Beef and Broccoli Stir-Fry

Stir-Fry is one of those dinners that is so great when I don't know what to make and want to throw something together quick. This dinner takes about as long as it does to cook the rice (18 minutes). Our family really likes Beef and Broccoli so this is my little take on that. I also added some red bell pepper because my daughter likes it so much. Simple, but satisfying.

Roasted Vegetable Meatloaf with Balsamic Glaze

Another one of my quests lately is to find yummy meatloaf recipes. I never really liked meatloaf much until I tried this recipe. It made me realize that it can be pretty good with the right ingredients and flavors. This is a recipe I found from Bobby Flay and it was so worth the time I spent reading recipes and looking for the right one. It calls for the traditional mixture of ground beef, pork, and veal. First of all, our store never has ground veal and ground pork is pretty hard to find. I substituted a pound of pork sausage for the pork and veal. It worked perfectly. I think the key to good meatloaf is having vegetables in it to give it moisture. The kids scarfed this one up and, even though mine aren't too picky about their veggies, it's a good way to sneak them in there. Also, I don't think you can ever go wrong with a little balsamic. We had this with mashed potatoes and roasted broccoli. Definitely satisfying!

Shepherd's Pie

Shepherd's Pie has always been a favorite in my family. I loved it growing up and now we love it in our family. I think it's a great family recipe because you can put what your family likes in it. I've made a lot of versions of this dish. The original dish is made with lamb but we often use ground beef. I've also made it with ground turkey and topped it with mashed sweet potatoes. This dish is also a great way to use leftover meat. Some of our favorite shepherd's pie has been made with leftover roast pork loin. This recipe is the basic one I use when we have shepherd's pie, but feel free to change it up. Use whatever veggies your family likes. This time I added some carrot and it was yummy!

Corned Beef and Cabbage; Shortbread

This is a must-have in our family for St. Patrick's Day. We love it so much that my husband keeps asking why we don't have it other days too. I just always forget! Anyway, this meal is so yummy and satisfying and the best part is you throw it in the crockpot in the morning and dinner is waiting for you later. I love the crockpot. I need to remind myself to use it even more. There are a lot of yummy things that can be cooked in it and it takes a lot of stress out of getting dinner on the table. Anyone that has experienced the daily evening "cry session" with an infant will relate to how hard it can be to cook at that time. This way I can cook in the morning while the little one is happy playing or napping and not worry about it later.

Beef Stroganoff

Let me start off by saying that this picture does not do this dish justice. I forgot to take a picture when I made it and decided to snap one of the reheated leftovers the next day at lunch (on a paper plate, no less.)

I have made many variations of Beef Stroganoff. I'm even guilty of buying the season packet where you pretty much add the meat and water. But, I have to day that this recipe, from The Gourmet Cookbook, is by far the best recipe for Stroganoff I have tried to date. I think one of the keys to the great flavor in this sauce is the Dijon mustard and the not-too-overwhelming amount of sour cream. Good Stroganoff need not have loads of sour cream. Mix in some tender sauteed beef and delicious sauteed mushrooms and onions and you can't go wrong. (Funny thing is: while researching this recipe, I found the original did not include onions or mushrooms! Can you imagine Stroganoff without mushrooms?)

Recipe (Serves 4-6)

3 1/2 T butter
1 T flour
1 c beef stock
1 lb beef tenderloin (I use flank steak and it comes out great), sliced 1/4 inch thick
salt and pepper
2 T olive oil
1/2 c shallots, thinly sliced
1/2 - 3/4 lb cremini mushrooms, quartered
3 T sour cream
1 t Dijon mustard
2 T fresh dill, chopped (or 2 t dried)
egg noodles, cooked to package instructions and tossed with butter

Melt 1 1/2 T butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in flour, cook 1-2 minutes, and then slowly whisk in stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for a few minutes. Cover remove and remove from heat.

Heat 1 T each butter and oil in large skillet over high heat. Season beef liberally with salt and pepper and cook in 2-3 batches, browning on both sides, about 1 minute per batch. Transfer meat to a plate and set aside.

Add remaining 1 T butter and oil to skillet. Add shallots and cook a few minutes until browned. Add mushrooms and saute about 10 minutes, until liquid is evaporated and mushrooms are browned. Return meat to skillet and stir to combine.

Reheat sauce over low heat and whisk in sour cream, mustard, dill, and salt and pepper to taste. Pour sauce over beef and serve over noodles.

Salisbury Steak with Mushroom Gravy; Creamed Spinach

So one day a few years back I was watching 30 Minute Meals and the theme for the episode was making your own TV Dinner. She was making Salisbury Steak and I thought, "People make that on purpose?" I grew up thinking Salisbury Steak was a mushy, soggy piece of meat covered with not-so-good gravy and always came in frozen meals. As I watched the episode, it seemed like a dish that would be pretty tasty and couldn't hurt to try it. I adapt the meal slightly for my family but it's still delicious. It's a great comforting "home-cooked" meal and is super quick and easy. My entire family loves it!

I serve the Salisbury Steak with mashed potatoes and creamed spinach. The creamed spinach I now make off the top of my head but I got the original idea from my son's Emeril Kids' Cookbook.

Recipe (Serves 4) (You can double the first 4 ingredients for more meat)

Salisbury Steak

1 - 1 1/4 lb ground beef
1 T Worcestershire Sauce
1 T Montreal Steak Seasoning
1 onion, finely chopped or grated
olive oil
1/2 - 3/4 lb cremini mushrooms, chopped or sliced
2 T butter
2 T flour
2 c beef stock

Spinach

2 boxes frozen, chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1 onion, chopped
2-3 cloves garlic, minced or grated
1/2 t thyme
1 t Essence (I use Emeril's Original or Bayou Blast)
1/2 t salt
2 T butter
2 T flour
1-2 c heavy cream (I eyeball this based on how rich I want it that day)

For Salisbury Steak:
Combine meat, Worcestershire, steak seasoning, and onion. Form in to 4 1-inch thick oval patties. Heat a skillet over med-high heat and add 1 T olive oil. Add meat patties and cook about 6 minutes on each side until outside in browned and caramelized. (for a double meat recipe you'll want to do this in batches). Remove patties to a plate and cover with foil to keep warm. Add an additional T of olive oil to the pan along with the butter. Add the mushrooms, season with salt and pepper, and saute until tender, about 5 minutes. Add the flour and cook stirring with a whisk for 1-2 minutes. Slowly whisk in stock and cook another minute or so to thicken. Pour gravy over patties and enjoy.

For Spinach:
Melt butter in saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and saute until tender, about 3-5 minutes. Add garlic, thyme, essence and salt and saute a couple minutes more. Add thawed, drained spinach and stir to combine. Sprinkle in flour and cook a couple more minutes. Add the cream, bring to a bubble, and then reduce heat to low. Cook 15-20 minutes (I usually prepare the Salisbury steak at this time), stirring occasionally.

Pepper Steak and Mushroom Pilaf

A yummy and easy recipe from Rachael Ray. I've made this a couple times and it was success. My 20 month old daughter loves peppers (even though she calls them apples) and comes looking for a snack every time I'm chopping them. I'm not always in the mood for big pieces of mushrooms in my food but I LOVE the flavor of mushrooms so this rice really hits the spot.

Recipe (serves 4 plus leftovers)

Rice

(I make some changes to the rice as I don't often buy boxed rice and often have plenty of long grain rice in the house)

1 T olive oil

1 T butter

8 oz white or cremini mushrooms, chopped

broken spaghetti

1 1/2 c rice

3 c beef stock (you could also use chicken stock or water)

Pepper Steak

2 T oil

1 1/2 - 2 lb tenderloin, sirloin, flank steak - cut in to thin bite-sized pieces

2 T butter

2 bell peppers (green or red), cut into 2 inch dice

1/2 large onion or 1 small onion, sliced

2 T flour

1 T tomato paste (look for the tubes so that you don't have to open a whole can)

1/4 c sherry

1 1/2 c beef stock

salt

1 t black pepper

In a medium pot over medium heat add 1 T each of oil and butter. When melted, add broken spaghetti pieces and saute until the begin to brown. Add mushrooms and saute 3-5 minutes. Add rice and stir to coat. Add stock or water, bring to a boil, and reduce heat to low an cover. Simmer for 18 minutes.

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add oil to skillet, then meat and sear on all sides, about 5 minutes. Season with salt ans then remove meat to a plate and cover with foil. Reduce pan to medium and add butter, peppers, and onion. Saute about 5 minutes. Add flour and cook about 1 minute (just enough to get the raw flour taste out). Whisk in sherry and then the beef stock, tomato paste, and black pepper. Return meat to pan with sauce, stir and reduce heat to low. Simmer about 5 minutes. Serve over rice pilaf.