Sicilian Spaghetti Sauce

I get really tired of jarred spaghetti sauce and this is a really good alternative. It's sweet and spicy and I could really just eat if with a spoon. I typically double it so that I can just use the entire pound of beef and sausage and it makes a TON, so I separate it and freeze it. I usually have enough for 3 or 4 dinners. Don't try to cut down on the cooking time because it does make a difference. It has a long list of ingredients but they are almost all dried spices or canned items so it is VERY easy to make.

Ingredients
1/2 pound mild Italian sausage
1/2 pound lean ground beef
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 (8-ounce) cans tomato sauce
1 (6-ounce) can Italian-style tomato paste
3 cups water
1/4 cup sugar
1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon dried parsley
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
Hot cooked linguine
Shredded Parmesan cheese
Breadsticks (optional)
Preparation
Remove casings from sausage, and discard. Cook sausage and ground beef in a large skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat 6 minutes, stirring until meat crumbles. Add onion and garlic, and sauté 4 minutes or until beef and sausage are no longer pink. Drain and set aside. Wipe skillet clean.

Combine sauce and next 7 ingredients in skillet or Dutch oven; cook, stirring occasionally, 1 hour. Add sausage mixture and mushrooms. Cook, stirring occasionally, 1 hour and 30 minutes or until mixture thickens. Serve over linguine; sprinkle with cheese. Serve with breadsticks, if desired.




Southern Living, MARCH 2003

Brown Gravy Pork Chops

This recipe is from Courtney Carter Wilcox's collection. Thanks for letting me steal it from you!
I made this for dinner two weeks ago and we all loved it. I made it with white rice and green beans. It's a crock-pot meal so it's VERY easy. Enjoy!

Bone-in or Boneless Pork Chops
3-4 brown gravy packets
sliced onion rings
garlic powder

Make gravy packets as directed. I used three packets for four pork chops, and it was plenty of liquid. Brown pork chops in skillet (but really they will turn white instead of brown). Put pork chops in crock pot and sprinkle with garlic powder and cover with sliced onions. Pour brown gravy over the pork chops. Put the lid on and cook on LOW for about 8 hours. These were so good and tender! No knife needed!

Chicken Quesadillas and Guacamole

I don't know if this is technically a "recipe" but we make this a lot at our house and I think it's really good and easy so I thought I would share.


Ingredients for the Quesadillas:
Monterrey Jack Cheese
Mexican Blend Cheese
Chicken Breasts
HEB pre-made pico de gallo
Guerrero Tortillas or HEB tortillas in the bread section

Season 2 chicken breasts on both sides with garlic salt, paprika, and chile powder. Cook them in a skillet on the stove and then chop them. I usually buy the Guerrero Tortillas because they stay good longer. They are uncooked and are really good. Cook them on both sides in a skillet. Place one tortilla in the skillet and cover evenly with one of the cheeses. Then sprinkle in pico and chopped chicken and cover with the other cheese. Top with another tortilla. I usually cover the skillet with a lid to get the cheeses really melty. Cook for maybe 5 min. on medium and then flip it over and repeat. I use a pizza cutter to cut it into 4 triangles. Serve with sour cream, pico, and guacamole (recipe to follow). I also sometimes add Cotija cheese which makes these really amazing. It's the cheese that Pappasitos uses on everything that sort of looks like Parmesan. You have to grate it yourself though, which is why I only buy it sometimes. :)

Ingredients for Guacamole:
Avocados
chopped purple onion
lime
chopped cilantro
salt
finely chopped serrano or jalapeno peppers (optional)

I don't have measurements for this. Just eye everything and taste it. It's really yummy.

Corn Dip

Yay! A recipe from a blog reader!


Corn Dip (It is really good despite how it sounds)

1C Sour Cream
1C Real Mayo
2 Cans Mexi-corn (drained)
1C Shredded Cheddar Cheese
4 chopped green onions
1 Can green chiles
Salt & Pepper to taste
Diced & seeded jalpenos (if you want)

Chill and serve with fritos...or whichever chips you prefer.

I love this dip!

Hello??

I'm dying to post some recipes from people other than me!

Charred Chile Relleno with Green Rice

This is sooooo good! I have made this with fresh corn from the cob and with frozen corn. The frozen corn is just as good and a lot less trouble. I have also made it with and without chopped chicken breast. It is again equally as good without the chicken but my hubby refuses to eat a meal that does not include meat. The rice is good but is a lot of work and the meal is just as good with plain white rice boiled in broth. Don't let the long list of ingredients and instructions scare you because preparing the chiles is really easy.

4 cups chicken or vegetable stock, divided
1 bay leaf 2 cups white rice
4 large poblano peppers
6 ears corn on the cob or 3 cups frozen corn kernels
3 tablespoons corn, peanut or vegetable oil, divided
1 red onion, chopped
1 jalapeno, seeded and chopped
4 cloves garlic, chopped
1 (15-ounce) can fire roasted diced tomatoes, drained well
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano, eyeball it in your palm
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves
1/2 pound spinach leaves, deveined and coarsely chopped
4 scallions, coarsely chopped
2 limes, zested, juiced
1 cup shredded Chihuahua cheese, Asadero or Monterey Jack

1. Preheat broiler or grill pan to high.
2. Heat about 3 1/2 cups stock in a sauce pot with a bay leaf to boiling. Add rice, cover pot reduce heat to low and simmer 18 minutes until tender.
3. Place poblanos under broiler or on hot grill and char evenly all over, 15 minutes.
While peppers and rice are working, scrape the corn off the cobs or defrost frozen corn and dry by spreading out on clean kitchen towel. Heat 2 tablespoons light oil in a skillet over high heat. When the oil smokes or ripples add corn, onion, jalapenos and toss until the vegetables char at edges and onions are tender, 4 to 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium-high and add in garlic, fire roasted tomatoes and season with cumin, oregano, salt and pepper. Cook another minute or 2 then turn pan off.
4. Place the cilantro, spinach, scallions, lime zest, half a cup of stock and a tablespoon of oil in food processor and process into coarse green paste. Stir into your rice pot in the last 3 to 4 minutes of its cooking time.
5. Sprinkle the lime juice over the corn mixture.
6. Split the charred peppers open but not in half with small sharp knife then scoop out the seeds with a small spoon. Place peppers in a shallow baking dish and stuff each split pepper with lots of the corn mix, top each pepper with 1/4 cup cheese and place back under broiler to melt and char the cheese. Yields 4 Servings

Recipe courtesy Rachael Ray, 2007

Taco Casserole

I'm pretty sure this is the easiest non-crock pot meal I've ever made...or atleast one of them. Jeff loves it and it makes plenty for leftovers.

Ingredients:
1 lb. lean ground beef
1 packet of taco seasoning
1 small can of tomato sauce
1 can of Rotel
1 can of Ranch Style Beans
3/4 cup uncooked white rice
1 can of corn, drained
1 small package of shredded mexican blend cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350. In a skillet, brown meat and cook according to directions of taco seasoning Packet. Spray the bottom of a 13x9 inch baking dish with non-stick spray. In the baking dish, mix together the taco meat, tomato sauce, Rotel, beans, rice corn, and 3/4 of the package of cheese. Bake for 30 minutes at 350. Sprinkle the remaining cheese on the top and bake an additional 5-10 minutes.