day 36, recipe 36: Meatball Nirvana

Pretty sure there is nothing as yummy as a plate of spaghetti and meatballs! They are so easy to make & cost way less their frozen friends. I got a huge batch of meatballs out of this recipe- enough for dinner, leftovers to take to work for both of us & even to freeze. Reviews of this recipe said they freeze well both raw & cooked!

1lb           extra lean ground beef
1/2 t         sea salt
1              small onion, diced
1/2 t         garlic salt
1 1/2 t      italian seasoning
1 t           dried oregano
3/4 t        dried red pepper flakes
1 dash      Frank's Red Hot (or to taste)
1 1/2 T     Worcestershire sauce
2 T           fresh italian parsley, finely chopped
1               large egg, lightly beaten
1/4 C         parmesan cheese
1/2 C         seasoned bread crumbs

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
In a bowl, add ground beef and season with salt, onion, italian seasoning, oregano, red pepper flakes, parsley, Franks and worcestershire sauce.
Add egg, cheese and bread crumbs- stir well to ensure everything is evenly mixed.
Form into even sized balls and arrange on a baking sheet. No need to grease it, the fat will drip out of the meatballs while cooking.
Cook for 20-25 minutes until no longer pink in the center. Serve over spaghetti with slow-cooker sauce!

day 28, recipe 28: Best Salisbury Steak

Here's another recipe I've heard of, but never had. Sure, I've seen it in the frozen section at the grocery store but never really given it a second thought. I wanted to do something with ground beef today and didn't want anything involving cheese, tortillas, tomato sauce or pasta and I remembered this little gem. Knowing my boy had only the frozen variety to compare it to, I thought I found a winner. After eating this delicious (easy!) dish, I'm sad that I hadn't discovered it sooner.

1 1/2 lbs                   ground beef
1 envelope                dry onion soup mix, divided ( I prefer Selection brand to Lipton, I find it less salty & more mild )
1/4 C                       dry bread crumbs
1 egg                       lightly beaten
2 T                          vegetable oil
1 1/2 C                     water
6-8                          fresh white mushrooms, sliced

In a bowl, combine ground beef, 1 tablespoon of the soup mix, bread crumbs and egg. Lightly stir together to ensure even mixing of all ingredients. Shape into 4 patties & let sit in the fridge for an hour.
Heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Brown the patties on both sides, remove from skillet & drain the excess fat.

Return meat to skillet and add remaining soup mix & flour. Slowly stir in water and mushrooms. Cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer for 20 minutes. Serve patties over egg noodles smothered in gravy & vegetables. Mmmmmm.

Day 15, Recipe 12: Not your average Shepperd's Pie

I know, I know- this should be called "cottage pie" because it contains ground beef and not lamb. Well, I've always known this to be shepperds pie, so it shall be called such. After 3 consecutive strike-out meals, I guess it was only natural that I reverted back to a comfort food. I love shepperds pie, it's another dish that I've made using vegetarian ground round, beef, pork and even ground chicken. Tried, tweaked- heck, I've even made it mexican! This recipe contains bits and pieces of different concoctions I've made, and even has a secret kick ; )

*Note: Many people choose to use instant mashed potatoes to make their pie. Not only do instant mashed potatoes taste incredibly salty (yes, even for me who uses a good 2 teaspoons on everything I eat- no joke), but they just don't have the same flavor IMO.

For the base:

1lb                ground beef
2                   carrots, chopped finely
2                   celery stalks, chopped finely
3 cloves         garlic, minced
1/2 can          diced tomatoes
1 t                 thyme
4 t                 all purpose flour
1/2 C             chicken broth
1 can             corn
1/2 C             frozen peas
2 T                worstershire sauce
                     salt & pepper
1 T                olive oil
1/2 C              cheddar cheese, shredded

For the topping/potatoes:

3-4                 russet potatoes, peeled
1 T                 butter
1/4 C              milk
1                    HEAPING tablespoon of horseradish
2 T                 bread crumbs

Bring a pot of water to a high boil with potatoes. Boil until tender and easily pierced with a fork. Drain water, mash potatoes with butter, milk and horseradish using a potato masher or hand mixer; cover and set aside.

In a skillet, head olive oil and add carrots, celery and garlic over medium-low heat. Cover and cook for approximately 8-10 minutes until carrots are soft. Add ground beef to skillet and break apart with a spatula, cooking until only slightly pink. Pour in diced tomatoes and flour, one teaspoon at a time. Cook for another minute.
Add spices, thyme, worstershire, salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and continue to cook for about 20 minutes until the mixture has thickened, but is still saucy.
Remove from heat; stir in corn and peas.

Pour meat mixture into a casserole dish and spread out evenly. Sprinkle with cheese. Using a spatula, blob mashed potato mixture on top and spread evenly over casserole- ensure that you have covered the corners to prevent the meat mixture from bubbling over during cooking.
Use a fork to gently "rough" up the potatoes and create little peaks- they'll brown better! Liberally sprinkle the bread crumbs overtop.

I tossed this into the fridge for two hours to allow the flavors a little more time to bond together, but you can bake right away. In a preheated 350 degrees F oven, bake for 35 minutes. Allow to sit for 5 minutes before serving.

Serve with a tossed green salad and enjoy guilt free comfort food! Eliminating the milk, condensed soup and most of the cheese cut out major calories in this dish- a normal serving is usually around 700 CALORIES, wow. Considering this dish is supposed to serve 8, I didn't feel as guilty when we nearly finished it off.

Day 2, Recipe 2: Curried Hash

So, I half-committed yesterday to making a lighter, healthier dish for dinner tonight. Things don't always go according to plan though and sometimes, you have to use what you have on hand. I'm not feeling well today and I wanted something that was relatively no fuss and wouldn't take long to prepare. This is an adapted Company's Coming recipe that I once again acquired from my mom- she's my no fail go-to for delicious meal ideas. The flavor in this dish comes from the curry and you can add or decrease the amount as you so choose.


3 T            cooking oil
1 1/4 lb      extra lean ground beef
3/4 C         chopped onion
1 t             salt
1/4 t          pepper
1/2 t          sage (or poultry seasoning)
3 T           all purpose flour
2 C           milk
1 T           curry powder

In a large skill heat oil over medium heat and add onion. Saute until onion is translucent; add ground beef and brown.
Season with salt, pepper and sage/poultry seasoning. Add flour, one tablespoon at a time, stirring with the ground beef mixture to ensure even coverage.
Stir all the milk into the mixture at once. Continue stirring as mixture boils and thickens.

Stir in curry powder and remove from heat; allow to sit for 2 minutes for flavors to absorb.
Serve immediately over a bed of rice or noodles.

The recipe says that this can also be used as a base for a casserole. Some suggestions;
- Rice, green peas, onion baked with base for 30 minutes at 350F
- Potato (parboiled) and diced tomatoes baked with base for 30 minutes at 350F

For this meal, presentation was key- my boyfriend isn't a huge fan of rice or curry. I arranged the rice in the center of the plate and poured green peas around the rice. A spoonful of the sauce overtop and voila! Before I knew it, he was back in the kitchen, spooning himself seconds. The key to this really is the two minute setting time- because the curry is the last ingredient added, the sauce doesn't absorb the flavors of it right away. Allowing a little bit of "breathing" time proved to be beneficial. If reheating or using in a casserole, be sure to use additional liquid as needed.

★★★.5/☆☆☆☆☆                 
3.5 stars out of 5 for yum factor