Mighty Oakes Meatloaf

Preparing the vegies-

2 T Olive oil
1/2 onion finely chopped
2 stalks celery finely chopped
3 carrots finely chopped
Optional - Chopped Green or Read Bell Pepper
1 t thyme
1-2 garlic cloves
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1 lb lean ground beef
1 lb Italian sausage (I often will use Jimmy Dean Pork sausage in a tube)
2 beaten eggs
1/4 - 1/2 c milk (depending on how loose you want your loaf to be)
1/2 t pepper
2 T Worcestershire sauce
1/4 c catsup
2 T Dijon mustard
1 c bread crumbs
3 pinches red pepper flakes

Glaze:
1/4 c catsup
2 T brown sugar
2 T Dijon mustard

This recipe serves 8 - 10

Directions

1.  In a skillet add olive oil and swirl around the bottom of the pan to coat well.  Add celery and carrots, when they begin to soften add the onion and thyme and cook for 3-5 minutes. Add the garlic just prior to removing the mix from the pan, cook just long enough to bring the fragrance out of the garlic (about 2 min).

2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

3.  In a separate bowl add all remaining ingredients EXCEPT the glaze items.  Mix together very well (I use surgical gloves) and put into a well greased bread loaf pan.  Pat down to leave no air spaces.  I like to put in a divide down the middle which I think helps get the middle of the load cooked well.

4.  Bake until meat thermometer reads 160 degrees, about 1 hour.  Drain grease from the top.  Leave in oven while you prepare the glaze.

5.  In a small sauce pan cook the catsup, brown sugar and mustard until the sugar is totally dissolved and the color darkens.  Pour glaze over meatloaf and put back into the oven for 5 minutes.

6.  Take meatloaf out of the oven and let it rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Instant Pot - Pot Roast

Instant Pot - Pot Roast – Mixture of recipes that comes out amazing!

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 80 minutes

Total Time  3 hour minutes

Servings 6 servings

·       1 3-5 pound beef chuck roast see notes for instructions from frozen

·       1 tablespoon Olive oil

·       Montreal Steak seasoning

·       1 pound red potatoes, medium size

·       4 large carrots (not baby carrots), chopped into large chunks 

·       1 large yellow onion, chopped

·       1 cup Red Wine (optional but adjust stock if omitted)

·       2 cups beef broth

·       2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

·       3 sprigs fresh Rosemary

·       3 spring fresh Thyme

·       1/4 cup water

·       2 tablespoons corn starch

Instructions

Set Pot to "sauté".  Season roast generously with Steak seasoning.

When Instant Pot says “Hot” drizzle oil in instant pot, wait about 30 seconds, then use tongs to place roast in the pot. Do not move it for 3-4 minutes until well-seared and browned. Use tongs to turn the roast onto another side for 3-4 minutes, repeating until all sides are browned. Remove to a clean plate.

Add in onions and carrots and cook for an additional 3-4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Deglaze with red wine, scraping the bottom of the pot to get all of the delicious bits.

Add roast back into the Instant Pot and add in the beef stock and Worcestershire sauce.

Lock the lid into place, place vent to sealing, push "Manual," and set time to 60 minutes. The Instant Pot will release some steam as it comes up to pressure, then it will seal automatically. 

When the cooking time is done, allow the Instant Pot to naturally vent for at least 10 minutes, 20 is better. Using a wooden spoon, carefully push the valve open to release the rest of the pressure. Remove lid. 

Skim as much of the fat off the top as you can.   Transfer the roast, potatoes, onions, and carrots to a platter and shred the roast with 2 forks into chunks.

Use a handheld strainer to scoop out bits from the broth in the pot. Set instant pot to "soup" setting. Whisk together the water and corn starch. Once broth is boiling, stir in corn starch mixture until the gravy thickens. Add salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste. 

Serve gravy poured over roast and veggies and garnish with fresh thyme or parsley if desired. 

Recipe Notes

1.     The recipe is written for a thawed roast. If using a frozen roast, you will need to add about 20-30 minutes to your pressure cooking time. You can also skip the searing step and simply rub the spices on the roast and then place it in the pot and then move ahead to the pressure cooking step. 

Tater Tot Casserole

Ingredients:
1 medium Onion
1 pound lean Hamburger
Pepper and A few dashes of garlic powder
1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup
1 T worchester sauce

1 package (2 cups) Shredded Cheddar Cheese

1 regular size bag Tater Tots

Directions:
Set oven to 350°.
Chop onion. Brown hamburger with onion. Season with pepper and garlic powder. Drain if necessary. Pour soup over meat mixture and stir to incorporate.
Spread hamburger mixture on bottom of 9X13 pan. Spread shredded cheese evenly over meat mixture. Add Tater Tots evenly on top.
Bake in oven 1 hour or until heated through.
Makes: 6 servings

Submitted by Shauna Oakes

Crock Pot Lasagna

Yep, you can make lasagna in the crock pot! Love this during the summer when the last thing I want to do is turn on my oven and escalate the temperature inside my already super hot house.
This recipe is from Relief Society.

Lasagna in the Crockpot
-8 lasagna noodles, uncooked
-1 lb ground beef, turkey whatever
-1 tsp italian seasoning ( I just put as much in as I feel like)
-28 oz jar spaghetti sauce
-1/3 cup water
-15 oz cottage cheese
-2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (I throw in a bit of parmesan also)

Grease your slow cooker. Break noodles and place half in the bottom. Brown meat and drain. Stir italian seasoning into meat. Spread half of meat over noodles. Layer half of sauce and water, half of cottage cheese, and half of shredded cheese over meat. Repeat layers. Cook on low for 5 hours.

Submitted by Kim Hansen

Beef Jerky

This makes REALLY GOOD beef jerky. Currently I am hiding the remaining batch from Sara so we have enough to go camping!

2 lbs. london broil - cut into thin strips
(It helps to partially freeze the meat - then slice with a sharp knife removing all fat)
1/4 cup soy sauce (watch ingredients if making this GF)
2 T Worchestershire sauce
2 T liquid smoke
2 T brown sugar
2 t salt (can reduce this)
1 t ground black pepper (I like this corsely ground)
1 t garlic powder
1 t onion powder
1 t paprika

Mix everything except meat in small bowl - then pour over meat. I put it all in a large zip loc bag - squish it around so all the meat is coated and then place in the fridge overnight.

Arrange the meat on trays of a dehydrator and dry till done. (4+ hours)

Store in airtight container.

Sweet and Sour Meatballs- Kim and Andrew

From http://mykitchencafe.blogspot.com

1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef (you don't want the beef to be too high in fat because the fat will all pool at the bottom of the baking dish after baking - big time grody-ness in my book)
3/4 cup quick oats
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1/2 cup milk
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Combine all of the ingredients and mix well. Form into about 12 balls, eacha bout 2 inches in diameter. Place in a casserole dish. Cover with sauce (below). Bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes. Serve over rice.
Sauce:
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon mustard
1/4 cup barbeque sauce
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Combine ingredients and blend thoroughly. Heat in a small saucepan until combined and sugar is dissolved and pour over meatballs. (This dish is not overly abundant on sauce so if you enjoy things a bit saucier, double the sauce ingredients.)

French Dip Sandwiches

These are great! My family kept saying they were even better than any they've had at restaurants! I think they were even better the next day. The recipe is from allrecipes.com
INGREDIENTS
1 (4 pound) boneless beef roast
1/2 cup soy sauce
1 beef bouillon cube
1 bay leaf
3 whole black peppercorns
1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crushed
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon garlic powder
Hogi rolls

DIRECTIONS
Remove and discard all visible fat from the roast. Place trimmed roast in a slow cooker.
In a medium bowl, combine soy sauce, bouillon, bay leaf, peppercorns, rosemary, thyme, and garlic powder. Pour mixture over roast, and add enough water to almost cover roast. Cover, and cook on Low heat for 10 to 12 hours, or until meat is very tender.
Remove meat from broth, reserving broth. Shred meat with a fork, and distribute on bread for sandwiches. Used reserved broth for dipping.

Shredded BBQ Chicken Sliders with Creamy Coleslaw

I got this recipe from picky-palate.com. Andrew and I really enjoyed these. It is sometimes difficult to find something that both and Andrew and I are thrilled about, we have pretty different tastes. Either he loves it and I'm like "It's alright" or vice versa. So it is great when we find recipes that we both really like! Those are the only ones I like to post. The only alteration I would make to these is to reduce the mustard. If you are a mustard fan you might like it the way it is, but mustard doesn't thrill me so I would probably cut the mustard in half next time for both the BBQ sauce and the coleslaw.

BBQ Sauce:

1- 1/2 c. ketchup

3 T Dijon Mustard

4 T Worchestershire Sauce

2 T Apple Cider Vinegar

1-1/2 T lemon juice

4 T brown sugar

1 tsp black pepper

1 tsp honey

pinch of salt

-2 large boneless chicken breasts, cooked and shredded

Simple Coleslaw:

16 oz bag coleslaw mix or cabbage

1/2 c. mayo or miracle whip

2 T sugar

1 T Dijon Mustard

1 tsp honey

-Whole wheat dinner rolls

Directions:

1. Combine all BBQ ingredients into a medium saucepan over med-low heat. Cook for 15 minutes, stirring often. Reduce heat to low and stir in shredded chicken. Let simmer.
2. Place cabbage/coleslaw mix into a large bowl. Place mayo, sugar, mustard and honey into a small bowl and mix together. Pour and stir into cabbage until well combined.
3. Spoon BBQ chicken onto bottom rolls. Top with a spoonful of coleslaw, then close with top rolls. Enjoy!

Makes 10-12

Kenton's Shepherd's Pie

Easy, quick and it covers almost all of the major food groups. Best of all, anyone can make this!

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 lb cooked hamburger or stew meat
• 1 can tomato soup
• 2 cans string beans, drained
• 4-5 cups cooked potatoes, mashed
• 1 c. grated cheese
• 
  
Steps

1. In a casserole dish, stir together meat and tomato soup (do not add water). Pat mixture down to cover the bottom of the pan.
2. Spoon string beans on top of meat mixture.
3. Plop mashed potatoes on top of beans
4. Top with grated cheese. Cover pan with foil
5. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes or until soup bubbles to the top.

Easy Beef Stroganoff

Easy and Fast Dinner - and yummy to the tummy!

Ingredients

• 3 Tbs olive oil
• 1 lb. round chuck roast or round steak, cubed
• 1 onion chopped
• 8 oz fresh mushrooms, sliced
• 1 c beef broth
• 1 Tbs Worcester sauce
• 1 can cream of mushroom soup
• 1 pkg Onion Soup dry 
• 1 sm. carton sour cream
• noodles or rice

Steps

1. Trim excess fat from steak and cut steak into bite size pieces.
2. Add to frying pan 3 Tbs olive oil, once hot cook beef to medium rare in small batches.  Remove from pan.
3. Add onion and mushrooms to the frying pan and cook until onion is soft.
4. Add broth, mushroom soups and Onion soup and Worcester sauce to onions and mushroom. When this sauce is hot, add meat back to pan and simmer until meat is tender.
5. Add sour cream and simmer 5 minutes.
6. Serve over noodles or rice.

Chinese Honey Beef

This is a fast and easy Beef recipe form my favorite chef - Sam, Sam the Cooking Guy!

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds steak - a nice New York would be ideal
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 2 tablespoons cooking sherry OPTIONAL!
• 1/3 cup honey
• 1/2 lb something green - asparagus, green beans, Chinese Long Beans - whatever and cut into 1 inch pieces

Steps

1. Cut steak into thin strips, and marinate in soy, garlic, honey and sherry
2. Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons oil in pan and saute green stuff until almost done
3. Add beef - without sauce and stir fry until done and you're done
4. Serving with rice would be nice.

Sweet & Sour Meatballs

Meatballs:

1 1/4 lbs ground beef

1 egg

1 envelope onion soup mix

1/4 cup barbeque sauce

1/2 cup oats

Sauce:

1 (15 oz) can pineapple chunks, drained and juice reserved

1/4 cup vinegar

1 T ketchup

1/3 cup brown sugar

2 T corn starch

1/2 cup water

1 red bell pepper, cut into large chunks

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line cookie sheet with foil. Combine meatball ingredients in medium bowl, mixing well. Form into about 20 meatballs. Bake uncovered for 20-25 minutes, or until browned throughout.

Meanwhile, whisk together reserved pineapple juice, vinegar, ketchup, and brown sugar in saucepan. In separate container, combine cornstarch and water, and pour into saucepan. Heat until thickened. Add pineapple chunks and bell peppers and remove from heat.

Serve meatballs over rice and ladle sauce on top. DELICIOUS!

Jack O'Lantern Sloppy Joe Biscuits

Ingredients:

• 1 tube Pillsbury Grands Biscuits
• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 can Sloppy Joe sauce
• 8 slices of American or cheddar cheese

Brown the ground beef in a frying pan until no longer pink. Add the Sloppy Joe sauce according
to the cans directions. Turn a muffin pan upside down. Place the biscuits over each muffin cup.
Bake according to the biscuits tube's directions. After baking carefully remove the biscuits from the pan. They now form little bowls.

Add the Sloppy Joe mixture to each "bowl" . Make a Jack O' Lantern out of each piece of cheese
by using the lip of a cup (or a round cookie cutter) to cut a circle out of cheese. Use a sharp knife
to cut the eyes, nose, and mouth out to form the face

Beef Enchilada Casserole

I don't think I have ever made beef enchiladas before. But on Sunday I was getting ready to prepare dinner, and I had bought tortillas but did not have any chicken on hand. I did however have some lean ground beef I had bought for taco salads. (You can also use ground turkey but I could not find any at the store that day). Anyways, I couldn't find any recipes that I liked so I just got some ideas and created my own thing. And luckily, it was, fast, easy, and turned out fantastic! Yay!

Here is what I did:

Ingredients,
1 lb. lean ground beef
1 pkg. taco seasoning
1/4-1/2 cup chopped onion (I used yellow)
2 cloves minced garlic
1 can mild enchilada sauce
1 can green chilies
Shredded cheese of choice (I used colby jack)
6 ten or 12 inch Tortillas of choice (We used flour)

Directions:
Brown beef in oil, follow directions on taco seasoning pkg. Add chopped onion, garlic and chilies to the pan during the last five minutes or so of the meat cooking. Place two tortillas in a 13x9 inch pan, so it covers the bottom of the pan. Pour some enchilada sauce over the tortillas, spread it around with a spoon to cover the tortillas, put about half the meat mixture over the sauced tortillas, spread the mixture so its even. Sprinkle cheese to cover everything. Then put two more tortillas down, spread sauce over again, Put the rest of the meat mixture over that. Sprinkle with cheese again. Finally, put two more tortillas down, spread sauce over again and sprinkle all over with cheese. Cover with foil and cook at 35o degrees F for about 45 -50 min.
Voila! This dish is full of flavor! We ate it with a side alad and some raspberry lemonade I believe. We had leftovers and they were even better the next day!

Zucchini Casserole-Good and Easy

Ranging from the size of your pinky finger to as big as a baseball bat, zucchini squash as been a staple in Grandma and Grandpas garden for as long as I have been alive. And forever Grandma has been hiding zucchini in recipes, like pancakes! But here is an Official Zucchini Recipe for you:

What to do with the zucchini your grandmother gives you:

• Several medium zucchini, leave peel on
• 1 lb hamburger
• 1/2 chopped onion
• 1 can cream of mushroom soup
• 1 cup grated chedder cheese

1. Slice several medium zucchini, leaving peel on.
2. Cook in boiling water until tender. Drain well.
3. Meanwhile, hamburger & chopped onions if desired. (it really smells good while it cooks.)
4. Place cooked, drained zucchini and cooked hamburger in casserole dish. Stir in soup and some grated cheese (1 cup).
5. Bake in 350 oven 1/2 hr. or microwave until cheese melts and soup is bubbly.
6. Serves 2 or more, depending how hungry your friends are.

This is good served with rice, potatoes, or just a salad.