American Chop Suey

A more grown-up version of what we all grew up with!

1 pound elbow macaroni or other tubular pasta, such as cavatappi
Kosher salt
2 (28-ounce) cans whole peeled tomatoes
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 large onion, finely diced (about 1 1/2 cups)
1 large green pepper, finely diced (about 1 cup)
4 cloves garlic, minced (about 4 teaspoons)
1 tablespoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 cup finely minced fresh parsley leaves
1 pound 80/20 ground beef
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce, plus more for serving
1 cup homemade or store-bought low-sodium chicken stock
Freshly ground black pepper
1 pound low moisture whole milk mozzarella cheese, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
3 ounces roughly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

1. Place macaroni in a large bowl and cover with hot water. Season generously with salt. Let rest, stirring twice during the first ten minutes, while you prepare the other ingredients.

2. Using a hand blender directly in the tomato jar or a regular countertop blender, process tomatoes until mostly smooth. Set aside.

3. Heat oil and butter in a 5 quart straight-sided sauté pan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat, swirling, until better is mostly melted. Add onions and peppers, reduce heat to medium and cook, stirring frequently, until softened but not browned, about 7 minutes. Add garlic, oregano, red pepper flakes, and half of parsley, and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute.

4. Clear a space in the center of the pan and add meat. Increase heat to high. Cook, breaking it up first with a wooden spoon, then with a potato masher, until broken into small pieces. Continue cooking until no longer pink, about 4 minutes. Add pureed tomatoes and bring to a simmer.

5. Drain noodles in a large colander set in the sink. Add to pot with beef. Add Worcestershire sauce and chicken stock and stir, folding noodles through the sauce until noodles and sauce are well-integrated. Cover and cook at a hard simmer until noodles are mostly cooked, about half of cook-time indicated on box.

6. Remove lid and stir to combine. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add half of cubed mozzarella and stir to incorporate rapidly (do not overstir or the mixture will stretch and stick to your spoon). Spread remaining mozzarella over surface of dish. Sprinkle half of Parmesan over dish. Cover and cook over the lowest possible heat for 3 minutes. Remove from heat and let rest with cover on for 5 minutes.

7. Uncover, sprinkle with remaining Parmesan and herbs and serve immediately, passing extra Worcestershire sauce at the table.

from seriouseats.com

Crock Pot Beef with Pepperoncinis

This recipe is from a customer who swears by it.

1 4-lb beef roast
1 large jar of pepperoncini, undrained
1 smaller jar of pepperoncini, drained

Put beef in slow cooker, top with peppers and juice from large jar. Cook on low for about 8 hours, until it shreds easily.

Serve pulled beef and pepperoncinis with corn tortillas and slices of avocado, tomato and onion.

Got to love a recipe with basically 2 ingredients!

Picadillo

2 pounds ground beef
1 large onion,chopped
1 T. olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 pound mushrooms, chopped
2 red bell peppers, seeded & chopped
1 poblano pepper, red or green, chopped
1 pound ripe tomatoes, chopped
1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
1 cup raisins
3 T. vinegar
1 t. sugar or honey
1 t. salt
1 T. chili powder, red or green
1 t. ground cumin
1 t. ground cinnamon
1/2 t. ground cloves
1 cup chopped pecans
Several sprigs cilantro, snipped or chopped

Saute the beef and onions in oil until onions are soft and beef is browned. Add garlic, mushrooms, tomatoes, tomato sauce, peppers, raisins and vinegar. Stir well and simmer 15 minutes. Add salt, sugar and spices. Simmer for an additional 15-30 minutes. To serve add the pecans, reheat (if refrigerated), remove from heat and add a chopped pecans. Serves 8.

This would be great as an empanada filling!

Dawn's California Pot Roast

1 pot roast, 1 1/2 to 2" thick
Garlic Salt
Soy Sauce

Poke holes in the roast with a fork. Sprinkle generously with garlic salt. Cover with soy sauce and marinate for 24 hours in refrigerator.

Cook on grill.

I can't even remember what this was like, but I must have liked it because I wrote down the recipe (from my ex-step-mother-in-law).

Baked Ziti

1 jar spaghetti sauce
1 lb. box ziti
1 lb. hamburger
15 oz. container of ricotta
1/2 cup grated parmesan
1/4 cup parsley flakes
1 egg, slightly beaten
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
12 oz. shredded mozzarella

Cook hamburger and drain. Cook ziti to al dente and drain. Combine hamburger with ricotta, parmesan, parsley, egg, salt and pepper, and half of the spaghetti sauce. Add ziti and toss to coat. Spoon into 9x13 pan, pour the rest of the spaghetti sauce over the top, and tip with mozzarella.

Bake 20 minutes at 350 degrees or until hot and bubbly.

Sharon's Yankee Chili (with beef AND beans!)

1 pkg Carroll Shelby Chili Mix
1.5 lbs ground beef
1 lb steak, cubed to 1/2"
1 large onion
1 large can chopped tomatoes
1 16-oz can tomato sauce
2 cans kidney beans
1 can black beans
1 large can green chilis
1 or more jalapenos, to taste
Extra Chili Powder and red pepper flakes to taste

Brown meats and put in stockpot. Saute onion, add to pot. Stir in all canned items. Add chili mix, saving masa flour for thickening at the end. Simmer for 1+ hours.

Serve with sour cream, shredded cheese and finely diced onions for sprinkling on top, and cornbread to soak it up with!

Freezes beautifully.

Lemon Barbequed Meat Loaves

1 1/2 lb lean ground beef
2 cups fresh bread crumbs
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup minced onion
1 egg
2 tsp seasoned salt
1/2 cup ketchup
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tsp dry mustard
1/4 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp ground cloves
6 thin lemon slices

Mix hamburger, bread crumbs, lemon juice, onion, egg and seasoned salt. Shape into 6 mini loaves, place in greased 9x13 pan and bake for 15 minutes at 350 degrees.

Prepare sauce by mixing ketchup, brown sugar, mustard, allspice and cloves. Spoon over loaves, top each loaf with a lemon slice and bake for another 30 minutes. Baste with sauce from pan.

Meatloaf

2 lbs ground beef, not extra lean
1 pkg. onion soup mix
1 egg
1 cup Stovetop Stuffing mix
Generous dash of Worcestershire Sauce
1/4 cup ketchup
Generous dash of soy sauce

Combine all together and form into a loaf. Place in a roasting pan or in a loaf pan, and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour. Let sit 10 minutes before serving.

Beef Stroganoff

2 to 2 1/2 lbs beef- I usually use an inexpensive cut of sirloin
3 T. flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
3 T. oil
3 onions, thinly sliced
1/2 cup tomato juice
1 can beef consomme
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 cup sour cream
1/2 lb. sliced mushrooms
3 T. dry white wine, or more to taste

Cut meat into thin strips. Toss in flour, salt and pepper. Brown meat, onion and mushrooms in oil. Add tomato juice, consomme and sugar. Reduce heat and simmer until meat is tender. Blend in sour cream and wine- heat, but do not boil.

Serve over egg noodles.