Meat

Hamburger Macaroni Skillet – Easy Quarantine Dish

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MMM!

I love this kind of recipe. Uncomplicated, very few ingredients, plus it’s comforting and homey.  This recipe came from my mom. She taught me how to make it  years ago and when I taste it it makes me think of her and makes me feel like a little kid again. That’s what I love about cooking; The recipes can bring back memories. I just made this Hamburger Macaroni Skillet the other night and it is always a huge hit with my daughter and husband. This is also an easy one pot meal and you can doubled the recipe easily to serve a crowd or a family larger than 4.

Tools

  • large non-stick skillet with lid
  • wooden spoon
  • can opener
  • liquid measuring cup
  • cutting board
  • sharp knife
  • container to drain grease
  • Large metal spoon

Ingredients                                                                                                                  

  • One pound of ground beef*
  • One can of condensed tomato soup
  • One cup of uncooked elbow macaroni
  • One can of water (from the soup can)
  • One teaspoon of garic powder
  • 1/4 cup of diced white onion
  • 1/2 teaspoon of dried herb blend
  • 1/2 teaspoon of salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon of pepper
  • 1/4 cup of 2% milk–OPTIONAL

Recipe

Brown your ground beef over medium high heat. Drain excess grease into your heatproof container or jar. Dice your onion and add to the ground beef along with the condensed soup and water. Stir until the soup and water are well mixed into the beef. Add the macaroni and spices and stir well. Cover and bring to a simmer (little bubbles) for 30 minutes.  I like to take the lid off around 20 minutes and use the wooden spoon to  scrape any of the macaroni that might get stuck on the bottom. Replace the lid until time reachers 30 minutes. Test pasta for doneness (eat one!). I like to leave the lid off for a minute and stir in the 1/4 cup of milk. It makes the dish a little silkier. Let it cool for 5 minutes and serve.

DELISH TIP 1: You can use Ground Chuck and sometimes I do because it’s more affordable but it gives off a lot more grease than sirloin.  I’ve also used ground turkey.

DELISH TIP 2: My husband likes to top his with parmesean cheese!

Stuffed Cabbage Soup

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My family and I live in The Midwest. Stuffed cabbage has been a big part of my and my husband’s life since we were little children.  Southeast Michigan has a large Polish population too and the food is pretty popular around here. My mother’s side of the family is Romanian and my mother, aunts, and grandmother all made stuffed cabbage at the holidays. I looked forward to it every holiday. There would be a HUGE roasting pan full of theses steamy, meaty, rolled up cabbage leaves, enough for 40 adults and children. Fast forward to adulthood. I HAVE made rolled stuffed cabbage but it is  a lot of work to do yourself. So I REALLY wanted stuffed cabbage so I thought shoot! Why don’t I just chop everything up and make soup instead?

I’ve been making this for more than ten years, and I think it’s my parents favorite soup I make for them. It’s great to make for friends on a winter day after snowmobiling or ice fishing. This soup makes around 8 quarts! I know it’s a lot but I’m the the type of person if I’m taking the time to make it I want to eat it, share it and freeze it for later. It’s a pretty easy soup to make. Once you brown your meat you just add the other ingredient and simmer. I put some Delishtips at the bottom of the recipe I hope you find them useful!

Tools

  • 8-10 quart stockpot
  • ladle
  • long spoon
  • cutting board
  • can opener
  • colander
  • glass bowl

Ingredients

  • 3 pounds of ground beef and pork*
  • 1 medium white onion, diced-about 1 1/2 cups
  • 1 cup of shredded carrot*, diced
  • 4 cloves of minced garlic
  • 1 Tablespoon of kosher salt**
  • 2 teaspoons of pepper
  • 1 teaspoon of smoked paprika
  • 1 cup of long grained rice
  • 1 large head of green cabbage
  • 2- 28 ounce cans of crushed tomatoes-No salt added
  • 24 ounces of low sodium beef broth
  • 12 ounce beer
  • 2 quarts of low sodium V8 juice*

Recipe

Brown the meat mix until brown. Chop your onion, garlic and shredded carrots. Use your colander to drain the meat into the glass bowl. Add your vegetables, spices, meat, rice all the liquid and then chop the cabbage into small chunks like 1-2 inch squares. Add them to the soup. Stir and simmer on low for an hour stirring occasionally. Make sure you are at a simmer not a rolling boil as the rice and meat might stick to the bottom of your pot and burn. Cook until rice is done and cabbage is soft.

DELISHTIP 1: If you can find Meatloaf Mix buy it. Some grocery stores have it or you can get it from your butcher. It has beef, pork and veal and it’s great! I can’t always get it so I use ground beef and pork.

DELISHTIP 2: I buy organic shredded carrots for this recipe and I throw the leftover in salads. If you don’t have it don’t worry about it!

DELISHTIP 3: I buy canned products with low sodium or no salt, that’s why it calls for a Tablespoon of salt. If you use SALTED products start with a teaspoon of salt. You can always add but you can’t take it out.

DELISHTIP 4: If you can’t find V8 or a Vegetable juice you can try adding tomato juice. The flavor may be a little flat so you might want to add a few teaspoons of dried herbs.

Slow-Cooker Pulled Pork

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This Slow- Cooker Pulled Pork is SUPER easy to make and it can feed a family of 3 (like mine) or feed a party of 12 or more! I freeze the extras or I’ll take some to my parents when we visit. There are many things to do with leftover pulled pork. Hmm, Maybe I’ll do a whole section on pulled pork repurposed! This pork can be kept on low or warm in your slow cooker for hours. I make it all the time and it’s a dish that children and adults both enjoy. It’s fun to eat on the little slider buns too for a large crowd. Sometimes we put it on regular sized buns too. Do whatever YOU think is Delish!

Tools:                                                             FullSizeRender-8

  • Slow-cooker
  • baster

Ingredients:

  • 6-7 lb Pork Butt/ Shoulder
  • 1 medium onion- chopped
  • 2 tsp of chili powder
  • 2 tsp of garlic powder
  • 2 tsp of onion powder
  • 2 tsp of herb seasoning.
  • 2 tsp of salt
  • 1 tsp pepper
  • 1- 12 oz beer
  • 1 8 oz can of beef broth
  • 1 bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce
  • sweet buns (Hawaiian)

Recipe: 

Lay your onions in the bottom of your slow-cooker. Sprinkle and rub all the herbs and spices onto your pork shoulder. Place in Slow-cooker fat side up (if your shoulder has that) on top of the onions. Pour in the beer and the beef broth around the Pork. The liquid should reach up halfway up the sides of the pork. If it doesn’t, then add a little water. I like to cook the pork on low for 8-10 hours.  Remove the pork to a platter and remove all but a cup of the liquid from the slow cooker.  Pull your pork with two sturdy forks into bite sized pieces. Return to the slow-cooker.  Squeeze BBQ sauce onto the meat and broth and stir until combined. It depends upon YOUR taste as to how much BBQ sauce you want to add to your pulled pork. Pile pork onto buns,  add a bit of cole slaw* and CHOW DOWN!! Delish!!

 

DELISH TIP 1: When you put a fork into the pork and it turns easily through the meat then the pork is done. If there are big fatty pieces remove those before you pull the meat.

DELISH TIP 2: You cannot rush pulled pork. If you can’t cook the pork for at least 8 hours then start it the night before. I’ve started this pork before I go to bed if I want it for a summer party or beach potluck that’s in the early afternoon.

 

 

Pulled Pork Nachos

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When I make my  Slow-Cooker Pulled Pork* or our traditional smoked BBQ Pulled Pork, we ALWAYS have A LOT of leftovers. We often freeze some of them, or make quesadillas and another of our favorite is Pulled Pork Nachos! These are SO Quick and Easy to do and everyone can put whatever toppings they like! Ready in TEN minutes! IMG_0953

Tools:

  • Cookie sheet
  • Parchment paper

Ingredients: Serves 1-2

  • 1 1/2 cups of tortilla chips
  •  1/2 cup of shredded cheese
  • 1/4 cup onions
  • 1/2 cup leftover BBQ pork
  • 1 TBSP of BBQ Sauce ( Sweet Baby Rays is THE best!)
  • ANY Nacho Toppings YOU like

Recipe

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Place a sheet of parchment paper onto a cookie sheet. Place a thin layer of tortilla chips onto the parchment paper.  Top chips shredded cheese, onions and shredded pork, and another layer of shredded cheese.  Bake for ten minutes or until cheese is melted. Drizzle BBQ sauce onto nachos. Slide parchment onto plate and enjoy. DELISH!!

*Slow-Cooker  Pulled Pork is also on the blog. Get the recipe!

 

Beefy Shirataki Soup with Pork Meatballs

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I created this soup because I actually had  all these interesting ingredients in the house and my daughter Em and I wanted dinner! It’s a rich beefy soup flavored with pork meatballs accented with scallions. This soup has some unique ingredients and I have Delish tips for you at the end… Enjoy!!

photo (1)

 

This recipe has Two parts to it.  One for the Meatballs and One for the Broth.

Meatball ingredients:

  • 1 lb of ground lean pork
  • 1/4 minced onion
  • 1/4 cup of breadcrumbs
  • 2 TBS of milk
  • 2 TBS of olive oil
  • 1 tsp of Garlic powder
  • 1 tsp of S & P

Put milk and breadcrumbs in a large bowl and let soak for a few minutes. Add meat and the rest of the ingredients EXCEPT  the olive oil,  and form into the same sized balls.  I like “one bite” size but you can make them whatever size you like.

Brown the meat in the olive oil. Once mostly browned remove from pan to a plate. Deglaze -pour the wine into the pan) the pan with the wine and scrape off the brown bits on the bottom. Those are flavor!! Add the tomato paste and stir that around also.  In a large stockpot start sautéing the carrots and onions in a  TBS of olive oil for 4-5 minutes until softened. Add the meatballs, and the wine, tomato paste mixture as well as all the broth. Simmer covered for 30 minutes. Rinse the

Deglaze -pour the wine into the pan with the wine and scrape off the brown bits on the bottom. Those are flavor!! Add the tomato paste and stir that around also.  In a large stockpot start sautéing the carrots and onions in a  TBS of olive oil for 4-5 minutes until softened. Add the meatballs, and the wine, tomato paste mixture as well as all the broth. Simmer covered for 30 minutes. Rinse the

In a large stockpot start sautéing the carrots and onions in a  TBS of olive oil for 4-5 minutes until softened. Add the meatballs, and the wine, tomato paste mixture as well as all the broth. Simmer covered for 30 minutes. Rinse the Shirataki noodles and cut with scissors into manageable pieces. Add to the broth and warm through. Serve and garnish with Scallions.

Simmer covered for 30 minutes. Rinse the Shirataki noodles and cut with scissors into manageable pieces. Add to the broth and warm through. Serve and garnish with Scallions.

For the Broth:

  • 1/2 cup of diced carrot
  • 1/2 cup of diced onion
  • 1/4 cup of dry white wine
  • 3 cups of Beef Broth
  • 3 cups of Bison Broth (amazing!)
  • 2 TBS of Tomato paste
  • 8 oz of angel hair Shirataki noodles
  • 3 scallions chopped
  • Tbs olive oil
  • S&P to taste

Delish tips:

  1. Use whatever ground meat you like, but I’d keep it on the lean side to keep your soup light and NOT greasy.
  2. Once you place your meatballs in your pan LEAVE them be for a few minutes or else they might stick and break apart.
  3. I used Shirataki noodles which are a low carb noodle. You can find it in the refrigerated area near the tofu. But ramen, angel hair, orzo or another noodle would be fun to use.
  4. Cook the noodles separately and pour broth into your bowl to serve. If you cook the noodles in the broth you won’t have that much left as the noodles will absorb the broth.
  5. If you can’t find Bison Broth just use all Beef Broth, it’s still delicious!
  6.  Tomato paste in the tube is AWESOME. You can find it in the Italian/pasta section of the grocery store.

 

 

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