Saturday, July 19, 2014

Spaghetti Meatballs

I had a dream the other night of Spaghetti Meatballs. Not sure why that happened but it did. The next day I roamed pinterest looking for some assuming that's where I must have seen them. I didn't find any there but searching for "spaghetti meatballs" does bring up a ton of spaghetti dishes! I did find some on Google so I knew that it could be done. Here is my attempt (and a darn good one if I do say so myself) of my version of Spaghetti Meatballs. I do not use a recipe for my meatballs but you can go ahead and use anyone that works for you. Here are the ingredients I have always used for mine. 

 I added to 1 lb ground beef approximately:
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup Italian seasoned bread crumbs
1 T milk
Salt
Pepper
Garlic
2 spoonfuls of my spaghetti sauce.
1/2 cup cooked spaghetti

Roll into balls and place onto greased dish (I topped mine with a little of the sauce to help keep them moist while cooking).  Bake for 25 minute (less if your balls are smaller) at 350 degrees. After they set a couple minutes I plated them and add a spoonful of sauce and a little Parmesan cheese on each one. Stick in with a skewer and your good to go!


Update: We made Spaghetti Meatballs Subs for dinner and they were AMAZING!



Sunday, July 6, 2014

Meat Pie

I grew up eating and loving Meat Pie. Still to this day it is one of my favorite comfort foods of all time. My mother found this recipe on the back of the Minute Rice box back in the 70's. Its original name from the box was Country Pie. Now, don't say you don't like Minute Rice, because personally I don't like it at all, but in this recipe it is super good! This is one of those recipes that I just get a craving for every few months. Since I only cook for myself this freezes very well too. I just cut into dinner size slices, wrap each slice into plastic wrap then place them all in a large Ziplock bag. I just add a bit of water to the bowl when I reheat it in the microwave to keep it moist. I hope you give it a try, I have made it for a few friends over the years and they now make it for their families as well.  Here is the recipe:


Note: I prefer using a ground beef with at least 15% fat content as I think the meat is much moister. If you do use a higher fat content meat you will need to drain some of the fat before adding the cheese topping. You can do this either by carefully pouring into a container or like I do, set the pie dish on the counter on a angle (set your oven mitt under one side). Use a spoon, pull the meat from the side of the dish (as shown in the picture) and using your turkey baster, pull the fat from the dish. 



Tuesday, July 1, 2014

Burrito Pie

Burrito Pie is one of those recipes that is incredibly forgiving and can be changed every time you make it depending on what you're in the mood for and what you have on hand. The original recipe can be found here. I like to season my meat with taco seasoning which I really think helps with the flavor of the dish. I have also used whole beans, added layers of mexican rice, corn tortillas instead of flour, and added layers of sour cream.  I also use enchilada sauce in place of the taco sauce. Basically you can add or delete anything you want!  I also like to make it in a springform pan.  Just make sure to let it sit for 10 minutes before taking off the outer cuff so that it hold its form.