"It's the company, not the cooking, that makes the meal!" ~Perilee 
(Hattie Big Sky by Kirby Larson)



Wednesday, October 22, 2014

1-Minute Ham and Egg Breakfast Bowls

My kids love breakfast foods and they also love to help in the kitchen from time to time.  Breakfast is one of those great learn to cook beginner foods for kids to learn to cook.  I clipped this recipe out of a magazine awhile back-it was an advertisement for the www.incredibleEgg.org.

These were quick simple.  I loved the shape of them when made in a ramekin they slip right out and would make the perfect english muffin egg sandwich.

1 Think slice of deli hame (1 oz)
1 egg, beaten
Shredded Cheese

Line the bottom of the 8 oz ramekin or custard cup with ham slices, folding ham is necessary.  Pour egg over ham.

Microwave on high for 30 seconds until egg is almost set, cook 15 to 30 seconds longer if needed.

Top with cheese. Serve immediately

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Korean Beef

I have an inspiring bunch of ladies I run with early in the morning.  I am so grateful to have them! We run and visit about many topics of interest. One morning I asked if any of them had cooked anything new that they liked lately.  Des said she had tried this Korean Beef recipe from pintrest and even her picky eater liked it! My kids aren't to picky so I thought I would give it a try. I searched pintrest for the said" Korean Beef" and found many to choose from-that's always hard to pick which one to print out. It was good, my family liked it!  I find that we are liking the things we can copy cat at home more than eating out and it saves lots of money. :-)

Korean Beef is a very standard dish. Nearly every Chinese restaurant sells it but it's usually made with flank steak and sauteed with broccoli. This recipe I adapted from http://elizabethbryant.blogspot.com/2010/05/korean-beef to our liking. Using hamburger as suggested makes this  recipe is less expensive and easier than a flank steak. I like to use as lean of beef as I  can get for this dish so it will be oily and gross.  

KOREAN BEEF

1 pound lean ground beef
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup soy sauce (I use low-sodium or use regular and add 1-2 Tablespoons of water))
1 1/2 teaspoons sesame oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon fresh ginger, minced (see note)
1/4 teaspoon crushed red peppers (to desired spiciness original said 1/2-1 tsp.)
salt and pepper
1 bunch green onions, diced (don't skip this!)

Heat a large skillet over medium heat and brown hamburger with garlic in the sesame oil. Drain most of the fat and add brown sugar, soy sauce, ginger, salt and pepper and red peppers. Simmer for a few minutes to blend the flavors. Serve over steamed rice and top with green onions. 


Note: Fresh ginger doesn’t keep forever but it can be frozen.  I have found that it zest on my microplane grater really well when its frozen.  I almost prefer to use it this way. Or I also love my garlic twist -its not just for garlic it does wonders on ginger too! One of my favorite kitchen gadgets Jack has given me.  

Monday, October 20, 2014

Beef and Bean Oven Tacos

I tried this recipe for a quick Saturday lunch when the kids and hubby were all home and we were working hard preparing our yard for planting grass.  I like to prepare large batches of taco meat to keep in the freezer for quick meals.  So this recipe was super quick for me. I just took out a bag of my taco meat added the beans and tomatoes cooked until it had a chance to simmer together as suggested.  We will keep these in out quick, simple, and easy recipes for future use.  I think if you added a can of diced tomatoes with chilies added to it would give it a nice added kick if you like that sort of thing. Plan on trying those the next time around!

Beef and Bean Oven Tacos

1 pound ground beef
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 cups cooked black beans (I used one 15 oz can drained and lightly rinsed)
1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes, drained
8 taco shells (used 12)
1 cup shredded cheese
Toppings or side suggestions: shredded lettuce, salsa, avocado or guacamole, and corn.

Pre heat oven to 350 degrees.

Brown the ground beef with the chopped onion over medium heat.  Once browned, drain well.  Stir in the black beans, taco seasoning, and diced tomatoes, and let simmer over medium-low heat for 5 minutes.

Line up taco shells in a baking dish. Spoon meat mixture into the taco shells. Top with a few pinchfuls of cheese. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes.

Serve with toppings and a side of veggies.
Makes 4 servings-(two tacos each)
Recipe From Costco Connection magazine, Courtesy of Erin Chase at www.5dollardinners.com