Ideas for Left-Over Easter Ham

Let's face it. There's almost always some left-over ham at Easter and you get tired of having a warmed over repeat of Easter dinner. So here are just a few ideas of what you can do with the ham. Oh! And before you cook the ham - be sure to make extra glaze! You'll want it later.

Use it for breakfast.

Fry up ham steaks to have with eggs.
Dice it up to use in omelets.
Dice it up to serve in hash. Great with a fried egg on top.
Use for Eggs Benedict.
Dice it up to add to a French Toast bake/casserole.
Grind it and season it and make your own sausage patties. Serve with eggs or on an English muffin.

For lunch or dinner.

Pair with turkey, Swiss cheese and French toast for a classic Monte Cristo. Yum!
Layer dices or thin slices in with scalloped potatoes, with or without a cheesy cheddar layer.
Make split pea soup. Uses the bone as well, if you have one.
Grind it up and make an English meat pie. * Directions below.
Make extra glaze sauce, dice up the ham, add pineapple chunks and maraschino cherries and serve over rice with a veggie on the side. Or add in the veggie and make it a rice bowl.
Make homemade ham and pineapple pizza.
Make a Meat Lovers calzone.
Make a casserole with egg noodles, cream of potato soup, baby peas and diced ham.
Use frozen puff pastry cups and mix diced ham with cream of potato soup (or other cream soup of your choice), peas (or other vegetable finely diced) and fill cups and bake.
Ham and potato pizza. * Directions below.
Dice, mix with brown rice, vegetables and a curry sauce.
Dice, mix with white rice, soy sauce and stir fry vegetables.
Dice and mix in with a pack of Top Ramen.
Put a slice on an English muffin pizza.
Add to a lasagna, especially good with an eggplant lasagna.
Make ham salad.
Puree in your food processor with mustard and hot sauce and make a deviled ham spread.
Replace the beef or chicken in your taco.
Cube and put in little Ziploc containers with cubes of cheese and almonds or other nut for quick protein snacks.

English Meat Pie:

You will need:
Left-Over ham
Left-over, or freshly made mashed potatoes
Pie crust, enough for 2 pies
Any vegetables you wish to include
A springform pan is ideal, otherwise a very deep pie dish or casserole dish

Line bottom and side of springform pan with pie dough. Prebake according to pie crust directions for 15 minutes. Set aside.

In a food processor, grind up ham to a fine texture. Add any vegetables to the ham.
Combine the ham/veggie mixture with the mashed potatoes. May be easier if the potatoes are warm. If you have any ham glaze left over you can add a little of it now.

Spread meat and potato mixture into pie shell. Use remaining crust to cover top. Make sure all edges meet. Pinch to seal. Cut slits in middle for steam. Bake according to pie crust directions. Make sure pastry is thoroughly cooked. Slice and serve.


Ham and Potato Pizza:

Good way to get rid of lots of left-overs.

Use a canned or premade dough. Spread it out in a pan. Fill crust with left-over mashed potatoes. Sprinkle a layer of diced or chopped ham on top of potatoes. You can add veggies or other items like olives or pineapple. If you have glaze left from the ham, drizzle some on for extra flavor. Bake until dough is cooked.  Great for a movie night or after school snack.

Shelf-Stable Items to Keep On Hand

A recent post on a FaceBook group made me start thinking about all the shelf-stable items people could keep on hand during our Covid 19 lockdown. Or at least try to keep as many as they can with supermarkets being what they are. I've made a list of items, in no particular order, and I've given you some ideas. Leave comments at the bottom if you'd like more ideas.

1. Instant potatoes - not just mashed, but boxes of scalloped, au gratin and other varieties and flavors.

 

2. Canned Potatoes. Whole, sliced and diced. Make roasted potatoes, hash, home fries, scalloped potatoes. Use them in a soup or stew. Mix them with other veggies.

3. Canned veggies. I know, not as good as fresh or even frozen, but when you have small fridge, canned works better. And don't forget canned tomatoes. Diced, crushed, puree, sauce. Get some of everything.

4. Canned beans. Yeah, technically veggies, but I think people don't think about these a lot. Not just baked beans, but chili beans, chick peas, lentils, black beans etc.

5. Canned meals. Chef Boyardee, Spaghettios, Dinty Moore Beef Stew and anything else your store may carry.

6. Canned soup. Lots of flavors out there. Good for lunch or dinner. Get creamed soups and cheddar cheese soup to use in cooking.

7. Gravy. Buy it in jars, cans or packets of mix. You will always want it on hand once you're used to it.

8. Hormel Complete meals. In little white plastic containers. No freezer or refrigerator needed. Just put in your pantry. Most have some kind of meat and gravy, but there's also spaghetti, chicken and rice, chicken Alfredo and more. Serve with a veggie and everyone gets what they want and you didn't have to cook.

9. Pasta. For the obvious pasta and sauce, but also chop suey, goulash, soups, casseroles, pesto, homemade hamburger helper and more.

10. Pasta sauce. Again, the obvious, plus use for homemade pizza
and calzones, fried mozzarella sticks and fried ravioli, over chicken with melted cheese, with frozen meatballs on sub rolls, lasagna, stuffed shells and casseroles.

11. Dry pesto. Knorr makes pesto in a dry mix. This is better than refrigerated pesto, takes up less room and ready only when you need it.

12. Egg Noodles. Great substitute for pasta. Pair with ground meat and pasta sauce or ground meat with beef gravy for homemade hamburger helper. Or another version using ground meat and cans of cheddar cheese soup or Cheez Whiz. Use in casseroles, stews and soups.

13. Chess Whiz. Not just for dipping nachos. Use for cheeseburger macaroni, homemade Mac and Cheese, cheese over broccoli or other veggies, casseroles and more.

14. Great Seasons Salad Dressing Mix. Instead of making salad dressing, make a marinade good for beef, pork, chicken or fish. Less than the cost of traditional marinade and takes up hardly any room. Can also use it to season meatloaf or meatballs.

15. Tuna Fish. Obviously for sandwiches. Good for lunch or dinner. Serve on toast with a bowl of soup for a heartier meal. Also, serve it straight out of the can with a dash of salt and some crackers. Maybe a few carrot and/or celery sticks in the side. Make an old fashioned tuna noodle casserole. Add it to salads.

16. Canned Chicken. Comes just like canned tuna. Make chicken salad for sandwiches. Use it in soups or stews. Use it for tacos. Add it to salads. Use it in casseroles.

17. Canned Shrimp. Eat it on sandwiches like tuna. Add to salads. Add to tacos. Add to hush puppies.

18. Canned Clams. Use with canned diced potatoes and cream of celery soup to make chowder. Mince them up and make a beer batter with pancake mix and make clam fritters aka RI clam cakes.

19. Pancake/Waffle Mix. Obviously, pancakes and waffles. You can also use it to make batter for chicken or fish. Use beer or add Old Bay Seasoning. Running short on bread? Make savory waffles. A waffle with a little rosemary and sage is wonderful with ham. Stretch a couple of ham steaks into a meal for 4 by cutting them in half and grilling them between two waffles with cheese and honey mustard. If you have room in your freezer, make a big batch of waffles and freeze them in a Ziploc bag. Your kids can toast them like Eggos, but it's cheaper.

20. Corn Bread Mix. Naturally the usual corn bread. But you can make corn dogs, a corn bread pot pie, fiesta bread (see my post on 5 Things to do with Jiffy Corn Bread Mix). Corn Bread Stuffing, muffins using dried cranberries or blueberries, hotcakes, hush puppies and more.

21. Baking Mix. Like Bisquick or Jiffy Baking Mix. You can make Southern style biscuits, dumplings, fruit cobblers, quick breads, pot pies and so much more. Great alternative if they are out of pancake mix.

22. Three Bean Salad. Great side dish, especially at lunch. Help fill them up and tide them over until dinner. Can also add to a soup or stew.

23. SPAM. Hey, it's good. In Hawaii there's a whole food culture built around it. Fry slices of it in a pan with some brown sugar and pineapple rings. Serve on a bulkie roll. Add lettuce, tomato etc if you like. Dice up and add to already browned and seasoned diced potatoes. When hot, serve with a fried egg. Dice and serve with rice with veggies. (This means keep canned pineapple around too)

24. Canned Corned Beef. I like it on a sandwich. My parents used to make English muffin pizzas and add a slice of corned beef under the cheese. Great for hash. Great to warm a slice in a pan and serve with breakfast if you are out of other breakfast meats.

25. Taco Shells. You can put almost anything in them. Even
leftovers. Make eating leftovers a taco party.

26. Sardines. Yeah, yeah. I know. But how many of you have actually tried them and not just avoided them. When I was very little my mother used to serve them to me on top of buttered saltines until sometime during kindergarten I decided I didn't like them anymore. Put them on salads, serve them on crackers, use them in hush puppies or just eat them out of the can. Don't make a big deal out of them and maybe your kids will like them.

27. Cake, Cookie, Brownie Mix. The day will come when someone has a sweet tooth and there's nothing in the house. Or your kid(s) will want something different to do. Bake with them. Just make sure if you've got cake mix, you've got frosting.

28. Mac & Cheese. Like most of us don't have that anyway. But you can change it up. Add ground meat, diced ham, peas and carrots, broccoli. Layer it in a casserole with ground meat and a can of diced tomatoes and some more cheese. Put it on a homemade pizza.  Stir in your favorite fixings, add more cheese and bake it til it's bubbly.

29. Beef and Chicken Broth Cubes. If you don't have room in your fridge to put a box of broth, make sure you keep plenty of cubes or crystals on hand to use. You wouldn't want your food to be under seasoned after all your hard work.

30. Marinades, Sauces and Condiments. You go to the store to get some meat and you come home with chicken. Again. You used to love chicken, but now.... How many times can you have Shake n Bake or lemon pepper chicken? Keep a variety of marinades and sauces in your pantry. Even salad dressings can be used. Keep Dijon and honey mustard on hand. I know they have to be refrigerated, but once you get used to cooking with them, you'll use them a lot. Lipton's Beefy Onion, brown sugar, garlic, honey, nuts. Grind up some pecans and add to Panko breadcrumbs. Slather chicken with mixture of Dijon mustard, honey and paprika. Press into pecan/panko mix and bake. There you go, nice, easy new recipe.

hope you find this useful.
KerryBut

Questions? Ask below in the Comments.

What To Do With Leftovers?

What To Do With Leftovers?

There's nothing worse than opening your refrigerator and seeing leftovers sitting there that you know will probably end up in the trash. It's so frustrating! But what are you supposed to do? Nobody really wants leftovers, right?

Well.... maybe. Check out this list of ideas to see if you can spark some life into those leftovers.

1. One of my favorite ideas is Hash! Yup, nice and easy. Dice up everything to about the same size and reheat with some lovely browned diced potatoes.

Hash with leftover chicken and chickpeas

 

2. Pot Pie/Shepard's Pie. Whether you make it with a pie crust, a box of Jiffy corn bread or with a layer of mashed potatoes, putting leftovers together in any pie-like form is a crowd pleaser.

3. Soup/Stew. A great use especially of leftover veggies. Add some noodles or pasta or even rice to fill it out into a hearty meal. Want more of a stew? Thicken it up and add some beans to the mix for a heartier meal.

4. Empanadas. Mince all your leftovers together and reheat them in a skillet, add any seasonings to either amp up the flavor profile or change it completely. Put filling inside empanada wrapper and fry. Serve with a nice salad.

5. Noodle Casserole. Cook up some egg noodles, mix in your leftovers along with a can of Campbell's Cream of Whatever, a can full of milk or cream and some shredded cheese. Bake until done. Campbell's has lots of cream soups, not just mushroom. There's cream of celery, potato, chicken, broccoli. You can even use cheddar cheese soup.

6. Meat Pie. Great for all that leftover ham after Easter. You need a lot of leftover meat, but it doesn't have to be the same. It can be a turkey breast from one night, some chicken thighs from another, etc. But it's all poultry, so that's ok. Put the meat and veg in your food processor and blend it all together. Mix together with some leftover mashed potatoes or some refrigerated/frozen/instant/fresh potatoes. Whatever you've got. Line a springform pan, a very deep pie plate or a casserole dish, bottom and sides with pastry. Fill with meat and potato mixture. Top with pastry and bake according to pastry directions. Serve with gravy.

7. Scalloped potatoes. This is great when you just have leftover meat. Again, great for leftover Easter ham. Make scalloped potatoes according to your favorite recipe (or use box mix), but add a layer of bite sized pieces of meat on top of potatoes until you reach the top. Bake as usual. Makes it a meal instead of a side dish. Great dish for a brunch.

8. Junkyard Pizza. Make your own pizza. Do it with your kids and have fun. See who can come up with the weirdest combination. If the pieces are too big/messy for a pizza, make calzones.

9. Over Loaded Baked Potatoes. Make twice-baked potatoes, but instead of putting all of the potato back in, leave room to add a mixture of your leftovers dripping in cheese sauce. Jar of Cheez Whiz or some Campbell's cheddar soup will do the job.

10. Everything But The Kitchen Sink Lasagna. You can either dice everything real small or puree in your food processor, depending on whether or not you want chunks. Spread mixture over the layer of ricotta cheese when assembling your lasagna. You get more flavor and more protein and nutrients from the veggies.

 So... there you go. Ten ideas of what to do with leftovers. Hope you found something helpful!

5 Things to do with Jiffy Corn Bread

You know it. You love it. We all do. It's in nearly everybody's pantry. It's that wonderful old staple: Jiffy Corn Bread Mix. You can almost smell it now.



We all know about corn bread and corn muffins, but what else can we create with one of these boxes of wonder?

1. Corn Dogs. Who doesn't love a corn dog! Yum! I like to add honey to my batter, but that's me. Totally optional.

(10 – 12 Servings)

Ingredients:

1 pkg. Jiffy Corn Muffin Mix

2/3 cup flour

1 egg

1 cup milk

1 tsp. dry mustard

1/2 tsp. paprika

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

1 to 1-1/2 lbs hot dogs

2 tbsp honey (optional)

FRYING METHOD:

Preheat oil in deep fryer at 375 F. Set hot dogs aside.  Combine remaining ingredients thoroughly.  Pour into large drinking glass.  Dip hot dogs in batter one at a time.  Carefully place in deep fryer.  Fry for 3 minutes or until golden brown.  Remove and drain on paper towel.

BAKING METHOD:

Preheat oven to 425 F. Place a hot dog in the bowl of batter and swoosh it around to coat it. Remove coated dog to a nonstick cookie sheet and use your fingers to spread batter on any exposed dog spots. Don't coat it too thick, just shy of 1/2-inch should do the trick. If it's too thick it will just slide off the dog while it's baking, leaving the dog exposed. If that happens don't sweat it, they will still taste great. Repeat until all 8 are coated. Bake 12 to 15 minutes or until evenly deep brown all over.

2. Chicken Pot Pie. Not your traditional pot pie. This is great for left over chickrn. You can also use frozen diced chicken or prepared chicken like Purdue Fresh Cuts. Great for left over rotisserie chicken. Easy one dish meal.

Ingredients:

Aprox. 2 cups diced chicken (a little over or under won't mater)

1 tsp ground sage

1 tsp ground rosemary

pinch of salt

pinch of pepper

Vegetable(s) of your choice (you can use leftovers, canned, frozen, fresh. Just temember, if frozen, cook first to get rid of excess water. If fresh, cook ahead to make sure they are cooked through)

Jarred gravy (probably 2 jars)

Corn Bread Topping:

1 box Jiffy Corn Bread mix

1/3 cup of milk

1 egg

2 tsp rosemary

2 tsp sage
2 tbsp honey

In large pie plate or casserole, combine chicken and vegetables. Add gravy, rosemary, sage, salt and pepper. Stir together. In a separate bowl, combine corn bread mix, milk, egg, rosemary, sage and honey. Mix until just combined. Mix will be lumpy. Do not over mix. Pour batter on top of chicken and gravy. Bake for 35 - 40 minutes.

Final cooking time will depend on the dish you used. You will need to make sure batter is cooked through and not wet on the inside. Cook until corn bread is very dark. Try lifting up corner of the bread and see if it's cooked through. If it just needs a teeny bit more, take casserole from oven, cover loosely with foil and let stand for 5 minutes.

3 Fiesta Bread. A change up from taco night. I suggest shallots because they are sweeter and not as strong as other onions, but you can use what ever kind of onion you like. Also, if you like it spicy, switch out the sweet peppers for a spicy variety.
* This is a mild version. If you want it spicy, double up the  seasonings.

Ingredients:

2 boxes Jiffy Corn Bread Mix

2 eggs

1/2 cups of milk

1/2 cup of salsa

1/2 cup shredded Mexican cheese

1 1/2 cups ground beef*

1/4 cup sweet peppers 

1/4 cup shallots

1/2 tsp cayenne

1/2 tsp pepper

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp lime juice

* Seasonings for the beef

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1/2 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp cilantro

3 dashes Tobasco ( or more to taste)

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400 F

Brown ground beef in a skillet on stovetop with list of seasonings. Drain grease and set aside.

In a small skillet saute the sweet peppers and shallots until soft. Remove from heat and set aside.

In a large bowl combine all dry ingredients and whisk together. Add milk, eggs, lime juice, salsa, cheese, peppers and shallots. Gently mix just until combined. Do not over mix. Gently fold in ground beef. Pour mixture into a greased casserole dish.

Bake 35 - 40 minutes or until cooked through. Cooking time may vary depending on casserole dish.

4. Corn Bread Stuffing. No need to wait until the holidays to have stuffing. It's pretty easy really and so many ways to change it up.

First thing you need is your bread. If you are making for 4 - 6 people, 1 box of mix will do. For more, or if you want left overs, use 2 boxes. This is for 1 box. Double if necessary.

1 box Jiffy Corn Bread Mix

1/3 cup of milk

1 egg

2 tsp rosemary

2 tsp sage

1 tsp onion powder

2 tbsp honey

Preheat oven to 400 F

mix ingredients until just combined. Batter will be lumpy. Do not over mix. Bake according to box directions.

Once bread is done, reduce oven to 350 F. Cool enough to handle. Cut to course chunks. Place bread on a cookie sheet and put in oven for 10 to 15 minutes until crispy like croutons.

Ingredients:

1 tbsp butter

1/8 cup finely chopped celery

1/8 cup finely chopped shallot

1/8 cup finely chopped dried cranberries

1/8 cup finely diced Granny Smith Apple

1/8 cup chopped walnuts

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1 tsp rosemary

1 tsp sage

1 tsp thyme

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1 cup plus of chicken broth*

Directions:

In small skillet, saute celery and shallot with the butter until translucent and soft.

In a small bowl, combine all seasonings. In another bowl, combine cranberries, apple and walnuts.

Place toasted bread in a large mixing bowl. Add sauteed celery and shallot. Sprinkle the dried seasonings all over the bread. Add the chicken broth. Take your time mixing, waiting for the liquid to get into the bread and soften it. Add more stock as needed.

* You can use beef or vegetable stock too. Use apple sauce as part of your liquid. Out of stock? Use what you've got. Try wine, juice or cider. Try beer, especially if you have a special ale, larger or IPA. Use a can of creamed corn to amp up the corn flavor and add moisture. Try different combinations to get different flavors.

Once you have stuffing to a satisfactory state, you can bake it in a casserole dish (375 F for about 25 - 30 min) or stuff into a whole chicken, into pork chops, inside chicken breasts or even individual serving dishes.

Variations:

Sweet sausage with apples and walnuts

Chestnuts with dried apricots and figs

Chicken pesto sausage with fresh grated asiago cheese and  chopped dates with pine nuts

Diced pears with chopped pistachios and dried cherries

Creamed corn with cheddar cheese and a baking apple, like Courtland or MacIntosh

Broccoli with cheddar cheese with craisins and sliced or slivered almonds

5. Hoecakes Also known as hotcakes or Johnny cakes. A notch up from pancakes, these are crispy and buttery and a nice change from the same old thing.

Ingredients:

1 box Jiffy Corn Bread mix

2 eggs

3/4 cup of milk

Combine ingredients until mostly smooth. Place a pat of butter in a skillet over medium heat. When melted, pour spoonfuls of batter to make cakes. Cook until bubbling around the edge. Flip and cook until other side is golden brown. Serve with butter and maple syrup.

5 Things To Do With Ground Beef

With the social distancing forcing us to take what we can get for food at the stores, you might be finding yourself using ground meat more often than usual. Especially if you go to BJs, Costco, Sam's etc. and get one of these guys.

Great if you've got a family of 10, but if there are just 3 or 4 of you, you might get sick of ground beef pretty quickly. So, we all know the obvious, hamburger patties, meatloaf, meatballs, American Chop Suey. But what else can you do to break up the monotony? Well, one thing you can do is plan out a day to cook it all. Yup, cook it all. Then divide it up to use for a few different dishes. Freeze whatever you aren't going to use that night and you'll have some easy nights ahead of you. Here are just a few simple ideas to get you out of your hamburger rut. Oh - just remember to use plenty of salt and pepper when you are browning up the ground beef.

1. Taco Tuesday. Ok, this one might be a gimme for some families. Not mine. In fact I'd rather have a peanut butter sandwich, thank you. But, you can brown up some ground beef, put aside what you will need for tacos, add a packet of seasoning, or make your own. Then, when the meat is cool, put it in a freezer safe container or a Ziploc bag and freeze it for taco night.

 Here's just one sample recipe you can use to make your own taco seasoning.

  +1 tablespoon chili powder
  +1/4 teaspoon garlic powder  
  +1/4 teaspoon onion powder
  +1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
  +1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
  +1/2 teaspoon paprika
  +1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin 
  +1 teaspoon sea salt
  +1 teaspoon black pepper

2. Hamburger Goulash. Alright, I know, it looks like American Chop Suey, and it's pretty darn close. But the seasonings make all the difference in this recipe. It truly is a different dish.

Ingredients:
 2 lbs lean ground beef
 1 large 29 oz can tomato sauce (unseasoned, not spaghetti sauce)
 30 oz of tomato paste
 1 medium shallot or 1 small onion
 1 box elbow macaroni or small pasta
 1/2 tsp salt, plus 1/2 tsp
 1/2 tsp pepper - plus 3/4 tsp
 3/4 tsp paprika
 1 tsp garlic powder
 1/2 tsp nutmeg
 butter
 olive oil

Directions:
 Cook box of elbows according to package directions.  Use a large pot because you will be putting all of the other ingredients into this pot after the macaroni is cooked.  Drain and set aside when cooked al dente, about 12 minutes. (Which means don't let the macaroni get too soft. You'll be cooking it again in the sauce so make sure it still has a bite to it).
 Finely chop shallot/onion. Saute in a frying pan with a touch of butter and olive oil for 5 minutes.
 Add ground beef. Break up, add 1/2 tsp of the salt and 1/2 of the tsp black pepper and mix up with the onions.  Cook until meat is browned.  Remove from heat and drain. (You need to season the ground beef before it's cooked to get the best flavor from it)
 Add the beef mixture to the pan of elbows.  Add the tomato sauce and tomato paste, add the rest of the salt and pepper, the garlic powder, paprika and nutmeg.
 Mix until everything is combined.  Cover and place on low heat, (or put in a crock pot on low). Let simmer for at least an hour to meld flavors. But you can make this early and let it simmer all day as long as you keep an eye on it and give it a stir now and then to keep it from sticking to the bottom of the pan.
 Serve nice and hot! Hubby and son had grated cheese on theirs.

TIP: As you can see, this is a recipe that is wide open for options. You could add chopped bell peppers. You could use ground turkey, or sausage or any kind of ground meat, or even a combination.  If you added a can of beans this would be a sort of combination goulash/chili.  Or, if you wanted a vegetarian version, use beans and veggies instead of the ground meat. This will be very thick. You can thin it out by adding beef or chicken stock, more tomato sauce or even canned diced tomatoes. It's all a matter of preference. Also works great with ground chicken or turkey which can be kind of bland.

3. Homemade Hamburger Helper. I don't know about your family, but my son loves Hamburger Helper. The rest of us are kind of meh on it. So, I make my own and it's tastier.

You just boil up some egg noodles, or pasta if you prefer. Bowties and rotini both work well. Add the noodles/pasta to the ground beef and then add the gravy. How much gravy you need will depend on the amount of beef/noodles you have. I usually use 2 large jars for 4 of us. This freezes very well.

TIP: Have a big family and want to make this stretch a little farther? Add a vegetable or two, put it in a casserole dish and top with either a premade pie crust or a box of Jiffy corn bread mix. If you use the corn bread mix you will need to cook it until the bread is very well done and very brown on top or it will not be cooked underneath. When you take it out of the oven, cover it loosely with foil and let it stand 5 minutes to finish cooking.

4. Cheeseburger Macaroni. Another version of Hamburger Helper that is better home made. Make a box of Kraft Deluxe, the kind with the premade cheese sauce, or Velveeta or whatever brand you have, stir in the ground beef, then add Cheez Whiz until you have it as cheesy as you want it. And again, freezes great.

TIP: No mac and cheese? Buy some pasta and a big jar of Cheez Whiz. I also like to use some Campbell's Cheddar Cheese soup. Mix them together with the pasta, whether you just want mac and cheese or cheeseburger macaroni.



5. English Meat Pie. Yum! One of my most favorite meals! It's basically seasoned ground beef and mashed potatoes in a pie shell, but it is SO much better than it sounds. This is also a great recipe for hiding vegetables from your kids. I usually puree some spinach and sun dried tomatoes and add to the mix. If your family likes veggies, diced carrots and peas go perfect with this. It's also a great dish to make with leftovers. I wish I had a pic, but I don't :(

Directions:

Such as they are. I'm not big on measuring, so I apologize in advance.

1.5 - 2 lbs of ground beef
2 boxes ready made pie crust
2 containers ready made mashed potatoes (can use frozen or make from scratch)
any veggies you want to add, pureed if you want to hide them
1 of beef gravy
onion powder
garlic powder
dried thyme

Preheat oven according to directions on pie crust box.

Add onion powder, garlic powder and thyme to ground beef (about a tsp or so of each) and brown. Drain grease.

Mix beef, potatoes, veggies together. Mixture should be thick.

I recommend a springform pan if you have one, otherwise use a very deep dish pie plate or casserole dish.

Using 1 crust, line the bottom of the dish. Using 2 more crusts, line the sides of the pan as close as you can to the top. Prebake crust for 15 minutes.

Fill the pan with meat and potato mixture.

Top with final crust. Cut slits to vent.

Place in oven to bake according to pie directions. Bake until crust is golden brown and there are no translucent spots. Slice and serve hot with gravy.

This is not my pic, but it gives you an idea of what it would look like.

And again, freezes beautifully!

TIP: Some people like this with sautéed or caramelized onions. You could even add sautéed mushrooms. The great thing about a recipe like this is that you can make it what you want. You can add peppers, beans, use oats to bind it instead of mashed potatoes. You could use ground chicken and make a curry sauce instead of a gravy.

BONUS ITEMS: These are items I don't make, but I know are out there and might be useful to you.

Shepard's Pie - layers of ground beef and vegetables topped with mashed potatoes
Salisbury Steaks - ground meat formed into patties - not like hamburgers
Sloppy Joe's - loose ground meat in a sauce, may have peppers and/or onions on a bulkie roll
Stuffed Shells - mix up ground meat like you would for meatballs, stuff it into partially cooked large shells, cover with sauce and bake
Stuffed Peppers - like above but stuffed in bell peppers not shells
SOS - otherwise known as creamed chipped beef. Usually served on toast or biscuits
Double Stuffed Potatoes -(want to try!) you can make many versions of this
Chili - with or without beans, it's a classic
Stroganoff - lots of versions of this out there. Maybe switch up your favorite recipe
Meat Lasagna - always a treat
Enchiladas - traditional Mexican dish
Cheeseburger Pizza - use ground beef with cheddar cheese on your home made pizza instead of mozzarella and pepperoni
Hamburger and Potato Soup - hearty soup that hits the spot

Chicken Sausage and Apples with Rice Pilaf

I am always looking for new ways to get my daughter to eat protein. She's not much of a meat lover, but not enough of a vegetable lover to be a vegetarian.  Both of my kids love apples and if my daughter is going to eat meat, chicken or turkey are her first choice, so when we discovered a brand of chicken sausage in our local market called Sweet Apple with pure Vermont maple syrup, I thought it was a good chance to introduce something new. Neither of my kids cares for breakfast sausage or Italian sausage, so... I was taking a risk.  Luckily, and to my relief, they both liked it. So did my husband and I.

Another thing I am always looking for are meals to make ahead of time and freeze/reheat. That lead to the recipe below. I wasn't sure how the apples would take with being cooked, frozen and reheated, but they were fine. Probably because they aren't cooked very much to begin with.

If you've read other posts on my blog, you know my family has trouble agreeing on vegetables, so dishes like this, you'll almost never see any green veggies in.  We heat up individual ones on the side because we all like something different. But of course, you can add what you like to it, or you can do like we do if you have fussy eaters too.


Chicken Sausage and Apples with Rice Pilaf

1 package Chicken Sausage with Apples (4 links/12 oz)
1 package rice pilaf mix
2 tsp maple syrup
2 tsp brown sugar
1/4 cup finely chopped/diced carrot
1/2 small apple, diced
2 - 3 tbsp. crushed walnuts
1 tsp butter (for rice mix)

1. Cook rice pilaf according to box directions, adding carrots
2. Slice sausages in half lengthwise and then into pieces, cook over medium heat in skillet
3. When sausages are almost cooked, add apples, walnuts, syrup and brown sugar to skillet, mix. 
4. Cook til sausages are done and apples are nicely glazed.
5. When rice is done, stir in sausage and apple mixture. Serve hot

If you plan to freeze, wait until the food is completely cool before you place in a freezer bag or container and put in freezer.  To serve after freezing: Thaw and reheat in oven at 375 degrees for 25 - 30 minutes, or reheat in a skillet on stovetop.

As with many of my recipes, this is an easy recipe to adapt to the tastes of your family. You could use long grain and wild rice or even quinoa or couscous if you prefer. You could add more apple, or a variety of apples. You could add pecans instead of walnuts. You could add broccoli, or green beans with almonds.  You could even add cheese to the top. There are lots of ways to make this your own.

Enjoy!

Kerry's Chicken With Pasta - Easy and a Good Way To Sneak in Some Green Veggies!

Now anyone who knows me will tell you, I am no fan of green vegetables. I do not like them, Sam I Am.  I will force myself to eat canned green beans, but after 40 plus years of doing it just to please my mother, it is still forced. I do not like them.  That is the only green veggie I will eat.  However.... I have found a way to "sneak" baby spinach into a few of my recipes. My kids didn't know at first, then they protested, but once they realized they'd been eating it and enjoying it, they really didn't have a leg to stand on.

Here's the thing with spinach, it's like a sponge. It will absorb the flavors of what you are cooking, so if you use it in a recipe with a lot of herbs/seasonings, it won't taste like 'spinach'.  The other thing I do is I pulverize it in my food processor until it's an unrecognizable green paste.  I add it to meatballs, meatloaf, and this, now favorite family recipe.  It's broken down so much, you don't even know you're eating it, which, in my book, is a good thing :)

Also, with the spinach so pulverized, there's no way to  "pick it out!"

With this recipe, I also add sun dried tomatoes in the food processor with the spinach. I like tomato sauce and ketchup, hate tomatoes. It's a texture thing. But again, pulverized to a paste.... you get a hint of the sharp tang of the sundried tomato, but never a big bite of it, or the texture of the tomato. So, another bonus for me and my fussy kids.

This is also a recipe that you can tailor to meet the tastes of your family. It is so easy, super quick, can be made ahead of time, frozen, varied depending on what's in your pantry and easily zap some "add on" items for people who want certain things that aren't like by everyone.

For instance, you could cook peas, green beans, broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini, etc., separately, and let only those who want those items to mix them in after they've dished out their portion.  That's how we have to do it here at Picky Eater Central.

One of the reasons this is so easy is you can make it with convenience items. I buy bags of frozen, pre-cooked chicken to use. I try to keep a bag on hand as it's great for a lot of things.  You could also use a rotisserie chicken from your market deli - an especially good buy on their $5 days that most markets have. You couldn't buy that amount of chicken for $5 and it's already cooked. All you have to do is strip the chicken, which is pretty easy. The other convenience item is Land O' Lakes Sauté Express - which is AWESOME! Unfortunately, only 1 market near me carries it. I've asked my regular market again and again and they won't carry it. Annoys the heck out of me, but as long as I can get it, I'm happy. This is a fabulous product and I highly recommend you try it.  If you can't find it, you can try making your own (see below *).  Or you can try using Italian salad dressing.

Oh - and I always make a huge batch so we can freeze the leftovers for another meal on another day.

So - here we go! 

Kerry's Chicken and Pasta

1 Box corkscrew pasta
1 cup shredded carrots (you can use diced or sliced if you prefer)
Land O' Lakes Sauté Express Italian Herb
2 bags frozen chicken strips or diced ( I usually buy Tyson Grilled Strips)
1 can chick peas (aka garbanzo beans)
Approx 1 1/2 cups baby spinach leaves
5 - 6 sun dried tomatoes in oil (adjust as you feel to taste and depending on size of tomatoes)

1. Boil the pasta according to directions on box.
2. I add the shredded carrots to the boiling pasta because I like the carrots thoroughly cooked. If you want them crispy, you can leave them out of the pan and add them in at the end.
3. In an electric skillet on 300 or large pan on med, place 3 cubes of the LOL Sauté Express.
4. Add the 2 bags of chicken. Cut up and extra large pieces.
5. In food processor add spinach and sun dried tomatoes. Puree until a smooth paste. Add to the chicken.
6. Drain the chick peas and add to the chicken.
7. When the pasta and carrots are cooked, drain and return to pan. Place remaining 3 cubes of Sauté Express in with the pasta and mix until melted and thoroughly combined. Add to the chicken mixture and combine.
8. Cover and continue to cook until chicken is hot all the way through.

You can freeze this for future meals. Just thaw and reheat in a skillet or frying pan.

There are so many things you can add/change to this. Sometimes I add pine nuts or a can of corn (the only vegetable all 4 of us can agree on! lol). But you could add water chestnuts, any kind of vegetable, use a different meat, or perhaps fish/shellfish.  You could use a different flavor variety of Sauté Express (Garlic and Herb, Lemon Pepper, Teriyaki, Southwest).  You could put it in a casserole and cover it with cheese.

You can also put all the ingredients into a ziplock bag and freeze to put in crockpot (just cook the pasta first and I'd suggest a couple of frozen cubes of chicken stock).

We made this and are having it tonight and the 2nd helping is going to a friend who is recovering from surgery. (Hope you and Bill and the kids like it Carol! :) )

So! Get creative! Think outside the box, use what you have on hand and think of ways to make it easy.


* Make your own herbed butter:

1 stick  butter (1/2 cup), softened

4 Tbsp olive oil

Herbs and spices of your choosing (approx. 2 Tbsp)

 

Mix together and place into plastic wrap. Roll into a log and then wrap up and refrigerate. Cut off slices as needed.

Chantilly Mashed Potatoes

This is just a simple variation on your basic mashed potato that makes them special.  The name alone makes you feel like you are having a fancy dinner, doesn't it? But really, you are just adding cream and parmesan to your mashed potatoes. Now - I want to say - this is a GREAT dish for fussy eaters. I normally do not like cheese anywhere near my potatoes. No potato skins, no cheese fries, no cheddar in my baked potato. Nothing. But there isn't a lot of cheese here and it's very mild.  Even my very fussy children love it when I make these.

Yummy!

 

Now, I could go into how to make mashed potatoes, blah, blah, blah. But, I am going to assume you know how to make them. If you don't, you can use a box or buy the ready made in the supermarket.  One thing I will say, if you make them from scratch, use an electric hand mixer, not a hand masher. You want these to be as smooth as possible. No lumps.  Also - please salt your water when you cook your potatoes. You can't add that flavor in later on. I know some people are very salt conscious - but that salt brings out the flavor and no amount of table salt after the fact can make up for not having the salt in when you cook them. [climbs down off her soap box]


Ok.... so - you have your mashed potatoes already made - one way or another. Season them with butter, salt and pepper. (I used 24 oz of potatoes - about 3 cups)

Now we are going to turn them into Chantilly Mashed Potatoes!

Approx. 1 tbsp. softened butter
1/4 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
1/2 cup finely grated parmesan cheese - divided
1/2 cup heavy cream

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

Grease the inside of a 9x13 baking dish (or large round casserole) with the softened butter. Be sure to get the bottom and all up the sides to the rim.  Put the breadcrumbs in the dish and shake/turn to cover the entire buttered surface. Dump out any extra crumbs. Set dish aside.

this is what your dish should look like



Whip the heavy cream in a metal bowl until soft peaks form.  Beat 1/3 of the whipped cream into the mashed potatoes along with 1/4 cup of the parmesan cheese.  Fold in the remaining whipped cream gently.  Spread potato mixture into prepared baking dish. Sprinkle remaining parmesan cheese over the top of the potatoes.

Bake for 25 - 30 minutes until golden brown.  If desired, you can finish them off under the broiler for a minute or two to get a darker, crispier top.

You can also add seasoning to the potatoes, such as rosemary (one of my favorites with potatoes!), garlic, onion, etc.  You could even sprinkle the top with crumbled bacon.  Because you are using parmesan as opposed to cheddar or any other, stronger cheese, you will only get a very mild flavor - but very nice.  Also, the cheese on top won't melt and get bubbly. Instead it makes a lovely crust. And you won't ever have creamy potatoes!

This dish comes together very quickly but looks like something very complicated when you bring it to the table.  When I made these at Thanksgiving my dinner guests were very impressed and could not stop talking about how much they loved the potatoes.

Hope you enjoy!

Easy-Peasy Semi-Homemade Beef Stew Recipe

We have been getting snowstorm after snowstorm here in New England over the past few weeks and my poor hubby has had more than his fill of snow - even for a New Englander.  Getting chilled right through to his bones has him craving hot, hearty dishes like beef stew. Unfortunately, 4 feet plus of snow has made getting to the grocery store nearly impossible. Especially as we live on a steep hill that hasn't been plowed very well - yet (she added hopefully).

So, I went through my freezer and pantry to see if I could find a way to make beef stew for him, and I could!  Luckily, I had a few packages of stew beef in the freezer.  I had some baby carrots in the fridge, some canned sliced potatoes (I always try and keep canned sliced, diced and whole potatoes in my pantry. They come in very handy!) and a few jars of savory beef gravy (purchased the last time my local market had a big sale).  Now, I know how to make stew without jarred gravy. Indeed, I know how to make gravy from scratch very well. But, there are sometimes when the jar comes in handy, like with meatloaf or chicken fried steak (sorry, can't stand that white, cream, pepper stuff some people call gravy. To me gravy should taste like meat, not flour. yuck!). But I wanted a quick and easy way to make some stew and this fit the bill.

All done in the crockpot - prepped in less than 5 minutes!

Anyway - I took out the meat the night before and let it thaw. (I had about 3 pounds of meat).Then I put everything in my trusty crockpot.  First, I cut any large pieces of meat in half. Then I tossed them in the pot with a little salt and pepper.  Then I added a couple of handfuls of carrots (just what looked like enough for the 4 of us). Then I added 3 cans of sliced potatoes and 4 jars of gravy.  I added 1/4 tsp of ground rosemary, gave it all a stir and set it on high for 4 hours.  During the last 20 minutes I threw in a little frozen corn.

That was it. Could it be any easier? Prep time was less than 5 minutes!  You could make this before work and leave it on low all day and have a nice, hot meal when you come home.

Now, I know - where are the green veggies? Well, my fussy family doesn't all like the same veggies, so we usually heat them up separately in the microwave and everybody adds what they want to their stew individually. Naturally, you can add whatever you want to this. Green beans, peas, pearl onions, mushrooms - whatever your family likes.

We had the stew with hot, buttery crescent rolls - something else I always try to keep on hand :) It was SO good. Even my super picky daughter ate a whole bowl and she usually hates beef and any kind of gravy. My husband went back for seconds - no shock there.

Have leftovers that don't quite make enough to fill everybody up? Get a ready made pie crust and turn the leftovers into a pot pie! Add some more veggies, potatoes - even some egg noodles. Serve with a side salad and you have another hearty, satisfying meal.

Enjoy!

Great Way to Deal with Leftovers - Hash!

We've all been there. The fridge is full of leftovers but not enough of any one thing to make a meal out of. So, what do you do? Do you have pot luck and everyone has something different? You could do that. Putting up various plates and reheating them in the microwave and everyone eats higgilty piggilty. Or... here's a better idea - take those leftovers and combine them into a one skillet meal that the whole family can eat together.  Hash!

Now, I know, some people jump to the image of nasty canned food that they wouldn't touch or gross looking stuff from some greasy diner that contains God only knows what. But, you are making this, you know exactly what is in it and you're going to have to trust me - it's yummy!

In fact, it's a great way to get your kids involved in helping to cook a family meal and make a family night out of it.  Just think: Every Friday night (or whatever night) your family empties out the fridge of leftovers and makes hash in a large skillet together. And when it's done, you all eat while watching a family movie or playing a family game. And everyone can feel they contributed to the family meal.

The one thing you need to have is potatoes. If you have leftover roasted, boiled or baked potatoes you're all set. (mashed won't work) Otherwise, use some canned diced potatoes. They are inexpensive and a great staple to keep on hand. I suggest you stock up whenever they are on sale.

If you have leftover potatoes dice them up. If not, use the canned.  How many cans you need depends on the size of the cans and how many you are feeding.  I always start by cooking the potatoes on their own for awhile so they get crispy. That is a matter of preference. If you don't mind if they are soft vs crispy, then it doesn't matter if you precook them.  I put a little olive oil in my skittle and let the potatoes cook until they start getting brown.  I also season them with kosher salt and black pepper.

While they are cooking, take whatever meat you have leftover and dice it up. You can mix it all in. Chicken, beef, pork, meatloaf - anything but fish. I suppose it's possible some types of fish might work, especially if you are only using fish, but I don't know enough about fish to suggest what types would hold up and not just disintegrate.

Then take care of any veggies you have.  Dice them up if they are large. You want everything in the dish to be about the same size.  Now, if you have some fussy eaters who don't like all of the veggies you have, you can keep the veggies separate and just reheat them in the microwave and add vegetables of choice to each person's plate at the end.  If you have any veggies that will mush or break up easily, heat them separately and add them in right at the end.  If you don't have left over veggies, you can easily add canned or frozen veggies to round it out.

Tonight's dinner. Potatoes, pork chops, meatloaf and roasted chicken. Veggies will be added after as none of us all like the same veggies.  May not look like much, but is really tasty! Kids want to make sure there is left overs for lunch tomorrow.

 

When you have the potatoes where you want them, add your meat and any veggies that are going in and mix them together. Cover and cook until everything is hot.  Since your leftovers were seasoned when originally cooked you shouldn't need too much in the way of seasoning, however, that doesn't mean you can't add any, especially if you want to try and change the dish. You could add curry for an Indian take, or paprika for a Hungarian goulash style, or a dash of ginger and sriracha for and Asian flair, basil and oregano for an Italian version - or whatever takes your fancy.  Using different flavor profiles can keep hash from getting boring.

Once everything is hot, serve it up! Add any veggies that were done separately.  It will be delicious!

Need to stretch it or have left overs that aren't quite enough for a second meal?  Make some thick toast or Texas toast, scoop a bunch of hash on the toast and top with a fried or poached egg. When the yolk of the egg seeps down into the hash it is SO good! Makes a great breakfast, or breakfast for dinner.  A great way to use breakfast leftovers too. If you have leftover home fries, sausages and bacon (I know, who has leftover bacon? But it could happen) you could make a hash out of that and eat it with an egg for a great breakfast treat.  Can't afford steak and eggs for breakfast? Buy one small, affordable steak, perhaps even some cube steak, and cut it up to make hash and have with an egg and you can still have your steak and eggs for breakfast.

But the main thing is to find a way to not throw out a bunch of left overs. Nothing is more frustrating than the night before trash day pulling out things wrapped in foil and plastic wrap and anonymous plastic bowls and realizing that you have to throw away food that cost good money and should have been used up somehow.  Well, now you know how to avoid that!  In fact, you could freeze your hash into freezer bags and have on hand for last minute meals.

I hope you find this helpful and it gives you lots of creative ideas.

Enjoy!

Beef Barley Soup Recipe

We had a prime rib roast the other night for dinner. As most of you know, there's no way to really reheat prime rib, or most roast beef really, satisfactorily. So, I used the leftovers to make beef barley soup.

Just a side note. I absolutely hate when you go to a restaurant and they have beef barley soup on the menu and you order it and get vegetable barley soup. If there is tomato in the broth - it's vegetable barley soup! Beef barley soup has a purely beef broth. No tomato. Put tomato in it and it's vegetable barley soup. And since I can't stand tomato soup or vegetable soup, I won't eat it and end up disappointed and annoyed. Ok, rant over.

Anyway... barley is really good for you an it's tasty. It also makes a nice hearty soup and you don't need a lot of ingredients or a lot of fuss.  It's also a good recipe for canning and freezing.

If you don't have leftover roast or steak, you can certainly use stew meat to make the soup.  Just brown it up before hand.


Ingredients:
2 containers beef broth/stock (32 oz ea)
1 can Campbell's Beef Consume (plus 2 can fulls of water)
leftover beef
roast bones (optional)
3/4 cups barley
1/2 cup shredded carrot chopped fine

Directions:
Place bones in large crockpot (or stew pot) and cover with 1 container of broth. Cook on high for 2 hours (or simmer on stove top for 2 hours).  If you don't have bones, skip this step.

Remove bones (if used).  Add barley and carrots to hot broth.  Add beef consume and 2 cans of water plus remaining container of broth and cook on high for 4 hours. (or simmer on stovetop for 4 hours)

Dice up leftover beef and add to soup.

Taste and add any seasoning or flavoring as needed*.  Heat until meat is hot and barley is tender, but still has a little bite.

*I did not add any seasonings to my soup. No salt or pepper. However, I did add a spoon of beef base.  I bought it at BJs. You could use bouillon cubes or crystals, soup mix, Bovril (for those in the UK or access to well stocked International sections at their markets), or any kind of beef flavoring to make the broth richer.  We are happy with just the rich beef flavor, but certainly you could add herbs to it if you preferred.