Shredded Beef Tacos

So tonight I finally tried something COMPLETELY new!  I have made things that are new to us but recomended, etc; but this one I found on my own and went for it!  I found it on Pinterest, but you can find the original here :)  It was amazingly outstanding and will most definitely be added to our list to have many more times in our life!!!  I think it would even be an excellent and easy thing to make when entertaining guests!!  There are 2 things I absolutely love in the world when it comes to Mexican food; homemade fresh salsa AND fresh guacamole.  Can't beat the flavors on either one and I think I do a pretty fantastic job making them :)  This time of year in Northern Indiana is not the greatest to find tomatoes to make fresh salsa so I went with guac only tonight!  It is so easy and super delicious.

Homemade Guacamole:

-2 avacados

-diced red onion

-cilantro

-lime juice

 

Mash up your avacados with a fork, chop your red onion VERY small, and chop the cilantro.  A squeeze or 2 of lime juice.  I also usually add some salt because I add salt to most everything ;-)

 

Now on to the main feature!!  I would eat either pizza or tacos every single day of the week if I thought my hubby would let me get away with it!!  Both are great and offer so many variations that I really feel like my options are endless!!  Someday I'll talk him into seeing it my way, someday!! :-) 

 

Here is what you need:

• 1 (2.5 lb) chuck roast
• 1 (14 oz) can beef broth
• 1 1/2 Tbsp chili powder
• 1/2 Tbsp cumin
• 1/2 Tbsp onion powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
• Juice of 1 lime

Here is what you will need to do:

In a small bowl whisk together chili powder, cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Place roast in a slow cooker, pour beef broth over roast then squeeze with fresh lime juice. Sprinkle roast with spice mixture. Cover slow cooker with lid and cook on low heat 8-10 hours. Remove roast from slow cooker, shred beef (remove fat) and return shredded beef to slow cooker. Cover with lid and cook additional 30 minutes. Remove beef from slow cooker with tongs to remove juices when plating or drain in a colander. Serve with desired toppings.

 

 Above are all the ingredients other than the roast.  Super easy and not spicy at all!!

Add the broth around your roast and sprinkle your seasonings on top.

Once you have cooked the roast for the time required, take it out and shredd it disgarding the fatty areas.  You will want to keep it in the broth until it's time to eat.  When that time comes, you will want to put it in a strainer of some sort so it is not going to make your shells soggy!!

 

 I used small corn torilla shells and grilled them up a bit.  Please feel free to use whatever shell type your family prefers :)

 I also had an assortment of items to top them with.  From really simple to really complex!!

 I chose to eat mine with cheese, guac, tomatoes, and sour cream.  They were to die for.  SERIOUSLY.  You should try them soon!!!

 

Have a great rest of your weekend!!!!! :)

Taco Pasta Bake

So last night I made this delicious Taco Pasta Bake!!  I am not going to write a huge write-up about it because it's sort of like old news!  It has been extremely cold and windy where I live these last several days and hunkered down on the couch with lots of blankets and warm socks is what I have been doing instead of cooking magnificent meals!!  I have a few pictures and HERE is the link to where you can find the original recipe!  Of course I found it linked through Pinterest :)

 

It was super yummy!!!  The hubby said it was a keeper!  He is such a good taste tester :)  Hope you enjoy!!!

Happy Birthday to my Mama!!!!!!!!!

So I have been super busy and have a moment today to write a post just to announce to the WORLD that it is my FANTASTIC Mother's Birthday!!!!!!  Other than my hubby, she is my most best friend and I could not be happier to have her as my mom!  I haven't always thought she was my best friend, but because she WASN'T my best friend growing up, she is now!  Her and my Daddy are awesome parents and if I can only be half as great as they are, I'll be happy!!  So Mom, HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!

 

Sausage Potato Chowder

So this is a classic recipe that my mom has made for years.  And she got it from a lady a church who has made it for even more years.  It's easy and delicious, a perfect combo for a cold February evening!! 

Here is what you need:

• 1 pound skinless smoked sausage, sliced
• 2 1/2 cups peeled, diced potatoes
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 cup chopped celery
• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth
• 1/8 tsp pepper
• 3 1/2 cups milk
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1 cup frozen peas
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

The first thing you want to do is peel and dice your potatoes.  Then dice up your onion and celery.  Throw those in a dutch oven and cover with the chicken broth.  It may not cover it completely, but that's OKAY!  Just make sure to stir often :)

Turn on your heat and once it is boiling, allow it to cook for a few minutes until the potatoes are tender but not mushy.  While this is cooking, slice up your sausage so you have it ready go.  Also mix up your flour and only 1 cup of the milk in a container that you can shake it together in.  When the veggies are ready, add the sliced sausage and the remaining 2 1/2 cups of milk.  Stir to combine.



Once that happens, you will want to add your milk/flour mixture too.  Once you add that, make sure to keep stirring constantly as to not let it burn on the bottom of your pan.  You will want to cook it until it becomes nice and bubbly as well as slightly thickened.

When it is boiling and thickened, add the frozen peas and allow them to simmer for several minutes.

After a few minutes remove the soup from the heat completely and add your cheese.  Keep stirring until all the cheese is melted into the soup.  Allowing it to sit for a few minutes before eating seems to help too!!

That's it!  See, EASY!  It is something that is really easy and usually very cost effective to make!  We have it for dinner and always have enough for lunches the next day. 

Happy Tuesday!!!

Sunday Comfort

There's not a lot better in the world than a hot meal of roast, potatoes, and carrots outta the crock pot.  There is just something about the perfectly cooked combo that says comfort!!  I took the easy way out this Sunday and threw a smallish roast from my local meat market along with a sliced onion, peeled potatoes, and baby carrots in my crock-pot.  Easy and delicious!!

 

I first put my roast in and sliced onions on top of it.  I tried something new this time and added a water/beef base mixture to basically cover it.  I wanted to make sure it stayed moist and tender!

 

Next I peeled and added potatoes on top.  I usually add quite a few because this is the whole meal all in one pot.  We like to eat it as leftovers for lunch the next day as well, and who wants only half of the meal tomorrow??  I don't dice them, I just cut them in half or if they are fairly small, I leave them whole :)

 

The final thing I added was carrots.  WOW how many carrots does one family need in the crock-pot at the same time?!?!  All of a small bag, thats how many.  See the problem is, we tend to fight over these AMAZING carrots.  They are perfectly cooked and seasoned with the broth!!  Plus, who's mom would be mad that they are fighting over CARROTS???  Mine might think it's odd thats for sure! :)

 

 

I pull the roast out of the crock pot and shred it some.  Then its every man for themselves in taking what you want from the potatoes, carrots, and broth.  I like to sort of mash up my potatoes and put a little butter on them followed by broth.  OUTSTANDING!!  Its so easy and simple, and pretty cost effective too!  This would easily feed 4 adults one meal or 2 adults two meals :)  It all depends on the size of your roast!!

(YES, my roast has ketchup on it.  Don't judge!! )

 

Hope you had a restful weekend!  Can't believe we're almost to the middle of February already!  Summer will be here before we know it!! :)



Busy Busy Busy!!!

So as you may have noticed, my posts have been scarce this week!  At the first of the year, I took on a new role at my school and now not only work with Emotionally Disabled Students, but I am teaching computer for part of my day.  That makes for a much busier schedule and I have been just trying to find a perfect balance!!  One day I hope to have my own Elementary Classroom. . .That is what I would call LIVING THE DREAM.  As things are right now, I still want to continue my blogging, but I think it was composing far to much of my time.  Basically I took too much on my plate all at the same time!  My new goal is to blog several times a week rather than every day.  We often eat fairly late because we both have to travel a ways to get to and from work, so it becomes tiring to drive, work, drive back, grade, make dinner, do dishes/picking up around our apartment, and THEN blogging!  As I try new things I will be sure to include those and things that are tried and true but new to you too!  Thank You for reading and I hope you will continue to check back with me periodically!!  Hope you have had a spended week and enjoy the upcoming weekend.  Seems to finally be some SUNSHINE in our future! 

Super Bowl Sunday Sunday Sunday!!

So we just had a few snack like things for dinner and enjoyed the evening with my Father-in-Law. . .I'll be honest, I'm always watching the Super Bowl for the snacks and the commercials.  UNLESS, my Indianapolis Colts are in.  Then, it's another story!!! :)  Now, on to what sort of goodies I made today!  First I made pickle roll-ups.  If you have no idea what these are, you are missing out.  At most family functions these baby's are fought over.  My aunt is usually in charge of bringing them, and she can hardly get in the door before she is being swarmed!  They are SOOOOOO easy, its ridiculous.  All you need is some Buddig Beef, Turkey, Chicken, etc; dill pickle spears, and cream cheese.  See, already easy!  All you do is lay out your slice of meat, spread room temp cream cheese on it, and roll it around a pickle.  DONE.

 

The next thing I "made" was a fancy meat and cheese tray. . .Don't Judge!!  I'm cheap and easy! ;-) And yes, we were having some fancy beverages!  My hubby's choice was Jack & Coke and I was having a Margarita!  It was 5 o'clock somewhere!!

 For our main staple of this shin-dig, I made my mom's famous Frontier Sandwich.  It's so easy and so delicious.  Here is what you need:

• 1 Loaf Italian Bread
• 1 pound of ground beef
• BBQ sauce
• 1/2 cup chopped onion
• 1/2 chopped green pepper
• 1 jar or can mushroom slices
• 12 American cheese slices

You first need to get your hamburger, onion, and green pepper cooking together; once the beef is nice and brown, drain and put back into the pan.

 After you have done that, place your mushrooms and BBQ sauce in.  The recipe calls for 3/4 cup sauce, but I just eye ball it to make it nice and covered.

While you allow the BBQ mixture to heat back up, cut your loaf of Italian Bread long ways, clean out the middle, and lay 6 slices of American cheese on the bottom.

After the mixture is hot, spoon into bread and layer the remaining 6 slices of cheese on top.  Make sure you are using American cheese. . .it has the perfect melting properties for this sandwich!!

Once you have it all in the bottom, place your bread lid back on and wrap it up in foil.  It needs to bake at 400 degrees for 20-25 minutes.  Thats it!  I also baked some buffalo chicken boneless bites; we can't have a superbowl party without "wings" of some sort!!

Here is the final product!  It is really yummy and easy to make.  It also can feed 4 or 5 easily for a simple dinner.  We don't have it very often because it does make a whole big sandwich!!  And yes, I did have ONE healthy option along with this not so good for you dinner!  My mama taught me right :)

 

Hope you stay warm and have a blessed week!!

Happy Sunday!!!

 





Pizza Grilled Cheese

So something we used to have all the time in school growing up were Pizza Grilled Cheese. . .aka Pizza Bobs!!  They are so simple and even more delicious!  You butter your bread like you would for a grilled cheese and then you place slices of mozzarella and pepperoni in between!  Grill it up like the original and dunk them in pizza sauce.  Best. Things. EVER.  I also cut them into cute "fingers" so they are easier to handle :) 

 

WOO HOO!  Tomorrow is Friday!!

Roasted Chicken

Ok, here it is. . .whole chickens wigg me out!!  However I thought it was time to be brave and see if I could master roasting one.  So I tried it!  I bought the chicken at my local meat market and went to town!  I poked holes all over and stuffed them with quarters of garlic cloves.  Then I threw some garlic, lemon wedges, and fresh thyme in the center cavity.  I tucked the wings behind the chicken so they didn't burn during baking and I tied the legs snug together with some string.  After I put it in the roasting pan, I smeared some butter all over the skin (because I think that's what Paula Deen would do!!) and sprinkled some salt and pepper on it.  THAT'S IT.  I put it in a 350 degree oven and baked it for an hour and a half.  Now here is where it gets a little dicey. . .my recipe said to cook it to 180 degrees.  I did that.  Or I think I did.  Where I checked it, in 2 places, said that.  Perfect.  Pulled it out and tented for about 15 minutes under some foil.  It looked fantastic!  I started to slice it up and BAM.  NOT DONE.  Well some of it was but the rest of the some of it wasn't.  Tears.  I'm not sure what happened and why it was a disaster, but it was.  Also my hubby started walking around saying "cluck cluck"  He's so loving, isn't he?!?!

So the moral of this story is, I'm not prefect in my cooking adventures and sometimes I need a night like this to take me back to my basic cooking knowledge.  And yes, it was just a chicken.  And no, there are not any pictures because nobody wants to see that hottttttttt mess!

Happy Tuesday!!

Homemade Chili

There are no other words to describe my mom's chili than KILLER.  She has made it the same way for as long as I can remember and I can't see myself making it any other way!  Its really simple and not too many ingredients!

Here is my starting line-up:

 What you need:

• 2 pounds hamburger; browned and drained
• 2 cans mild chili beans
• 2 cans light red kidney beans
• 2 cans petite diced tomatoes
• 1 regular can tomato sauce (not the tiny one!)
• 2 packs of Chili-O original seasoning mix
• 2 onions, chopped
• Large can of tomato juice (in the juice aisle!)

First you need to cook and drain your hamburger.  I also like to rinse mine before I put it back in my pot so it gets more grease off of it!

 

I then add all the beans, onions, tomatoes, and tomato sauce on top of the hamburger.



 I try to give it a pretty good stir and then add my whole can of tomato juice.

Once that is all mixed up, I add my 2 packets of chili-o seasoning.  Make sure you get that mixed in really well!!

It should look like soup at this point, but needs to cook for a couple hours simmering in order to get that perfect chili flavor and texture!

Once its been cooking for awhile, it is ready to eat!  I made some cornbread to have along side it and added cheese on mine too!  The hubs likes his with crackers :)  You could really have any toppings you prefer!

This recipe can easily be cut in half.  I made the whole recipe because it is something we will be able to eat several times this week!  Everyone knows that Chili is ALWAYS better the 2nd and 3rd day!  We like to eat it over spaghetti and pack it for our lunches!  I hope you'll give it a try, and change it up as you desire.  This is a pretty mild version and there is plenty of room to spice it up.  If my Daddy had it his way, our mouths would still be on fire from eating chili because he likes it hot hot hot!! (Thanks Mom!!)

Homemade Tomato Soup

I had a fantastic weekend of adventures with my hubby!  We headed to Indianapolis on Saturday early afternoon and hit up Jersey's Cafe in Carmel, Indiana.  It was a restaurant featured on Diners Drive-Ins and Dives!!!  FANTASTIC!!  Then we went to Sun King Brewery in Indy, also FANTASTIC!  We learned a lot there and enjoyed some samples too!  If you get a chance, check it out sometime!  We had a date night out Saturday night and attended the dinner theatre and saw Arsenic and Old Lace.  A new to us production and it was absolutely wonderful! :) This afternoon we attended a birthday party for my Aunt who turns FIFTY tomorrow.  She will be so thrilled that I told all of you that too!  She doesn't act a day over 21!!  It was great getaway weekend and if you have a chance to take one soon, do it!!

Now onto dinner!!  This soup has only a little butter and no other cream or fats. . .that is something new for me!  I like to cook with those things because they tend to add so much depth to dishes.  This was also an avenue of new flavors for me.  I found the recipe in Taste of Home Magazine.  I really did enjoy it and plan to try it again soon!  My hubby on the other hand, was not as fond of it.  I think it was the basil in the tomatoes, so next time I plan to change the kind I use up a bit!!  Now on to the process!!

Here is the recipe:

2 cans (14.5 ounces each) diced tomatoes with basil, oregano and garlic, undrained

1/4 cup butter

1/2 cup finely chopped red onion

2 garlic cloves, minced

6 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 carton (48 ounces) chicken broth

Grated Parmesan cheese, optional

 

Place tomatoes with juices in a blender; cover and process until pureed. In a large saucepan, heat butter over medium-high heat. Add onion; cook and stir until tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Remove from the heat; stir in flour until smooth. Cook for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in broth. Add pureed tomatoes; bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce heat and simmer for 20-25 minutes to allow flavors to blend. If desired, sprinkle with cheese. Yield: 8 servings (2 quarts).

The first thing I did was blend up my tomatoes.

Before:

After:

 

I then got my onion chopped up very fine and got it cooking in the butter.  I cooked it for probably less than 10 minutes. . .since the pieces were nice and small!!



 

After the onions were done, I added the garlic and cooked it a bit longer.  Just long enough to get the aromas flowing!!  I added my flour and allowed it to cook for a minute or so!

 

After the flour is in, whisk in the chicken broth and the tomato puree.  I let the broth/onion/flour mixture cook for just a few moments before I added the tomatoes.

 

Once you do that, bring it up to a boil and then turn the heat down to allow it to simmer for 20-25 minutes.  After that is should be a little darker and just a bit thicker.  It is a nice thin light soup.

I made some grilled cheese and we had a jazzed up classic for dinner.  I think it would taste great with just plain tomatoes or any other variety you decided to go with.  It was unique and interesting, and I can't want to try it again!

 

I hope this recipe finds you well and you have an excellent week!  I plan to make several yummy things this week and my first attempt at roasting a whole chicken. . .hope you'll be along for the ride!!

 

Happy Sunday!!