Macaroni, Hamburger and Tomatoes!!!!

How Yummy is that?!?  I do have a confession, I am listening to Michael Blublé while I am write this post. Not that he is a looker, but he has a set of pipes on him. He can read me the phone book over the phone anytime.


Cook one pound of Macaroni noodles per directions on the box.   Or if you are like me, you fill a pot half full of water, add a good amount of salt and let it come to a bubble and add the box of pasta and let it come to a bubble and when it's firm to the tooth, ( can't spell Al dente)  drain and by the time it's cooked, you have the other stuff done

Brown one pound of hamburger with one small onion finely chopped, a few cloves of garlic chopped, and whatever you think makes it taste good.

Drain the fat if any and add a good squirt of tomato paste, a half hearted squirt of anchovy paste, a 14 oz can of petite diced tomatoes with juice. let it simmer for a few minutes to get nice and cozy,  Add to cooked macaroni and you have DINNER!

You can do garlic bread and salad to complete the meal.


My dad hates this meal by the way. Don't know why, He just does.

If you have whole tomatoes just run a table knife through the can a few times to break them up.

MOM?!? What's for Dinner, I am STARVING!

If you haven't heard that before, you don't have kids at home.  If you have a husband or significant other,  it's "Hon?!? What's for dinner, I am STARVING!"

Believe it or not, this is what we are having for dinner tonight.

Bunless turkey burgers,
Stuffing
Corn on the cob
and  Pumpkin pie if there is any left.

One of our local stores had ground turkey on sale.  it was under 2 dollars a pound sold in one pound chubs,  You bet your last dollar I got 20 of them.  Cheaper than ground beef and my kids can't tell the difference.

Bunless?   Yep as in No bun!   There are carbs in the corn, and stuffing, why add more?

  because you come from a carb loving family and yes we are carnivores!

I heard that.  Now is the time to change to lower carbs.

For 2 pounds of ground turkey, I am mixing in

1/4 c of dehydrated onion
2T of granulated garlic
2t of salt
couple shakes of pepper
an egg ( just to bind it)

mix that well and shape into 8 patties.   Since there isn't much fat in the ground turkey, I broil the patties in the oven.  If I pan fry, the stick and fall apart.

The Stuffing

one bag of Pepperidge Farms Stuffing,  I am doing Herb seasoned.

I sautee one med onion and 2 cups of celery in 1/4 cup of butter then I add the dry stuffing mix, and moisten it with chicken stock.

The Corn on the cob is Self explainitory.

Now I am off to help make a dress,  Cut a head of hair and find more costumes for "Into the Woods"   March 23 at Wilson Middle school!

Orange Roughy

Yeah, it's an ugly fish. There for proving my theory that if it's cute, Don't eat it.  It will taste bad.  Really.  The uglier the meat, the better tasting it is.

What the butcher was passing as Orange Roughy wasn't true Roughy. It was an Asian cousin.  Roughy is a bit overfished and it takes a long time for it reproduce. It has a long life and doesn't reproduce until much later.

The fish I got was Sahi. It's a substitute for the Roughy.  it was mild, white fish. It had a sweet taste to it.

How I cooked it the other night was I dredged the fillets in flour, then egg white that was beaten until foamy and seasoned with a pinch or two of salt, some dried dill and a couple of dashes of lemon juice. and then I covered the egg layer in bread crumbs.

I did a pound and half of fish with 2 cups of flour, 4 eggs whites, pinch or two of salt, a pinch or two of dried dill and a couple of splashes of Lemon Juice and 2 cups of bread crumbs.

I baked it at 350* for  15 minutes and I served it with Couscous and steamed carrots.

How do you make Couscous?   I boil 1 1/2c of chicken stock with about a 1T of butter, I add 1T of granulated garlic, dehydrated minced onion, and  1t of pepper.  Remove from heat and add 1 cup of couscous. Cover and let steam for about 5 minutes. Fluff with a fork and serve.

I got a Rice cooker/steamer for Christmas and I use it at least 3 times a week to steam or cook anything and everything in it.

To pan steam carrots, I take a pound of carrots and peel them, cut them into 2-3 inch long sticks,  and steam them, to Pan steam,  add 1/2 a cup of water and 1/8t of salt, bring to a boil and add the carrots. let it come to a boil again and cover the pan and let cook,  it takes about 10 minutes depending on how big your carrots are.

I have some other projects in the fire. TTYL

Ham and Bean Soup

Finally, winter has come to Iowa. There is no snow but the wind is blowing off some unseen glacier and if you don't have a good insulated coat, you will freeze.  Just ask the 300 or so people at last night Romney Rally. I was there and I dragged my 16 year old daughter out to it too. I think the significance is lost on her mind right now.

Anyhow...

Ham and bean soup. YUM when it's cold outside.

8 cups of cold water
1 pound of great northern or Navy beans (You would think that Navy beans would be well, Navy instead of white. Where is Alton Brown when I need him?)

Either soak over night or since you are like me, you didn't think about doing this until noon and you want the soup for dinner so quick soak them.  Add the beans to the pot after you  sort them, (Just check for abnormality and rocks) and add the water. Bring to a rolling boil, cover and take off the heat for about an hour or so.  Drain and rinse well.  I even wash the pan but that is me. I have this logical fear of Botulism.

Put the beans back into the pot with 8 more cups of water  left over ham bone, 
2 carrots, peeled and sliced,
2 ribs of celery, diced
1 small onion diced
a bay leaf or two
2 t of dry mustard or more to taste.
  Let it simmer for about and hour and half to 2 hours or until beans are tender.

I am going to serve this with corn muffins.

Edit: I just googled why Navy beans are white,  They are called Navy beans because they were a staple for the US Navy during the wars.  That makes sense to me.

Crustless Mini quiches and Pioneer Pancakes.

We are getting ready for our traditional Christmas Brunch. Since Christmas is Sunday, we will have church at 10 AM and a late brunch at 2 PM.  Usual fare is Pioneer pancakes, sausage, Hash browns and whatever else people bring. In true Sharp family form, it's Bring your own drinks.  We have some friends that can't have the gluten of the pancakes so I am going a gluten free mini quiches and Some are picky about the meat they will eat so I have turkey sausage links that I am going to make some quiches with too.

Mini Quiches

8 oz package of diced ham
1 red pepper finely diced,
1 small onion finely diced

Saute in about 1T of butter.  (Hey, I said it was crust less, not fat free)  cook until pepper and onion are soft.  about 5 minutes on Medium high heat.  Set aside.

Then take

8 oz package of cream cheese room temperature.
1t each of dried sage, thyme and rosemary and combine in small bowl.

For the custard it's

4 large eggs
4 egg yolks
1 cup of heavy cream
pinch of salt.
1T of Rice flour.  Whisk until smooth.  I mix it in a glass measuring cup as it's easier to pour.

Spray a mini cupcake pan with no stick cooking spray. and Preheat the oven to 375*.  Place a teaspoon of the ham mixture in each cup, Top that with a teaspoon of herbed cheese, and then pour the custard over that until the cup is full.  Bake until it starts to puff and turns light brown on top, About 18-20 minutes. Let the pan cool for about 5 minutes, Run a knife along the quiche and the side of the cup to loosen and set on a serving platter with Baby spinach.

It does freeze well and makes excellent snacks, or a lunch to take to the office.



Pioneer Pancakes

we have been fixing this recipe forever.

6 eggs
1 cup of milk,
1 cup of flour
1 stick of butter

Melt the butter in a 13x9 inch glass baking dish at 350*.  Since this will take a few minutes,  that is when I mix  the eggs, milk and flour and a pinch of salt together until smooth.  I take it a few steps further and a a splash or two of vanilla and a dash or two of cinnamon and nutmeg. Pour the batter into the hot baking dish and bake for about 10 minutes or until set in the middle and a toothpick inserted, come out clean.

I like serving this with Cherry Pie filling and assorted fruit syrups.

Mini Cheesecakes

I know I am sporadic at best when doing this. It's just been insane.

I use the foil cupcake liners, put a vanilla wafer on the bottom of the liner, IN the bottom, not outside on the bottom. Put a teaspoon of cream cheese filling or if you want to be artsy-fartsy, I use a 1T disher,  It's a tiny ice cream scoop that I use for most cookies.  and top that with cherry, strawberry, Raspberry or blueberry pie filling.  you can get the tubs of cheesecake filling or make your own as long as it's no- bake.

For mine I put 8 oz of cream cheese at room temp in a medium mixing bowl,  add 1/2 cup of granulated sugar,  Beat with electric mixer until the consistency of thick cake battle, and fold in 12 oz container of non dairy whipped topping.  I can make it for half the cost of what it is to buy it.

Now on to find what I am going to wear tonight.

Creamy Clam Chowder

There are as many recipes for this as there are Chins in the China town phone directory.  It's cold here for the first of December and soup is on the menu for dinner tonight.

2 cups diced potatoes
1 cup chopped celery
1 cup chopped onion
Put in 3qt Sauce pan, add the juice of two cans of minced clams and just enough water to cover. and simmer on med heat for 15-20 minutes until potatoes are soft.

Meanwhile, in a 6qt stock pot melt 1 stick of butter. when melted, whisk in 1/2 cup flour for a roux. cook that on medium heat for a minute or two, and add 1 qt of half and half. let that thicken up and by that time the vegetables are ready. pour the whole thing into the stock pot. stir to combine and let it simmer to thicken up again. Until it coats a spoon. add the drained minced clams and serve with thick slices of crusty Italian or french bread,

For a lower fat and calorie version,  use fat free half and half, (I don't get it either)  But it winter and some fat is good.  I love clams so I use chopped clams or whole baby clams.