Sweet Potato Foil Packet Tacos

* Photo and Recipe Credit to Natalie@ perrysplate.com

These were so fun! Blaine turned up his nose as I was preparing them thinking they were sloppy joes or hobo dinners. Then he couldn't stop "ooooo"ing and "ahhhhhh"ing. He loved them! They were really easy to make and very tasty indeed! I doubled the meat (and beans, tomato sauce, and taco seasoning) in the recipe, because Heaven knows that a half a pound of ground beef would simply never do in this house.

Sweet Potato Foil Packet Tacos

1/2 lb ground beef or turkey
2-3 T taco seasoning
1/2 cup tomato sauce (4 ounces)
1 can black, kidney, or pinto beans, drained
2-3 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 6 cups total)
2 T butter
salt
1 1/2 cups chopped fresh spinach
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
sour cream, salsa, and/or guacamole for garnish
6 12-inch long pieces of aluminum foil

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Brown ground meat in a skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in taco seasoning, tomato sauce, and beans. Set aside.

To assemble packets, spray the foil with non-stick spray. Place 1 cup sweet potato cubes in the center of each piece. Top with a small piece of butter (about 1 tsp) and a pinch or two of salt. Sprinkle some chopped spinach over the sweet potatoes, followed by about 1/3 cup of taco meat and sprinkle of cheese. Fold the sides in, then bring the top and bottom ends of the foil together in the center and fold, sealing the packet.

Repeat with remaining ingredients, placing the packets on a rimmed cookie sheet. Bake for 25-30 minutes until the sweet potatoes are tender.

Serve with sour cream, salsa, and/or guacamole.

Makes 6 servings.

Crockpot Week

My mom recently got a Crockpot cookbook in a book exchange at work. As I flipped through it I found dozens of recipes I wanted to try so I borrowed it and we had an entire week of only crockpot meals (with a few more planned for next week). Here's how our week went:

Day 1: "Best-Ever Roast"

This was not the best roast I'd ever had but it was a perfectly serviceable Sunday meal that yielded plenty of leftovers to take to my elderly neighbors.

1 beef chuck shoulder roast (3 to 5 pounds)
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 envelope dry onion soup mix
4 to 5 medium potatoes, quartered
4 cups baby carrots

Place roast in crockpot. Combine mushroom soup and onion soup mix in a bowl then pour over roast. Cover; cook on low 4 hours.

Add potatoes and carrots. Cover and cook on low 2 hours.

Makes 6 to 8 servings



Day 2: Veggie Soup with Beef

This was probably the most flavorless thing I have ever made in my life. I followed the recipe exactly but clearly that is not the way to go. The addition of more garlic and tomato sauce, salt, pepper, etc. and less water would make a world of difference. But it's super easy so I'm including it in case anyone wants to try their hand at making this worth eating.

2 cans (15 oz each) mixed vegetables
1 pound beef stew meat
1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce
2 cloves garlic, minced
Water

Place all ingredients in crockpot. Add enough water to fill crockpot to within 1/2 inch of top*. Cover, cook on low 8 to 10 hours.

*I didn't add nearly this much water and it was still too much.


Day 3: Parmesan Potato Wedges

One of our favorites from this week. I just served these wedges with a simple salad and it was excellent. Next time I'd probably add some garlic salt.

2 pounds red potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch wedges
1/4 cup finely chopped yellow onion
1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon salt
black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons butter, cut into 1/8 inch pieces
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

Layer potatoes, onion, oregano, salt, pepper and butter in crockpot. Cover; cook on high 4 hours. Transfer potatoes to a serving platter and sprinkle with parmesan cheese.


Day 4: Slow Cooker Chicken and Dressing

This was really good though not exactly healthy. We enjoyed it.

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
salt and black pepper
4 slices swiss cheese
1 can (14 1/2 oz) chicken broth
2 cans cream of chicken, celery or mushroom soup
3 cups packaged stuffing mix
1/2 cup butter, melted

Place chicken in crockpot. Season with salt and pepper.

Top each breast with cheese slice. Add broth and soup. Spring stuffing mix over top and pour butter over all*. Cover and cook on low 6 to 8 hours or on high 3 to 4 hours.

*Knowing the fat content on this was already going to be astronomical I just left the butter out. It turned out just fine.


Day 5: Spicy Shredded Chicken


Ridiculously easy and something you all probably make already anyway. We used it in tacos.

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds)
1 jar (16 oz) salsa

Place chicken in crockpot. Pour salsa over chicken. Cook on low 6-8 hours or until chicken is tender and no longer pink in the center. Shred chicken with 2 forks before serving.


Day 6: Asian Beef with Broccoli

I meant to make this as the recipe directed but I pretty much screwed up right and left. It was still really good though and we'll definitely have it again. We served it over rice.

1 1/2 pounds boneless chick steak, about 1 1/2 inches thick, sliced thin
1 can (10 1/2 oz) beef consomme*
1/2 cup oyster sauce**
2 tablespoons cornstarch***
1 bag (16 oz) fresh broccoli florets
Hot cooked rice
Sesame seeds

Place steak in crockpot. Pour consomme and oyster sauce over meat. Cover and cook on high for 3 hours.

Combine cornstarch and 2 tablespoons cooking liquid in a cup. Add to crockpot and stir well to combine. Cover and cook 15 minutes longer or until thickened.

Steam broccoli florets until tender crisp. Gently toss beef and broccoli together. Served over cooked rice and garnished with sesame seeds, if desired.

*I accidentally bought beef broth instead.
**I accidentally forgot to buy this and used soy sauce instead.
***I totally forgot the step with the cornstarch. It was a little watery but it was fine.

Slow Cooker Italian Beef

This. Was. De. Lish. Normally when I cook things in the crock pot I am so sick of smelling them by the end of the day that I just can't stand eating whatever it is. This smelled SO fantastic all day and it tasted even better than it smelled. Mmmmm. So easy, so very very easy and so good. Give it a try! One thing was it might be a touch too peppery for some. I liked it that way but you may want to reduce the pepper a smidge if that makes you nervous.


Slow Cooker Italian Beef
from melskitchencafe.com

1 1/2 C beef broth
1 C water
1 t salt
1 t ground black pepper
1 t dried oregano
1 t dried basil
1 t onion salt
1 t dried parsley
1 t garlic powder
1 bay leaf
1 (.7 oz) package dry Italian-style dressing mix
1 (5 lb) chuck roast

* I only had a 3 lb roast and I have no idea what kind it was : )

Combine water and beef broth with salt, pepper, oregano, basil, onion salt, parsley, garlic powder, bay leaf, and salad dressing mix. Whisk to combine.

Place roast in slow cooker, and pour salad dressing mixture over the meat. Cover, and cook on Low for 10 -12 hours, or on High for 4-5 hours. When done, remove bay leaf, and shred meat with a fork ( you can do this about an hour before eating so that shredded meat will absorb more of the juices). Serve on crusty rolls with cheese and use the excess sauce for dipping, or eat plain old.

Ramen Skillet Dinner

This is fast, easy, and with the exception of the stir-fry sauce, I usually have all the ingredients. Start keeping stir-fry sauce on your always-have condiments list and this is a sure thing!

1 lb ground beef
2 1/2 c. water
2 packages Ramen noodles (one needs to be oriental flavor, although I've used beef and liked the result just fine)
1/2 c. stir-fry sauce
3 cups frozen veggies (I usually use broccoli, carrots & cauliflower mix)

In a large skillet, brown ground beef; drain. Add water, the oriental seasoning packet (note: you only use one seasoning packet, so it doesn't matter what the other one is), stir-fry sauce and frozen vegetables; mix well. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover & cook 5 minutes or until vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally. Break up Ramen noodles; add to skillet. Cover; cook 5 to 8 minutes or until sauce is of desired consistency, stirring occasionally and separating noodles as they soften.

Yield 4 (1 1/2 cup) servings (although we always have leftovers and they're so yummy)

Super Easy Ziti Lasagna

We had this for dinner tonight. It really was incredibly easy as well as filling and tasty. We very much enjoyed it!

Recipe here.

Shepherd's Pie (Or Technically Cottage Pie)

I call it Shepherd's pie, but technically because I used beef and not lamb, I'm supposed to call it Cottage Pie. Whatever. It's good.

I modified this slightly from an America's Test Kitchen recipe. The original recipe was for diced lamb shoulder chops. I'm sure that'd be delish, but I was too lazy. Can be assembled in either a 9x13 pan or a 10 inch pie plate. Serves 6-8.

FILLING:
1 lb ground lamb (or in my case, ground beef)
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
3 Tbsp vegetable oil, if you need it
1 medium onion, chopped coarse
2 medium carrots, cut into 1/4 inch slices
1 medium clove garlic, minced
2 Tbsp flour
1 Tbsp tomato paste
2 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup full-bodied red wine (I didn't have this, but I did have some white wine so I used that instead and it was still good)
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp chopped fresh thyme leaves
1 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
1 cup frozen peas, thawed

TOPPING:
2 lbs large russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 2 inch cubes
1 tsp salt
6 Tbsp butter
3/4 cup whole milk, warmed
2 large egg yolks
ground black pepper

FOR THE FILLING: Season the meat with salt and pepper. Heat oil (if needed, I never use it) in a large skillet over medium high heat until shimmering. Add meat, onions, and carrots and cook, stirring occasionally, until meat is well browned, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium and add garlic, flour, and tomato paste and cook until garlic is fragrant, about 1 minute. Whisk in the stock, wine, and Worcestershire sauce. Stir in the thyme and rosemary. Bring to a boil, reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for about 15 minutes.

FOR THE TOPPING: Meanwhile, put the potatoes into a large saucepan; add water to cover and 1/2 tsp salt. Bring to a boil and continue to cook over medium heat until the potatoes are tender when pierced with a knife, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain the potatoes well and return them to the pan set over low heat. Mash potatoes, adding butter as you mash. Stir in the warm milk and then the egg yolks. Season with the remaining 1/2 tsp salt and pepper to taste. (I thought it needed even more salt than this.)

TO ASSEMBLE AND BAKE: Adjust oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 400 degrees. Stir the peas into the meat mixture and check the seasonings. Pour the meat mixture evenly into a 9x13 baking dish. With a large spoon, place the mashed potatoes over the entire filling. Starting at the sides to ensure a tight seal, use a rubber spatula to smooth out the potatoes and anchor them to the sides of the baking dish. (You should not see any filling.) Bake until the top turns golden brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Let rest for 5 to 10 minutes and serve.

Pie plate assembly: The filling and potato topping fit nicely in a standard 9x13 baking dish, but for a fancier presentation bake the pie in a 10 inch pie plate. The mashed potato topping rises high above the filling, much like a lemon meringue pie. To do this, place the filling in a 10 inch pie plate and then drop spoonfuls of mashed potatoes around the perimeter of the pie plate. Use a rubber spatula to attach the potatoes to the rim of the pie plate. It's important to seal the edges this way to prevent the filling from bubbling out of the pie plate in the oven. Drop the remaining mashed potatoes in the center of the pie plate and then smooth the top with a spatula. Because the topping rises so high, bake the pie on a rimmed baking sheet to catch any leaks. (You might even want to do that with the 9x13 version - I guess my seals weren't perfect so I got a good bit of dripping in my oven.)

Sheperd's Pie

This is another food storage dinner, and I thought it was delicious!, I used beef soup though and I think it would have been better with actual beef stew because there is a lot of juice in the soup and I just dumped it out, but either way it was a crowd pleaser, and very easy!


1 (40 oz) can beef stew
1 (12oz) can vegetables (peas, corn or green beans)
1 cup potato pearls (from your cannery materials)
1/2 cup grated cheese
2 cups very hot water

combine stew and vegi's then pour into an 9 x 9 baking dish.
Combine potato pearls with water, stir briefly, cover and let stand for 5-10 min (or if you are using another kind of instant potatoes just make it like it says on the package)
Spread potatoes over the stew, top with grated cheese.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 min or until hot and bubbly.

serving suggestion:
instead of using a casserole dish, try dividing the entree into individual ramekins.

Burritos

I'm on a burrito kick right now. It's kind of ridiculous actually...I've even started dreaming about them. I kind of wish I were pregnant so I could justify a burrito a day ("The baby demands a chili shredded beef burrito!") but, alas.

We're doing a burrito bar for my son's 1st birthday party in January so the next few weeks are going to be spent testing recipes. Here's what I tried tonight:

Whole wheat tortillas - was really excited about this since it's so highly rated on AllRecipes but turns out the dough needs to be covered with a damp cloth. My beautiful little dough balls dried out during the resting period. Good thing I bought back up tortillas. But I think they're worth a shot for anyone who has ever had the desire to make their own tortillas. I'll try again at some point.

Shredded Beef - This was excellent. I took the advice of several of the AllRecipes commenters and went with the cheaper and easier-to-shred chuck roast instead of rump roast. Also, since some commenters complained that it tasted a little bland, I added a 3rd can of hot tomato sauce (the brand I used was called El Pato and came in a yellow can) plus 2 cans of water to submerge the roast, as suggested. It definitely had a kick and Aaron and I both enjoyed it. I just need to learn to be patient and let roasts cook longer since I kept trying to shred it before it was ready and said bad words at the people who swore that chuck roast would be easier. It really was easy after it had cooked thoroughly. I shredded it and then left it in the juices in the crockpot for another hour or so. Delish.

Cilantro Lime Rice - I didn't realize that this is supposed to be a copy of Chipotle's rice, which I don't actually like all that much. It was ok and if you like Chipotle's rice you might like this. It was fine as a burrito filler, but I didn't care for it on its own. What I'd really like is a recipe for Cafe Rio's green chile rice. Anyone have that?? Google searches are not bringing up anything promising.

I just used bottled green sauce since I was too lazy to go searching for tomatillos to make my own (they're going out of season). It was good, as per usual.

We threw some cotija and monterey jack in there and voila! Burritos. Sans beans. We don't do beans around here, good for your heart or no.

The burritos were excellent, though I wouldn't have minded a change of rice. We had plenty of leftovers so we made a couple more, wrapped them in foil and plastic and threw them in the freezer for easy lunches. I'll probably eat them both tomorrow since the imaginary baby requires them.

Betsy's BBQ Meatballs w/ Mac and Cheese

I got this recipe from our ward cookbook and we love it.

Mix together:
1 lb (LEAN) hamburger (or ground turkey)
3/4 cup oatmeal
1/3 cup milk
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 eggs (I used just one egg and it turned out fine)
1/2 chopped onion
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper

Shape into meatballs and drop into Greased casserole pan. Pour sauce over meatballs.

Sauce:
1 cup brown sugar ( I used about 3/4 cup)
1/4 cup vinegar
2 tsp mustard
1/2 bottle BBQ sauce (I used 1/2 cup Sweet Baby Ray's and 1 cup ketchup)
2 tsp worcestershire sauce

Bake at 350 degrees uncovered for 30 - 35 minutes. Turn meatballs and bake for another 15 - 20 minutes.

This is great with Mac and cheese as a side. I like this recipe. We eat with steamed veggies and a green salad too to help with the guilt.

Crock pot burritos

These are definitely a crowd pleaser and before we got in to making cafe rio style burritos and salads we would always make these. They have a great smokey flavor, so delicious!

Four Stars!

Crock Pot Burritos

1.5 lbs of some type of steak meat like boneless round or something or a roast of some kind, any kind will do

1 14.5 oz can of diced tomatoes

2 cloves garlic

1 can chipotle peppers in adobo sauce if you are BRAVE and want your mouth to burn off. Since I am not I use jalapeños (like the kind you put on nachos) and a few dashes of liquid smoke (chipotle peppers are just smoked jalepenos, and if you don't have liquid smoke you are missing out in life). I am sure you could just use the jalapeños, even fresh ones, I like the smoke flavor and liquid smoke isn’t too expensive, plus you could use it to make beef jerky later, and that yummy steak marinade (which I had again and love, first steaks in my life I haven't dunked completely in A1).

Cilantro

Chili Powder

Cumin

Oregano

Four tortillas

Guacamole/avocados

Tomatoes

Onions

Cheese

Sour cream

1pkg flour tortillas

Put the meat, canned tomatoes, some cilantro, dashes of cumin and chili powder, jalepenos and 1T liquid smoke in crock pot. Cook for 5-6 hrs, until you can shred with a fork. Early on in the day I make a salsa fresca by putting freshly diced tomatoes and onion together in a bowl with some lemon juice, salt and pepper and a little cilantro. Cover and let the salsa sit in the fridge while the meat cooks. Shred the meat. Serve with the salsa fresca and some fresh guacamole and cheese. I usually wrap the tortillas in foil and put in the oven on 200 for about five minutes before serving, or you can fry them, both are good!

Easy BBQ

This makes good summer meal. I really don't like turning on the oven in the summer. You can simmer the sauce with left over shredded roast beef, chicken, pork, or use it with ground beef for sloppy Joe's. This makes enough for about 6 sandwiches. We made this last night with a can of beef from our food storage and it turned out great. We made a macaroni salad to go with and some steamed veggies. This is my adapted version of a Betty Crocker recipe:

1 lb shredded or thinly sliced roast beef
1/4 cup chopped celery
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper

1 cup ketchup
3 Tbsp white vinegar
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp packed brown sugar
1/4 tsp ground mustard
1/8 tsp black pepper
1 clove garlic chopped, or garlic powder to taste

6 hamburger buns

Heat all ingredients to boiling in a sauce pan over medium high heat. Reduce heat and cover and simmer for about 10 minutes. Serve on hamburger buns.

Taco Soup

I got this recipe from a very old friend back when we were roommates in college. I'd give this 3 stars.

This is the kind of recipe you can always have the ingredients for around the house. It's basically a long list of canned goods, so it's great for creating and cycling food storage.

1 lb ground beef (I know this isn't a can of something, but I always have some ground beef in my freezer)
1 small onion, diced (again, I know not a can but onions keep FOREVER in the fridge, so I always keep some around - I'm sure you could use dehydrated onions from food storage if you were so inclined)
1 can whole kernel corn (about 15 oz size and include the juice)
1 can pinto or black beans (about 15 oz size and include the juice) (the recipe originally said pinto but I've come to prefer black beans in this and I'm sure you could use soaked dry beans of either kind from your food storage, I've just never tried...yet!)
1 can crushed or diced tomatoes (about 15 oz size and include the juice) (again, the recipe originally said crushed but I've always used diced because we already have them around for other recipes)
1 can tomato sauce (about 15 oz size)
1 small can diced green chilies (about 4 oz)
1 pkg or about 1/4 cup taco seasoning (I buy this in bulk or you could be cool like Kristi and make your own!)

For preparation you have 2 choices:

Regular Prep -
Brown the thawed meat and diced onions in a large pot, then add remaining ingredients and cook until heated through, allowing ingredients some time to simmer.

Crock Pot Prep (the way I usually do it) -
Now here's where I get a little unorthodox. Crock pot recipes always tell you to brown your meat first, which basically defeats the entire point of crock pot cooking if you ask me. Maybe it's supposedly to protect against food poisoning or whatever, but we've never gotten sick. Or maybe it's to improve the flavor, but I've never noticed a difference. So if you want, go ahead and thaw your meat then brown it and the onion first and dirty that extra pan, then put it in the crock pot. Otherwise, try it my super lazy way and be done with dinner prep early in the day so you don't have to think about dinner during that horrid twilight zone in the evening when the kids are terrible and you're beat. You don't even have to remember to thaw beef this way! Stick your tube of frozen beef into the crock pot (with it turned on) while you chop your onions and collect your cans. By the time you're done, the outside of the meat should be thawed enough to slit the wrapper and squeeze the meat out easily into the crock pot. Then dump in all the other ingredients (no need to stir yet) and leave the crock pot turned on for about an hour. Then open up your crock pot and stir. The thawed beef will mix into the soup (scrape the sides of the lump of frozen meat if need be). Depending on how frozen your beef was and how high you turn the heat on your crock pot you may have to go back a couple times. And if you forget, and leave some of the meat until the clump has started cooking, just use a wooden spoon and cut up the chunk of meat right there in the pot. I don't even know how long I leave this, but once it's simmering nicely, you should be good.

We like to serve this with tortilla chips either on the side for dipping or crushed in your bowl and
a dollop of sour cream on top.