Friday, May 24, 2019

A Simple Recipe for Lasagna




I haven't posted a pasta recipe in awhile.....So Today...I'm in the mood for Lasagna..and here is a simple recipe..

INGREDIENTS:

1 lb. (450 g) lean ground beef

  2-1/2 cups Cracker Barrel Shredded Part Skim Mozzarella Cheese, divided

  2 cups light ricotta cheese

  1/2 cup Kraft 100% Parmesan Grated Cheese, divided 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

  1 egg, beaten

  1 jar (650 mL) Classico di Napoli Tomato & Basil Pasta Sauce

  1-1/2 cups water

  12 lasagna noodles, uncooked

(Please forgive the shameless commercial plugs for certain products...but it's their recipe!)

DIRECTIONS:

Heat oven to 350°F.

  Brown meat in large skillet on medium-high heat.

Meanwhile, mix 1-1/4 cups mozzarella, ricotta, 1/4 cup Parmesan, parsley and egg until blended.

Drain meat; return to skillet. Stir in pasta sauce. Pour water into empty sauce jar; cover and shake well. Add to skillet; stir until blended.

Spread 1 cup meat sauce onto bottom of 13x9-inch baking dish; top with layers of 3 lasagna noodles, 1/3 of the ricotta mixture and 1 cup meat sauce.

Repeat layers twice. Top with remaining noodles and meat sauce.

 Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella and Parmesan.

Cover with foil sprayed with cooking spray.

Bake 1 hour or until heated through, uncovering after 45 min. Let stand 15 min. before cutting to serve.

There it is...Enjoy....with a bottle of wine..


Eat and drink well my friends!

Tuesday, May 7, 2019

Asian Tomato Beef

 
Asian Tomato Beef Look ,Spend  just 10 minutes putting this recipe together earlier in the day, and come home to a tender beef and broccoli dish that's as good as a restaurant entrée.

INGREDIENTS:

2 cans (10 3/4 ounces each ) Campbell’s® Condensed Tomato Soup (Shameless plug and Free Advertising.

  1/3 cup soy sauce

  1/3 cup apple cider vinegar

1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder

  1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

3 pounds boneless beef round steak, cut into strips

  6 cups broccoli florets

6 cups hot cooked white rice

DIRECTIONS:

Step 1

Stir the soup, soy sauce, vinegar, garlic powder, black pepper and beef in a 3 1/2-quart slow cooker.

Step 2

Cover and cook on LOW for 7 to 8 hours or until the beef is fork-tender.

Step 3

Stir in the broccoli. Increase the heat to HIGH. Cover and cook for 15 minutes or until the broccoli is tender-crisp. Serve the beef mixture with the rice.


Don't Sweat the technique:


Time-Saving: This recipe may also be cooked on HIGH for 4 to 5 hours.

•Serving Suggestion: Serve with steamed diced carrots. For dessert serve oatmeal raisin cookies.

There it is...enjoy!  Eat Well My Friends!

Thursday, May 2, 2019

Sticky Asian Meatballs



That just looks good before I even talk about the recipe, doesn't it? Yeahhhhh.

I love spaghetti and meatballs, but sometimes you need to take things up a notch. Feel me on that? Voilà, a flavor-packed recipe with sliced scallions, sesame seeds and carrot furls.


INGREDIENTS:

MEATBALLS

Nonstick spray

1 pound ground pork

½ cup bread crumbs

1 bunch scallions, minced

1 large egg

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 tablespoons grated ginger

2 teaspoons sriracha

1 tablespoon soy sauce

¾ teaspoon kosher salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

SAUCE

1 teaspoon sesame oil

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon grated ginger

½ cup hoisin sauce

¼ cup rice vinegar

2 tablespoons honey

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 tablespoon sriracha

NOODLES

8 ounces udon noodles

1 carrot, peeled

1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced on the bias Sesame seeds, for serving .


DIRECTIONS:

1. MAKE THE MEATBALLS:
 Preheat the oven to 375°F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil and spray it with nonstick spray.

2. In a medium bowl, mix together the pork, bread crumbs, scallions, egg, garlic, ginger, sriracha, soy sauce, salt and pepper.

3. Form the mixture into 2-inch balls and place onto the baking sheet.

4. Bake until the meatballs are fully cooked, 17 to 20 minutes.

5. MAKE THE SAUCE: While the meatballs cook, heat the sesame oil in a medium pot over medium-low heat. Add the garlic and ginger, and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.

6. Add the hoisin sauce, rice vinegar, honey, soy sauce and sriracha; bring the mixture to a simmer. Simmer until the mixture thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. Keep warm over low heat. When the meatballs are finished cooking, add them to the pot and stir until they are well coated in the sauce.

7. MAKE THE NOODLES: Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the noodles and cook according to packaging instructions. Drain well.

8. To serve, place the noodles on a serving platter and top with the meatballs.

Use a vegetable peeler to peel the carrot length wise into long strips, then roll them into curls.

Garnish the platter with scallions, sesame seeds and carrot curls.

Enjoy!  Eat well my friends!

Wednesday, May 1, 2019

Slow Cooker Pork Chops

What a nice way to start the month off than with a nice slow cooker recipe for Pork Chops..Huh?

If you've never had pork chops from a slow cooker before, this is the recipe to try.

INGREDIENTS:
 
2 pounds bone-in pork chop (about 6 chops),

3/4-inch thick

1 medium onion, chopped (about 1/2 cup)

1 can (10 1/2 ounces) Campbell’s® Condensed Cream of Mushroom Soup orCampbell's® Condensed 98% Fat Free Cream of Mushroom Soup (Shameless plkugs)

1 can (10 1/2 ounces) Campbell’s® Condensed Cream of Celery Soup

6 cups hot cooked instant white rice


DIRECTIONS:

Step 1

Season the pork as desired. Layer the pork and onion in a 3 1/2-quart slow cooker.

 Stir the soups in a small bowl.

 Pour the soup mixture over all.

Step 2

Cover and cook on LOW for 8 to 9 hours or until the pork is fork-tender.

 Season to taste.

 Serve the pork and sauce with the rice

And that my friends is it...Enjoy!  Eat Well my friends.

Food Safety Tips
Protect yourself against food-borne illnesses.


1. Use a "refrigerator thermometer" to keep your food stored at a safe temperature (below 40 degrees fahrenheit).

Cold temperatures slow the growth of bacteria. Ensuring that your refrigerator temperature stays at 40 degrees Fahrenheit or colder is one of the most effective ways to reduce your risk of food-borne illness. You can buy a refrigerator/freezer thermometer at appliance stories, home centers (i.e. Home Depot), and kitchen stores including online ones, such as Cooking.com.

2. Defrost food in the refrigerator, the microwave, or in cold water... never on the counter!

Perishable foods should never be thawed on the counter for longer than two hours because, while the center of the food may remain frozen, the outer surface may enter the Danger Zone, the range of temperatures between 40 and 140 degrees fahrenheit, in which bacteria multiply rapidly. If you’re short on time, use the microwave or you can thaw meat and poultry in airtight packaging in cold water. Change the water every half-hour so it stays cold and use the thawed food immediately.

3. Always use separate cutting boards for raw meat/poultry/fish and cooked foods/fresh produce.

Bacteria from uncooked meat, poultry, and fish can contaminate cooked foods and fresh produce. An important way to reduce this risk is to use separate cutting boards for raw meat/poultry/ fish, and cooked foods/fresh produce.

4. Always cook meat to proper temperatures, using a calibrated instant-read thermometer to make sure.

One effective way to prevent illness is to use a food thermometer to check the internal temperature of meat, poultry, and egg dishes. The USDA Recommended Safe Minimum Internal Temperatures are as follows:

* Beef, veal, and lamb (steaks and roasts), fish - 145 degrees fahrenheit

* Pork and ground beef - 160 degrees fahrenheit

* Poultry - 165 degrees fahrenheit.

Cook meats like roasts and steaks to lower temperatures, closer to medium-rare, so that they retain their moisture. It is recommended that those who are at high risk for developing food-borne illness (i.e. pregnant women and their unborn babies, newborns, young children, older adults, people with weakened immune systems, or certain chronic illnesses) should follow the USDA guidelines.

5. Avoid unpasteurized/raw milk and cheeses made from unpasteurized milk that are aged less than 60 days.

Raw milk is milk from cows, sheep, or goats that has not been pasteurized (heated to a very high temperature for a specific length of time) to kill harmful bacteria that may be present. These bacteria, which include salmonella, E. coli and listeria, can cause serious illness and sometimes even death. The bacteria in raw milk can be especially dangerous to pregnant women, children, the elderly, and people with weakened immune systems or chronic illnesses. Raw milk cheeses aged 60 days or longer are okay, since the salt and acidity of the cheese-making process make for a hostile environment to pathogens.

6. Never eat "runny" eggs or foods, such as cookie dough, that contain raw eggs.

Even eggs that have clean, intact shells may be contaminated with salmonella, so it’s important to cook eggs thoroughly until both the yolk and the white are firm. Casseroles and other dishes containing eggs should be cooked to 160 degrees fahrenheit and you can use an instant-read food thermometer to check. Eggs should always be cooked fully and those who are at high risk for developing foodborne illness (pregnant women and their unborn babies, newborns, young children, older adults, and people with weakened immune systems or certain chronic illnesses should follow the USDA guidelines. If you can’t resist runny eggs or sampling cookie batter, use pasteurized eggs. They’re found near other eggs in large supermarkets.

7. Always wash your hands in warm soapy water for at least 20 seconds before handling food and after touching raw meat, poultry, or eggs.

You can pick up a lot of bacteria out in the world, so it’s important to always wash your hands before you eat or prepare food. You should also wash your hands after touching any uncooked meat, poultry, fish, or eggs, as the bacteria from these foods can contaminate cooked foods and fresh produce. Use soap and warm water and wash thoroughly for at least 20 seconds.

8. Always heat leftover foods to 165 degrees fahrenheit.

The USDA recommends heating all cooked leftovers to 165 degrees fahrenheit in order to kill all potentially dangerous bacteria.

9. Never eat meat, poultry, eggs, or sliced fresh fruits and vegetables that have been left out for more than two hours or more than one hour in temperatures hotter than 90 degrees Fahrenheit.

If you leave perishable foods out of the refrigerator or freezer for more than two hours they may enter the Danger Zone—the unsafe temperatures between 40 and 140 degrees Fahrenheit, in which bacteria multiply rapidly.

10. Whenever there’s a food recall, check products stored at home to make sure they are safe.

You should discard any food that’s been recalled because it’s associated with the outbreak of a food-borne illness. But, according to a survey conducted by Rutgers University during the fall of 2008, only about 60% of Americans search their homes for foods that have been recalled because of contamination. For more information on food recalls, visit the website Recalls.gov






Cavier & Vodka
Courtesy of The Lady (Bug) of the Household