Shepherd's Pie

I just made this and it was amazing! As usual, I changed a few things – but you can do as you wish!
Here is the recipe
Even though I love garlic, I left it out of the potatoes, and I only used one onion which was more than enough!

Johnny Mazetti

My dear friend Allison just offered up some of her favorite dinner recipes for me to share!! I haven’t tried these yet, but I’ve enjoyed enough of Allison’s food that I’m sure this is wonderful! (Plus, I love the name!!!)Johnny Mazetti
From Allison Dettore
1 ½ pond hamburger (or ground turkey meat)
½ pound egg noodles
1 can tomato soup
1 can mushroom soup
1 small onion, chopped
1 small pack Velveeta cheese
*I also sometimes add chopped green peppers or another vegetable (corn, steamed broccoli, mushrooms)

Mix together soups while frying hamburger and onion. Drain the meat and add to soup mixture. Add cooked noodles and ½ pack of the velveeta to soups and hamburger. Put into a 9x13 pan. Slice remaining Velveeta and place on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Classic Meatloaf with Moma's Sticky Sauce

We are big lovers of the "loafy" around here!  I've posted another meatloaf recipe, The Kitchen Sink Loaf, but this recipe is a classic!
My recipe is adapted from  Everyday Food Magazine (my dinner lifeline!) I like to add chopped carrots and some herbs. Here is their recipe.
I served this with Poor Man's Mashed Potatoes (with the skin on) and steamed broccoli with parmesan.




(*) indicates things I have changed
3 slices white sandwich bread
1/3 cup whole milk
1 1/2 pounds ground beef chuck
1/2 pound ground pork
1/2 medium onion, grated
2 garlic cloves, minced *I only use one
1 large egg
1/2 cup ketchup *I don't use any ketchup, but put my Moma's Sticky Sauce on top
*1 carrot finely grated
*1/2 tsp. Italian Seasoning
*1 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
Coarse salt and ground pepper

Directions
1.Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil or parchment paper. Place bread in food processor; pulse until fine crumbs form. Transfer to a small bowl; stir in milk. Set aside, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2.Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine beef, pork, onion, garlic, egg, 1/4 cup ketchup, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Add bread-milk
mixture, and mix very gently with a fork (do not overmix).
3.Place meat mixture on prepared baking sheet, and form into a loaf about 9 inches long and 4 to 5 inches wide.
4.Bake, brushing twice with remaining 1/4 cup ketchup during baking, until an instant-read thermometer registers 160 degrees, 45 to 55 minutes. Let meatloaf rest 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

*Instead of their ketchup steps, I bake the meatloaf for about 35 minutes, pull it out, and over it with my Moma's Sticky Sauce and return it to the oven for another 10-15 minutes.
Moma's Sticky Sauce:
1/2 c. loose brown sugar (not packed)
just shy of 1 Tbsp. worcesteshire sauce
1 1/2 tsp. mustard
3 Tbsp. ketchup
small splash of vinegar
mix with a fork and pour over meatloaf

Rachel's Fantastic Fettuccine

Another bloggy friend offered up this easy recipe! This one comes from Rachel at The Boni Bunch . I’m calling it:

Rachel’s Fantastic Fettuccine
1 lb Fettuccine pasta
1 26oz can Spaghetti Sauce
4-6 oz cream cheese (depending on preference)
1 lb browned ground beef/turkey cooked with 1 chopped onion garlic, salt, pepper, other seasonings as desired
Mix sauce, cheese, meat/onion, and seasonings & allow cheese to melt & mix with sauce... simmer then add to pasta...
I have to admit, everything is better with cream cheese! So I'm excited to try this one!

Mushroom Pasta

Thanks to some bloggy friends who shared some dinner ideas! This one is from Tania

1 medium onion
1 lb ground beef
1 (1lb) box of rigatoni pasta
3 cans cream of mushroom soup w/ 5 cans of
water added
seasoning to taste (salt, pepper)
(I will also add crushed garlic and diced mushrooms for extra flavor. But this is not necessary to originally recipe.)
Saute onion and add ground beef until browned; drain excess fat if desired. Add remaining ingredients and stir well. Cook until most of liquid is very thick/almost gone; roughly 45 minutes.
Sounds great! I can’t wait to try it.

Sloppy Joes

A friend had us over for Sloppy Joes the other night and it was a great flash back! My mom was known in our neighborhood growing up as the Queen of Sloppy Joes!!

Sautee some chopped onions and ground beef with some S&P. Add some catsup, brown sugar, mustard, worcestchire sauce, and perhaps some chopped bell pepper. (My girlfriend adds a can of Chicken Gumbo soup! It’s awesome!). Simmer on low until everything is sloppy and yummy! Serve on hamburger buns with some good old potato chips on the side!

Chile & Corn Bread

My chili recipe isn’t really a recipe – no surprise!! I sauté diced onions until golden, add ground beef and get it brown, add some chopped celery and carrots, cook for a few minutes. Use a little beef broth to deglaze the pan and add tomato sauce. Then add kidney beans (or any other beans you like), some spices of choice. A little secret is to add a touch of allspice. Kinda crazy but adds a little something that most can’t identify. Simmer covered on low for at least 45 min.
• My friend Liberty posted this great recipe for corn bread and it’s amazing!! Mix one box of corn bread mix and the ingredients it calls for with a box of yellow cake mix and the ingredients it calls for. Bake until done! It’s ridiculous!

Harvest Soup

This is an amazing soup that comes from my friend Sheena’s mom!
1 lb. ground beef
1 c. onion
1 c. carrots
1 c. celery
1 c. potatoes
4 c. water
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. Kitchen Bouquet sauce
1/8 tsp. basil
1 bay leaf
¼ t. pepper
28oz can whole tomatoes
Brown meat in large sauce pan, drain, add onions and sauté until tender, add remaining ingredients except tomatoes, bring to a boil, reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 20 min, then add tomatoes and simmer on low for 10 min. Tonight this will be served with hot crusty French bread and the lovely sound of rain!
* I cannot find Kitchen Bouquet sauce - so I use 2 c. beef stock with 2 c. of water instead of 4c. water and that adds some flavor.  Also, I don't care for tomato chunks, so I press the tomatoes through a strainer to get all the juice and flavor without the chunks!  Lastly, I add 1c. frozen corn!

Kitchen Sink Meatloaf

Everything but the kitchen sink!!
one to one and a half pounds of ground meat (can be turkey, too)
one can cambell's abc vegetable soup (beef stock or vegetarian)
one egg
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/4 cup milk
worsteshire sauce
seasoning salt
garlic powder
minced onions
all to taste (I use plenty of each)
ketchup and mustard mixed together
mix all ingredients except ketchup and mustard mix and shape into loaf. coat with ketchup/mustard mix and bake one hour at 350. usually best to let it sit a few minutes before slicing.