Recipe - Best Pot Roast

 Because of food allergies, we've had to adjust and adapt recipes at our house. And because of that, I've found the best way to make a tender, juicy, flavorful pot roast. Trust me, this is delicious and very easy.

Best Pot Roast with Gravy

2-3 lb beef roast (a cut with more fat will be a better pot roast but any cut will work)

1 c. prune juice

1 c. sliced onions

1 t. salt

1/2 t. ground black pepper

1/2 t. powdered ginger

3 T. flour

1/3 c. cold water

Lightly grease the sides of a covered roaster pan. This helps make clean up easier later.

Spread onions in the bottom of the pan. Place roast, fattiest side up, on top. Sprinkle with the seasonings, then pour the prune juice over top.

Cover and roast in a 325°F oven for 1 1/2 hours. Baste with the juices in the pan and check doneness - it should shred easily and be tender. Roast for another 30-60 minutes. Rule of thumb is about 45 minutes per pound of roast.

When it is done, remove from the pan to a platter, cover with foil, and let rest. Strain onions out of juices and place with roast. KEEP THE JUICES! Add enough water to measure 2 c. of drippings. Make sure you scrape the dark stuff out of the roaster pan. It's great for flavor. Put the drippings into a saucepan.

Stir the flour into the 1/3 c. cold water until it is smooth. Stir it into the drippings. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. It should thicken. Boil and stir for one minute. Taste and add salt and pepper if needed.

Shred the roast into chunks. Serve with plenty of vegetables, rice or mashed potatoes, and the tasty gravy you just made.

*If you aren't allergic, you can add chopped carrots and celery with the onions.

*A teaspoon of dry mustard powder is also very tasty sprinkled over the roast with the ginger.

Thursday Recipe - Cheesy Rice Dinner

This was one of those "I have leftovers, what can I make?" meals. It turned out pretty tasty. Feel free to change up the leftovers however you want. It's a great one-pot meal.

Cheesy Rice Dinner

3 c. cooked rice (brown works well in this and is healthier)
2 c. cooked broccoli, chopped small (or use frozen mixed veggies, or leftover green beans or brussels sprouts or asparagus or whatever you've got)
1/4 c. bell pepper, chopped small
2 c. shredded cheese (use whatever you've got, we mixed about six varieties because I was cleaning out all those little chunks left in the fridge)
2 T. dried parsley or 1/4 c. fresh parsley, chopped small
1/2 t. garlic powder
1/2 t. ground black pepper
1 t. salt
2 c. milk
2 eggs

Toss everything together except the milk and eggs. Spread in a 9x13 baking dish. Beat milk and eggs together, then pour over the top of the rice mixture.

Bake at 350° for 45-55 minutes, until it is bubbly and browned on top. Sprinkle with more cheese if you want. Serve nice and hot.

Feeds 4-5 normal people, or two teenage males.

Thursday Recipe - Baked Fritatta

This is one of those recipes that is great for using up bits of leftovers. Fritattas are a fun dish to make. Usually they are fried until the bottom is set, then the pan is transferred to the oven to finish baking. I just threw everything in a baking dish this time.

A fritatta has three basic ingredients:
  A starch of some kind - I've used potatoes, leftover noodles, and leftover rice
  Vegetable and meat bits - whatever you've got in the fridge that's either already cooked or fast cooking. Things like green beans, roasted carrots, finely diced onion, ham bits, leftover roast or chicken, shrimp, shredded spinach, etc.
  Eggs - These are what hold the fritatta together.

Here's the recipe of the one I tossed together last night. My kids all ate it with no complaints. Of course, I did give them free reign of all the sauces in the fridge...

Baked Fritatta

8 eggs
1 t. dried parsley
1/2 t. dried oregano
1/2 t. dried marjoram (because I had it around, skip it if you don't have any or use Italian herb mix)
2 t. garlic salt blend
1/2 t. ground black pepper
3 c.  cooked brown rice, or white if that's what you have around
1/2 c. ham, small dices
2 c. cooked broccoli, chopped into smallish bits
1 red bell pepper, diced into chunks

Heat oven to 400°. Generously spray or grease a 9x13 baking dish. Beat eggs and spices in a large mixing bowl until smooth, like you would for scrambled eggs. Add everything else. Mix lightly, until everything is coated in egg. Dump into the baking dish and spread it out evenly. Bake for 18-24 minutes, until the eggs are set. Serve hot.

Suggested sauces and toppings:
Ketchup or Catsup, however you want to spell it
Salsa
Spaghetti sauce
Cream sauce
Cheddar cheese
Parmesan cheese
Olives
Sliced tomatoes
Green chilies
Ranch salad dressing

Thursday Recipe - Ferengi Chicken

Continuing the Star Trek theme, here's a fast, easy meal that takes two pots to cook. Yep, I'm the queen of fast, cheap, and easy. Food that is.

Ferengi Chicken

1 T. oil
1 lb skinless, boneless chicken, cut in bite size pieces
1/2 c. onion, chopped
1 c. carrots, diced small
1 lb bag frozen mixed cauliflower and broccoli
1 c. ketchup or catsup
1 c. crushed pineapple
1 t. ginger
1 t. garlic powder
2 T. soy sauce
2 T. brown sugar

Mix together ketchup, pineapple, ginger, garlic, soy sauce, and sugar. Set aside. In large saucepan, heat oil over medium high heat. Add chicken and onion. Cook, stirring often, until chicken is mostly done. Add carrots. Cook 5 minutes longer. Add frozen vegetables and sauce. Stir. Cover and cook for 5 minutes until hot and bubbly. Serve over rice.

If you prefer the sauce thickened, use 2 T. cornstarch dissolved in 1/2 c. cold water.

Thursday Recipe - Slow-Cooker Oriental Beef

This is one of those "open the fridge and see what I've got" meals. It turned out tasty enough my kids asked me to write the recipe down. So, here it is.

Slow-Cooker Oriental Beef

1 lb beef stew meat (small chunks and very lean work great in this one)
1/4 c. sliced green onions
1 green bell pepper, chopped
5 carrots, cut in small chunks
1/2 c. celery, sliced
1/2 c. ketchup or catsup
1/4 c. soy sauce
1/2 c. Thai Kitchen sweet chili dipping sauce

Dump everything in a 3 - 4 quart slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours. Stir. Turn to low and cook for another 1-4 hours, depending on how long you have and how soft you want your carrots. Serve over rice.

You can garnish it with more chopped green onions, finely chopped peanuts or cashews, bean sprouts, or whatever else strikes your fancy.

One of these days, I'm going to find the recipe for sweet Hawaiian Beef that my neighbor taught me years ago when I was twelve. It had raisins and coconut and all sorts of good stuff in it. I haven't managed to recreate it. This recipe is sort of like it. Anyone out there have a recipe for Hawaiian Beef they want to share? I'd love to have it again.

Thursday Recipe - Hawaiian Turkey Loaf

Oops. A day late again. It's been that kind of week. But I have PICTURES! That should make up for being late, right? I made this Tuesday night and it turned out delicious. It's the kind of recipe where you can play fast and loose with the ingredients to make it what you want, so feel free to have fun.

Hawaiian Turkey Loaf

1 1/2 lbs ground turkey
1 c. oatmeal
2/3 c. ketchup or catsup, depending on where you live
1/4 c. BBQ sauce, whatever flavor you like best
2 eggs
1/2 can crushed pineapple
1/4 c. red onion, finely diced
1/2 c. green bell pepper, chopped small
1 apple, cored and chopped

Mix everything together. Your hands work best, but my son insisted on using a spoon. Whatever. Dump it into a greased casserole dish. Top with the other half of the can of pineapple and about a 1/4 c. teriyaki sauce (1 c. soy sauce, 1/3 c. brown sugar, 1/2 t. red pepper flakes - stir until mixed). Bake at 400° for about an hour, until the middle is no longer gooey and the meat is no longer pink. Or if you have a meat thermometer, bake it until the internal temperature is 170°. Serve it with rice and more teriyaki sauce.

PICTURES!

Red onion and bell pepper.

Ground turkey, from the clearance bin because I'm a cheapskate. Good stuff, though.

And one apple, ready to chop. This one has been in my fridge for a month, mushy but perfect for cooking.

1 can crushed pineapple...

My sauce collection, just part of it. What? You don't have at least three dozen bottles of assorted sauces in your fridge?

Scroll back up to the knife picture. It's very sharp. My thumb will never be the same again...

Everything in the bowl, ready to mix...

My son making his favorite sauce- teriyaki.

My other son mixing the meatloaf, with a spoon cause he has a thing about getting his hands gooey.

Meatloaf and rice, ready to bake. Yep, make oven rice and bake them together, Easy.

 Oven rice: 2 c. rice, 4 c. hot water, 1 t. salt, 2 T. butter. Put in a casserole and bake at 400° for 1 hour.

And the finished meatloaf.

Thursday Recipe - Zucchini Cheese Pie

This was our dinner tonight. It was gobbled before I thought to grab my camera. Sorry, I could take a pic of the empty pie tin for you but that would be depressing because it means the pie is gone. It was that tasty. And that easy. And it has lots of variations.

Zucchini Cheese Pie

2 c. diced fresh zucchini
3 eggs
1/3 c. milk
1/2 c. crumbled feta cheese
1/2 c. pancake or biscuit mix, dry
1 t. Italian herb mix
1/2 t. salt
1/2 t. black pepper

Heat oven to 400°. Mix everything together and dump into a greased pie tin. Bake for 30-40 minutes until the top is golden brown and a toothpick comes out clean from the middle. Let cool for 5-10 minutes, then serve. Sliced fresh tomatoes and bacon are delicious with this pie.

Variations -
1.  2 c. chopped broccoli for the zucchini and 1 c. shredded sharp cheddar for the feta
2.  1 c. shredded mozzarella for the feta and add 1/2 c. diced pepperoni
3.  Use goat cheese and gluten free baking mix (I used Bisquik's version) to make a cow-dairy free, gluten free version
4.  Add up to 1 c. diced mushrooms, peppers, onions, olives, or anything else you'd top a pizza with
5.  Use 1 c. chopped fresh spinach and 1 c. diced zucchini with 1/2 c. shredded Swiss cheese

Use your imagination and have fun with this easy recipe.

Thursday Recipe - Island Chicken

The post is late. This week has been crazy at work and at home. Tuesday night, our Cub Scout Pack had their Blue & Gold Banquet. Guess who was in charge of the food? That's right. Me.

We took our Cubs and their families on a cruise. They were hit by a hurricane and stranded on a deserted island. The natives prepared a great feast for them. I love Cub Scouts. You can have so much fun with them and their imaginations.

My Island Chicken got rave reviews, so I thought I'd share the recipe. Fast and easy, like always. Serve it with rice and a green salad for a full meal.

Island Chicken

2 lbs boneless chicken
1 c. crushed pineapple
1/2 c. ketchup
1/4 c. soy sauce
1/4 c. brown sugar
1 T. ginger

Mix everything except chicken to make a sauce.

Oven version: Put chicken in a baking dish. Pour sauce mix over and bake at 350° for 35-50 minutes until the chicken is done.

Crockpot version: Put chicken in a 3 - 4 quart crockpot, pour sauce over the top. Cook on low for 4 - 5 hours or on high for 2 - 3 hours, until chicken is done.