Beef
This is inspired from a burger I had recently at a place called Blu Burger Grille. It was so good that I had to recreate it at home. The Gorgonzola cheese adds a very unique flavor to the burger. This recipe makes two burgers.
Ingredients:
2-4 Tablespoons Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
1 large onion, sliced
1 lb ground beef
Salt & pepper
¼ cup Gorgonzola cheese
4 thick cut slices of bacon
2 onion buns
Heat 2 Tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion, stirring often until caramelized. Add more olive oil if the pan is getting dry. You may need to turn the heat down slightly as the onions cook so they don’t burn.
Mix the ground beef with salt and lots of black pepper. Form into two patties. Heat a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Cook for about 5 minutes on each side until cooked to your liking.
Toast the buns under the broiler.
Assemble the burgers by placing a patty on each bun bottom, top with the cheese, onions, bacon and bun top.
Tags: Bacon, Beef, Burger, Gorgonzola Cheese, Onion
I made these mini meatloaves for Chloe and she really liked them! They were very tasty, moist and healthy too since they are full of fresh vegetables. You can use any mixture of vegetables that you like. I used cabbage, celery, and frozen mixed vegetables (corn, carrots, green beans & peas). Other vegetables that would be good are broccoli, red bell pepper or zucchini.
Ingredients:
1 small onion, chopped
2 cups chopped vegetables
1 egg
1 clove garlic, peeled
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
½ cup seasoned bread crumbs
½ cup Monterey Jack cheese, shredded
1 lb ground beef
Preheat oven to 375°F. Grease a 24 cup mini muffin tin.
Combine the onion, vegetables, egg, garlic, Worcestershire sauce, bread crumbs, and cheese in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until the veggies are finely chopped.
In a large bowl, mix the beef and the vegetable mixture together. Distribute evenly between the 24 muffin tins.
Bake until cooked thoroughly, about 25 minutes.
These are surprisingly good. It’s like a delicious mini meatloaf wrapped in a cabbage blanket. This is adapted from a recipe by Tyler Florence from the Food Network. You won’t need the whole head of cabbage for this, just the large outer leaves. There were 10 large leaves on the cabbage I used.
Ingredients:
For the sauce -
1 Tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, grated
14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
14.5 oz can diced tomatoes with green chilies
1 Tablespoon white wine vinegar
½ Tablespoon sugar
salt & pepper
For the filling -
2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, grated
8 oz Baby Bella mushrooms, chopped
1 Tablespoon dried basil
salt & pepper
1 lb ground beef
1 egg
1 head cabbage
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Prepare the sauce by heating the olive oil in a sauce pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the diced tomatoes, cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the vinegar and sugar. Cook for another 5 minutes to thicken. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
Prepare the filling by heating the olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook for another 5 minutes to soften. Stir in the basil and season with salt and pepper. Add ½ cup of the sauce to the onions and mushrooms.
In a large bowl, combine the ground beef and egg. Season with salt and pepper. Mix in the onion and mushroom mixture.
Prepare the cabbage leaves by carefully removing them from the head of cabbage. Lay the damaged outer leaves in the bottom of a 9×13 inch casserole dish. Place the rest of the large leaves in a pan of boiling water for 20-30 seconds to soften them. They will need to be soft for rolling.
Distribute the filling evenly among the softened cabbage leaves. Roll them up, tucking in the sides, and lay them seam side down in the casserole dish.
Top with the remaining sauce. Bake for 1 hour.
Tags: Beef, Cabbage, Dinner, Gluten Free, Tomatoes
This is another favorite of mine that my mom used to make. I normally make this with Idaho potatoes, but this time I used sweet potatoes. The crust wasn’t as crispy, but it was still very good.
Ingredients:
3-4 potatoes, shredded
2 Tbsp Extra-Virgin Olive Oil, divided
¼ tsp garlic salt
1 lb ground beef
2 cups shredded cabbage
1 jar chili sauce (or homemade chili sauce, recipe follows)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Preheat oven to 350°F. Spread 1 Tbsp olive oil in a pie pan, press the shredded potato into the pan and sprinkle with garlic salt. Bake for 25 minutes.
While that is in the oven, heat the remaining 1 Tbsp olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the ground beef and cook until browned. Remove to a plate lined with paper towels. Put the cabbage in the same skillet and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Return the beef to the skillet and stir in the chili sauce.
Pour the beef & cabbage mixture into the pie pan. Bake for 25 minutes.
Sprinkle with the cheese and put back in the oven to melt the cheese. Let sit 5 minutes before cutting.
Chili Sauce:
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp dried onion
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp hot sauce (Frank’s Red Hot)
Salt and pepper to taste
Stir all ingredients together in a bowl.
Tags: Beef, Cabbage, Cheese, Dinner, Dinner Pie, Gluten Free, Sweet Potato
Lubia Polo is Persian green bean rice. I’m pretty sure “lubia” is green beans and “polo” is rice. This dish is seasoned with saffron and cinnamon and is most delicious! All the recipes I found for this meal were pretty much the same, but I pieced together a few to make this. This is traditionally made with Basmati rice, which I didn’t have in my pantry, so I used brown rice. Chloe really liked this one!
Ingredients:
4 cups rice (basmatti recommended)
2 Tbsp Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
2 large onions, chopped
1 lb ground beef
1 ¼ lbs green beans, cut into ½ inch pieces
pinch of saffron
1 tsp cinnamon
¼ cup tomato paste
salt & pepper
Cook the rice according to package directions.
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and cook until it starts to soften, about 2-3 minutes. Add beef to the skillet and cook until browned, about 5-7 minutes. Add the green beans to the skillet, cooking for 2-3 minutes.
Stir in the saffron, cinnamon, tomato paste and cook for 2 minutes. Stir in ½ cup water, bring to a boil then reduce heat to medium, cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
Fold in the cooked rice. Season with additional salt and pepper if needed.
Tags: Beef, Dinner, Gluten Free, Green Beans, Persian, Rice
Here is how we did taco night at our house.
Store Bought Taco Shells
Cheese
Refried Beans
Tomatoes
Salsa
Lettuce
Taco Meat
For the taco meat:
3/4 lb ground beef
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 Tbsp taco seasoning
Brown the beef in a skillet over medium high heat. Add the bell pepper and taco seasoning, cook about 5 minutes until the pepper is soft.
Chloe just ate the cheese!
Everyone seems to have their own way of making spaghetti sauce. So, here is how I make it.
Ingredients:
1 lb spaghetti noodles
1 lb ground beef
2 Tbsp Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
1 medium onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, grated
2 (14.5 oz) cans diced tomatoes
3 (8oz) cans tomato sauce
1 (6oz) can tomato paste
1 tsp dried oregano
1 Tbsp dried rosemary
1 tsp dried marjoram
1 Tbsp dried parsley
2 Tbsp dried basil
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper
Parmesan cheese
Boil water in a large pot over high heat, salt water and cook the pasta until al dente.
In a large sauce pan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the beef and cook until browned, about 5 minutes. Add onion and garlic and cook for another 5 minutes to soften them. Add the diced tomatoes, tomato sauce and paste, oregano, rosemary, marjoram, parsley, basil, Worcestershire sauce, bay leaf and season with salt and pepper. Bring to a bubble, reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for at least 15 minutes. Remove bay leaf before serving over the cooked spaghetti noodles. Top with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese.
I had a bunch of bell peppers that needed to be used up before they went bad. These turned out pretty good, although I feel like I can only eat so much bell pepper at once. The stuffing was enough for 4 bell peppers, but I only had 3 when I made this.
Ingredients:
4 bell peppers
2 cups cooked brown rice
1 Tbsp Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
1 lb ground beef
1/2 onion, chopped
1 tomato, juice removed and diced
1 rib of celery, diced
1 clove garlic, grated
1 tsp paprika
1 Tbsp parsley, chopped
salt & pepper
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
Preheat oven to 375°F
Cut the bell peppers in half and scoop out and discard the insides. Place pepper halves in a greased baking dish.
Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and brown the beef. Add onion, tomato, celery, garlic, paprika, parsley and season with salt and pepper. Cook until the veggies are tender, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the cooked rice. Stuff inside the pepper halves and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake until the tops are browned and the peppers are tender, about 20-30 minutes.
Tags: Beef, Bell Peppers, Dinner, Gluten Free, Rice, Stuffing
This recipe is another favorite from my mom. It’s very easy to make and requires only a few ingredients.
Ingredients:
1 Tbsp Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
1 ½ lbs Ground Beef
1 (6.8oz) box Beef Rice-A-Roni
2 Tbsp Butter
2 ½ Cups Water
24oz jar Chunky Salsa
Tortilla Strips
Green Onions (optional garnish)
Heat olive oil in large sauté pan over medium-high heat and brown the ground beef. Remove beef from pan and reserve on a plate.
Using the same pan, make the Rice-A-Roni. Combine the box of rice and butter in the pan over medium heat. Cook until lightly browned, 2-3 minutes. Add water and seasoning packet. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover and simmer until rice is tender, about 15 minutes.
Add the browned beef back to the skillet and stir in the salsa. Simmer for 2-3 minutes.
Carefully fold in a few handfuls of tortilla strips. Garnish with green onions.
Tags: Beef, Dinner, Salsa, Tortilla Chips
Tonight’s recipe is one that my mom always used to make. It’s one of my favorites, so I just had to get the recipe from her. It’s really simple because it just a few ingredients, which I usually have on hand. This can also be made in the pressure cooker by following the same directions except for cooking it for 8 minutes at high pressure instead of simmering it on the stove.
Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef
1 box beef Rice-A-Roni
1 egg
2 Tbsp Extra-Virgin Olive Oil
2 ½ cups water
1-2 Tbsp flour
Combine ground beef, Rice-A-Roni (not the seasoning packet) and egg. Form into golf ball sized meatballs.
Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Once oil is hot, add meatballs and brown for 2-3 minutes. Dissolve seasoning packet in the water and pour over meatballs in skillet. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove meatballs with tongs to a bowl and cover to keep warm. Whisk in flour to the remaining liquid in skillet to thicken for gravy.
This makes 14-16 meatballs. Chloe didn’t eat any of this tonight, but she really liked it last time I made it. I served it with corn on the cob and cauliflower gratin (which I will post the recipe for tomorrow).