RECIPE POST #4

STEAK TACOS!

I make these very frequently, mainly because it's my daughter's favorite food. The most labor-intensive part is slicing the meat. Find someone to do that for you and this chore is easier. :D

1 pound sirloin steak (or whatever sort you like - the tenderer the better, obvs.)
1 tablespoon yellow mustard (the type you put on hot dogs - no, really!)
1 tablespoon packaged taco seasoning
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano

Slice the steak very thin and toss it into a bowl. Add the mustard, taco seasoning, and oregano. Mix well. (I normally use my hands for maximum coatage.)

Let that sit for at least 35 minutes to marinate.
(While that's sitting, I will sometimes fry corn tortillas into taco shells.)

Heat a skillet with 1 tablespoon of cooking oil. Fry the meat about a handful at a time until just brown - don't overcook or it will be tough and chewy. Put the cooked pieces into a serving dish and fry the next bit. (Too keep it hot, you can put the bowl into a "warm" oven, just make sure you use an oven-safe bowl. :D)

When the steak is completely cooked, add a bit more oil to the pan and saute some onion slices.

Serve on warmed corn or flour tortillas, topping with your choice of salsa.

Honestly, you can add whatever you like to these, although I seldom add anything but avocado slices or sometimes a squeeze of lime if I have limes handy. They are just as good with added cheese, lettuce, tomato, and sour cream.

Alternative: If you use fajita seasoning to marinate with and add some green peppers to the onions, you can turn it into fajitas, instead...

RECIPE POST #3

SPAGHETTI

Okay, this is a tough one for me because I never make it the same way twice. It totally depends on what I have in the cupboard or what I’m in the mood for. But here are a few basics to start with.

1 pound ground beef (or ground whatev you like)
1/2 pound ground Italian sausage
1 or 2 cloves garlic
Mushrooms (optional)
Onions (optional)
Bell Pepper – capsicum (optional)

Now, normally I will brown the meat together until it’s well cooked, drain off the grease, and then add the garlic for a bit. If you like onion and peppers in yours (which I do NOT) add them when the meat is done and cook until they are a bit tender. You can also throw whatever other veggies you like in there, such as diced zucchini. I usually don’t bother with the mushrooms unless I happen to have some.

To make it vegetarian, just use a bit of olive oil and toss in the garlic and a pile of veggies. I would probably use carrots, peppers, zucchini, and fifty billion mushrooms because I like them.

Now, on to the sauce. Here is where it gets fun.

Traditional:
1 can tomato sauce (15 oz)
1 can Italian style diced tomatoes (15 oz)
1 can tomato paste (8 oz)
A whole lotta seasonings like:
Basil
Oregano
Rosemary
Salt
Pepper
(I normally use dried, but if you can get the fresh stuff it’s SO MUCH BETTER.) Um, I just kind of toss it in a teaspoonish glop at a time until I like the taste. Let it cook down a bit before tasting! The flavours take about fifteen minutes to blend.

Lazy:
Buy a jar of Ragu® Chunky Garden Combination sauce
Add a can of Italian Style Diced Tomatoes
VOILA.
Really, I’ve never seen the need to add seasoning to that one. I really like it. I’ve tried forty gobillion different jarred sauces and that one is still my fav. Do not buy Ragu Meat sauce. It is VILE.

Even Lazier:
Buy McCormick’s Spaghetti Sauce packet and add the stuff it says to on the back.
I think it’s a can of sauce and a can of paste. Pretty easy and tastes surprisingly good, especially when you get bored with the methods above and want a change.

AND if you get bored with that, you can always take the meat, toss it into a bowl, add some minced garlic, minced onion (or dried onion flakes – I love those) and bread crumbs and shape them into meatballs before browning them and adding the sauce. If you hate cooking meatballs in the skillet (like me) you can put them into a baking dish and bake them first. Much easier, but then you have another pan to clean up, unless you’re lucky and can use an oven-safe skillet.

ALSO if you really want to switch it up, you can skip the ground meat and brown some chicken breasts in a bit of olive oil. Add whichever tomato sauce method you choose, let it simmer for about 30 minutes, and top each chicken breast with a handful of mozzarella cheese and some Parmesan. Easy and awesome alternative to regular spaghetti.

SERVE ALL OF THE ABOVE OPTIONS OVER COOKED SPAGHETTI NOODLES. Obviously. :D Also, if you can stand to part with it, about a quarter of a glass of red wine is really good tossed into your sauce.

RECIPE POST #2

DUMP CHILI!

This is probably the easiest recipe of all time. You'll need a crock pot, or if you plan to be home all day, a large pan that you can simmer all day without burning whatever you're cooking. You'll need:

1 pound ground beef
1 can pinto beans*
1 can black beans*
1 large jar of your fav salsa*

Brown the beef, toss it into the crock pot, and DUMP IN the other stuff. Cook on low for eight hours or on high for four.

*Now, here is the fun part. You can use ANY sort of beans you like. Kidney beans, ranch style beans, white beans, chili with beans, whatever you like. AND you can use any sort of salsa. Once I made it with peach/pineapple salsa and it had a really different, sweet flavour. The salsa determines the heat level, so use mild salsa if you don't like it spicy and HOT salsa if you like it to burn your taste buds.

I don't see why this wouldn't work without meat, although I haven't tried it. You could dump all sorts of other things in there, too.