Best Spaghetti Sauce

Recipe From: Kathy Miller

(I have a few things I do differently, in parenthesis)

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 button garlic finely chopped (I use minced from a jar)

1 medium onion chopped

1 pound ground beef

30 ounces tomatoes, plus juice cut up

15 ounces tomato sauce

1 can tomato paste

1 cup water

4 ounces mushrooms drained (I prefer fresh)

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon sage

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon sugar ( I do 1 Tbsp, cuts down on the acidity)

1/2 teaspoon oregano flakes

1/4 teaspoon thyme

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1 bay leaf

Brown garlic pieces in oil; remove dry pieces (unless you've used the jarred stuff - just mix in with the spices). Brown onion and hamburger in garlic flavored olive oil (I don't use the oil at all). Add tomatoes, sauce, paste, and drained mushrooms and blend. Add all spices and mix well. Simmer approximately 2 hours. Before serving remove bay leaf and if needed, thicken with a little cornstarch solution (about 1 T. cornstarch). (Note: If you 're going to let simmer in a crockpot omit the water, otherwise it will be too watery.)

This is an excellent recipe to double and freeze the leftovers.

Chicken Enchiladas

One of Mike's favorite's!

Adapted from recipe by Linae Pickard:

1 can cream of chicken
small can chopped green chiles
1 can evaporated milk
1 can chicken
corn tortillas and grated cheddar cheese

Heat soup, chiles, and evaporated milk in saucepan and heat through stirring constantly. Shred up chicken and add and stir for another minute. (This next part isn't an exact science, but you can't really mess it up) In a casserole dish spray the bottom with cooking spray and put in one corn tortilla. Scoop about 1/4 cup of the wet mixture and spread over the tortilla, sprinkle a little bit of cheese. Layer another 2 corn tortillas over wet mixture and scoop about 1/2 cup wet mixture and spread over the tortillas, and top with more cheese. Next layer with 3 tortillas, and repeat method with 3 tortillas per layer until wet mixture is used up. Either go light on the cheese layers, or maybe go every other layer - you want it to be cheesy, but not TOO cheesy. After the last of the wet mixture is spread on top of the last layer of tortillas then cover with cheese and bake at 350 for 20-30 minutes, you want the cheese on top to be bubbly and starting to brown. Serve with green salsa and light sour cream

Goulash

From Kathy Miller

1 lb hamburger
1/2 green pepper, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 8-oz. can mushrooms, drained
1 cup macaroni
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can tomato paste
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp. paprika
1/8 tsp. oregano
Season salt and sliced cheddar cheese

Brown hamburger, green pepper and onion together about 15 minutes, or until meat is done. Add mushrooms. At same time, cook macaroni in boiling, salted water until tender (uncovered). When both are done, mix meat mixture, drained macaroni and remaining ingredients, except cheese slices, in a 1 1/2 qt. casserole dish. Top with sliced cheese and bake at 350 degrees for about 20-30 minutes.

Jambalaya

Super easy...

1 Box Zatarain's Jambalaya
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can kidney beans, rinsed & drained
1 can Chicken (like from Costco)
1 cup frozen corn

Make the jambalaya according to directions on the box (this will include adding the chicken). Turn off heat and add corn, tomatoes, and beans, stir and replace lid. Let sit 5 minutes. Serve.

(You can use whatever meat you like - sausage, shrimp, etc. It's just really quick to use the canned chicken, and tastes good too)

Josh's Spaghetti Sauce

My second-favorite spaghetti sauce recipe. Kathy's "Best Spaghetti Sauce" is the fave. This is probably as good, only it's just a little different than your traditional, and when I'm in the mood for spaghetti, I usually want traditional. But to change things up, this is great!

From Josh Simonen

1 small can stewed tomatoes, with juice
2 jars spaghetti sauce (The best you can find)
1-2 pounds Italian sausage (Deli type), sliced into thin pieces
1/4 small onion, diced (red is best)
3-4 cloves fresh garlic, minced
1 small green tomato, diced
mushrooms if desired
black olives if desired

Put sauce and stewed tomatoes into saucepan, splash with pepper, turn heat to low and let warm. Mince 1/2 the garlic and put it in sauce, mince the other garlic and put it in the frying pan. Put mushrooms, olives, onions etc into the sauce and let warm - cook with olive oil in a pan the sausage and garlic then add to sauce. Let sauce warm up and cook a little hotter for about 1/2 hour - don't stir. Let thicken, at end add about 1 heaping spoonful of cinnamon, stir and let warm 10 more minutes. Serve over spinach noodles.

Manicotti

Adapted from recipe by Linae Pickard:

Manicotti noodles
1 container of ricotta cheese
mozzarella cheese (grated)
parmesan cheese (grated)
1 egg
Pasta sauce*
Garlic (chopped or garlic salt, not too much)
Grated zucchini and carrots (maybe 1/2 cup of each)

1. Cook the noodles but only until they are a little soft, undercook them
2. mix ricotta, mozzarella (maybe 1 cup?) and some parmesan cheese, not
as much as the mozzarella
3. Add the egg to the cheeses and mix
4. Add zucchini and carrots, salt and pepper and garlic
5. Stuff shells and put in baking dish. Pour sauce all over and sprinkle
with mozzarella and parmesan cheese. Bake at 350 for about 30-40 minutes. YUMMY!!

*Use "Best Spaghetti Sauce" recipe

Mile High Pork Chops

From "Kitchen Keepsakes & more Kitchen Keepsakes"

4 Pork Chops
2 Tbsp oil
1 cup whole grain rice
1 tomato, sliced
1 green pepper, sliced horizontally
1 onion, sliced
1 can consomme
salt and pepper, to taste

Serves 4

Season pork chops with salt and pepper. In 2 tablespoons oil, brown pork chops on both sides in a skillet. Sprinkle rice in the bottom of a casserole dish. Lay pork chops on top of rice. Place a slice of onion, green pepper, and tomato on each pork chop. Pour consomme over all. Bake at 350 degrees, covered, for 1 1/2 hours, or until pork chops are tender and rice has absorbed all the moisture.

Stuffed Green Peppers

Ingredients:
6 green bell peppers
salt to taste
1 pound ground beef
1/3 cup chopped onion
salt and pepper to taste
1 (14.5 ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes, chopped
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 cup uncooked rice (2/9/09 Note: I am told that this recipe would be better with a little more rice, I haven't experimented yet to know how much more is desirable and how else to adjust the recipe for the added rice (enough fluid for the rice to absorb) - next time I make it I'll try and figure that out. But I think this is pretty tasty the way it is here too.)
1/2 cup water
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
2 (10.75 ounce) cans condensed tomato soup
water as needed

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cut the tops off the peppers, and remove the seeds. Cook peppers in boiling water for 4 minutes; drain. Sprinkle salt inside each pepper, and set aside.
2. In a large skillet, saute beef and onions for 5 minutes, or until beef is browned. Drain off excess fat, and season with salt and pepper. Stir in the tomatoes, rice, 1/2 cup water and Worcestershire sauce. Cover, and simmer for 15 minutes, or until rice is tender. Remove from heat, and stir in the cheese.
3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. (175 degrees C). In a medium bowl, combine tomato soup with just enough water to make the soup a gravy consistency. Place peppers open side up in a baking dish. Stuff each pepper 1/3 full with the beef and rice mixture. Spoon in half of the tomato soup. Stuff each pepper with the rest of the beef and rice mixture and spoon in the rest of the tomato soup. Top each pepper with grated cheese.
4. Bake covered for 25 to 35 minutes, until heated through and cheese is melted and bubbly.

Sweet & Sour Chicken

Recipe from: Sarah Morley

Ingredients:

1 Cup Sugar

3 Tbsp. Cornstarch

½ Cup Vinegar

¼ Cup Soy Sauce

1 Can Pineapple (save juice)

3 Cups cooked, chopped Chicken

1 Cup Onions

1 Cup Celery

1 Cup Green Pepper

½ Tsp. Salt

1 Garlic Clove

½ Tsp. Ginger

(Note to self: On 2/9/09 - We hadn't had this in quite awhile, but had it last week. I am thinking of adding carrots next time around)

Combine sugar and cornstarch; then add vinegar, soy sauce and pineapple juice. Bring to a low boil and add remaining ingredients except for pineapple. Bring to boil, then simmer until nice and thick and add in pineapple. Serve over rice.

Tuna New Orleans

Recipe from Kathy Miller

Serving Size: 5

1 tomato chopped 1/2 cup green pepper chopped 1 6 oz. can sliced mushrooms 1 tablespoon onion chopped

2 tablespoons butter 1 can cream of celery soup 2 cans tuna drained Hot Rice

Saute' tomato, green pepper, mushrooms and onion in butter for 5 minutes. Add can of soup and heat for 5 minutes. Add drained tuna and heat for 2 more minutes. Serve over hot rice. Serves 4-6.