Pan Seared Steak Rolls

When I saw this recipe at Steamy Kitchen, I knew I had to try it and bookmarked it right away. Well, today was the day. This recipe was so easy and quick, perfect for a week night. The flavor was amazing! So much flavor. The meat was tender and tasted wonderful with the veggie mix. The original recipe called for Enoki mushrooms, and I couldn't find them, so I ended up using bean sprouts instead and it really worked well. Also, I didn't have chicken broth, so I subbed white wine. I served it over steamed rice and topped with crispy chow mein noodles. It was phenomenal!!! I cant wait to make this again. I told Carl it is definitely company worthy, and a snap to throw together...cant beat that!

Pan Seared Steak Rolls (from www.steamykitchen.com)

8 ounces flank steak (4 inch x 6 inch piece) or 8 thin sliced sirloin (found at Publix)

Marinade
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
freshly ground pepper

Sauce
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
¼ cup canned chicken broth (I subbed white wine)

Filling
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon minced ginger
1 carrot, cut into 2 inch matchsticks
½ red bell pepper, cut into 2 inch matchsticks ( I used a green one)
2 ribs celery, sliced thin on diagonal
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
12 chives, cut into 3 inches long
4 ounces enoki mushrooms
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
2 teaspoons butter
¼ teaspoon sesame seeds

Freeze steak for 30 minutes until partially frozen. Slice steak against the grain, on the diagonal, into 8 equally thin pieces. Use a meat mallet to pound each piece of meat to 1/8 inch thick. If using thin sliced sirloin, skip this step.

Combine marinade ingredients in a bowl and add meat slices. Let stand 15 minutes to 2 hours.

In a separate bowl, combine sauce ingredients.

To prepare filling, heat a wok or skillet over high heat. When hot, add vegetable oil, swirling to coat the sides. Add garlic and ginger and fry for 20 seconds. Add carrot, bell pepper, celery and stir fry for 1 minute. Add soy sauce, sesame oil and stir. Transfer to bowl and let cool.

To make the beef rolls, lay beef slices out with short side facing you. Equally divide chives, enoki mushrooms and vegetable mixture among the pieces of meat. Roll the beef up, over the filling and secure with toothpick.

Place a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the vegetable oil and butter, swirling to coat bottom. When hot, add beef rolls, seam side down, not touching and pan fry for 1 minute, turn roll. Add sauce to the pan. Cover and simmer over medium heat until beef is just cooked through, 1-2 minutes. Remove toothpick, sprinkle with sesame seeds to serve.

Yields 4 servings

Mummy Dogs

I thought these were really cute when I saw them on Picky Palate. I searched online and found that people made these with either refrigerated crescent dough, or bread stick dough. Just cut the dough to make long thin strips that are easy to wrap around the hot dogs. I used crescent dough, and they were really yummy. Sam loved these because he could help me cut the dough and wrap it on the hot dogs. Definitely a fun thing for kids.

1 package of Pillsbury crescent rolls
8 hot dogs

Roll out the dough and press the seams to create 4 rectangles. Cut each rectangle into 8 strips. Use 4 strips per hot dog and wrap the dough around in both directions. Make sure there is a spot that can be the "face". Bake at 375 degrees for 10-15 minutes, or a nice golden brown. Use mustard and ketchup to make little eyes on the mummy faces.

Beef and Fresh Veggies over Polenta

I know this isn't the most beautiful picture of food, but it really was good! Its loaded with fresh green beans and zucchini. The veggie filled meat sauce tops a yummy creamy Parmesan polenta. I have tried polenta with my family several ways and they did not like it, but this time around...everyone ate it. Carl even said it was OK. I love polenta, so I'm happy to have found a way to get it into the rotation. I got this from this month's Everyday with Rachael Ray magazine.

The next day, I took the meat and veggie mixture and minced it all up with a food chopper, into a pulp pretty much. Then I froze it into 1/2 cup servings in freezer bags. Its so easy to grab a bag and thaw it in warm water. Its thawed by the time you have pasta or rice cooked and makes for an easy, healthy, veggie packed meal for kids.

Beefy Polenta and Veggie Pie (adapted from Rachael Ray)

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

One small zucchini, thinly sliced

1 onion, chopped

1 1/4 pounds ground beef

Salt and pepper

One 14.5-ounce can crushed fire-roasted tomatoes

1 cup instant polenta

1/2 cup half and half

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for sprinkling

One 10-ounce package frozen green beans, thawed and drained In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the onion and zucchini and cook, stirring, until softened, about 7 minutes. Add the beef, season with salt and pepper and cook over medium-high heat, stirring, until browned, 4 to 5 minutes. Stir in the tomatoes, lower the heat and simmer. 2. In a medium saucepan, bring 3 cups water and 3/4 teaspoon salt to a boil. Whisk in the polenta until thickened, about 3 minutes. Whisk in the half and half, Parmesan and 1/4 teaspoon pepper until smooth; pour into a large casserole dish. 3. Stir the green beans into the beef mixture and cook over medium heat, stirring, until warmed through, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Spoon the mixture over the polenta and top with more Parmesan.

Meaty Lasagna

1/2 box lasagna pasta, cooked and drained
1 lb ground beef
1/2 cup red wine
1 container ricotta cheese
2 tsp dried basil
1 egg
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
3 cups prepared marinara sauce (or any leftover red pasta sauce)
2 cups mozzarella cheese, grated
salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste

Start by browning the meat. When it is cooked through ,drain off the fat and add the wine. Cook a few minutes to cook off the alcohol. Add salt, pepper and garlic powder to season it up, set aside. In a medium bowl, mix ricotta cheese, egg and Parmesan cheese, basil. Add salt and pepper to taste, set aside.

In the bottom of a greased 9x13 baking dish, spread 1/2 cup marinara sauce on bottom then lay 3-4 lasagna noodles on bottom, slightly overlapping them. Spread with 1/2 the ricotta mixture, then top with half the meat mixture then 1 cup marinara sauce. Repeat layers. Cover 2nd layer with 1 cup mozzarella cheese. Top with remaining noodles and marinara sauce, then top with remaining 1 cup cheese. Bake covered in 375 degree oven for 30 minutes, then uncovered for 10 more minutes. Let set for 10 minutes before cutting and serving.

House Fried Rice

Fried Rice. Its so easy. You can use pretty much use any leftovers you have in the fridge all at once. I used leftover carne asada meat from a Mexican dish we had. I also threw in a left over grilled mahi mahi fillet. I also used Saffron rice, hence the yellowness.

House Fried Rice

1 1/2 Tbsp oil

1 carrot, sliced thin

1/2 cup frozen peas

1/2 cup frozen corn

1/2 cup shredded red cabbage

1 egg

1 tsp soy sauce

2 cups cold leftover rice

1 tsp sesame oil

1/2 tsp hot sauce

soy sauce, salt and pepper to taste

1 cup leftover meat ( I used beef and mahi mahi)

Heat oil over medium heat until hot. Add carrots and fry until crisp tender, about 2 minutes. Add peas, corn and cabbage and cook until cabbage gets soft, another 2-4 minutes. Whisk egg and soy sauce. Push veggies to one side of pan and pour egg on the other side. Let cook until set, then scramble. Add rice and meat and fry until heated through, another 2 minutes. Season and serve!!!

Sloppy Joe's

It seems like lately the recipes Ive been posting havent been so glamorous. What can I say, this is how we eat a lot of the time. Its just how it is with small kids around. Sloppy Joe's is a favorite from my childhood. This recipe is so easy to put together. It takes less than 30 minutes to have this dinner on the table. Plus, the left overs are great for lunch the next day.

1 lb ground beef
1 large can Bush's baked beans (any canned baked beans work fine)
1/2 cup ketchup
2 Tbsp mustard
1/2 tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
whole wheat hamburger buns

Brown the beef and pour off fat. Add the beans to the meat and mix well. Add ketchup, mustard, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Cook until hot and bubbly. Serve on hamburger buns.

Poor Man's Beef Stroganoff

Beef Stroganoff is one of those staple meals that is quick and easy to throw together on a busy week night. I used to always make it with sliced steak. Now I usually make it with ground beef (hence the title) since that is how Carl and Sam prefer it. They think its too chewey with sliced beef. I dont mind because I think it pretty much tastes the same either way. Plus, its cheaper. With the growing prices at the grocery store, cooking balanced, healthy meals can get expensive. I make it the same way I used to, with onions, mushrooms and sour cream. We always eat beef stroganoff with steamed broccoli. I dont know why, but for some reason, it just goes together. I love it all mixed together on the plate.

Poor Man's Beef Stroganoff

1 lb ground beef

1/2 cup chopped onion

8 oz sliced mushrooms

1 cup beef broth

2 Tbsp tomatoe paste

1 Tbsp Worcheshire sauce

1/2 cup sour cream

1/2 lb wide egg noodles

chopped parsley to garnish

Brown beef with onions until cooked through. Drain fat. Add mushrooms and beef broth. Cook 5-10 minutes, until liquid reduces and thickens. Cook noodles according to package directions. Add tomato paste and Worcheshire sauce to meat. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir in sour cream just before serving. Let the mixture heat back up but dont let it boil or the sour cream could curdle. Serve over egg noodles and steamed broccoli. Sprinkle parsley to taste.

Mini Italian Turkey Meat Loaves with Roasted Broccoli

I have never made turkey meatloaf before. I've never even bought ground turkey before, just because Ive always been afraid of it for some reason. Is it supposed to be like ground beef, but with a poultry taste? Ive always just been a bit wierded out by ground turkey in general. Like we were trying to trick ourselves that we were eating ground beef. Well, I decided to put that behind me and figure out if I could find a recipe we would like. Afterall, it is a healthy alternative to beef. Carl isnt a huge meatloaf fan, but I wonder if he would like it if it were a lighter version? I was inspired by this recipe to make mini meat loaves in a muffin pan. Meat muffins! Yeah! I came up with my own recipe based on what I had on hand. I served this up with some garlic roasted broccoli and thick sliced Hawaiian bread with lots of butter. This was the first time I made broccoli this way and I LOVED it. The broccoli recipe is below. All in all, everything turned out great. Carl, the meatloaf hater, even said they "exceeded his expectations." Just like when I first made Salmon Burgers. I remember when I made the salmon burgers the first time, we were both so skeptical. But they ended up being sooo good! A wonderful alternative to regular burgers. Better even! A great new way to eat Salmon. This was the same way. It really was so much better than meat loaf with ground beef.

Mini Italian Turkey Meat Loaves

1 lb ground turkey breast
1 can diced tomatos, drained
1/2 cup diced bell pepper
1 Tbsp chopped fresh basil
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1 egg
1 tsp worchestishire sauce
1 tsp hot sauce
lots of salt and pepper to taste

1/2 cup parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix all ingredients in a medium bowl with your hands until well combined. With a large spoon or ice cream scoop, fill a muffin tin to the top with the meat mixture. Top with parmesan cheese. Bake for 25 minutes or until a nice crust forms on top of each "muffin."

Garlic Roasted Broccoli with Parmesan

1 bunch of broccoli
1/4 cup olive oil
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 lemon juiced
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
salt and fresh ground pepper

In a small pan, cook the garlic in the olive oil on low until it starts to sizzle. Continue to cook it slowly, making sure it doesnt burn, but turns a nice brown color. Add the pepper flakes and cook 1 more minute. Strain the garlic and pepper out of the oil and throw away. Add the oil to the broccoli in a bowl. Add lemon juice, parmesan cheese and salt and pepper to taste and toss to coat. Pour the broccoli into a large baking dish in one single layer and roast at 425 degrees for 10-15 minutes stirring once.

My Famous Spaghetti with Meat Sauce

Everyone always asks me to make my spaghetti sauce. Its Carl's favorite dinner I make. Im not really sure where I came up with this recipe. Spaghetti sauce was one of the first things I set out to perfect when I started cooking in my early 20's. So now Im going to attempt to write out all the ingredients I use. I change it up all the time based on what I have on hand though. You can add other veggies, or just use ground beef and no sausage. I will write it up exactly how I am making it today.

1 lb ground beef

1 lb ground italian sausage

1 large onion

1 large bell pepper

2 zucchini

1 container of sliced mushrooms

2 cans (14.5oz) diced tomatoes

2 cans (29oz) tomato sauce

1/2 cup red wine

4 cloves of garlic, crushed

2Tbsp dried basil

2 bay leaves

1Tbsp sugar

fresh ground pepper

While the meat is browning, chop up all the veggies. When the meat is browned, add the cans of tomatos and tomato sauce. Then add all the chopped veggies and stir to get it all mixed up. The sauce will be really thick and chunky but dont worry, it will all cook down.

Now add the garlic, basil and bay leaves and sugar and wine. Season with some fresh ground pepper. Dont add any salt yet. I always wait until the very end to salt the sauce as alot of times it just naturally salty enough and you may not even need it. Now the fun part...let it simmer at least 2 hrs...more if you have the time. Sometimes when I dont have time to stay home and let the sauce simmer, I will brown the beef and then pour all the ingredients in the crock pot and let it simmer in the crock pot all day. Then in the last 30 minutes or so I will take off the lid and let it simmer without the lid so it can thicken up a bit.

This will make a large batch of sauce. I like to use it for spaghetti dinner, then have some leftovers in the fridge. I also will freeze half of the sauce for another night when I need a quick easy meal.

Corned Beef with Roasted Potatoes

Since its St. Paddy's day, I decided to do a corned beef. Carl doesnt really like it much and I had a bad experience with my last one so it had been years since I cooked one. This year, I decided to do it in the crock pot. When I pulled it out of the packaging, I was so grossed out by the way it looked with the pink jelly stuff that seasons it and the huge amount of fat on it. I honestly didnt know if i could even eat the thing. I decided to brown it first to fry off some of that fat. I ended up with a wonderful corned beef. Carl was just as suprised as I was how good this turned out. I cant wait to make Rueben sandwiches for dinner tomorrow night with the leftovers.

In the crock pot:
1 corned beef and seasoning packet (I browned mine first)
enough water to just cover the meat

Set on low and let cook for about 6 hrs. Then add 3-4 large carrots, peeled and cut and a head of cabbage cut into quarters and set around the corned beef. Let cook an additional 2 hrs.

For the potatos:

1 lb red potatos, cut into quarters
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp chopped fresh rosemary
1 tsp dried parsely
1 tsp garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Put the potatos into a large ziplock bag. Add 2 Tbsp olive oil, 1 Tbsp chopped fresh rosemary, 1 tsp dried parsely, 1 tsp garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste. Close the bag tight and shake it all up until the potatos are evenly coated with oil and seasonings. Bake for an hour, or until they get nice and brown, stirring once or twice during baking.

Schnitzel

From Everyday with Rachael Ray

Earlier when I made this, I had the pork chops out on the counter defrosting alittle. I decided to take my kids for a quick walk so I put the cutting board with the chops into the oven because my dog, Dude loves to steal food off the counter. When I got home, I go to make the Schnitzel and I preheated the oven like the recipe says. I forgot to take out the chops! Doh! I realized this pretty quickly, I figured the damage was about as much as happens when something defrosts in the microwave too long. They ended up being good, even if they were precooked in the oven a bit.

1 cup bread crumbs

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

salt and pepper

2 large eggs

1 tsp hot sauce (I used Franks Red Hot)

1/2 cup of flour, on a plate

One 1-lb pork tenderloin cut into 8 pieces and pounded flat

1/2 cup olive oil

1 lemon cut into wedges

Preheat oven to 250 degrees. In a wide shallow bowl, combine the bread crumbs, parmesan and 2 pinches each of salt and pepper, set aside. In another shallow bowl, beat the eggs with the hot sauce. Turn each piece of pork in the flour, then the egg mixture, then the crumbs to coat well, then transfer to a plate.

In a large skillet, heat 1/4 cup oil over medium heat. Add 4 pork cutlets and cook until golden-brown, about 2 minutes on each side. Transfer to a baking sheet and keep warm in the oven. Repeat with 1/4 cup olive oil and the remaining cutlets. Serve with lemon wedges.