Meat

Southwestern Breakfast Skillet

By in Breakfast, Main Dish, Mothers Day, Pork 4 Comments Tags: , , ,

southwestern skillet

Going to a diner for breakfast has always been one of my favourite meals to eat out. Nothing like a plate full of grease to get you going in the morning! :) It’s actually been forever since I’ve gone out for breakfast. Somehow getting young kids ready and out the door with grumbling tummy’s just isn’t so appealing. I can’t even remember the last time we went out for breakfast but, I do remember that my favourite thing to order has always been breakfast skillets. And, if given the choice – southwestern please!

Since it’s been so long, I figured it was about time to recreate one at home. They’re so easy to make and since there’s no reason to get dressed before devouring it, you can enjoy your “diner” breakfast in your pj’s, bed head and all. Bonus!

The great thing about these kind of meals is they make quick dinners too. Breakfast for dinner is definitely one of our fallbacks when things are busy.

If you wanted to make this in true diner style you could top it with some homemade nacho cheese sauce. I think that would take it over the top in a major way.

Have a great weekend!

Southwestern Breakfast Skillet

If you don’t have an ovenproof skillet you can assemble to whole thing in a casserole dish before baking.

  • 6 eggs
  • 2 tablespoons milk
  • salt and pepper, to taste
  • 1 tablespoon oil
  • 1/2 pound spicy italian sausage
  • 1/2 onion, chopped
  • 1 red bell pepper chopped
  • 3-4 tablespoons oil
  • salt & pepper, to taste
  • 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
  • salsa and sour cream, to serve

Whisk together eggs and milk, season with salt and pepper. Pour mixture into preheated 12 inch skillet, coated with 1 tablespoon oil. Cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until just set. Place eggs in a dish and cover with tinfoil. Set aside.

Wipe out skillet with paper towel, place back over heat. Add sausage, cook until starting to brown then add the onion and bell pepper. Once the sausage is cooked through and peppers are tender scoop into a plate and cover with tinfoil. Leave drippings in pan.

Add a bit of oil to skillet, turn up heat to medium-high and cook hash browns in skillet until brown and crisp. Season with salt and pepper. Once potatoes are ready remove from heat, layer sausage mixture and eggs over top then top with cheese. Bake at 400ºF for 5 minutes or until cheese is melted and food is warmed through. Serve with salsa and sour cream.

Serves: 4-6

Quick French Dip Sandwiches

By in Beef, Main Dish 3 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , ,

Quick French Dip Sandwiches

I”ve made many a homemade beef dip. Mostly from scratch. I”ve thrown it in the slow cooker, cooked it on the stove top, but nothing ever turned out quite right. My hubs is a huge fan of beef dip so, even though I failed, I had to keep trying. Wouldn”t you know, the simplest and easiest of recipes turned out to be just right. And, I won”t complain about that. :)

I figured this time around I”d leave the cooking of the beef to the experts and make it more of an assembly process. First you top crisp and airy ciabatta rolls with garlic, butter and cheddar cheese, broil till bubbly and then pile on the beef. Serve them alongside a spiced up beef broth and dinner is served. Easy peasy and crave-worthy delicious.

Quick French Dip Sandwiches

These make very hearty sandwiches. For smaller appetites you could easily stretch the meat to 5 or 6 sandwiches. Use your discretion according to your family”s appetites and the size of the rolls.

  • 1/4 cup salted butter

  • 1 garlic clove, minced

  • 4 ciabatta rolls, split

  • 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

  • 1 can (14.5 oz) beef broth

  • salt and pepper, to taste

  • 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme

  • 1 pound thinly sliced deli roast beef

Melt butter in a small skillet, over medium heat. Add garlic and cook for 30-60 seconds, until softened. Place rolls on a baking sheet and brush or drizzle with garlic butter. Top with shredded cheese. Place under broiler and let bake until cheese is bubbly.

Place broth, salt, pepper and thyme in a medium-sized saucepan. Bring to a boil, lower heat and toss in roast beef. Once beef is warm remove from heat.

To serve: Remove beef from broth, place on prepared rolls. Pour broth into ramekins or bowls, to dip sandwiches.

Serves: 4

Adapted from Taste of Home.

Shortcut Potato & Cheese Perogies

By in Main Dish, Pasta, Pork, Thanksgiving 3 Comments Tags: , , , , , ,

Shortcut Potato & Cheese Perogies

Potato and Cheese Perogies have got to be one of my favourite comfort foods and homemade is THE best! But, they”re so much work. You spend all afternoon making them only to have half of them eaten at dinnertime.

I used to get together with my sister-in-law and we”d make big batches of cottage cheese perogies together. That definitely made the whole experience a lot more fun and worthwhile, but it”s still not something I would want to do every week.

I grew up with homemade perogies and I honestly don”t know how my mom did it. Three growing boys and one growing girl (with an appetite to rival the boys). Yikes! It must have been like slave labour. And yet she did it. And, every week she would bake fresh buns and bread out the wazoo. How did she ever find time to make homemade pizza pops on top of it all? She was (is!) wonder woman, I tell you.

I came up with this recipe one day when I was really craving homemade perogies but I didn”t have the time or energy to conquer them. You can use this same method with any of your favourite perogi fillings.

All you do is cook up some cannelloni, cut them in half, pipe in some filling, cover and bake for 20 minutes, top with your favourite toppings, bake a little longer, and you”ve got yourself some homemade perogies!

Since my favourite filling is potato and cheese, and since many people will be looking for ways to use up their Thanksgiving mashed potatoes, I thought I would head in that direction this time around. I topped mine with an easy Ham and Garlic Cream Sauce. Heavenly.

Now you can have homemade perogies on a weeknight, made from scratch, and your children will think you”re wonder woman. ;)

Note: I like to keep the peel on my mashed potatoes when I make them just for us, because that”s where most of the nutrition is. If you do the same, know that those potatoes will work fine in this recipe.

Shortcut Potato & Cheese Perogies

The perogies will only be as good as your mashed potatoes, so make sure they”re well seasoned and delicious before you begin.

Filling

  • 2 cups leftover mashed potatoes, warmed

  • 1 cup grated cheese (cheddar is yummiest)

  • 1/4 teaspoon onion powder

Pasta

  • 12 cannelloni, cooked according to package directions and cut in half width-wise.

Sauce

  • 1 tablespoon butter

  • 2 garlic cloves, minced

  • 3/4 cup heavy cream

  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

  • pepper, to taste

  • 1/2 cup chopped ham

Mix together filling ingredients. Place in a large resealable plastic bag. Snip off the corner of the bag and pipe the filling into each cannelloni half, until full. Place, in a single layer, in a 10 cup casserole dish and cover with foil. Bake at 350º F for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile make the sauce: Melt butter in a small saucepan, add garlic and cook for 1 minute until softened. Add cream, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes to reduce.

Once the filled cannelloni are done baking, remove from oven, sprinkle with ham and pour sauce over all. Bake, uncovered, for 10 minutes, or until sauce is bubbly.

Serves: 4

Pecan Crusted Chicken & Apple Salad with Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette

By in Main Dish, Poultry 6 Comments Tags: , , , , , , ,

Pecan Crusted Chicken & Apple Salad with Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette

Oh goodness. I don”t even know how to begin telling you how absolutely delicious this salad is. The only thing I can think to say is that it was so good I was craving it for dessert. Really.

Chicken breasts coated in a pecan, sesame seed, flour mixture – pan-fried til crisp and then baked in the oven. Served over a bed of salad greens, apple slices, red onion, dried cranberries and almonds. All of that drizzled with a simple Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette. It”s heaven on a plate I tell you!

My three year old son had three helpings, and gobbled up every last drop of everything. I think this will become a regular at our table when we want something a little lighter but still with the warmth and feel of fall.

As you can see there are no cranberries in the salad pictured, but they are listed in the ingredients below. That”s because both me and my grocery store were lacking in the cranberry department. But I just know they would be perfect in this salad and will be adding them next time.

This is even tasty as leftovers (with everything stored separately). I ate it the next day while the chicken was cold and I thought it was just as delicious as when it was fresh. So, if you wanted to make the chicken ahead and pack this for lunch throughout the week that would be a very viable and tasty option.

I have no problems eating salad for dinner when it tastes this good. If you get tired of all the heavy fall food I encourage you to give this recipe a try.

Pecan Crusted Chicken & Apple Salad with Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette

For the assembly of the salad I don”t have an exact measurement of ingredients because my family likes to make and customize the amounts on their own. Feel free to pre-assemble the salad or leave the ingredients separately for people to make their own.

Pecan Crusted Chicken

  • 4 chicken breasts, flattened slightly

  • 2 tablespoons milk

Coating Mixture

  • 1/4 cup flour

  • 1/2 cup pecans

  • 1 tablespoon sesame seeds

  • 3/4 teaspoon paprika

  • 3/4 teaspoon pepper

  • 1/2 teaspoon salt

Place coating ingredients in a food processor and process until pecans are finely ground, transfer to a shallow dish. Alternatively you can chop the pecans finely by hand and simply mix the ingredients together.

Coat chicken in milk and then in coating mixture. Pan-fry in a small amount of oil, in a large non-stick skillet, until coating is crisp and golden. Transfer to a lightly greased baking sheet. Bake at 350 for 15-20 minutes or until cooked through.

Allow to cool slightly before slicing on a diagonal. Or, refrigerate once completely cool for use later.

Maple Balsamic Vinaigrette

  • 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

  • 1/4 cup maple syrup

  • pinch salt

  • 1/4 cup olive oil

Whisk together vinegar, syrup and salt. Whisk in oil, in a steady stream, until combined.

Salad

  • mixed salad greens

  • 2 apples, thinly sliced

  • red onion, sliced

  • dried cranberries

  • pecan crusted chicken, sliced

  • sliced almonds

  • maple balsamic vinaigrette

Place salad greens on a plate. Top with apples, onion and cranberries. Place a chicken breast on top and sprinkle with almonds. Drizzle with vinaigrette just before serving.

Serves: 4

Pecan Crusted Chicken recipe adapted from Taste of Home.

Homemade: Hamburger Helper (Beef Stroganoff)

By in Beef, Homemade, Main Dish, Pasta 7 Comments Tags: , , , , , ,

hamburger helper poloroid

Hamburger Helper reminds me of my dad. When I was a kid and Dad was cooking you almost always knew it would contain ground beef. His specialty was a concoction of ground beef and cream of mushroom soup served over rice. I always looked forward to it whenever he made it and it tasted very similar to the hamburger helper that we also had occasionally. That’s what I was thinking of when I created this recipe.

It’s just as easy to throw together as the boxed stuff and the taste is very similar, but just so much better. And, just like the boxed kind this recipe receives zero points for attractiveness. But taste trumps looks right? I think it tastes just as good heated up throughout the week, as leftovers, as it does the day it’s made.

If you have someone that loves Hamburger Helper but you’d like to get them to try a healthier version, give this recipe a go. It’s a quick and hearty weeknight meal that’s sure to please the beef lovers in your family.

One-Pot Beef Stroganoff

Whole grain pasta may take longer to cook and may need slightly more water than indicated below.

  • 1 pound extra-lean ground beef
  • salt and pepper, to taste
  • 1/2 onion, chopped
  • 2 cups water
  • 2 cups sliced mushrooms
  • 2 beef bouillon cubes (organic if possible)
  • 4 cups macaroni (or other spiral pasta)
  • 1 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
  • 1 cup sour cream

Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Add a bit of oil, brown beef and onion; season with salt and pepper. Cook until beef is no longer pink.

Add remaining ingredients except sour cream. Bring to a boil. Lower heat, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, for 10-12 minutes or until pasta is just cooked and water is absorbed (add additional water if necessary).

Stir in sour cream. Heat through.

Makes: 6 servings

Chicken Barley Soup

By in Main Dish, Poultry, Soup 6 Comments Tags: , , , , , ,

chicken barley soup

My family (like most families right now) has been struggling with being sick pretty much non-stop. By the time the weekend comes my son has something new to spread around the house. It makes it’s way through the family just in time for something new to catch on. But that’s ok, it’s part and parcel of having kids and having those kids hang out with other kids.

Us adults are lucky, our immunities have already built up and we don’t catch it near as much, or as bad, as the kids. Yay! But it does mean less sleep, lowered immune systems and a general groggy, I’m-feeling-old-and-may-keel-over-at-any-moment feeling. That’s when we turn to chicken noodle soup to boost our immunities again.

Or at least we used to. But recently we tried this Chicken and Barley Soup and I think this may be our go-to from now on. It’s easy, healthy and tastes so unbelievably comforting your mood can’t help but be instantly lifted. It’s easy to throw together and completely homemade, which is just what you need when you’re feeling under the weather.

And, of course, we won’t just be enjoying it when we’re sick. It’s too good to be left on the sidelines. I’m sure we’ll be making and enjoying it often throughout this fall and winter.

Hopefully it can bring some comfort to your family as well, on a cold and sniffley day.

On the day it’s made it’s much broth-ier then shown in the pictures. These were taken the day after and the barley soaked up a lot of the broth overnight. It was still just as comforting and delicious but definitely thicker and heartier. Just FYI. :)

Chicken Barley Soup

For the greatest health benefits use homemade chicken broth or stock.

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 4 carrots, diced
  • 4 celery stalks, diced
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, diced
  • salt and pepper, to taste
  • 6 cups low-sodium chicken broth
  • 5 sprigs thyme
  • 1 cup quick-cooking barley
  • 5 ounces (5 cups) fresh baby spinach

In a large pot, cook carrots, celery and onion in oil just until tender. Add chicken; season with salt and pepper. Cook until chicken turns white on the edges. Add broth and thyme; bring to a boil. Stir in barley. Lower heat and simmer, covered, until barley is tender and chicken is cooked through (10-12 minutes). Add spinach and cook until wilted. Season with salt and pepper before serving.

Serves: 4-6

Adapted from Martha Stewart.

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