Grilled Beef and Vegetable Kabobs

Now that the summer is coming to an end, it is finally comfortable enough down here in Florida to start grilling out back again. In an effort to eat more protein and veggies, I am looking for recipes that are filling without having to add a carb-filled side dish. These kabobs are really good and the recipe is extremely flexible. I made these with tomatoes and mushrooms since that's what I had on hand, but any veggie that you can skewer with a stick would work. I try to limit the amount of red meat I eat, but if you get a nice lean cut of meat like a sirloin or flank steak, it's fine to eat every now and then. This makes a filling meal, perfect right before a jog or workout.

Ingredients:

2 lbs lean sirloin steak, cut into 1" x 1" chunks

Cherry or grape tomatoes

Button or baby bella mushrooms

Dash of your favorite steak seasoning

1/4 cup low sodium soy sauce

1 tbsp Dijon mustard

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

Dash of salt and pepper

splash of red wine or balsamic vinegar (optional)

Kabob skewers (metal or wood)

Directions:

1. Rub steak seasoning into steak cubes

2. Combine soy sauce, dijon mustard, worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper, and vinegar in a 1-gallon plastic bag. Add steak chunks to bag and marinade 30 min to 1 hour (or overnight for best flavor)

3.  If using wood skewers, soak for 10-20 minutes to prevent burning on the grill. 

4. Assemble kabobs using vegetables and steak, alternating each to fill the kabob skewer

5. Grill on med-high for 10-15 minutes, turning every few minutes to cook all sides of the steak and char the vegetables

Shredded Chipotle Beef Tacos

There are times when I decide that I want to try a cooking technique just for the sake of trying it. I don't NEED to have freshly made corn taco shells, but I was tempted to make some so I could say I can do it. The tacos came out great, they were crunchy on the outside but also had a chewy texture. Would I do this every time we have a taco night? No, probably not. maybe if we had company over but it does take some time and it's a bit of a splurge, so it's a once-in-a-while kind of treat.

I've made the beef recipe before and it's great in pretty much everything, I use it in burritos, enchiladas, tostadas, and even as a pizza topping. It's an easy recipe because it takes just a little prep and it cooks in the crock pot all day. I love the smokey flavors of the chipotle and smoked paprika and the texture of the beef is perfect after cooking all day.

Ingredients

2 Tbsp olive oil, divided
2 lb boneless chuck roast
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1 cup beef broth
1 Tbsp tomato paste
2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, minced
1/2 large sweet onion, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 Cup Canola Oil
Corn Tortillas
choice of toppings – lettuce, salsa, guacamole, sour cream, etc.

Directions

1. Combine the spices in a small bowl. Rub into the beef, covering all the nooks and crannies and each side evenly.

2. In a large skillet, heat 1-2 tablespoons olive oil until shimmering. Sear the meat on each side, using tongs to flip it. Remove and place in the bottom of a large slow cooker.

3. With the skillet remaining over the heat, deglaze with the beef stock and scrape up any brown bits. Whisk in the tomato paste and chipotle peppers. Once sauce comes to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer for a few minutes until slightly thickened and reduced.

4. Meanwhile, add the onion and garlic to the top of the beef in the slow cooker. Carefully pour the sauce over top. Cover and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.

5. To make the taco shells, heat the oil in an 8-inch skillet over medium heat. Slide a tortilla into the oil; use tongs to fold the tortilla in half and hold it partially open. Flip after about 1 minute. Fry for an additional minute, until the tortilla is slightly crisp. Continue with the remaining tortillas, storing the fried tortillas in the warm oven.

6. Once the meat is fork tender, remove and shred with two forks. Pour a portion of the sauce, over top of the meat and let soak to enhance flavor.

Adapted from Pennies on a Platter and The Way the Cookie Crumbles

Pasta with Bolognese Sauce

This is one of those recipes that always turns out fantastic and gets my family excited for dinner time. This is not a quick recipe, the longer it sits on the stove the better, so it's great for a weekend meal. I make it often for Sunday night dinner. I usually have enough left over to freeze a meal, just defrost it and heat it up in a saucepan when you are ready to have it again.

The other reason I love this recipe is because it sneaks in a lot of veggies, which is great if you have picky eaters in the house. The veggies are chopped up really small and softened in the sauce so they add to the overall flavor of the sauce without being too "chunky". I cook with wine a lot and this recipe has plenty of it. It cooks off over hours of simmering so there is no alcohol left, just a very flavorful meat sauce. The final trick to this sauce is the cup of milk. Do not omit this ingredient, it breaks down the meat and makes it soft and velvety. Yummy!

Adapted from The Pioneer Woman

Ingredients

½ cups Olive Oil
3 Carrots, Grated or finely chopped
1 whole Large Red Onion, finely chopped
2 pounds Ground Beef or Meatloaf Mix
2 Tablespoons Dried Oregano
2 Tablespoons Dried Basil Flakes
1 can (6 Ounce) Tomato Paste
5 cloves Garlic, Minced
1 1/2 cups Red Wine2 Tablespoons Worcestershire
2 cans (28 Ounce) Whole Tomatoes (smoosh them with your hands as you add them to the sauce)
1 cup Milk
Salt And Pepper, to taste
Fresh Parmesan Cheese

Preparation Instructions

1. Heat oil in a large Dutch oven or deep skillet over medium heat. Add carrots, onions and garlic and cook for a few minutes.

2. Make a well in the center of the mixture, and then add in the ground beef. Cook for a few minutes until brown.

3. Throw in oregano and basil. Use fresh if you have it; if you don’t, it’s fine.

4. When the meat is browned and combined with other ingredients, make another well. Add tomato paste and let it heat.

5. Make a well in the center of the mixture and add red wine. Stir together.

6. Add Worcestershire and stir.

7. Add canned tomatoes.

8. Finally, pour in milk, stir, and let simmer for 30 minutes to 2 hours—the longer the better.

Serve with pasta and a generous sprinkling of Parmesan cheese.

Beef tips with gravy

I found this recipe on a few different cooking sites, so I figured it would be a good one to try. I make A LOT of chicken so I figured we could try a beef meal that tastes good but is still inexpensive (strip steaks are so pricey lately!). You can adapt this recipe to make large batches, just increase the amount of ingredients proportionally.

This recipe was made in the oven but could easily be adapted to the slow cooker if you are not home during the day. TIP: If you make a smaller-size batch in the slow cooker, place the ingredients in a smaller baking dish inside the slow cooker, it'll cook the food the same but won't have that burnt smell that you can sometimes get in a slow cooker.

Ingredients

1-1.5 lbs beef tips or beef stew meat

1 can cream of mushroom soup (low fat version works too!)

1 can french onion soup mix

Directions

1. Mix beef tips, cream of mushroom soup, and french onion soup mix in a baking dish (or slow cooker).

2. Cook at 325 F for up to 4 hours our until beef is tender. For a slow cooker, cook on high for 4-6 hours.

Serve with egg noodles or rice and a veggie and voila! Super easy.

Blue Ribbon Chili with Jalapeno-cheddar cornbread

I had my husband’s family over for my Mother-in-law’s birthday last Sunday night and, because of the “cold” down here in Florida, I made chili and cornbread for dinner. I have made a lot of chili recipes but I have to say that this one was definitely my favorite. It was simple to make and the smell as it was simmering on the stove was wonderful. I usually make turkey chili so next time I will try this with Turkey meat and see if it comes out as good. I made Jalapeno-chili cornbread from Barefoot Contessa to go with the chili. This cornbread was very moist and tasty and complemented the chili really well.



Blue Ribbon Chili

Originally from Debdoozie at allrecipes.com

Ingredients

•2 pounds ground beef
•1/2 onion, chopped
•1 teaspoon ground black pepper
•1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
•2 1/2 cups tomato sauce
•1 (8 ounce) jar salsa
•4 tablespoons chili seasoning mix
•1 (15 ounce) can light red kidney beans
•1 (15 ounce) can dark red kidney beans

Directions

1. In a large saucepan over medium heat, combine the ground beef and the onion and saute for 10 minutes, or until meat is browned and onion is tender. Drain grease, if desired.



2. Add the ground black pepper, garlic salt, tomato sauce, salsa, chili seasoning mix and kidney beans. Mix well, reduce heat to low and simmer for at least an hour.




Jalapeno Cheddar Cornbread



Adapted from Barefoot Contessa and Food Alla Puttanesca

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal
1/4 cup sugar
2 tablespoons baking powder
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 cups milk
3 extra-large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted, plus extra to grease the pan
8 ounces aged extra-sharp White Cheddar, grated, divided
1/3 cup chopped scallions, white and green parts, plus extra for garnish, 3 scallions
2 seeded and minced fresh jalapeno peppers

Directions

1.Combine the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl.

2.In a separate bowl, combine the milk, eggs, and butter. **Do not add the eggs to hot butter or it will cook the egg**.

3.With a wooden spoon, stir the wet ingredients into the dry until most of the lumps are dissolved. Don't overmix! Mix in 2 cups of the grated Cheddar, the scallions and jalapenos, and allow the mixture to sit at room temperature for 20 minutes.



4.Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 by 13 by 2-inch baking pan.

5.Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smooth the top, and sprinkle with the remaining grated Cheddar and extra chopped scallions. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool and cut into large squares. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Salisbury Steak - A fun throwback

I can remember eating this as a kid when it was my Dad’s night to cook for my sister and myself. It was usually in the form of a TV dinner and it would be accompanied by either white rice or mashed potatoes. I saw this on Skinny Food by Amy and I tried this out because I thought it sounded like a comfort food type of meal. It turned out good, we all enjoyed it. It was also very quick to make (3 steps!!) and that’s perfect on days that I have to whip up something after a day of work. Give it a try, it’s so vintage…

Skinny food by Amy

Ingredients:

•1 (10.5 ounce) can condensed French onion soup
•1 1/2 pounds ground beef
•1/2 cup dry bread crumbs
•1 egg
•1/4 teaspoon salt
•1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
•1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
•1/4 cup ketchup
•1/4 cup water
•1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
•1/2 teaspoon mustard powder

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, mix together 1/3 cup condensed French onion soup with ground beef, bread crumbs, egg, salt and black pepper. Shape into 6 oval patties.

2. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, brown both sides of patties. Pour off excess fat.

2. In a small bowl, blend flour and remaining soup until smooth. Mix in ketchup, water, Worcestershire sauce and mustard powder. Pour over meat in skillet. Cover, and cook for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Slow Cooker Beef Stew with Chestnuts

Beef stew has always been one of my favorite foods. It’s wonderful on a cold night after a long day out shopping or running errands on the weekends. I have tried a lot of different recipes but I have stuck with this one for several years just because the whole family loves it so much. My Mother-in-law made this for us years ago, it can be found on Williams-Sonoma.com, I have been making it ever since.

I unfortunately did not have any chestnuts this time, they are not available in the stores yet, but I wanted to include them because when you can get them, they really add so much to this recipe. They have a slightly meaty, salty taste and they give the stew a great texture. The stew by itself is very good if you cannot find chestnuts. Browning the beef and then stewing it all day in wine gives the broth a very velvety texture.

I live in Florida, so I don’t get to experience a lot of cozy winter nights, but this stew makes me think of cold winter nights and holidays with my family, it’s one of my favorites.

Ingredients:
3 lb. boneless stewing beef, cut into small
cubes
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 tbsp Salt and freshly ground pepper (or seasoning salt)
3 Tbs. olive oil
1 large yellow onion, peeled and finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, crushed
3 carrots, peeled and finely chopped
8 oz. new potatoes, cut into small pieces
1 cup steamed chestnuts
1 Tbs. tomato paste
1 1/2 – 2 cups beef stock
1 1/2 – 2 cups red wine

Directions:

1. In a Ziploc bag, toss the beef with the flour, salt and pepper to coat evenly.



2.In a large sauté pan over medium-high heat, warm half the olive oil until just smoking. Add half the beef and brown on all sides, 3 to 4 minutes total. Transfer to a slow cooker. Repeat with the remaining oil and beef.

3.Add the onion, garlic, carrots, celery, potatoes, chestnuts, tomato paste to the slow cooker.



4.Pour the wine into the sauté pan, stirring with a wooden spoon to scrape up the browned bits from the pan bottom. Add the wine to the slow cooker.

5.Add stock to the slow cooker, enough so that the liquid can be seen just beneath the vegetables and meat.



6.Stir all ingredients to combine

7.Cover and cook on high for 6 hours or on low for 8-10 hours.

Cheesesteak Sandwiches

I am from Philadelphia, but please don’t expect these to taste anything like the authentic Philly cheesesteaks they make up there, we just don’t have the right ingredients down here in Florida. That being said, I do sometimes like to make a steak sandwich on “easy” nights and Mike is a big fan (he hasn’t tried the real thing yet). I usually just buy rare deli roast beef and heat it up with some provolone cheese. I serve it on a crusty sub roll and call it a cheesesteak, it works for us.

Ingredients (serves 2-3)

1 tbsp butter or butter spray
¾ lb Rare Deli Roast Beef, sliced thin
4 slices provolone cheese
2-3 Hoagie Rolls

Directions

1.Coat skillet or flat griddle pan with butter on medium heat

2.When butter is melted, create 2-3 “piles” of roast beef, one for each sandwich you are making.



3.Brown beef in skillet.

4.In the meantime, slice hoagie rolls in half down the middle and brown under the oven broiler.

5.Rip cheese slices in half and add the slices onto the pile of beef, add cheese throughout the beef so there are no dry spots of the sandwich.



6.Cover each sandwich pile with a saucepan lid, adding one icecube under the lid before covering the beef and cheese, this will steam the cheese.

7.When cheese is melted, scoop each pile into a hoagie roll. Serve hot with chips, fries, or a salad.

Pasta e Fagioli

I have had this Olive Garden Copycat recipe forever, it’s definitely one of my favorites. I decided to make it Sunday night because the whole family is recovering from and cold and because, well, I had a massive hangover after attending my class reunion. This soup hit the spot, it has a spicy zing to it which helps clear congested sinuses and keeps it from being a bland meal, but the broth is very good when recovering from sickness (of all kinds).

You can make this more of a stew by adding more pasta and less broth, I do this so the baby can eat it too (he’s not so good with the spoon yet). If you want more broth, just add more beef stock and go easy on the pasta. If sinuses are your problem, don’t be afraid to add more Tabasco sauce, it really does the trick.

Ingredients
3 tsp Olive Oil
1 lb ground beef
1 chopped onion
2 cups slivered carrots
1 can diced tomatoes
1 can red kidney beans
1 can cannellini beans
1 box beef stock
1 ½ tsp Tabasco sauce
1 42 oz can spaghetti sauce
1 cup ditalini pasta
Oregano
Pepper
Parsley

Directions:
1.On medium heat in a large stock pot, saute ground beef in oil until brown.
2.Add carrots, onion, and tomatoes and simmer for 10 minutes or until soft.
3.Add rinsed beans to pot
4.Add beef stock, spices, Tabasco, and spaghetti sauce
5.Simmer until veggies are tender, about 45 minutes, adding pasta into the pot in the last 15 minutes of cooking.

I also like to make some crusty bread to go with the soup. I just take French bread and put it under the broiler for a few minutes until it’s lightly browned.



Nate loves his soup!