Monday, January 22, 2024

Pasta Shells With Ground Beef


 

This pasta shells with ground beef recipe is so delicious and easy that anyone can make it. I learned to make this skillet from a friend of mine, but he told me that he has inspired it from his Mexican neighbor recipe who calls it Conchitas. The term Conchitas comes from the shape of the pasta that is very much like like a goulash but with a Mexican flare.

INGREDIENTS:


1.5 Pound of ground beef 

Garlic clove 

Black pepper 

Sazon perfecta seasoning. 

2 cups of medium-size pasta shells 

1/4 cup of oil 

4 cups of water 

2 tablespoons of granulated knorr chicken bouillon 

4 tablespoons of the granulated knorr tomato bouillon 

3 diced serrano chiles half of an onion 

1 can of Rotel a handful of chopped cilantro garlic and onion powder to taste 

2 packets of the red sazon 

1 bay leaf

DIRECTIONS:

Brown the ground beef with chopped garlic, black pepper, and Sazon perfecta seasoning. 

 While the meats is cooking, in a deep skillet brown pasta shells in 1/4 cup of oil (just as you would brown rice a Roni). 

Drain the grease from your ground beef and add the meat to the pasta shells. 

Add 4 cups of water, 2 tablespoons of granulated knorr chicken bouillon, 

3 diced serrano chiles, and 4 tablespoons of the granulated knorr tomato bouillon, chop in a half of an onion, a can of Rotel, a handful of chopped cilantro, 

2 packets of the red Sazon, one bay leaf, and add garlic and onion powder according to your taste. 

Stir and cover cook on medium-high until your shells are aldente. serve! and enjoy this easy Mexican pasta shells with ground beef recipe. 

 Enjoy!!

Wednesday, January 10, 2024

Honey Grilled Barbecued Shrimp


 

Ingredients 

 ⅓ cup Your Favorite Barbecue Sauce 

⅓ cup Honey 

4 cloves Garlic (finely minced or pressed) 

3 tablespoons Chili Garlic Sauce (or sriracha, optional and to taste if you prefer some spiciness) 


1 ¼ pounds Fresh Shrimp (cleaned and deveined, I use U20 shrimp, with tails still on; you can use larger shrimp or shrimp without tails on if desired) 

2 tablespoons Olive Oil add Salt (and freshly ground black pepper, for seasoning)


 add Fresh Lemon Wedges (for serving) 

add Parsley (or fresh cilantro, optional for garnishing) 


Directions 

1. To a medium bowl, add the barbecue sauce, honey, garlic, optional sriracha or chili garlic sauce, and stir to combine. 

2.Divide mixture into two bowls (one for brushing on the shrimp while grilling and the other as a dipping sauce when serving); 


Monday, January 1, 2024

Sweet Potato Pie


 Happy New Year! 

DOES ANYONE HERE ACTUALLY STILL EAT Sweet Potato Pie ???😋😍 

INGREDIENTS:

1 (1 pound) sweet potato

 1/2 cup butter, softened 

1 cup white sugar 


1/2 cup milk 

2 eggs 


1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg 


1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 


1 teaspoon vanilla extract 

1 (9 inch) unbaked pie crust 


DIRECTIONS: -Boil sweet potato whole in skin for 40 to 50 minutes, or until done. Run cold water over the sweet potato, and remove the skin. -Break apart sweet potato in a bowl. 

Add butter, and mix well with mixer. 


Stir in sugar, milk, eggs, nutmeg, cinnamon and vanilla. Beat on medium speed until mixture is smooth

. Pour filling into an unbaked pie crust. 

Bake the Pie: Bake the sweet potato pie in the preheated oven for 55 to 60 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. 

The pie will puff up like a souffle during baking and will sink down as it cools. 


Cool and Serve: Allow the sweet potato pie to cool before serving. Once cooled, you can slice and serve the delicious sweet potato pie. Enjoy! 

❤ Indulge in the delightful flavors of this homemade sweet potato pie. It’s perfect for holidays or any occasion. This recipe yields a scrumptious sweet potato pie with a rich and creamy filling, spiced with nutmeg and cinnamon, all encased in a buttery pie crust.


 Enjoy the warmth and sweetness of this classic dessert!

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