Balsamic and Onion Pot Roast

"I found this recipe on Pinterest.  The original came from HERE and she adapted it from HERE.  I did not change anything.  The roast fell apart, which is awesome, but not awesome for a pretty photo of it.  It had a very unique taste and I would make it again.  I added carrots so I would not have to prepare a separate vegetable, and they were yummy as well."

INGREDIENTS:

3-4 pound boneless chuck roast
Seasoning Salt

Onion Powder

Garlic Powder
black pepper to taste
1-2 T olive oil (depends on your pan)
1/4 cup water to deglaze pan
2-3 large onions, peeled and thickly sliced
1 cup beef stock, reduced to 1/2 cup (can use a can of beef broth, but be sure to reduce it)
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1/2 cup tomato sauce

DIRECTIONS:

Rub meat well with seasoning salt, onion powder, garlic powder and black pepper. Heat heavy pan with small amount of olive oil and brown roast well on both sides. This will take a few minutes; don't rush the browning step.
While roast browns put 1 cup beef stock in saucepan, bring to a boil and cook until reduced to 1/2 cup, then let cool slightly and mix in balsamic vinegar and tomato sauce. Peel onions and cut into thick slices.  

When the meat is brown on all sides, remove the meat and then deglaze pan with 1/4 cup water. Add the pan drippings to sauce mixture.

Place onions in bottom of slow cooker. Put meat on top of onions and pour beef stock mixture over. Cook on low for 6-8 hours, until beef is tender. The meat might be partly submerged in liquid after this much time.

Remove meat from slow cooker and cover with foil to keep warm. Drain liquid from Crockpot and remove as much of the fat as you can with fat separator or skimmer. Cook down liquid by about 1/3, and serve sauce with meat and onions.

Hot Tamale Pie

"I found this recipe on allrecipes.com when looking for a Mexican casserole.  This was AMAZING and all of my kids loved it including my one year old.  I would say the heat compares to "medium" salsa, so it's not too spicy.  You can find the original recipe HERE, my changes are included below."

INGREDIENTS:

cooking spray
2 pounds ground beef (I used sirlion)
2 cups diced poblano peppers
2 10 oz. cans tomatoes with green chilis (I used original Rotelle)
1 c. diced onion
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon dried or 2 T. fresh chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon ground dried chili powder
1 teaspoon ground dried chipotle powder
1/2 teaspoon dried cumin
1 T. lime juice
2 cloves minced garlic

2 (8.5 ounce) boxes dry corn muffin mix (such as Jiffy®)
2 eggs
2/3 cup milk, divided
8 oz.(2 cups) shredded Cheddar cheese, divided
8 oz.(2 cups) shredded Monterrey Jack cheese, divided
8 ounces frozen corn, thawed

sour cream if desired


DIRECTIONS:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
Spray a 9x13-inch casserole dish with cooking spray.
Saute beef with tomatoes, onions, peppers, garlic, lime juice and spices over med-high heat until meat is cooked through.  Take off burner and set aside to preserve  "sauce" so it doesn't completely cook out.
Meanwhile mix one package of corn muffin mix with 1 egg and 1/3 cup of milk in medium mixing bowl. Spoon into greased 9x13 baking dish, and spread evenly in bottom of dish.
Sprinkle corn over the muffin mix, followed by half of each of the cheeses, then the beef mixture.
In same medium bowl, mix the second package of corn muffin mix with 1 egg, 1/3 cup of milk and remaining cheeses.
Spoon the corn muffin mix with cheese on top of the beef and carefully spread over the top with a fork, leaving about half an inch from the edges of the pan.
Bake in the preheated oven for 50-60 minutes, until golden brown.

Serve with a dollop of sour cream on top of each piece if desired

Serves 8

Beef Stroganoff

"I found this recipe on allrecipes.com, took suggestions from a review, and then added my own changes....very tasty!"

INGREDIENTS:

approx 2 lbs flat iron steak, cut into bite sized pieces
salt, pepper, onion powder and garlic powder to taste
1 T. olive oil
1/3 c. white wine
1 T. browning sauce (I used the bottled Gravy Master, found near the dry gravy packets)

1 stick butter
medium onion chopped
2 - 6 oz cans mushrooms
1 T. minced garlic
10 oz. beef stock (reserve 2 oz to stir into cornstarch and flour)
1 T. Worcestershire sauce
1 t. yellow mustard
2 T. all-purpose flour
2 T. corn starch
1/3 cup sour cream
1/3 cup cream cheese
1/3 cup white wine
salt and pepper to taste

1 pound flat noodles cooked according to directions on package (I used Amish noodles)

DIRECTIONS:

1st Method for cooking meat:
In large skillet brown meat in olive oil on medium heat with spices until cooked through. Add wine and browning sauce and simmer until liquid is reduced by half. Remove meat leaving liquid in pan.

2nd Method for cooking meat: (method I used)
Preheat oven to 350 degree F. In 13x9 dish stir together meat with olive oil, wine and browning sauce, add spices. Bake for 1 hr., remove from oven, and pour just remaining liquid in large skillet, setting meat aside.

Sauce Directions:

Melt butter along with liquid from meat over medium heat. Add onions, mushrooms and minced garlic and saute until onions are soft and clear. Stir in 8 oz. beef stock, mustard, and Worcestershire sauce. In measuring cup, dissolve flour and cornstarch in 2 oz. beef stock. Slowly stir mixture into skillet. Add cream cheese and sour cream and stir in until melted and mixed thoroughly. Stir in wine and season with salt and pepper. Add meat and mix. Stir meat and sauce into prepared noodles or serve over noodles.

Serves 8

Jen's Beef Enchilada Casserole

"It's been a long time since I tried making a new recipe. I am really into learning to make more authentic-tasting Mexican food, so I wanted to try my hand at a sauce from scratch. Canned enchilada sauce tastes cheap to me, so I made my own and it was so yummy. Looking forward to getting some reviews of this...enjoy!"


INGREDIENTS:

23 small corn tortillas
4 cups Mexican-Blend shredded cheese

Meat Mixture Ingredients:

1 1/2 pounds ground beef (I use sirloin)
3 green onions finely chopped
1 Pablano Pepper diced
1 large tomato diced
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon cumin

Sauce Ingredients:

3 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
3 cups beef broth (I use no salt added)
6 oz. tomato paste
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons chili powder
1/2 teaspoon dried cilantro
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon cumin
salt to taste

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine meat mixture ingredients together and saute in large pan until meat is browned. Run mixture through food processor. In medium saucepan over medium heat melt butter and add flour to make roux. Stir in broth and tomato paste continuing to stir until smooth. Add vinegar and spices and stir until smooth and sauce starts to simmer.

Layering (in 9x13 dish sprayed with cooking spray)

1/2 cup sauce
9 tortillas (place so they go up the sides of the dish)
1/2 of meat mixture
1/2 cup of cheese
1/2 cup sauce
8 tortillas
rest of meat mixture
1/2 cup cheese
1/2 cup sauce
6 tortillas
remaining sauce

Cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes. Uncover, add remaining cheese and bake additional 10 minutes. Allow to sit and "set" for 10 minutes before serving.

Serves 6-8

Beef Bourguignon

"I have never cooked or even eaten this dish, but I'd heard of it. This was absolutely fabulous and smells wonderful baking! I found it on allrecipes.com. My changes are included."


INGREDIENTS:

1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 pounds cubed stew meat
4 tablespoons butter
1 onion, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups red wine (Merlot)
1 bay leaf
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 (8 ounce) package fresh mushrooms sliced in thirds



DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a small bowl, combine the flour, salt and ground black pepper. Coat the beef cubes with this mixture.
Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the meat and brown well on all sides. Pour this into a 9x13 baking dish.
Return the skillet to the heat and add the onion, carrots, mushrooms and garlic to it. Saute for 5 to 10 minutes, or until onion is tender. Add 2 cups of the wine, bay leaf, parsley, and thyme; stir together and pour over meat.
Bake, covered with foil, for 2 1/2 hours. Add remaining 1 cup of wine, put cover back on and bake for 30 more minutes.

Notes:

-I tenderized the meat with a tenderizing mallot
-I served this over wheat fettuccine

Old-fashioned Meat Loaf

"This is a Paula Deen recipe. The only thing I changed was to add garlic. Notes below..."


Ingredients:

* 1 pound ground beef
* 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
* 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
* 1/2 cup chopped onion
* 1/2 cup chopped bell pepper
* 1 egg, lightly beaten
* 8 ounces canned diced tomatoes with juice
* 1/2 cup quick-cooking oats

Topping:

* 1/3 cup ketchup
* 2 tablespoons brown sugar
* 1 tablespoon prepared mustard

Directions

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Mix all meatloaf ingredients well and place in a baking dish. Shape into a loaf.
Topping:

Mix ingredients for topping and spread on loaf. Bake for 1 hour.

Notes:

I think this was a little mushy. Next time I would bake it longer and add less tomatoes, but the overall flavor was very tasty.

Cocktail Meatballs

"These were absolutely the best I've ever had. They remind me a little of mamwich sauce. The changes, as suggest in a review, are included."


INGREDIENTS:

2 pound lean ground beef
2 egg
1/2 cup ketchup
1 cup bread crumbs
6 tablespoons minced onion
1 (16 ounce) can jellied cranberry sauce
1 1/2 cups chili sauce
2 tablespoon brown sugar
3 teaspoons lemon juice
2 t. soy sauce
parsley to taste


DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
In a large bowl, mix together the ground beef, egg, ketchup, bread crumbs, parsley and minced onion. Roll into small meatballs.
Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, turning once.
In a slow cooker or large saucepan over low heat, blend the cranberry sauce, chili sauce, brown sugar, soy sauce and lemon juice. Add meatballs, and simmer for 1 hour before serving.

Notes:

Chili sauce comes in a glass bottle. I found it in the store near the ketchup, it really doesn't have anything to do with chili. I had to buy two bottles for this recipe, but I had some left over.

Serves 12

Slow Cooker Italian Beef for Sandwiches

"I found this recipe on allrecipes.com, and made changes which are included. I've also added my own recipe for sandwiches using the beef. Make sure to drain the beef before putting it on the buns, and you can freeze the broth to use for a later purpose."


INGREDIENTS:

2 1/2 beef broth
1/2 cup red wine
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 teaspoon dried oregano
2 teaspoon dried basil
2 teaspoon onion salt
2 teaspoon dried parsley
2 teaspoon garlic powder
2 bay leaves
2 (.7 ounce) packages dry Italian-style salad dressing mix
1 (2-3 pound) chuck roast


DIRECTIONS:

Combine beef broth and wine with salt, ground black pepper, oregano, basil, onion salt, parsley, garlic powder, bay leaf, and salad dressing mix in a saucepan. Stir well, and bring to a boil.
Place roast in slow cooker, and pour broth mixture over the meat.
Cover, and cook on Low for 8 hours, remove bay leaf, shred meat with a fork, place back in slow-cooker and cook an additional 2 hours.

Jen's Italian Beef Sandwiches:

INGREDIENTS:

6 sub buns
6 slices provolone cheese
1/2 lg onion cut in long thin slices
1 green pepper cut into long thin slices
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon honey
miracle whip
shredded beef from above recipe

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Cut sub buns in half lengthwise. On top halves of buns place one slice provolone cheese each. Put onto large baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes in oven. Meanwhile, melt butter in large frying pan. Saute onions and peppers until soft. Drizzle honey over the onions and peppers and continue to cook until they caramelize. Make sandwiches using the beef, peppers and onions, and a thin layer of miracle whip.

Makes 6 sandwiches

Spicy Flat-Iron Steak Rub

"I don't think this is really spicy, although, I did not use the ancho chile powder. I used a chipotle blend instead of just the chipotle chili powder, and I didn't use vegetable oil to cut down on the fat content. I didn't know what they meant by 'salt free seasoning blend' but I used Mrs. Dash's Table Blend"

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons ancho chile powder
• 1 teaspoon chipotle chile powder
• 1 tablespoon salt-free seasoning blend
• salt and black pepper to taste
• 1 (2 pound) flat iron steak
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil

DIRECTIONS:
Mix the brown sugar, garlic powder, onion powder, chili powder, ancho chile powder, chipotle chile powder, salt-free seasoning blend, salt, and pepper together in a bowl until thoroughly blended. Sprinkle over both sides of the steak, and rub into the meat. Cover, and refrigerate at least 30 minutes, or up to 2 days.Before cooking, drizzle steak with vegetable oil, and rub the oil into the meat. Cook as desired.

Jen's Reuben Casserole

"Growing up, our Christmas Eve tradition, for quite a few years, was to make reuben sandwiches. The thing that made them different than what you get at the restaurant was that we used Miracle Whip mixed with chili powder instead of 1000 Island salad dressing. My mom also used to make a reuben casserole, which I thought is much easier than assembling and baking the sandwiches. Here is my spin on what she used to make."




INGREDIENTS:

1 1/3 pounds deli corned beef, cut in small cubes or chipped
1 pound baby swiss cheese cut in small pieces
1 large jar (approx. 32 oz.) sour kraut, rinsed and drained well
1 1/2 cups Miracle Whip
2 teaspoons chili powder
12 oz. pumpernickel bread, chopped in large crouton sized chunks
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted


DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Sprinkle meat and cheese pieces evenly into a greased 9x13 baking dish. In medium bowl mix sour kraut well with Miracle Whip and chili powder. Spread kraut mixture over meat and cheese in dish. Place bread chunks evenly over top of sour kraut mixture. Drizzle melted butter over bread chunks. Bake uncovered for 45 minutes.

Serves 6-8

Notes:

-I get my corned beef from the deli at the store. I tell them I want it in one large piece and I cube it myself.

-12 oz. of pumpernickle is about 3/4 of a half loaf (I buy the sliced half loaf and use all but about four slices)

-I wring out my sour kraut with my hands. If you like the stronger flavor, you don't have to rinse it.

Jen's Taco Pizza

"I've never tried making a taco pizza until now. I knew I didn't want refried beans on it because I'm not a fan of canned refried beans, so I decided to make the base a tomato sauce."


INGREDIENTS:

2 pre-made pizza crusts

1 pound ground beef

1/2 cup diced onion

1 packet taco seasoning (I prefer Ortega)

1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce

4 oz can sliced black olives

2 -8 oz packages shredded cheddar cheese

diced tomato, shredded lettuce, sour cream and taco sauce for garnish

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Saute ground beef with onion; drain if necessary. Add taco seasoning (don't add water the seaoning package calls for), and tomato sauce. Stir until thickens. Spoon meat mixture onto crusts. Top with black olives and cheese. Bake for 15 minutes (alternating pans on shelves half way through). Garnish with diced tomato, lettuce, sour cream and taco sauce.

Beef Tenderloin With Roasted Shallots

"This dish took a while to make, but it was definately worth it. I couldn't find beef tenderlion at the store, so I used tenderlion steaks (filets). It is quite pricey to make, however. If you do mulitple steps at the same time (like make the sauce, fry the bacon and meat and roast the shallots at the same time), the preparation goes a lot faster. This photo does does not do the taste justice. The only ingredient I omitted (not listed) is watercress for a garnish. I found this on allrecipes.com."

INGREDIENTS
3/4 pound shallots, halved lengthwise and peeled
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
3 cups beef broth
3/4 cup port wine
1 1/2 teaspoons tomato paste
2 pounds beef tenderloin roast, trimmed
1 teaspoon dried thyme
3 slices bacon, diced
3 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). In 9 inch pie pan, toss shallots with oil to coat. Season with salt and pepper. Roast until shallots are deep brown and very tender, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes.
In a large saucepan, combine beef broth and port. Bring to a boil. Cook over high heat until the volume is reduced by half, about 30 minutes. Whisk in tomato paste. Set aside.
Pat beef dry; sprinkle with thyme, salt and pepper. In a large roasting pan, set over medium heat on the stove top, saute bacon until golden. Using a slotted spoon, transfer bacon to paper towels. Add beef to pan; brown on all sides over medium high heat, about 7 minutes.
Transfer pan to oven. Roast beef until meat thermometer inserted into center registers 125 degrees F (50 degrees C) for medium rare, about 25 minutes. Transfer beef to platter. Tent loosely with foil.
Spoon fat off top of pan drippings in roasting pan. Place pan over high heat on stove top. Add broth mixture, and bring to boil; stir to scrape up any browned bits. Transfer to a medium saucepan, and bring to simmer. Mix 1 1/2 tablespoon butter and flour in small bowl to form smooth paste; whisk into broth mixture, and simmer until sauce thickens. Whisk in remaining butter. Stir in roasted shallots and reserved bacon. Season with salt and pepper.
Cut beef into 1/2 inch thick slices. Spoon sauce over slices.

Hungarian Goulash

"After reading the reviews, (allrecipes.com) I found someone mentioned this is not authentic goulash (or Gulyás) which is stew/soup, but rather Pörkölt instead. If you'd like to read about it, go here to wikipedia. Growing up, my mom's goulash was made with ground beef and I think green pepper added to tomato sauce. I didn't care for it much. My husband liked his mom's, which I don't think was authentic either. I wanted to try a Hungarian recipe for it, and this was the highest rated one I found. I have made a couple changes as suggested in a review. This photo really doesn't do it justice because I took it of warmed-up left-overs."

INGREDIENTS
1/3 cup vegetable oil
3 onions, sliced (I just used 1 large vidalia onion)

1 tomato (medium to large), diced

1/2 cup green pepper, diced
2 tablespoons Hungarian sweet paprika (the brand I found at the grocery store was called "Papa"
2 teaspoons plus 1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
3 pounds beef stew meat, cut into 1 1/2 inch cubes
1 (6 ounce) can tomato paste
1 1/2 cups water
2 cloves garlic, minced

DIRECTIONS
Heat oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add onions and green pepper to saute while preparing the beef.

In a medium bowl, combine paprika, 2 teaspoons salt and pepper. Coat beef cubes in spice mixture, add to pot and saute until beef is browned.
Add in tomato paste, garlic and the remaining 1 teaspoon salt, mix well. Last add water and stir again. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer, stirring occasionally, 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until meat is tender.

Note:

I stirred in 1/2 cup sour cream to meat and then put over fettuccine noodles (I don't like egg noodles)

Jen's Stuffed Peppers

"I know this recipe is probably similar to a lot of others, but I didn't use a recipe, just got some advice from my mom, and added a couple of my own ingredients"

INGREDIENTS:

4 large green peppers, tops cut off and seeded

2 pounds of ground beef (or 1 lb beef and 1 lb ground sausage)

1 egg, beaten

1/4 cup plus 1 cup ketchup (divided

1 tablespoon worchestershire sauce

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1 29 oz can tomato sauce

3/4 cup italian flavored breadcrumbs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Put meat, egg, 1/4 cup ketchup, worchestershire sauce, pepper, garlic and breadcrumbs into mixing bowl and mix with hands. Pack into green peppers until heaping full. If you have leftover meat, form into meatballs. Spray roasting pan with cooking spray, place peppers (and extra meat if needed) in pan. In medium bowl mix together tomato sauce and 1 cup ketchup. Pour over peppers and into bottom of pan. Bake covered for two hours.

Serves 4

Mexican Tortilla Cups

"I was going to make soft and hard tacos for dinner and luckily I came across this idea in a coupon booklet, from our local grocery store. My kids normally don't like the wheat tortillas I buy, but they ate these...yay!"

Cut six 8 inch tortilla shells in quarters. Spray 12 cup muffin tray with cooking spray and place two tortilla quarters in each cup. Put a small amount of shredded cheese in bottom of each cup and then fill with desired filling and top with more shredded cheese. Bake at 375 degrees F for 12 minutes. Put cold toppings on after baking.

My Ideas:

Taco - taco meat (optional..black beans and corn), with cheddar cheese, and then top with sour cream, tomatoes, and lettuce

Fajita - chicken or steak with sauted peppers and onions and topped with monterey jack or pepper jack cheese

BBQ chicken club - BBQ chicken, bacon and cheddar jack cheese

Breakfast - Scrambled Eggs, bacon or sausage, and cheddar cheese

Jen's Taco Supreme Meatloaf

"This is the first attempt at a mexican meatloaf. Hope you guys like it. The idea of the sour cream and cheese inside and making it into a roll came from my friend Lainie. She made regular meatloaf like that when we were over for a meal."

INGREDIENTS:

2 lbs. ground beef (I use sirlion)

1/2 cup onions, diced

1 medium tomato, diced

1 packet taco seasoning (I prefer Ortega Brand)

pinch of pepper

1 egg, beaten

1/2 cup plain bread crumbs

8 oz. sour cream

1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

small can of sliced black olives

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Mix first seven ingredients together by hand in large bowl. Flatten out to about 1/2 inch thick on large piece of foil. Spread sour cream onto meat, and sprinkle with cheese. Roll up using foil as a guide. Place into 13x9 baking dish. Press black olive slices over visible part of loaf. Bake uncovered for 1 hour and 30 minutes in a 350 degrees F. oven. Slice and serve.

Jen's Meatloaf

"I never make meatloaf the same way twice. It was really hard to figure out this recipe. I am going to give you a lot of add-in ideas since I know people don't always like certain things. I make a couple other kinds of meatloaf, which I plan to put online eventually, but this is the more traditional kind."

INGREDIENTS:

2 pounds ground beef (I use ground sirlion)

1/2 c. onion, diced (or 1/2 teaspoon onion powder)

1 egg, beaten

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 cup ketchup

2 tablespoon worchestershire sauce

1/4 teaspoon paprika

1/2 teaspoon parsley

3/4 cup bread crumbs (I prefer to use crushed crackers, or I've even been desperate enough to use cereal)

Optional Add-ins

1/4 cup green and or red pepper, diced

1 tablespoon red wine

1 tablespoon honey

1 tablespoon dijon mustard

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mix all ingredients together in large bowl with your hands. Form into a ball and press into baking dish sprayed with cooking spray. I like to flatten mine to about an inch thick so it bakes faster. If you make it thicker, it may take longer. Bake for 1 hour, and cut in half to check if done.

Note: Great dipped in ketchup

Boilermaker Tailgate Chili

"This recipe came from allrecipes.com , and the original maker is MIGHTYPURDUE22. Here is the link to the original recipe in case you want to follow it exactly. I omitted all of the spicy ingredients so that it would be more child and heartburn friendly. This is the second time I have made it. We don't drink beer, so I bought a 24 oz. can, which was the smallest amount I could get. I wanted to cook it longer than two hours, and with the lid off, so I added all of the can of beer (instead of just the 8 oz., and cooked it for about five hours, stiring every 45 minutes. The preparation time is at least an hour."

INGREDIENTS:

2 lbs ground beef chuck (I use sirlion)
1 lb ground sausage
4 cans mild chili beans
2 (28 oz) cans diced tomatoes
1 (6 oz) can tomato paste
1 large onion, diced
3 stalks celery, diced
1 green pepper, diced
1 red pepper, diced
3 tablespoons real bacon, bacon bits
4 beef bouillon cubes
1 cup (8 oz.) beer
1/4 cup chili powder
1 tablespoon worchestershire sauce
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon oregano
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon basil
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon sugar

DIRECTIONS:

Brown meat and drain (I like to put mine in the food processor to get it finely chopped). Add meat and all other ingredients to large stock pot. Stir and simmer covered on low for two hours, stirring occasionally.

Easy Slow Cooker Pot Roast

Very simple recipe here. I found this a while ago, and I've made this several times. The gravy is good on mashed potatoes, but I have found it's a little bland on potatoes. All you need is:

1 beef roast (2-3 pounds is fine)

1 can french onion soup

1 can cream of mushroom soup

Put all ingredients in slow cooker /crock pot for about 8 hours on low.

Tip:

I always have a hard time figuring out what the best kind of roast is, there are so many to choose from. I want my roast to be tender, juicy and fall apart. When I made a recipe for BBQed beef a few months ago it said to use a chuck roast. Now I swear by any roast that has "chuck" in the description.

Today (this is what I'm having for dinner) I decided to "doctor it up" a little. Over the past few months I have been using red and white cooking wine quite a bit. I love red on beef and white on chicken.

So to the above recipe I am adding

1/2 cup red wine

1/2 teaspoon minced garlic (1 clove)

and about 1/4 teaspoon pepper

I love the convenience of minced garlic in a jar. 1/2 teaspoon equals 1 clove. Not only is it so much easier than mincing a clove, but it tastes better than substituting garlic powder, which I used to do quite a bit. My only problem with it is that it goes bad much sooner than the date on the jar (even though you refridgerate it like the jar says). So, if you buy it, get in the habit of smelling it each time you go to use it. When it starts to smell sour then throw it out.

Jen's Sloppy Joe Muffin Cups

"These are so yummy, and the kids loved them. The cheddar cheese makes a crust over the top, but if you'd like it more melty, I wouldn't add it until the last ten minutes of baking."

INGREDIENTS:

1 can sloppy joe sauce (like Mamwich)

1 roll refridgerated biscuits (I used Pilsbury Grands 8 count)

1 pound ground beef

6-8 oz. shredded cheddar cheese

DIRECTIONS:

Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees F. Cook, chop and drain beef. Add sloppy joe sauce and simmer for five minutes. Flatten each biscuit into a 6 inch circle, and place into muffin pan to form a cup. Spoon beef into each cup, and sprinkle with cheese. Bake for 20 minutes. Makes about three servings.