and vegetables in marinade for at least 2 hours.

Drain marinade from beef and discard. Drain marinade from vegetables and save for basting. Thread beef and vegetables onto to metal or wooden skewers. Grill covered over medium heat for 10-15 minutes or until meat is done. Remember to baste the meat and vegetables and turn occasionally.

Shish Kabobs

I wanted to make a request for some quick and easy dinner ideas. I decided the best way to get a good response was to start the list myself. We had Shish Kabobs tonight. I skewered them and cooked them on the grill outside. But these are very versatile. You can broil them in the oven if you want - on or off a stick. If you don't have skewers, spread it out on a broiler pan and it's just as good.

Marinade:
1/3 cup olive oil
3 TBL lemon juice
2 tsp basil

Ideas for the kabobs:
I always use beef (stew beef so it's already cut for me!) Any meat would work

tonight I used:
tomatoes
summer squash
peppers
onions

I have used in the past:
potatoes
mushrooms
pineapple

really, almost anything will work!

I marinate the meat anywhere from 30 min to a couple of hours depending on when I can get to it. I usually swish some of the veggies in the marinade as well. I made a couple of fun ones with everything on it. However, it's quicker and easier to just do a skewer with tomatoes, one with meat and onions, one with peppers, ect. This is good if you use veggies that cook faster, you can grill each skewer as long as that particular veggie or meat needs to be cooked.

Anyway, this takes all of 20 minutes to prepare and cook - so fast and so easy. It's also versatile so you can make it the way you want it!

PW’s Marinated Flank Steak

My mom introduced me this incredible recipe. It comes from The Pioneer Woman.
YUMMY!

Typically when I buy my steak the package includes two to three steaks. So I prepare the marinade as follows and then freeze the extra steaks with the marinade in a ziploc bag. When I want to eat it I pull out the bag and toss it in the fridge to defrost and marinate.

Flank Steak

1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup cooking sherry
3 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons sesame oil
2 heaping tablespoons minced ginger
3 to 5 cloves minced garlic
1/2 teaspoons red pepper flakes

1 flank steak

Combine all ingredients in a glass or ceramic dish. Remove flank steak from package and give it a quick rinse. Coat both sides of meat with marinade. Refrigerate for at least 3 to 4 hours. (we typically do it overnight.)

Grill steaks to desired doneness and slice thinly against the grain. Enjoy!