Sloppy Joes

This is one of my favorite recipes.  Sloppy Joes are great comfort food and the meal comes together in about a half-hour.  And if you haven't figured it out yet, I love beef recipes :)

Sloppy Joes
Makes 4 servings


1 medium onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, chopped
¾ pound lean ground beef (7% fat)
2 cups tomato sauce
2 Tbsp tomato paste
1 Tbsp mustard
1 tsp chili powder
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
½ tsp salt
½ tsp sugar
½ tsp dried oregano
1/8 tsp black pepper
4 hamburger buns, white or whole-wheat

1. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium heat.  Add onion, green pepper, and ground beef, and cook until beef is browned, stirring to crumble.
2. Stir in tomato sauce, tomato paste, mustard, chili powder, Worcestershire sauce, salt, sugar, oregano, and pepper; reduce heat to medium-low.  Cover and cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Spoon beef mixture on to each bun and enjoy!

Red Velvet Cheesecake Brownies

These little brownies were my impromptu contribution to a last-minute football-watching party on Monday night.  Though I may not have been pleased with the game's result, I was quite pleased with my dessert.

Red Velvet Cheesecake Brownies
Makes 16 servings


1 stick butter
2 oz dark chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 1/3 cup sugar, divided
3 eggs
1 ½ tsp vanilla extract, divided
1 ½ tsp red food coloring
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
¼ tsp salt
8 oz fat-free cream cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350˚F.  Line an 8- or 9-inch square baking pan with aluminum foil and grease lightly.
2. In a small, heatproof bowl, melt butter and chocolate together.  Stir with a fork until very smooth.  Set aside to cool for a few minutes.
3. In a large bowl, whisk together 1 cup sugar, 2 eggs, 1 tsp vanilla extract, and the red food coloring.  Add in the chocolate mixture and stir until smooth.  The batter should be read.  Add flour and salt into the bowl and stir until everything is just combined and no streaks of dry ingredients remain.
4. Pour into prepared pan and spread into an even layer.
5. For cheesecake mixture, beat together cream cheese, remaining sugar, egg, and ½ tsp vanilla extract until smooth.  Drop mixture in dollops onto prepared brownie batter.  Gently swirl two batters with a butter knife.
6. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until brownies and cheesecake are set.  A knife inserted into the cheesecake mixture should come out clean and the edges will be lightly browned.
7. Cool in the pan completely before slicing and serving, either at room temperature or chilled.  Brownies can be refrigerated, covered, for several days.

Chana Masala

I was pleasantly surprised by how quickly this recipe came together!  The longest part was making the rice, which I let cook while I prepared everything else.  The lemon gave it a nice kick and the spices gave it great flavor without making it gritty.  Enjoy!

Recipe courtesy of Eating for England.


Chana Masala
Makes 4 servings


½ Tbsp vegetable oil
1 medium onion, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tsp fresh grated ginger
½ Tbsp ground coriander
1 ½ tsp ground cumin
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
½ tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp paprika
½ tsp garam masala
15 oz canned diced tomatoes
15 oz canned chickpeas, drained and rinsed
½ lemon, juiced
2 cups brown rice, cooked
1 cup fat-free Greek yogurt
Salt and pepper, to taste

1. Combine 2/3 cup brown basmati rice and 1 1/3 cups water in a saucepan and bring to a boil.  Stir once, cover, and reduce heat to low.  Let simmer until all water is absorbed, then fluff rice.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large skillet.  Add onion, garlic, ginger, and pepper to taste and sauté over medium heat until translucent (about 5 minutes).
3. Turn heat down to medium-low and add the spices (coriander, cumin, cayenne, turmeric, paprika, and garam masala).  Cook onion mixture with spices for 1-2 minutes, and then add the tomatoes.
4. Add 1/3 cup water and chickpeas, and simmer mixture, uncovered, for 10 minutes.  Stir in salt and lemon juice.
5. Serve with ½ cup fluffy brown basmati rice and top with ¼ cup Greek yogurt.

Quinoa Burgers with Tzatziki

I'm sorry for not posting more recipes last week!  I made a rather sorry attempt at pad see ew that wasn't worth sharing - that recipe is definitely still under development.


Anywayyyy... tonight I made quinoa burgers with tzatziki.  I already sang the praises of quinoa, but I'll do it again here: even though these "burgers" are meat-free, they still have plenty of protein!  And if you make them during the summer, zucchini makes a nice substitution for the carrot.

Recipe courtesy of Eating Well...Living Thin.


Quinoa Burgers with Tzatziki
Makes 4 servings


Burgers:
     2/3 cup quinoa, uncooked
     ¾ cup low-fat cheddar cheese, shredded
     ½ cup fat-free cottage cheese
     1 medium carrot, finely grated
     3 eggs
     3 Tbsp all-purpose flour
     2 green onions, including white parts, sliced
     ½ tsp sugar
     ¼ tsp black pepper
     ¼ tsp ground cumin
     1/8 tsp salt
     1/8 tsp garlic powder
     2 tsp olive oil for frying
Tzatziki:
     ¾ cup fat-free Greek yogurt
     3 Tbsp fat-free sour cream
     1 small cucumber, peeled, seeded, grated, and squeezed of excess water
     ½ tsp sugar
     1 tsp dried dill weed
     Kosher salt and black pepper to taste

1. Cook the quinoa in 4/3 cup of water, according to package directions.
2. While the quinoa cooks, prepare the tzatziki: blend yogurt, sour cream, grated cucumber, sugar, and dill weed.  Season with salt and pepper to taste, and chill.
3. To make the burgers, combine the cooked quinoa, cheddar cheese, cottage cheese, carrot, eggs, flour, green onions, sugar, pepper, cumin, salt, and garlic powder.
4. Heat a frying pan and olive oil over medium heat.  Form 8 patties that are about ½ inch thick.  Fry until golden brown (about 4 minutes per side).

Traditional Meat Lasagna

Oh my goodness, I am so glad I found this recipe.  It's absolutely delicious, and it's a classic.  Lots of cheesy goodness.  And to my vegetarian and kosher friends - sorry I'm not sorry.  


Once again, it's a Pinterest find (with a few slight adjustments).  Posted on Amanda's Cookin' but apparently from the back of a Creamette lasagna noodles box.

Traditional Meat Lasagna
Makes 8 servings


9 pieces no-cook lasagna noodles
½ pound Italian turkey sausage, casings removed
½ pound lean ground beef (7% fat)
1 cup onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
28 oz can diced tomatoes, undrained
6 oz canned tomato paste
2 tsp sugar
2 ½ tsp salt
2 Tbsp fresh basil, chopped
½ tsp fennel seed
¼ tsp pepper
15 oz fat-free ricotta cheese
1 egg
2 Tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
1 ½ cups shredded part-skim mozzarella
¾ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1. In a large skillet, combine sausage, ground beef, onion, and garlic.  Cook until sausage is no longer pink and onion is tender; drain.  Stir in diced tomatoes, tomato paste, sugar, salt, basil, and fennel seed.  Bring to a boil; reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes.
2. In a medium bowl, mix ricotta, egg, and parsley.
3. Spray baking dish with cooking spray.  Spread a thin layer of sauce on the bottom of the pan and layer 3 lasagna noodles.  Add 1/3 of remaining meat sauce, 1/3 of ricotta mixture, ½ cup mozzarella, and ¼ cup Parmesan.  Repeat two more times.
4. Cover and bake at 375˚F for 25 minutes, and then uncover and bake for 20 minutes longer.  Let stand for 10 minutes before cutting.

Penne with Roasted Asparagus and Balsamic Butter

Ready in less than 30 minutes, very flavorful, and on the healthy-ish end of the pasta spectrum.  And it includes a vegetable!  I'm also officially obsessed with the balsamic butter, and plan on brainstorming other ways to eat it.

PS - recipe is from Food and Wine.


Penne with Roasted Asparagus and Balsamic Butter
Makes 4 servings


1 pound fresh asparagus spears
2 tsp olive oil
¾ tsp salt
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
½ cup balsamic vinegar
1 tsp brown sugar (light or dark)
8 oz whole-wheat penne pasta
1 Tbsp butter
1/3 cup plus 4 Tbsp freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1. Heat oven to 400˚F.  Snap the tough ends off the asparagus; cut into 1-inch-long pieces.  Place the asparagus on a rimmed baking sheet and toss with olive oil, ¼ tsp salt, and ¼ tsp pepper.  Roast until tender (about 10 minutes).  Remove from oven and set aside.
2. While the asparagus is roasting, put vinegar in a small saucepan.  Simmer over medium to medium-high heat until the vinegar is reduced to about 3 Tbsp (10 to 15 minutes).  Stir in the brown sugar and remaining ½ tsp pepper, and remove from heat.  Swirl in butter and stir to mix.
3. Cook the penne according to directions; drain and return to pot.  Add the asparagus and stir in the balsamic butter.  Add 1/3 cup Parmesan and remaining ½ tsp salt.  Top each serving with 1 Tbsp Parmesan and serve.

Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala

This was my first time using a slow cooker, and I was very pleased with the results!  It lends itself well to curries because the flavors can simmer and develop over time.  The recipe I'll post below made a lot of extra sauce, so next time I think I'll use half the diced tomatoes and tomato paste.  I would also like to try adding 1-2 tsp brown sugar to soften the flavor a bit.  But it was still delish as is!  Oh, and I adapted this recipe from Meal Planning 101.

Slow Cooker Chicken Tikka Masala
Makes 4 servings


Chicken Tikka:
1 cup fat-free plain yogurt
1 Tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp cumin
¼ tsp cayenne
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp pepper
1 tsp salt
2 chicken breasts, cut into 4 pieces


Masala:
28 oz canned diced tomatoes (I plan to reduce this to 15 oz next time)
6 oz tomato paste (I plan to reduce this to 3 oz)
2 inches fresh ginger, grated
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 large onion, diced
1 Tbsp garam masala
1 Tbsp tikka paste (or mild curry paste + 1 Tbsp lemon juice)
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1 tsp dried coriander


Additional:
Salt
1 cup fat-free evaporated milk
2 Tbsp fresh cilantro, chopped
1 cup green peas, cooked
2/3 cup uncooked brown basmati rice
¼ Tbsp turmeric

1. To prepare chicken tikka: stir yogurt, lemon juice, cumin, cayenne, cinnamon, pepper, and salt in the bottom of a large plastic container.  Add the chicken and coat completely with the marinade.  Cover and place in the refrigerator for at least one hour and up to overnight.
2. When the chicken is done marinating, turn oven to broil.  Cover a baking sheet with aluminum foil and place a rack over top (I didn't do this step because I couldn't find a rack; didn't seem to matter much).  Take chicken out of the marinade and place on the baking rack.  Place under broiler about 6 to 10 inches from the heating element and broil on each side for about 10 minutes.  You don't have to cook the meat all the way through - you are just looking for a nice browned color.
3. While the chicken is broiling, add 1 tsp oil to a pan over medium-high heat.  Add the onion and sauté for a few minutes to soften.  Add garlic and ginger and sauté for a few more minutes until the mixture is fragrant.
4. Transfer onion mixture to slow cooker.  Add diced tomatoes, tomato paste, garam masala, tikka paste, cumin, chili powder, and coriander, and stir.  When the chicken is done broiling, add to slow cooker and stir into the masala (sauce).  Slow cook on high for 4 to 6 hours or on low for 6 to 8 hours.
5. About 30 minutes before serving, prepare yellow basmati rice (2/3 cup rice, 1 1/3 cups water, salt, and turmeric).
6. Before serving, stir in evaporated milk, fresh cilantro, and salt (if needed) to the slow cooker mixture.  Serve over  ½ cup yellow basmati rice and ¼ green peas.