We got a 10-oz lobster tail, and two 3-oz tails. I find working with the small tails difficult so I used that monster lobster tail for this, and then let my husband learn on the two smaller ones. I wear gloves not only for sanitary reasons, but the shell can be sharp, and the vinyl glove does provide some protection.

For prep and bake, I just put this big lobster tail in a glass pie pan, but just about any baking dish or pan will do, as long as it has a lip.

How to Butterfly a Lobster Tail

1. Make sure your tail is thawed, but kept cold. We start by cutting the top of the shell, so we can lift the meat out and lay it on top of the shell. Be careful not to cut the meat, the bottom of the blade should be under the shell. Keep the pretty fan tail intact.
   

   

2. Next, we’re going to slowly separate the meat from the shell by prying the shell open. Be careful to keep the meat connected to the under shell. I lift mine up to get a better grip when opening the shell.

3. Now that the shell is loose, we need to set the meat free (keeping the connected to the fan tail). Slide your thumb along the bottom to gently free the meat. Lift it, and close the shell, laying the meat on top.

4. For presentation, we are going to cut slits and fold the meat over the shell. Cut a slit lengthwise down the center of the top (not too deep) and gently fold the meat over the shell. Be sure there are no shell bits in or on the meat from when we cut the shell open. We cut two more slits to make it prettier (and to hold more butter). Then we drizzled it with garlic butter marinade, drizzling it with more marinade halfway through cooking.

Broiling Lobster Tail Cooking Chart

Preheat the oven broiler on high with the top rack placing the top of the lobster tails 5 – 6″ from the broiler.

You can use this chart for baking times, also, but double the time for baking at 450.

Be sure to check on them, you don’t want burnt, rubbery lobster! You can use a cooking thermometer to verify the internal temperature is 140 – 145 F. You can see that my lobster meat is white, and the butter marinade is brown. You can garnish with parsley and serve with marinade for dipping.

What to Serve With Lobster Tail

For New Years Eve, we made it all all-day feast, hanging out and cooking in the kitchen – we started with a charcuterie board with some Gouda, colby-jack, crackers, toasted ciabatta slices, fig & honey spread, almonds and some cherry tomatoes (for lack of grapes).

Then I made some deviled eggs and served them with shrimp & cocktail sauce.

Then we made each course of meat: Lobster & scallops.

Here are some other ideas for serving alongside lobster:

• Caprese Salad
• Broccoli, Brussel Sprouts, Asparagus, or String Beans
• Zucchini-Carrot Medley
• Caesar Salad
• Pan-Seared Sirloin Steak or filet mignon

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Butterflied Lobster Tails

How to Butterly and Broil Lobster Tail with Garlic Butter Marinade

Course Main Course

Cuisine Mediterranean

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 20 minutes minutes

Servings 3

Calories 195kcal

Cost $60

Equipment

• 1 Kitchen shears

Ingredients

• 3 8-oz lobster tails
• 4 Tbsp unsalted Kerrygold butter
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp white pepper

Instructions

How to Butterfly Lobster Tails

• Cut the top of the shell down the center, taking care not to cut the meat or the fan tail.
  
• Crack the lobster shell open, freeing the meat with your thumb from the top of the shell. Keep the bottom attached, as well as the end near the fan tail.
  
• Loosen the meat from the bottom of the shell with your thumb, gently lifting the tail meat free, while keeping it attached at the tail end. Close the shell and place the meat on top.
  
• Cut a small slit down the center and fold the meat over the side of the shell. Cut two more slits and drizzle with garlic butter marinade.
  

Lobster Tail Marinade

• Melt the butter, and add remaining ingredients. Stir well & keep it warm while prepping and cooking the lobster tail.

Lobster Tail Broiling Time

• Preheat the oven broiler on high, with the top rack positioned 6" from the broiler.
• Prep the lobster tails, and broil at approximately 1 minute per ounce.
• Check the internal temperature and add more marinade halfway through cook time.
• Lobster tails are done when internal meat temperature is between 140 – 145 F and lightly browned on top. Serve with extra marinade.

Notes

The post Butterflied Lobster Tails appeared first on Food Love Affair.

Our grass fed beef comes from Wisconsin Meadows, and these Beef Chuck Roasts were only about 1.5 lb. each, so I put two in the pot.

Ingredients

• boneless beef chuck roast (3#)
• 6 potatoes
• 6 carrots
• 2 onions
• salt, pepper

Instructions

• Cut your potatoes & carrots into bite-size pieces
• Quarter the onion
• Place veggies in pot, and top with beef
• Sprinkle salt & pepper on top
• Pour a little water in there
• Cook on Low for 10 hours

Alterations

As you can see, I like my pot roast with some celery. I’ve also made it with whole mushrooms, but those should be used in beef stew.

You can add extra seasoning like paprika.

You can use beef broth instead of water.

If you don’t want to wait ten hours, you can cook it on high for 5 hours, however, you need to keep checking it to make sure it doesn’t dry out or over cook.

The beef roast: You can use thawed out roast or mostly frozen roast, though I do recommend the thawed version. If you put the mostly frozen roast on there, it will be a little tougher than a fully thawed roast. Some people sear their roast before putting it in the crock pot, but I find all that unnecessary. I tried it. There really was nothing special about it, except a long drawn out preparation to waiting ten hours for the roast.

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Classic Pot Roast

A tender, juicy beef pot roast that's easy to prepare. All you have to do is wait.

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 hours hours

Total Time 10 hours hours 15 minutes minutes

Servings 6

Calories 529kcal

Cost $27

Ingredients

• 3 lb beef chuck roast
• 1 lb russet potatoes
• 1 lb carrots
• 2 onion
• 2 tsp salt
• ½ tsp pepper

Instructions

• Cut the potatoes & carrots into bite-size pieces. (about 1 – 2")
• Quarter the onion.
• Place the vegetables in the slow cooker & top with beef chuck roast.
• Add ½ c. water and sprinkle with salt & pepper.
• Cook on low for 10 hours.

Notes

The post Classic Pot Roast appeared first on Food Love Affair.

Ingredients

• Frozen chicken patties
• Marinara sauce
• Mozzarella slices
• Parmesan cheese

Easy Instructions

1. Get four (or six) frozen chicken patties and fry them in oil, just until brown.

2. Place them in a lightly greased/oiled baking pan, cover with 2 cups marinara, layer 1 cup mozzarella (or 4 – 6 slices) & sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. If you make 6 patties, use an extra 1/2 cup of marinara.

3. Bake at 425 about 15 – 20 minutes. You can turn the broiler on to brown the top of the cheese.

4. Serve on spaghetti noodles or rice.

Tonight, I used whole-grain Barilla spaghetti.

I could use more marinara.

I like the On-cor chicken parmegiana, but here’s the ingredients:

Tomato Sauce: Tomato Puree, Water, Modified Corn Starch, Sugar, Onions, Con-tains Less Than 2% of the Following: Beef, Salt, Dehydrated Onion, Hydrolyzed Soy Protein, Spices, Autolyzed Yeast Extract, Garlic Powder. Breaded & Cooked Chicken Patties Topped With Cheese: White Chicken Meat, Breading and Batter (Bleached Wheat Flour, Water, Modified Food Starch, Yellow Corn Flour, Salt, Contains Less Than 2% of the Following: Oleoresin Papri-ka, Dextrose, Sugar, Soybean Oil, Leavening [Sodium Acid Pyrophosphate, Sodium Bicarbonate], Corn Starch, Sodium Alginate, Soy Flour, Natural Flavor), Chicken Skins, Water, Low Moisture Part Skim Mozzarella Cheese (Pasteurized Part Skim Milk, Cheese Cultures, Salt, Enzymes), Tex-tured Soy Flour, Soy Protein Concentrate, Contains Less Than 2% of the Following: Salt, Sodium Phosphate, Hydrolyzed Corn Protein, Onion Powder, Spices, Flavorings, Nonfat Dry Milk

If you can’t pronounce it, you shouldn’t eat it.

About Sauces

My favorite marinara sauce is Barilla, but Newman’s Own is good, too. However, they are more authentic than the tomato-paste sauce in the On-cor meal. You can try to copy it with your own tomato sauce, just add some sugar (1 – 2 Tbsp), salt (1 – 2 tsp), onion powder (1/2 tsp) and garlic powder (1/2 tsp) to tomato puree. Adjust seasoning as you see fit. It has some other stuff in it, so to thicken it, try corn starch (1 Tbsp, made into a paste). You should slow cook it about an hour on simmer. Start with one 12-15 oz can of tomato puree. If you’re making six chicken patties, use two cans.

🧀 Use sliced mozzarella for better cheese experience.

I’m not sure if it should be spelled Chicken Parmesan, or Chicken Pamegiana. On-Cor is the latter, but my favorite Italian restaurant serves the former. So, let’s just go with “Parm”.

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Poor Man’s Chicken Parm

Working mom's chicken Parmesan – quick and easy weeknight dinner from frozen chicken patties.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Calories 456kcal

Cost $5

Ingredients

• 4 frozen chicken patties (Tyson)
• 1 ½ c marinara (Barilla)
• 4 mozzarella cheese slices
• ½ c Parmesan cheese
• 4 Tbsp olive oil divided

Instructions

• Heat a frying pan with 2 Tbsp olive oil on medium-high. When hot, pan fry two chicken patties at a time, 4-5 minutes per side.
• Preheat oven to 425° F. Drizzle a baking dish with the other 2 Tbsp olive oil and place the cooked patties in it.
• Pour marinara sauce over chicken, then layer with mozzarella slices. Sprinkle Parmesan on top and bake 15 minutes, until bubbly.
• Turn Broiler on Low, and cook within 6" of top burner for 4-5 minutes, or until cheese achieves preferred brownness.
• Serve on spaghetti noodles or rice.

Notes

The post Poor Man’s Chicken Parm appeared first on Food Love Affair.

This is one of my old-school, I-didn’t-plan-anything-for-dinner dinners. Its super cheap, and super easy.

Ingredients

I wanted to fancy it up a bit this time, so I found some celery, lemon juice & parsley to add to it.

• Mac & Cheese
• Tuna
• Peas

Super Easy Cooking Instructions

Usually, you just need butter & milk to make the mac & cheese.

1. Prepare your macaroni and cheese according to the instructions on the box.
2. Add the peas
3. Add the tuna
4. Stir to combine

Fancy it up with a few alterations

• a dash of lemon to the tuna
• Add fresh or stir-fired bits of celery or onion (or celery seed/onion powder)
• Top it with extra cheese and let it melt before serving (cheddar, mozzarella, or co-jack)
• Add cream-of-something soup (mushroom or celery)
• You can add a casserole topping in the pot, but I recommend Ritz over saltines, and add cheese – just put the lid on, and let it sit 5 minutes on the warm burner
• a bit of color with parsley (dried or fresh)

Cooking tips for the poor man’s tuna casserole

• Try to use frozen peas instead of canned. Canned peas are mushy. If you must, add them last and give it a gentle toss to combine.
• Always break up your tuna in a bowl first. There can be bones, and they can be pretty big, or small enough to miss.
• Use a little extra butter & milk when preparing your mac & cheese to keep it creamy, if you’re not adding condensed soup to fancy it up.
• Cook your macaroni noodles to al dente, especially if you’re going to add soup or extra cheese.

What to serve with tuna casserole

• Pillsbury crescent rolls
• Side salad, Caesar salad, broccoli salad
• Green beans
• Veggie tray

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Stove-top Tuna Casserole

Macaroni-and-Cheese with tuna & peas is a quick, cheap meal for working moms.

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Cook Time 16 minutes minutes

Total Time 16 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Calories 163kcal

Cost $3

Ingredients

• 1 box macaroni and cheese (any brand) prepared
• 1 c frozen peas defrosted
• 1 can tuna in water drained & flaked

Instructions

• Prepare macaroni & cheese according to instructions.
• Stir in the peas
• Add the tuna, and toss gently to combine.

Notes

The post Stove-top Tuna Casserole appeared first on Food Love Affair.

You know, there are tons of old Wendy’s burgers & chicken sandwiches that were oh-so-good but even if they brought them back, they just wouldn’t taste the same as they did back in the ’90’s. Something would be different about it. I think I’ll plan to do the chickens next:

• Monterey Ranch Chicken Sandwich (with bacon)
• Chicken Cordon Bleu (ham, Swiss & Grey Poupon!) – this is a no tomato, no lettuce chicken sandwich
• The Wild Mountain Chicken was after my time (2000’s), but I could try this: spicy chicken, co-jack, bacon (this one had red onions, too)
• The Big Bacon Classic cheeseburger was very popular, too.
• Speaking of chicken sandwiches, remember the 39¢ chicken littles from KFC?

And now I’m craving a double stack, which used to give me nightmares! When that burger first came out, for 99¢, people would order ten at a time – that’s 20 hamburger patties that need to be cooked to Wendy’s perfection at once, nevermind the other ten cars in the drive-through.

Speaking of Grill Skills, check out this blast from the past:

The Smoky Bacon cheeseburger is a really simple burger.

All you need is:

• A Good Kaiser Roll
• Ground beef patties (we made ours 1/4 lb.)
• Smoked Cheddar Cheese
• Bacon
• Onion
• Barbecue Sauce

How to bake bacon

First, you bake your bacon in the oven at 425 on a baking rack, for about 18-20 minutes. I like to flip mine halfway through for even cooking, but my oven is not level. So, that’s just me.

How to saute onions

Slice and sauté the onion in butter. Just make them translucent, and maybe a little brown, however you like your onion best. Keep them warm.

Toasted kaiser roll

You should slice and toast the kaiser roll. All Wendy’s burger buns are toasted & steamed. This time, I used a little butter in the frying pan. I don’t like using the toaster oven for this because they get a bit too dry. Once I toast them, I put them back in the bag for that steam effect.

Grill Skills: how to make the cheeseburger

For the burgers, I use two plastic plates with lips to smash the meat into a patty. The ground beef comes packaged in a square wrap from Wisconsin Meadows. We like their 30# grass-fed beef variety box. It lasts the two of us about 6 months. Since it’s already square, I just slice it into 4 equal squares, and then smash them between my saucer plates. Then, following the Grill Skills throwback video, place the meat in the frying pan, salt it, squish it, flip it & repeat.

With the burger still in the pan, I melt the cheese in the pan (just like they do at Wendy’s), then place it on the burger and let it sit, continuing to cook while the cheese keeps melting. The cheese is really hard to slice nicely, so if you can get smoked cheddar at your meat market, ask them to slice it into sandwich slices for you.

I had to get this cheese from Bavaria Sausage, since they hardly ever have smoked cheddar at Pick N Save. And I was placing an order for our Oktoberfest brats, anyway.

Cheeseburger assembly

Then, assemble your burger and enjoy this classic flashback Smoky Bacon Cheeseburger from Wendy’s!

I just pile it altogether like this:

• Meat
• Cheese
• Bacon (2 slices broken in half)
• Onion
• Barbecue sauce

Check out our recipe for copycat chili and stay tuned for more (like the new french fries).

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Wendy’s Smoky Bacon Cheeseburger

Copycat Wendy's Smoky Bacon Cheeseburger (1996)

Course Lunch, Main Course

Cuisine American

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 1 hour hour

Total Time 1 hour hour 5 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Calories 851kcal

Cost $17

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground beef
• 4 kaiser rolls (large)
• ½ lb hickory smoked bacon
• 1 onion
• 4 Tbsp barbecue sauce Stubb's Sticky Sweet

Instructions

• Bake the bacon on a baking rack at 425° F for 18 minutes – do not preheat the oven
• Slice & toast the kaiser rolls in a frying pan on medium heat, pressing them down to ensure even toasting. Toast two rolls at a time for about 4 minutes each.
• Slice the onion and sautee in a frying pan with 1 Tbsp of butter. Cook until translucent, or until brown. Ten minutes for cooked onion, up to 30 minutes for caramelizing.
• Separate the beef into four ¼-pound patties, squished flat. Fry them in a frying pan, two at a time. Lay the meat in the pan, salt, and squish. Cook five minutes, flip & repeat. Turn the patties two more times then add cheese during the last five minutes. Drain by picking up the patty with a spatula and tilting it using the side of the frying pan. Each set of two patties should cook in 20 minutes on medium heat.
• Assemble your cheeseburger by placing the cheese burger on the bun, topping with 2 – 3 strips of bacon, a pile of onions & a drizzling of barbecue sauce.

Notes

The post Wendy’s Smoky Bacon Cheeseburger appeared first on Food Love Affair.

First, you gather your ingredients and prep accordingly:

• Cook the Rice
• Cook the Chicken
• Steam the Veggies
• Salt, Pepper, Condensed Soup & Milk (for the Rice mix)
• Shred the Cheese
• Paprika (for topping)

Don’t forget to add the milk to the soup; the rice gets dry if you don’t add enough, or you can add extra sour cream or another can of soup for a creamier casserole.

Try it with cream of chicken soup, or cream of celery, or make it a bit healthier using chicken broth and flour.

Today, I’m using fresh steamed broccoli, cream of mushroom soup & Co-Jack from Oberweis. We love the weekly dairy delivery, and they have fresh new food options regularly.

Mix your rice mixture, diced chicken and veggies and pour it into a baking dish. You can add extra cheese into the mix, too – I just like my cheese on top.

Bake at 350 for 35 – 40 minutes. Remember, everything is already cooked and your goal is to combine it and heat it up, melting the cheese topping.

Instead of paprika, try it with garlic powder (but not on top).

You can try it with a classic casserole topping like ritz crackers & butter, or make it pretty with a bit of fresh parsley.

Serve it up and enjoy!

A buttery dinner roll or crescent roll goes good on the side, too.

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Chicken-Broccoli-Rice Casserole

A classic quick and easy casserole that makes enough for leftovers.

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 35 minutes minutes

Servings 6

Calories 481kcal

Ingredients

• 2 chicken breasts
• 1 can cream of mushroom soup
• 1 c milk
• 1 broccoli crown
• 2 c rice (uncooked)
• 1 c cheddar-jack cheese
• ½ t salt
• ½ t pepper
• ½ t paprika

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 350° F.
• Cook the rice accordingly (I like to use my Zojirushi rice cooker – the steamed rice comes out ultra fluffy and perfect).
• Cook the chicken in a covered baking dish for 30-35 minutes. Once the chicken is done, set it aside to let it cool, leaving the oven on.
• Cut the broccoli into bite-size pieces. Lightly steam the fresh broccoli or frozen vegetables for about 10 minutes.
• In a large mixing bowl, whisk the soup with milk, salt & pepper. Fold in half of the cooked rice.
• Dice the chicken into 1" chunks and fold into the mixing bowl. Add the remaining rice and vegetables and mix well.
• Lightly grease a 9×12 baking dish and pour the casserole mix in. Top with shredded cheese and paprika. Bake for 30 minutes.

Notes

The post Chicken-Broccoli-Rice Casserole appeared first on Food Love Affair.

My “Eat Mexico” authentic recipe book only has two recipes: chicken enchiladas with green sauce or cheese enchiladas with homemade masa tortilla shells. I like ground beef enchiladas with “red sauce”.

As usual, I have four different recipes for ground beef enchiladas, and some are quite complicated, or rather, involved. To make the “red sauce” or “enchilada salsa”, I have one recipe that is oil, flour and chili paste. I have another recipe for enchilada seasoning with salsa, chili powder and mixed pepper. It’s all just me trying too hard. Enchiladas should be simple.

As much as I love enchiladas and believe that they should be made with corn/masa, I do like my Aunt’s American version, which uses flour tortillas. They’re quite delicious. So, in copycat taco bell enchirito-style, I’m going to simplify all of these recipes to make Lazy Enchiladas.

Easy Authentic Beef Enchiladas

First, the beef mixture doesn’t need seasoning – just fresh diced onions.

Secondly, the required corn tortillas will need to be cooked before filling them and baking them.

Thirdly, a good canned enchilada sauce will make these super easy “Lazy Enchiladas”.

Ingredients

• ground beef
• diced onion
• canola oil
• corn tortilla shells
• your favorite enchilada sauce (we use La Victoria)
• any melty cheese (Colby, Monterey jack, queso, Asadero, brick cheese, farmer cheese)
• (optional) any [slightly] sharp cheese (cheddar, Longhorn cheddar)

Prep

• cook the ground beef & onion
• shred your cheese(s)
• cook your corn tortilla shells

How to prep the corn tortilla shells:

Heat a small skillet with 1 Tbsp Canola oil. Warm the tortilla for 60 seconds, flip it and cook another 60 seconds. Remove from pan to drain on paper towel. Tortilla should show some browning, and have firm, but not crispy edges.

Cook a few extra, just in case you have some that crumble during assembly. You might need to add a bit more vegetable oil halfway through.

Assembly

Drizzle 1/2 cup enchilada sauce in the bottom of your 9×12 baking dish. (I used a 7×13 Pyrex baking dish.)

For each enchilada, spoon about 2 Tbsp each of beef mix, sauce & cheese. Wrap tightly and place in baking dish, seam-side down.

If you rip a tortilla, you can wrap it in an extra tortilla or cook it as-is.

Tip: I used the back of the spoon to squish the meat so I could roll the full tortilla tightly.

Some filling might spill out the side, that’s okay, you’ll just have a little meaty sauce to serve with your enchilada.

When you’ve filled the pan with all your enchiladas, drizzle about 2 cups of enchilada sauce over your enchiladas. Be sure to get the center, but also drizzle along the sides (don’t drown them – if you have enough sauce, you can stop). You do want some to bake crispy on the edges.

Put your remaining cheese mixture on top and bake at 350, uncovered, for 20 -25 minutes, or until cheese is melted.

Note that you will likely have some leftover ground beef; the nutrition facts in the recipe below are for all 10 corn tortillas using all of the ground beef. The recipe instructions are for 4 servings of 2 enchiladas each.

Allow five minutes to cool before serving.

Garnish with chopped cilantro leaves & serve with sour cream.

Serve with Mexican red rice & refried black beans.

Alterations

Some people like to add beans to their enchiladas, you can use refried beans, black beans or kidney beans.

Garnish with sliced green onion & serve with fresh Pico de Gallo.

Heat it up by adding diced jalapeño to the beef mixture.

A note on Cheeses

Don’t use packaged/pre-shredded cheese. Just try to never buy it. Simply put, you want to eat cheese, not anti-caking agents (Modified Cornstarch, Potato Starch and Powdered Cellulose) or mold prevention products/inhibitors (Natamycin). Sure, shredding can be a pain – here’s a tip: allow the cheese to come to room temperature, especially if it is a hard cheese like cheddar. I find shredding cold cheese takes some strength, but warming it (to room temperature) lets it slide across the grates using its own oiliness as a lubricant. Plus, its softer and easier to cut.

Quesadilla cheese is Chihuahua – its white, softer and super melty. You can also try Cotija and/or a mix with Oaxaca cheese. You can usually find the Quesadilla/Chihuahua cheese at your grocery store, but you might need to go to a Mexican grocery store for the others. Sendik’s carries Cotija cheese, for example, but Pick N Save/Kroger does not. You can also try it with crumbled queso fresco (remember to crumble it yourself).

You can turn the broiler on low for the last 3 minutes to give the top of the cheese a light brown crisp, if that’s how you like your cheese dishes.

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Lazy Enchiladas

Easy, authentic beef enchiladas make a quick weeknight dinner.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Mexican

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Calories 711kcal

Cost $13

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 onion
• 2½ c enchilada sauce La Victoria
• 8 oz Monterey jack cheese
• 10 corn tortilla shells Mission, or La Banderita (white corn)
• 2 Tbsp canola oil

Instructions

• Cook the ground beef with diced onion.
• Cook the corn tortilla shells according to package instructions (frying pan instructions preferred).
• Shred the cheese.
• Pour ½ c. enchilada sauce in the bottom of a 9×12 baking dish.
• Scoop about 2 Tbsp ea. ground beef mix, cheese, enchilada sauce into tortilla shell. Roll tightly and place into baking dish seam-side down. Repeat for remaining tortilla shells until the pan is full.
• Cover enchiladas with remaining enchilada sauce. Top with remaining cheese.
• Bake at 350° F for 20-25 minutes, until cheese is melted. Allow 5 minutes to cool before serving.

Notes

Note that you will likely have some leftover ground beef; these nutrition facts are for all 10 corn tortillas using all of the ground beef. The recipe instructions are for 4 servings of 2 enchiladas each.

The post Lazy Enchiladas appeared first on Food Love Affair.

My first recipe reads like this:

Sloppy Joe

• Tomato Paste & water
• Red & Green Pepper
• Chili Pepper
• Garlic
• Salt & Sugar

My second recipe reads like this:

1. Cook 1 lb gb in 1T butter. Drain.
2. Add: 1/2 onion 1/2 gp 3 cloves garlic
   Cook 4 min.
3. Add: 3/4 c ketchup 1T brown sugar
   1t chili powder 1/2 t mustard
   1/2 c water
   Stir. Salt, pepper
4. Add: 1T tomato paste, Worcestershire
5. Butter & Fry Buns

You can tell from my shorthand that my second job was taking phone orders for Little Caesars Pizza.

The 5th recipe looks like this: Sloppy Joes (2)

1. Ground Beef, Drain Fat
2. Add onion, peppers, garlic. Cook ’till soft.
3. Ketchup, Paste, water, salt, pepper, Worc. & Tabasco. Stir.
4. Sugar, Mustard, pepper, garlic powder. Simmer 20 minutes.
5. Serve on buttered, Grilled buns.

I think the point was to create a copycat Manwich recipe. The important part being that the fresh ingredients are yours, and the seasonings are all optional. For example, you can use fresh chopped onion, half an onion or 1/2 cup — or you can just use onion powder. But it should have a tiny bit of onion flavor.

It’s not Sloppy Joe without the green pepper.

But I didn’t have one, so I just used a red bell pepper.

Even just a little, make sure there’s some in there. The red pepper is optional, or you could use crushed red pepper flakes (or both). Chili powder was pretty consistent across all the Sloppy Joe recipes, or some form of chili pepper. You could use a dash of Tabasco, 1/2 tsp chili powder, or a diced Chile pepper. Change up the measurements/combinations of peppers to your liking.

The tomato base is also customizable – you could use tomato paste & water, or tomato sauce, but in the end, I think tomato puree is the best in flavor and consistency. Ketchup is necessary, as well. This enriches it, adds more sloppy to the Sloppy Joe, and is important for the vinegar & sugar flavoring. If you have an aversion to vinegar, you can reduce the ketchup, or skip it altogether — just make sure you add some sweetness with sugar, brown sugar or both, and that you have enough tomato flavor and sauce base.

My first recipe did not include Worcestershire sauce because I was young and didn’t understand its importance in Wisconsin German households. Always add Worcestershire to your beef, but careful not to over-do it (I learned this the hard way). Add it to your cream cheese dips, too. It’s not Schwager dip without the Worcestershire.

The rest of the flavorings are all optional. Salt & pepper are traditional, but you can manage sodium by skipping the salt. I even had a recipe that called for celery seed. Like I was trying to make a Bloody Mary burger, I don’t know… Most recipes seem to use some form of mustard, whether its “prepared mustard”, yellow mustard, or dry mustard. So, I wouldn’t skip that. They all call for garlic, as well. Just like the onion, make sure your Sloppy Joe has a bit of garlic, unless you have stomach issues. The smallest amount was 1/2 teaspoon of minced garlic, and the largest was 5 cloves of garlic. You could use 1/4 tsp of garlic powder, too.

Some people like to add a slice of American cheese, but I think that’s just weird. I like my loose meat sandwich. I like ’em sloppy! Pair it with your favorite potato, and you’ve got a classic school lunch. I prefer homemade french fries, Five Guys-style.

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Sloppy Joes (Manwich)

A classic school lunch for dinner. Try it with tater tots!

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes minutes

Total Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Calories 360kcal

Cost $8

Ingredients

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 c green bell pepper chopped
• ½ c onion diced
• 1 garlic clove minced
• 1 c tomato puree
• 1 c ketchup
• 1 Tbsp brown sugar
• 1 tsp chili powder
• ½ tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 tsp Yellow mustard, prepared (French's)
• 1 dash Tabasco
• ½ tsp Worcestershire sauce
• ½ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp pepper

Instructions

• Brown the ground beef on medium-high heat and drain any fat.
• Add the fresh vegetables (green pepper, onion, garlic) and cook until soft (about 4 minutes).
• Add the remaining ingredients (tomato products, seasonings), stir, and reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and simmer 20 minutes.
• Serve on toasted buns.

Notes

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You could make a large batch and keep it in your cupboard, using 2 Tbsp to season your ground beef with next time you make tacos.

Taco seasoning mix should be simple. Ours is just chili powder, garlic & onion powder, paprika, pepper, cayenne and a pinch of sugar.

We like classic American tacos on a crunchy shell with ground beef, cheese, lettuce, tomato and sour cream. Yum! Sometimes I like to spice it up a bit with hot sauce, or do it bar-style with the cheese on the bottom. Or, I’ll make my pico de gallo and just use that instead of plain tomatoes.

Cook your ground beef, mashing it up real good, until brown, or no longer pink. Then add the seasoning with about 1/2 c water, bring it to a boil, reduce heat and simmer ten minutes.

Then, build your tacos!

I’d like to note that while this may serve as an interim seasoning for burritos, the only burrito seasoning you really need is cumin.

Optional: When cooking your ground beef, you can add some finely chopped onions to your beef mix to really enhance the flavor; then, omit the onion powder from the seasoning mix.

I like to pre-mix this so it’s ready to go on taco night, using one of my empty glass seasoning containers (gotta love those screw top lids).

I like to pre-mix this so it’s ready to go on taco night, using one of my empty glass seasoning containers (gotta love those screw top lids).

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Taco Seasoning Mix

Easy taco seasoning mix for your next taco night!

Course seasoning mix

Cuisine American

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Ingredients

• 2 Tbsp chili powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1 tsp paprika
• 2 tsp black pepper
• ¼ tsp cayenne pepper
• 1 pinch sugar

Instructions

• For each 1 lb. of ground beef: cook the ground beef, crumbling it well, until browned. Drain the grease. Add the seasoning plus ½ c. water. Bring it to a boil, reduce heat and simmer ten minutes.

The post Taco Seasoning Mix appeared first on Food Love Affair.

This is my attempt to recall the original recipe for tasty Swedish meatballs.

Meatballs

Meatballs always start with meat. I don’t remember if I used just ground beef or ground beef and ground pork, so I went halfway: 1 pound beef, 1/2 pound pork. Then you need the sticky things that will hold it together, and some flavoring. Today, I will use nutmeg & allspice with egg, Panko bread crumbs, onion and parsley. Everything is better with fresh parsley, but I never seem to have any. So if you use fresh parsley, double the amount you use. Some people like to saute their onions first, but this time around, I just chopped it really fine, so you barely notice them. Other people use a cheese grater to get thin, stringy onion.

Some versions of Swedish meatballs use veal or ground lamb – you could try that instead of pork, if you have special dietary concerns. For a small alteration in flavor, you could also use chopped garlic cloves, or 1/4 tsp garlic powder. Classic recipes also don’t use nutmeg.

Mix your meat well, by hand, but don’t work it over until it becomes tough. Nobody likes a rubbery meatball.

Form your meatballs as big or small as you like, remember that will change your cooking time. Smaller meatballs will cook faster, and you’ll have more, which means two batches of frying. Just cook them in olive oil until dark brown all around, stirring them to keep them moving and rolling. Using this recipe, I got 19 meatballs, or 2.5 meatballs per serving, so you might want to make them a bit smaller.

Gravy

Some people prefer to bake the meatballs, which is a healthier option. Just bake them for 20-25 minutes at 400. But this way, you won’t get that rich, creamy roux beef gravy that comes from the bottom of the frying pan. I prefer this method. A roux is a gravy made from the fat drippings in the pan and flour. It’s the best traditional gravy making process. Just like you would do on Thanksgiving. If you had leftover energy and extreme devotion to the perfect bird & mashed potatoes. I usually skip that gravy-from-scratch part on turkey day, so whenever I can, I like to make my gravy from a roux.

While these are Swedish meatballs, there appear to be no rules or regulations about the gravy, or the traditional way of making them. I found a great resource with tips for “authentic” Swedish meatballs at swedishfood.com if you’re interested in the Christmas meatball recipe, or some more backst

I add onions to my gravy, cooked in butter, in the crusty pan, just a few minutes until soft. Then, I add the flour, broth Worcestershire, salt, pepper and parsley. Roux. Sauce. Swedish meatball gravy. I found it interesting that over at swedishfood.com, they use soy sauce in the classic recipe. You can try it like that.

How to Serve Swedish Meatballs

There are many ways to serve these tasty morsels, but I prefer simple egg noodles.

• Egg noodles or German Spaetzle
• Rice
• Creamy mashed potatoes (the traditional base or side)
• A side of green and a side of tart berry sauce

What to Serve with Swedish Meatballs

The general rule is: starch, veggie, sauce. So if you put your meatballs on top of starch, pour the gravy over them, all you need is a decent side of green veggies (apple-cranberry compote/cranberry/lingonberry sauce optional). Here are just a few ideas:

• oven-roasted broccoli (w/garlic & parm)
• sauteed green beans
• pan-seared Brussels sprouts with bacon (try this from finecooking.com, at least until I add my holiday recipes)
• salad

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Swedish Meatballs

Homemade Swedish meatballs with rich, creamy gravy makes a comforting Christmas meal, pot-luck dish or weeknight dinner.

Course Main Course

Cuisine Swedish

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 8

Calories 159kcal

Cost $14

Ingredients

Meatballs

• 1 lb ground beef
• ½ lb ground pork
• ¼ tsp allspice
• ¼ tsp nutmeg (optional)
• 2 Tbsp diced onion
• 1 egg
• ¼ c Panko bread crumbs
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp pepper
• 1 Tbsp dried parsley

Gravy

• 2 Tbsp butter
• 2 Tbsp diced onion
• 3 Tbsp flour
• 2 c beef broth
• 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp salt
• ½ tsp pepper
• 1 Tbsp dried parsley

Instructions

Meatballs

• Combine the meatball ingredients and mix well.
• Shape your meatballs about 1 ½ Tbsp of beef mixture.
• Warm a large skillet with olive oil on medium, and drop the meatballs in. Turning repeatedly until brown, about 10 minutes. Add more oil as necessary to keep them from sticking. (Use a lid to keep the heat in between turning to ensure even cooking.)
• Remove meatballs to drain on paper towel.

Gravy

• Reduce the heat and add butter an onions. Cook onions while stirring, just until soft and translucent, about 3 minutes.
• Gradually add flour, stirring to combine. Cook about one minute.
• Slowly add broth while stirring or whisking, then add Worcestershire, salt, pepper and parsley. (If using fresh parsley, add it after the sour cream.)
• Add the sour cream and stir to combine.
• Add the meatballs, and mix them with the the sauce. Heat for ten minutes, stirring occasionally and serve immediately. Garnish with fresh parsley if you got it.

Notes

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