Jack-o'-Lantern Stuffed Peppers

 

E died. But I still wanted Chay to have something fun to eat for Halloween, so I made these. They were delicious and not really need to be in a jack-o'-lantern bell pepper. E would have loved it.

1 cup elbow macaroni

Canola oil

1 small onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 lb ground beef

1 14 oz can fire-roasted tomatoes, drained

1 cup heavy cream

2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Orange bell peppers

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Cook macaroni 1-2 minutes shorter than instructions on the package. 

3. In cast-iron pan, heat oil over medium heat. Add onions and cook until translucent. Add garlic and ground beef, season with salt and pepper. Add the tomatoes and cook another few minutes. Add cream and cook until the mixture is reduced, about 10 minutes. Turn off the heat, add the cheese and stir until well incorporated. Stir in cooked macaroni and season with salt and pepper.

4. Cut each pepper around the stem and remove to create a lid. Remove the seeds and cut a face like a jack-o-lantern into the side of each pepper.

5. Fill the peppers with beef mixture and put on a baking sheet with the lids on the side. Bake until peppers are fork tender, about 30 minutes.

Slow Cooker Coconut and Red Curry Beef

 Chay liked it!

Vegetable oil

2 lbs beef stew meet

1/2 cup beef stock

1/4 cup Thai red curry paste

2 T fish sauce

1 T brown sugar

1 sliced yellow or sweet onion

1 can full fat canned coconut milk

Green beans

Lime juice

1. Heat skillet over medium-high, add oil, and swirl to coat. Add beef and cook in batches to brown on all sides. Place beef in slow cooker. Add stock to skillet to loosen browned bits from bottom of skillet. Transfer mixture to skillet.

2. In slow cooker, add curry paste, fish sauce, sugar, onion, coconut milk and stir to combine. Add trimmed green beans. Cook for 6-8 hours.

3. After finishing cooking, add lime juice. 

Serve with brown rice.

Banana Bread

 An excess of bananas led to to this one. Pretty basic.

Quick note: the recipe is recommended for a 8.5" x 4.5" inch loaf pan. I only have a 9" x 5" pan, so I doubled it. It tasted great but I did not accommodate for that in the timing. So note to self: ALSO DOUBLE THE COOK TIME!

1/3 cup butter, melted

3/4 cup sugar (if doubling, I recommend cutting down on the sugar by a 1/4 cup or so)

3 bananas VERY RIPE

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1 1/2 cups flour

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Prepare loaf pan with butter, oil or butter flavored pam.

3. In mixing bowl, combine melted butter and sugar.

4. Mash bananas and mix into butter and sugar.

5. Add egg and vanilla.

6. Mix in baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and flour.

7. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan.

8. Bake for 40 minutes or so until toothpick or fork comes out clean.

9. Remove from oven and completely cool.

Chay's Creamy Mac n' Cheese

 Chay requested homemade macaroni and cheese for dinner yesterday. So I made this one and he said, "Thanks, mom. This is exactly what I was looking for." 

Warmed my heart. 

1 lb. dried macaroni 

1/2 cup unsalted butter 

1/2 cup all purpose flour

1 1/2 cups whole milk

2 1/2 cups half and half

6 cups shredded block cheese (I used sharp cheddar, mild cheddar and monterey jack)

Salt and Pepper

Paprika

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees and grease a 9x13 baking dish.

2. Shred cheeses and toss together to mix.

3. Bring large pot of water to a boil. Add salt and cook 1 minute less than the package directs. Drain.

4. Melt butter in a large saucepan over medium heat. Sprinkle in flour and whisk to combine for approximately 1 minute, whisking often. Slowly pour in the half and half, whisking constantly until smooth. Slowly pour in the whole milk, while whisking constantly. Continue to heat over medium heat until thickened to a very thick consistency.

5. Remove from heat and stir in spices and 1 1/2 cups of the cheese, stirring to combine fully. Stir in another 1 1/2 cups of cheese, and stir until completely melted and smooth.

6. Add the pasta to the cheese sauce. Pour half of the pasta mixture into the prepared baking dish. Top with a layer of cheese, then to[ with remaining pasta mixture.

7. Sprinkle the top with the last of the cheese and bake for 15 minutes. If not golden brown, place under the broiler for 2 minutes.

French-inspired Chicken Pot Pie for Pi Day

It's Pi day so I made a riff on Chicken Pot Pi!

Rotisserie chicken, shredded

Olive Oil

2 large shallots, thinly sliced

2 carrots, chopped

2 stalks celery, chopped

3 T butter

3 T flour

1/2 cup white wine

1 T chopped tarragon

2 cups chicken stock

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 T freshly chopped parsley

1/2 cup frozen peas

2 puff pastry sheets, thawed and cut into rectangles

1 egg, lightly beaten

Salt and pepper

1. Preheat oven to 375.

2. In large cast iron skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add shallots, carrots and celery. Saute for about five minutes. Season with sat. Remove to bowl.

3. Add butter to melt over medium heat. Once foaming, add flour and whisk until smooth and a golden brown color. 30-60 seconds. Gently pour in chicken stock and continue whisking. Also add tarragon. Pour in the heavy cream and continue whisking for 30 seconds. Turn heat down to low and simmer for ten minutes. Add salt and pepper as needed.

4. Add vegetables, shredded chicken, peas and parsley. Stir until everything is covered in sauce.

5. Arrange puff pastry rectangles on top of the pot pie, overlapping in places. Brush tops with a beaten egg, and bake 30-40 minutes, until pastry is golden brown and lightly puffed.

6. Let rest for 10 minutes.

Italian Wedding Soup

 Clearly I am in a soup mood. Made this yesterday after inspiration from my parent's neighbor that dropped off some while I was staying there after all the surgeries. I need to learn to make the meatballs smaller but this was a good first try. 

Meatballs

1/2 lb ground beef

1/2 lb Italian sausage

1 egg, whisked

Handful of flat leaf parsley, chopped

2 cloves garlic, crushed

1/3 cup parmesan cheese, grated

salt and pepper

Olive Oil

Soup

Olive oil

1/2 small onion, diced

3 carrots, diced

3 stalks celery, diced

3 cloves garlic, diced

10 cups chicken stock

Fresh spinach

1 cup orzo or acini de pepe pasta

Salt and Pepper

1. Add all meatball ingredients, except oil, to a bowl and mix with your hands. Scoop into small balls. Add oil to Dutch oven over medium heat. Sear for roughly 5 minutes rotating every 1-2 minutes. Remove and let drain on a paper towel. 

2. Add olive oil into drippings from meatballs. Stir in the diced carrots, onion and celery. Saute for 5-6 minutes and add garlic. Continue cooking for a minute.

3. Pour in broth and scrape the bottom of the pot to ensure no bits or pieces are left on the bottom. Bring broth to a boil. Add pasta, salt and pepper and meatballs. Cover and reduce heat to medium. Simmer for 7-9 minutes or according to pasta instructions.

4. Drop in spinach and allow to wilt.

5. Serve with shaved parmesan.

Loaded Baked Potato Soup

 On a cold and rainy day and family visiting, we had brats and this potato soup. 

5-6 pieces of bacon cut into small pieces

Bacon grease

1/2 onion

1 t paprika

1 T fresh thyme

4-6 russet potatoes, pealed and diced

1/4 cup flour

4 cups whole milk

1 cup chicken broth

2 garlic cloves, minced

3/4 cup grated cheddar cheese

3/4 cup sour cream

Salt and Pepper

Scallions, chopped

1. Cut up the bacon and add it to a Dutch oven. Fry the bacon over medium high heat until crispy. Remove and set aside. 

2. In the bacon grease, add onion and saute for five minutes. Add paprika and thyme. Cook for another minute.

3. Stir in the flour and cook for about a minute. Whisk the milk in slowly until the flour has dissolved and there are no clumps. 

4. Add the chicken broth, garlic, and potatoes. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil. 

5. Reduce heat to cover the pot with the lid slightly ajar. Let soup simmer for 20 minutes. Use a potato masher to squish it around some.

6. Add grated cheddar, sour cream and bacon. Season with salt and pepper. 

7. Top with scallions and remaining cheddar and bacon.