Taco Soup

from the Glenview Ward 1997 cookbook, submitted by Shelly Adams (my old VT companion)

1/2 lb grd beef
1 onion, chopped
1 pkg taco seasoning
2 16 oz cans stewed tomatoes
1 15 oz can kidney beans, drained (I sub pinto beans, since we live in the pinto bean belt, and I usually cook up 1 1/2-2 lbs instead of a can. Stretch that soup!)
1 16 oz can corn, drained
2 8 oz cans tomato sauce
1/4 C brown sugar
salt and pepper to taste

Brown beef with onion. Remove any grease. Stir in taco seasoning, tomatoes, beans, corn, tomato sauce, brown sugar and salt and pepper. Simmer til warmed through. Serve with tortilla chips. Add grated cheese and sour cream to your bowl of soup if desired.

My variations: I often use up leftover taco meat in this soup, makes it a snap to put together. I often leave out the sugar and stewed tomatoes. I have started putting stewed tomatoes through my blender to reduce the chunks and that helps. I don't get bothered by tomato acidity, hence no sugar added, but if tomatoes are too acidic for you, throw the sugar in.

looks better in the bowl with some cheese

Calzones

I tried to do Once-A-Month cooking a few times while living in Provo. This recipe is one I found in a Family Fun magazine article on once-a-month cooking. They are a bit of work, but so delicious, it's worth the work. 

Dough: 1 C water

             2 Tbsp olive oil

            1 tsp salt

            3 C flour

            1 1/4 tsp yeast

Mix ingredients together to form soft dough. Cover and set aside.

Filling: 1 C ricotta cheese

           1 egg, beaten

           1/4 C Parmesan cheese, grated

           1 C shredded mozzarella

           1 1/2 Tbsp Italian parsley(I just use Italian seasoning mix)

           1/8 tsp salt

           Pepperoni

Heat oven to 425 degrees.

Mix filling ingredients, except pepperoni. Divide dough into 4 pieces, form 6 - 6 1/2 in circles. Put 1/4 of the filling (approx 1/2 C) on 1/2 of each circle, leaving a 1 inch border. Top with 5-7 pepperoni pieces. Dampen edges of dough with water - fold over and pinch seal. Place on a cookie sheet sprinkled with cornmeal. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until golden brown. Serve with marinara sauce or Simple Sauce.

*we often add other pizza-type toppings such as olives or peppers. We put a bit of those toppings on the top of the calzone before baking so we know what's in each one.

*for Once-A-Month cooking purposes these can be frozen for future use. After baking, let them cool and package individually. To serve later, put into a 400 degree oven for 15-18 minutes and then serve with sauce.

Slow cooker chicken noodle soup

1 1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts
5 medium carrots, peeled and chopped
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
4 stalks celery, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
6 cups chicken broth (3 - 15 oz cans)
1 cup water
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp dried rosemary, crushed
1/4 tsp celery seed, crushed (optional)
2 Bay leaves
Salt and pepper, to taste
2 cups uncooked wide egg noodles
3 1/2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley
1 Tbsp lemon juice

To a slow cooker, add chicken (un-cut), diced carrots, onion, celery, and garlic. Drizzle olive oil over top then add in chicken broth, water, thyme, rosemary, celery seed, bay leaves and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cover and cook on low heat 6-7 hours.

Remove chicken and allow to rest 10 minutes then dice into bite sized pieces or shred. Meanwhile, add egg noodles and parsley to slow cooker. Increase temperature to high, cover and cook 10 minutes longer (or until noodles are tender). Stir in lemon juice and toss in cooked diced chicken. Serve warm with saltine crackers, if desired.

* I just crushed the rosemary in the palm of my hand then for the celery seed if using, I placed it in a ziploc bag and crushed it with the flat side of a meat mallet.

Salted Caramel Popcorn

This recipe makes about 16 cups of caramel popcorn.

Ingredients:
1/2 cups unpopped popcorn kernels
1 cup salted butter
1 cup light brown sugar
1/3 cup light corn syrup
1 1/2 - 2 tsp. Kosher or sea salt, divided

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 300°
2. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Set aside.
3. Pop popcorn kernels using air popper into a large bowl.
4. In a small saucepan melt butter, brown sugar, corn syrup, and 1 tsp salt together over medium heat. Bring to a boil for 4 minutes without stirring.
5. Pour Caramel mixture over popcorn and stir to coat evenly.
6. Pour popcorn into lined pan, sprinkle remaining salt on top (1/2 tsp - 1 tsp depending on your personal taste preference) and place in oven. Bake for 30 minutes. Stirring every 10 minutes.
7. Allow popcorn to cool on a parchment lined counter.

* You can add in 2 cups of nuts to the un-coated popcorn if desired! Coat with caramel as States!

Simple Sauce

This sauce came from Family Fun Magazine to be used with Calzones. link here

It's deceptively simple, but so yummy with the calzones. 

2 28 oz cans tomatoes, puréed. 

4 cloves garlic, pressed or minced

In a large saucepan, sauté garlic in 3 Tbsp olive oil over medium heat for about 1 minute. 

Add tomatoes and salt to taste. Reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes. Serve with calzones. 

*for Once-A-Month cooking purposes: after simmering remove from heat and let cool 15 minutes. Put 2 C in ziploc baggies, label, and freeze. 

Chicken Cacciatore

2-3 boneless skinless chicken breasts
Vegetable oil
1 green pepper, thin sliced
1 red pepper, thin sliced
1 medium onion, thin sliced
2 cans of tomatoes (any kind, I use the diced Italian style)
1 can tomato sauce
Italian seasoning
Garlic powder
Salt and Pepper, to taste
Pasta (any kind)

Cut chicken into bite sized pieces. Flour and brown in oil. Take out of skillet, and put in peppers and onion. Cook for about 5 minutes.

Add chicken and veggies to Dutch oven. Take the 2 cans of tomatoes and blend in blender until smooth. (this makes the sauce a little more thick then just using tomato sauce.) pour over chicken and veggies and add tomato sauce. Season to your liking with Italian seasoning, garlic powder, and salt and pepper.

Cover and simmer on low for 40 minutes. Stir so it doesn't burn to the bottom on the Dutch oven. Serve over your favorite pasta with parmesan cheese. :)

Stuffed Peppers

4-5 green or red peppers (you can add more, depending on how many people you need to feed)

1 1/2 lbs of hamburger 

1 1/2 cups of rice

1 can tomato sauce

1 medium onion 

Garlic powder 

Italian seasoning 

Salt and Pepper, to taste 

In 3 cups of water add rice. Bring to a boil turn on low, cover and cook about 40 minutes. (or what it says on the back of rice bag) Meanwhile, brown hamburger in skillet. Add minced onion, garlic powder, and Italian seasoning.

When rice is done, add rice to hamburger. Add tomato sauce. Mix together and add salt and pepper.

Cut off tops of peppers and clean them out. Next, spoon mixture into peppers and fill to top. Add a little bit of water to the bottom of the pan. Cover with foil tightly, cook at 375° for about 1 hour or until peppers are somewhat soft.

*sometimes I add mozzarella cheese on top of the peppers before they go into the oven. 

Also, if you are using more than 6 peppers I would double the rice/meat filling.

Yummm. :) enjoy!