Beef Stroganoff - Suzie Willyerd

2 beef serloin steaks, trimmed
1/2 sweet vadalia onion, chopped coursly
2 cloves garlic, minced
8 oz sliced mushrooms (or a 6oz can of sliced mushrooms)
1 tbsp olive oil
3 cups low sodium beef broth
1/4 cup flour
1/2 cup water
8 oz fat free sour cream
salt and pepper
1 package of spiral noodles (or you can use egg noodles)

Freeze the steaks for 20 minutes to make it easier to slice. Slice into thin strips. In a large pan on medium heat, saute beef strips, onion, garlic and mushrooms in olive oil until onions are tender and beef is browned. Add beef broth and bring to a boil.
In a bowl combine the flour and water,mix well. Add the sour cream and mix well again. Add a little of the heated beef broth to the bowl and stir (this heats the mixture and makes it so it won't be lumpy when you put it into the big pan). Then add flour/sour cream mixture to the rest of the broth. Add salt and pepper to taste and stir until thick and bubbley. Serve over cooked noodles.

Slow Cooker Lasagna - Ashley Whipple

1 pound bulk Italian sausage
1 medium onion, chopped (1/2 cup)
3 15 oz cans Italian-style tomato sauce
2 teaspoons dried basil leaves
½ teaspoon salt
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (8 oz)
1 container (15 oz) part-skim ricotta cheese
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
15 uncooked lasagna noodles

Cook sausage and onion in 10-inch skillet over medium heat 6 to 8 minutes, stirring occasionally, until sausage is no longer pink; drain. Stir in tomato sauce, basil and salt. Mix 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese and the ricotta and Parmesan cheeses. (Refrigerate remaining mozzarella cheese while lasagna cooks.) Spoon one-fourth of the sausage mixture into 6-quart slow cooker; top with 5 noodles, broken into pieces to fit. Spread with half of the cheese mixture and one-fourth of the sausage mixture. Top with 5 noodles, remaining cheese mixture and one-fourth of the sausage mixture. Top with remaining 5 noodles and remaining sausage mixture. Cover and cook on Low heat setting 4 to 6 hours or until noodles are tender. Sprinkle top of lasagna with remaining 1 cup mozzarella cheese. Cover and let stand about 10 minutes or until cheese is melted. Cut into pieces.

Ashley's Notes:
I use regular tomato sauce and mix in some Italian seasoning mix, plus the basil leaves.
My lasagna is usually done sometime between 3 and 4 hours, so it helps to know if your crockpot runs hotter than normal.

Mostacalli with feta and spinach - Suzie Willyerd

1 package mostacalli noodles (or ziti)

1 can diced tomatoes with garlic and olive oil OR 2 diced tomatoes and 2 garlic cloves sautéd in olive oil

1 green onion, chopped

1 package fresh baby spinach

1 package tomato basil feta cheese

salt and pepper to taste

Cook pasta according to package directions.

Combine onion and tomatoes in skillet and heat through, add spinach and cook until wilted. Add most of the feta cheese and stir. Pour over cooked pasta and toss to coat, sprinkle remaining feta cheese over the top. You can add strips of grilled chicken if desired. I've also added kalamata olives in the past, they work great in it too.

Grilled Thai Lettuce Wraps - Ashley Whipple

2/3 cups bottled peanut sauce
2 Tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
2 Tbsp apple juice
1 lb chicken tenderloins
2/3 cups matchstick or shredded carrots
1/2 cup sliced sugar snap peas
1/4 cup chopped green onion
6 large iceberg lettuce leaves

1. combine peanut sauce, and apple juice in a small bowl. Reserve 1/2 cup. Pour the remainder in resealable plastic bag. Add chicken, seal bag, and toss to coat. Set aside.
2. Coat grill rack with nonstick cooking spray. Preheat grill to medium direct hear(300° F to 350° F). Grill chicken 3 minutes per side or until no longer pink. Remove from grill and shred with a fork.
3. Combine shredded chicken, carrots, sugar snap peas, onion, and reserved peanut sauce mixture in large bowl; mix thoroughly.
4. Place chicken mixture evenly in 6 lettuce leaves and serve.

Cooking Class: Green Chili

Last Thursday Kellie Weaver was gracious enough to have a cooking class at her home to make Green Chile. This is a very flexible dish which can be tweaked easily to your individual tastes.

6 cans cream of celery soup
5 cans of water (More or less depending on what consistency you like your chili.)
A few pounds of roast, chicken, turkey, cube steak, brisket (whatever and however much meat you like.) Kellie used a beef roast and likes her chili extra meaty.
Chopped Green Chilies - fresh roasted, frozen, or canned
Garlic Powder

Cook and shred your meat of choice. Add meat, celery soup, and water to a pot. Then add the garlic powder and chopped green chilies. Kellie used about 4 lbs of fresh roasted green chile's from Phoenix Ranch Market. She also likes a LOT of green chili. Heat and serve. The longer the flavors have to meld, the more delicious the dish. Leftover chili is a big favorite at the Weaver's house.

Serving suggestions: smothered burritos, over rice, or soup.

Buying green chilies-
Fresh roasted will typically have the most heat, followed by frozen, and then canned. Frozen and canned varieties usually have mild or hot varieties so you can mix and match to your families taste.

North Carolina Style BBQ - Ashley Whipple

6 lb. Boston Butt pork roast(Pork Shoulder) cut into 2 inch cubes
1 ½ cups white vinegar
½ bottle worcheshire sauce (5 ounces)
2 tsp salt, 2 tsp sugar, 2 tsp crushed red pepper, ½ tsp black pepper.

Simmer for 5 hours on stove top or in slow cooker, stirring occasionally. Drain and let sit for 1 hour, turning occasionally. Fork shred meat and serve on hamburger buns. Good condiments are Coleslaw or Louisiana brand hot sauce.

Makes a large quantity and is good for freezing the prepared meat.

Spaghetti Sauce - Danya Paxman

Saute - yellow onion, 1/2 green bell pepper - Add 2 lbs ground beef or turkey. Brown and drain.

Add 1 can diced tomatoes, 2 small cans tomato sauce, 1 large Schilling spaghetti seasoning mix, 1 can mushrooms(or used fresh), 2-3 beef bouillon cubes, large pat of puter. Water to thin.

Add extra: oregano, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper, kitchen bouquet. Simmer. Cool on counter top and freeze in containers. (Don't fill to the top - it expands.)

Mexican Meat Mix

5 lbs beef roast and/or pork roast
3 Tablespoons shortening or oil
3 onions, chopped
2 (4 oz) cans green chilies
2 (7 oz) cans El Pato Hot Sauce or preferred salsa
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
4 Tablespoons flour
1 teaspoon ground cumin
Juices from roast
Salt to taste

Cook roast (12 hours in a 200 degree oven or 8-10 hours on low in crock pot.) Drain meat, reserving the juices. Cook meat, remove any bones and shred meat, set aside. Melt shortening in a large skillet. Add onions and green chilies. Saute one minute. Add salsa, garlic powder, flour, salt, and cumin. Cook one minute over medium low heat. Stir in reserved juices and shredded meat. Cook 5 minutes until thickened. Cool. Put about 3 cups of mixture each into three 1-quart freezer containers, leaving 1/2 inch space at the top. Seal and label containers. Freeze. Use within 6 months. Makes about 9 cups of Mexican Meat mix.

Green Chili Burros

3 cups Mexican Meat Mix(thawed)
6 flour tortillas
Cheese

Heat Mexican Meat mix in a small saucepan. Warm tortillas 1 at a time over low heat in a very large skillet until soft and pliable. Spread about 1/2 cup of Mexican Meat mix over the lower third of each tortilla. Add cheese and roll up. Garnish with lettuce, tomato, sour cream, guacamole and salsa as desired.

Other options
Use Mexican Meat Mix in your favorite enchiladas, taco salads, or tacos. Fry up the green chili burros to make chimichangas. Mexican Meat Mix can be thawed and ready in just a few minutes for any of your Mexican specialties.

Beef enchiladas - Suzie Willyerd

1 3-4 lb beef chuck roast
1 package enchilada dry seasoning packet
1 can tomato paste
2 cups water
1 package flour or corn tortillas
shredded cheddar cheese

Put the chuck roast, enchilada packet, tomato paste and water in crock pot. Cook on low for 8 hours or so, until the meat is tender.

Remove the meat from the crock pot and trim fat off. Shred meat with two forks.

Warm the tortillas so that they can be rolled without breaking. Put meat down the center of a tortilla, spoon some enchilada sauce over the meat and top with cheese, roll up and place in a greased baking dish. Continue until you use all the meat. Lay each enchilada side by side in the dish and pour the remaining enchilada sauce over them. Sprinkle with cheese. At this point you can cook it for 20-25 minutes at 350 degrees or freeze it. If frozen, allow to thaw before cooking.

Quick and Easy Chicken - Suzie Willyerd

3-4 large chicken breasts, trimmed and cut into bite sized pieces

1/4 cup teriyaki sauce

1/4 cup Dijon or spicy mustard

1/2 cup cooked, crumbled bacon

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Spread chicken in the bottom of a 9x13 dish and slather with teriyaki sauce and mustard. Sprinkle bacon and cheese on top. Bake uncovered at 375 for 30 minutes. Serve with rice.

Quick Beef Stroganoff -- Kimberly Eyre

1 lb ground beef

1 lg onion, chopped (or minced onion; 1/8 cup saked in 3 TB water)

1 C sour cream

1 can cream of chicken soup, undiluted

salt and pepper to taste

noodles, potatoes, or rice

Brow onion with ground beef; drain if necessary. Add sour cream, soup, salt and pepper, simmer til bubbly. Serve over hot noodles, potatoes or rice.

Creamy Bow-Tie Pasta with Chicken and Broccoli - Gina O'Neil

3 cups farfalle (bow-tie pasta), uncooked

4 cups broccoli florets (Gina omits this)

3 TB Kraft roasted red pepper Italian with Parmesan dressing

6 small boneless skinless chicken breast halves

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 cups tomato-basil spaghetti sauce

4 oz Cream cheese (Gina uses 8oz)

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Cook pasta as directed on package, adding broccoli to the cooking water for the last 3 minutes of the pasta cooking time. Meanwhile, heat dressing in large nonstick skillet on medium heat. Add chicken and garlic; cook 5 minutes. Turning chicken over; continue cooking 4-5 minutes or until chicken is cooked through (170 degrees).

Drain pasta mixture in colander; return to pan and set aside. Add pasta sauce and cream cheese to chicken in skillet; cook on medium low heat 2-3 minutes or until cream cheese is completely melted, mixture is well blended and chicken is coated with sauce, stirring occasionally. Remove chicken from skillet and keep warm. Add sauce mixture to pasta mixture; mix well. Transfer to 6 serving bowls.

Cut chicken cross wise into thick slices; fan out chicken over pasta mixture in each bowl. Sprinkle evenly with Parmesan cheese.

Makes 6 servings, about 1 1/2 cups each.