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.

Chicken Satay Stir-Fry

This is one of those recipes that I can make that is guaranteed to make everyone happy. It is so good and quick and easy. I saw it on a 30 Minute Meal episode originally. It's a great family meal but also great for company. You can have everything chopped ahead of time and then quickly stir-fry it when it's time to eat. I leave out the snow peas because we're not big fans and I don't feel that it really adds anything to the dish. Also, she originally called for creamy peanut butter and then to add some chopped peanuts. I skip a step and just use crunchy peanut butter.  I use our Homemade Peanut Butter and throw in a handful of peanuts for crunch. The rice is also a great addition to this meal. You can use regular long-grain rice if you don't want to buy jasmine, but don't skip the orange zest. It really adds something. UPDATE: I have done this with brown rice and it's delicious!  You just have to cook the rice for 45 minutes instead of 18.  I also half the rice and water amounts lately because we don't need so much rice.

Chicken Picatta

This is definitely a go-to meal when I don't know what to cook. It contains ingredients that I pretty much always have in the house (with the exception of capers, which I feel are optional in this recipe anyway.) It is one of my favorite Italian dishes and is delicious with pasta or rice. I like to make a simple white rice or pilaf with chicken stock and we had some roasted green beans. Yum!

Italian Mac-n-Cheese

The next in my series of mac and cheese recipes, I've yet to find someone who doesn't love this when they try it. It is sooo yummy! It satisfies so many cravings: cravings for mac and cheese, comfort food, Italian food. The best part - it's a 30 minute meal! Everything is cooked before hand and all you need to do is pop it under the broiler to brown it. Another great thing about this recipe is that it freezes very well. You should definitely make a double batch and pop one in the freezer. This was one of the recipes I froze during my last pregnancy so that we had home cooked meals when the baby came home. It was delicious and might taste even better than the first day. I have to thank Rachael Ray for yet another yummy but quick and easy meal.

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.