Week of Jan 27, 2021

 Mon - Crockpot Roast Beef

Tue - 3 Bean Chili and Corn Bread

Wed - Chili Dogs
Thur - Italian Wedding Soup (Easy)
Fri  - Roast Chicken

Three Bean Chili

1 lb ground beef

1 can 16 oz refried or pinto beans
1 can 15.5 oz Black Beans

1 15.5 oz can Kidney beans

1 14 oz cans diced tomatoes with jiuce (use ones with chilis, for hotter chili)

1 tbsp tomato paste

1/2 onion, diced

2 small cloves garlic

1 green and/or red bell pepper

Salt and pepper to taste

1 tbsp cummin

1/2 tsp chili powder

2 tsp onion powder

1 tbsp oil

In a large skillet, brown beef, drain. Remove. Sauté onions and bell peppers in oil on medium until onions are translucent. Add garlic, cook until fragrant. Add beef, beans, tomatoes with the juice, paste, and seasoning to the skillet. Bring to a boil. Serve with shredded cheddar cheese and/or fresh chopped onions on top, if desired.

Chili Dogs
(I will be using leftover homemade chili for this)
Ingredients
Extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 pound lean ground beef
1 medium jar ketchup, about 2 1/2 cups
1 teaspoon chili powder
2 tablespoons prepared yellow mustard
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 all-beef hot dogs (recommended: Ball Park)
4 hot dog rolls
1/2 cup grated Cheddar
Directions
Put a skillet over medium heat and drizzle in a 2-count of olive oil. When the oil gets hazy, add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring, until it is soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the ground beef, breaking it up with the back of a spoon, and cook until nicely browned, about 10 more minutes. Stir in the ketchup, chili powder, and mustard and simmer for 15 minutes until thickened. Season with salt and pepper.

While the chili is cooking, get the grill going. Place a large grill pan on 2 burners over medium-high heat or preheat an outdoor gas or charcoal barbecue and get it very hot. Take a few paper towels and fold them several times to make a thick square. Blot a small

amount of oil on the paper towel. Then carefully and quickly wipe the hot grates of the grill to make a nonstick grilling surface.

Bring a pot of water up to a simmer and parboil the dogs for about 5 minutes. Take them out of the water, pat them dry, and grill them just long enough to mark them. (That'll give them a grilled flavor too.) Brush the insides of the rolls with olive oil and lay them face down on the grill; cook until toasty. To serve, put a dog in each roll and top with the chili and some Cheddar.
Read more at: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/tyler-florence/chili-dogs-recipe/index.html?oc=linkback

Italian Wedding Soup
1 (14 oz) package of frozen meatballs, thawed and browned OR homemade meatballs
12 cups Chicken Broth
1 lb of Escarole, chopped
2 cups Ditalini pasta
Bring broth to boil in a large soup pot. Add pasta, escarole  and meatballs, boil until pasta and escarole is tender, about 8-10 minutes. Top with grated Parmesan Cheese, if desired.

Roast Chicken
1 (5-6 lb) bone in whole chicken (completely defrosted if from frozen)

2 rib celery
1 carrot
1 onion
4 cloves of garlic
handful fresh parsley and thyme sprigs
2 tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper

Chop onion into 8 pieces. Cut carrot and celery into 3 pieces. Remove skin from garlic. Remove anything in cavity from chicken. Rinse and pat dry. stuff vegetables and 1/2 onion, 1/2 herbs into cavity and neck opening. Put other 1/2 onion and herbs in roasting pan. Rub chicken with oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Place a meat themamater (oven safe one) in thickest part of chicken. Place chicken on rack in roasting pan. add enough water in bottom to cover bottom of pan. Cover pan (use foil tent if no lid) Roast at 375 about 1 hours to 145 F internal temp. remove cover, turn up oven to 425F and roast for about 20 minutes until temp is 165F. Let rest out of oven for 10 minutes before carving.

Week of Nov 29 2020

• Sun - Turkey and Wild Rice Soup
• Mon - Pork Carnitas
• Tue Pork Verde Enchiladas
• Wed Caprese Chicken and Pasta
• Thur Paella
• Fri Chicken Strips and Fries

Turkey and Wild Rice Soup

Stock:

leftover turkey bones, remove skin and meat

1 carrot, quartered

1 onion, quartered

2 celery stalks with leaves, quartered

head of garlic cut in half

2 bay leaves

2 sage leaves

bunch of parsley

few twigs of thyme

6 cups water

Soup:

Broth

1 cup wild rice - precook according to package

1 cup frozen diced carrots and peas

salt and pepper to taste

1 cup chopped turkey meat

Stock - add all to large stock pot. Bring to boil. Simmer on low for at least 1 hour - up to 4, until bones are breaking apart. Do not let it boil, only slow simmer - barely bubbling. Skim fat off every 20 minutes and discard. When done strain into another soup pot through a fine mesh strainer to get all solids and the bone fragments out. 

Soup - bring ingredients to boil. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Pork Carnitas Tacos with Slaw

Pork Carnitas - slow cooker
Place the fresh 3 lb shoulder pork roast and 2 cans (7 oz) Mild Diced Green Chilies with liquid and 1 chopped yellow onion into the slow cooker. Cook in slow cooker 8 hours on low. Shred. Serve on warmed tortillas with taco fixings - such as cheese, lettuce or cabbage, onions, cilantro, fresh lime lime juice.

Enchiladas

2+ cups cooked diced or shredded Pork (left over carnitas)

 12-16 corn tortillas (taco size)

Green Chili Enchilada Sauce (see below, can be done week before or buy premade)

1 tsp salt and pepper (each)

1 1/2 - 2 lbs Shredded Colby jack cheese

Enchilada sauce: Sauté 1 small yellow onion diced in sauce pan until translucent. Add 1 cup chicken broth bring to boil. Add 1 (7oz) can of diced green chilis, and1 diced poblano (mild), and 1diced anaheim chili (medium), or 2diced jalapenos (spicy). Take off heat. Add 1 tbsp ground cumin, 1 tsp garlic salt. Use an immersion blender or a regular blender to blend until smooth. Taste add salt as needed.

Warm the tortillas in the microwave for 30-60 seconds until flexible.

Spray a 9x13 rectangular baking pan with oil. Spoon a few spoonfuls of sauce to bottom of pan.

To assemble the enchiladas, place tortilla in the pan, fill with a spoonful of meat, sauce, and a sprinkling of cheese. Roll the tortilla up with the open side down. Repeat until pan is full. I usually do 12 total - 8 down lengthwise, an two sets of two on the side of the pan. Spread the rest of the sauce over the top. Sprinkle with cheese. Heat in 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes until hot.

NON-OVEN RECIPE: You can also do this recipe with out using an oven in a casserole form: instead of rolling the enchiladas, layer the ingredients in a microwave safe casserole dish with a lid. Layer tortillas, sauce, meat, cheese, repeat 4x. On the top layer omit the meat. Microwave on high, covered, for 20 minutes, or until center is hot. Let stand, covered, 10 minutes before serving.

Caprese Pasta

• 1 pound linguine
• 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cups roasted cherry tomatoes, quartered
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup olive oil (good quality, tasting olive oil such as California Olive Ranch Extra Virgin Olive Oil)
• 1/2 cup packed fresh basil leaves, cut into strips
• 6 ounces fresh mozzarella, diced or shredded (about 1 cup) 

• To roast tomatoes:  http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/roasted-tomatoes-recipe/index.html . 

• Cook pasta according to package directions. In a large serving bowl, mix all ingredients together. Serve warm. Serving with grilled chicken breast.

Paella

1 smoked link sausage

1/2 lb shrimp

2 cups long grian rice

1 cup peas and diced carrots

1 red bell pepper, diced

1/2 sweet onion, diced

2 garlic cloves, pressed

4 cups chicken/veggie stock

olive oil

Chives, chopped

In a large pan with a lid, heat 1 tbsp of oil on medium heat. Saute onions until translucent. Add garlic, stir until fragrant. mix in rice, then pour in stock. Add sausage, pepper, peas and carrots. cover and cook on medium-low heat for 20 minutes. Then put shrimp on top, turn up heat to medium, recover and cook for another 5 minutes, or until shrimp is cooked thru and have turned pink, and a crust has started to form on the bottom of pan.

Service with chopped chives on top.