Spaghetti with Meat Sauce

 

For This Recipe You Will Need:

• 1/2 lb. extra lean ground beef
• medium yellow onion chopped
• 1/4 green bell pepper chopped
• 1 small can mushrooms (drained)
• 2 tsp. minced garlic
• 1 can Del Monte Brand Italian Stewed Tomatoes (chopped)
• 1 can diced tomatoes (I used Great Value Brand)
• 1 small can tomato paste (6oz.)
• 2 cups water
• 1 tsp. dried parsley
• 1 Tablespoon brown sugar
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
• 1/4 tsp. dried thyme
• thin spaghetti (cooked according to package instructions) 
• powdered parmesan cheese (to sprinkle on when serving)

In a large pot place ground beef, onion, and bell pepper, cook on medium high heat, stirring until beef is browned, add minced garlic stir and cook for a minute, next add rest of the ingredients (besides the noodles and parmesan cheese). Bring to a boil and then cover and simmer on low for about 3 hours, stirring occasionally. Serve over cooked spaghetti noodles, with a sprinkle of powdered parmesan cheese. Serve with garlic bread and romaine salad. 

Serves 4 (or maybe more depending on serving sizes)

This sauce has a slight sweetness to it, and it has just the right amount of Italian flavor, without it being overpowering, it is delicious and so easy too. 

Enjoy! 

Homemade Cocktail Sauce

For this sauce recipe you will need:

• Ketchup
• Refrigerated Prepared Horseradish

Put several squirts of ketchup in a bowl, about 1/2 cup or so, (add more or less for the amount you'll need for your size family), mix in prepared refrigerated Horseradish a teaspoon at the time, (I usually put in 2 or 3 teaspoons) you add the amount you'd like, until it suits your taste and becomes the consistency that you'd like it to be. That's it!

Enjoy with Shrimp!

Fried Chicken Strips with Honey Mustard Sauce

For this recipe you will need: 

• Boneless skinless Chicken Strips (enough for your size family, I use a little over a pound for 4 people), 
• flour, 
• eggs, 
• milk, 
• vegetable oil,  
• your favorite seasonings, I used garlic powder, seasoned salt, chicken seasoning and soul seasoning, (whatever seasonings that you have and like will be fine) 

Directions: 

*Wash chicken strips, shake off excess water and set them on a plate, place some flour in a gallon size plastic zip bag, set aside

*Beat the egg and about a Tablespoon of Milk in a wide shallow bowl or deep plate, set aside 

*Season chicken strips generously with seasonings, and dip them in the egg/milk mixture 

*Now put a few in at the time in the zipper bag of flour, zip and coat chicken strips, then place on a plate until ready to fry. 

*Now put enough vegetable oil in a deep skillet, to fill it about 1/3 of the skillet, see my pics and judge how much oil to put in the skillet, you don't want to put too much oil, because adding the chicken is going to make the oil rise and you don't want the oil to overflow at all. 

*Now heat oil on Med-high heat for about 5-7 minutes until it's hot enough to fry in....you can test the grease to see if it's ready to fry in by placing a pinch of flour in the skillet after several minutes of heating, when the flour sizzles, it's hot enough to fry in. Note: As a safety precaution, never turn your back on grease or leave it unattended, it can get hot quickly. 

*Now, carefully place each chicken strip in the grease, once they are all in, time it and cook it 3 minutes on each side for approximately 12 minutes or until no longer pink. After a few minutes of cooking on Medium-high heat, You can reduce the heat to medium, if the grease seems to be getting too hot.  

Drain on a paper towel lined plate

Serve with Honey Mustard Sauce or your favorite dipping sauce. 

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Honey Mustard Recipe (below)

My sweet oldest son came up this Honey Mustard recipe himself years ago, when he was only around 14 years old...he came up with this, because we could never buy one that we all really liked....I thought he was so smart to think this up, and I must say that it's the best we have ever had, and I make it all the time. Special thanks to my precious son, for inventing this recipe for us to enjoy and for always being such a joy to us all of these years that have seemed to have flown by.  If we knew how, we'd bottle your honey mustard, and market it, and sell it with your name on it, but the best I can do is give it honor here on my blog for all to enjoy!  It will always have your name on it Austin. Love you :)

For this Honey Mustard Recipe You Will Need:

• 2  Heaping Tablespoons of Mayonnaise (just use a spoon from your regular silverware drawer)

• 2  Heaping teaspoons of Mustard (just use a spoon from your regular silverware drawer)

• 1 to 2 Tablespoons of Honey (add Tablespoon to taste until desired sweetness)

• Sprinkle Seasoned Salt, and Pepper to taste

Mix ingredients together in a small bowl, serve as dipping sauce for chicken strips.

NOTE: For an optional different twist on this sauce, I sometimes add about a 1/2 teaspoon of prepared Horseradish to the honey mustard to give it a kick, I'm the only one in the family that likes it with a kick though lol.

Enjoy!

Homemade Chilli For Hot Dogs

You will need:

• 1/2 pound ground beef
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt (season more to taste later)
• 1/2 tsp. garlic powder
• sprinkle of red pepper
• sprinke of black pepper
• dried bay leaf
• 1 tsp. seasoned salt
• 1 tsp. dried onion
• 2 tsp. chilli powder
• Your favorite brand of hot dogs and buns

Cover the ground beef with water in a small pot, use a spatula to crumble the ground beef. Add all of the other ingredients and bring it all to a boil, continue stirring and crumbling up the ground beef with the spatula. Reduce the heat and cook for about 30 min.or longer...the longer it simmers the more flavor it will have. Using a slotted spoon to drain the chilli onto each hotdog and bun.... and add your other favorite condiments like mayo mustard, ect.... This is enough chilli for 8 hotdogs.

Enjoy!

This post is dedicated to Riley, he taught me this method for making hot dog chilli....I tweeked it a little  bit and put my own spin on it, but I will always remember him when I make this. 

Easy Yummy Salsa Recipe

This is such a delicious and easy recipe, and it tastes like fresh tomatoes are used, but they are canned...

You will need:

• 1 can Rotel tomatoes and diced green chiles (I used great value brand)
• 1 Large can of petite diced tomatoes (I believe this one I used was a 32 oz.) The amount will equal about 2 regular sized cans. I used great value Wal-mart brand.
• 1/2 chopped onion
• chopped garlic clove
• 1 -2 Tablespoons of fresh chopped cilantra
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup (depending on your taste) of white vinegar
• Sprinkle of Salt
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1/4 tsp. black pepper
• 1 tsp. taco bell mild sauce
• Tortilla Chips for dipping

Note: If you like your salsa smooth (which I do) you'll need a hand held blender to blend the tomatoes. I have never tried this recipe without blending them, so I recommend doing so. I use a Durabrand hand held emmersion blender ($10.00 at Wal-mart) to blend salsa to desired consistency, I like it smooth.....not chunky. The hand held blender makes this a snap.....you blend it right in the saucepan.

In a medium sauce pan, bring the vinegar, onion, and garlic to a boil. Remove from heat and add canned tomatoes, rotel, and other ingredients. Now, blend with the hand held Emmersion Blender.... right in the pot. Once blended to desired consistency, return to heat and bring to a boil and then simmer for about 10 minutes on low heat. Let cool and serve with Tortilla Chips. Great for an appetizer or serve with a Mexican style dinner......like my taco recipe in the post below.

** Leftover salsa can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for about 2 weeks.

Enjoy~

Easy Homemade Guacamole Dip

This is such an easy dip, and delicious served with tortilla chips. This is a wonderful appetizer when you are serving tacos or burritos.....

All you will need is 2 avocados (make sure that they are somewhat soft to the touch, when you are choosing these), a garlic glove, (chopped fine), a sprinkle of garlic power, and salt and pepper to taste.....

halve the avocados, and remove the seed.....

Scoop the flesh out of the shell into a small bowl and mash it well, with the back of a fork .....mix in other ingredients and salt and pepper to taste....

Serve with tortilla chips.... serve right away or chill in the fridge if you'd like it cold. This is best eaten fresh the same day that it is prepared....because.....I will tell you... that if this isn't eaten the same day as it is prepared.... the next day it will have turned a not so appetizing darker green on top. I have tried using lemon juice mixed in with the dip and this doesn't help....it always turns dark green the next day. This is best served fresh, the same day that it is prepared.....fix it just before serving.

2 Avocados yields enough dip for about 4 people as an appetizer. By the way you can add a dash of lemon or lime juice for added flavor if you'd like to. I sometimes do, if I have it on hand. This time I did not. Sometimes a cook has to improvise right? I didn't add any and we didn't taste the difference. Hope you will like this dip..... we really enjoy it.