Cheddar Beef Enchilada

Cheddar Beef Enchilada ( 6 servings )

1 pound ground beef

1 (1.25 ounce) package taco seasoning

1 cup water

2 cups cooked rice

1 (16 ounce) can refried beans

2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese, divided

10 (8 inch) flour tortillas

1 (16 ounce) jar salsa

1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted

1.In a large skillet, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Stir in taco seasoning and water. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 5 minutes. Stir in rice. Cook and stir until liquid is evaporated. Spread about 2 tablespoons of refried beans, 1/4 cup beef mixture and 1 tablespoon cheese down the center of each tortilla; roll up. Place seam side down in two greased 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in. baking dishes.

2.Combine salsa and soup; pour down the center of enchiladas. Sprinkle with remaining cheese. Bake one casserole, uncovered, at 350 degrees F for 20-25 minutes or until heated through and cheese is melted. Cover and freeze remaining casserole for up to 3 months.

-from somebody fabulous

Black Bean Pitas with Avocado Salsa

I've been looking for some meatless recipes (see side bar) and found this one which looks fantastic. I haven't made it yet, but will let you know how it goes once I've tried it. I found the recipe at I heart naptime which is a great place to go for menus. Every Sunday she posts her menu for the week. She got this recipe from Craftaholics Anonymous which looks like a really dangerous site if you have craft addiction problems (colby, you're girls do not need anymore rosette hair clips.)

So for the recipe:

Black Bean Pitas with Avocado Salsa

avocado salsa

2 avocados pitted and diced

1 1/2 to 2 cups roma tomatoes diced

4 green onions chopped

2 tbl lime juice

2 tbl frest cilantro chopped

1/4 tsp salt

Combinge all ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside

black bean pitas

1 tbl olive oil

1/2 c chopped onions (sweet or red work well)

1 tsp minced garlic

1/4 tsp ground cumin

1 16 oz black beans, rinse and drained

1/4 tsp salt (optional)

1/4 C mayonnaise

1/2 tsp minced chipotle peppers in adobo

1 C chopped lettuce

Pitas or wraps (I'm going to try Heatherly's pita recipe found here)

Heat oil in skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion, cook until clear. Stir in garlic and cumin. Add beans and salt. Heat thoroughly. Lightly mash the bean mixture, cover and set aside.

Combine the mayonnaise and chipotle in a small bowl. Taste and see how spicy/mild the misture is and add more of mayo or peppers as needed.

To make the pitas, spread the mayonnaise over the pita/wrap, then add the bean ixture on top of the mayo, and top with salsa and lettuce.

(This sounds so good. Can't wait for payday this fri to get the ingredients;)

Red Beans and Rice

Yummy and very filling.

Ingredients

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 pound fully cooked smoked sausage (such as hot links or Kielbasa), sliced into 1/2-inch-thick rounds

1 onion, chopped

4 garlic cloves, chopped

3 14 1/2- to 16-ounce cans kidney beans

1 cup canned low-salt chicken broth

1 teaspoon Creole or Cajun seasoning or 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper

3 cups cooked rice

Directions

Heat olive oil in heavy large Dutch oven over medium heat. Add sausage, onion and garlic and sauté until onion is brown, about 15 minutes. Mix in kidney beans with their juices, broth and Creole seasoning. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and simmer until flavors are blended and mixture is very thick, stirring occasionally, about 45 minutes.

Divide cooked rice among large shallow soup bowls. Spoon bean mixture over rice and serve.

Baked Beans

I told Colby I'd post this, but I don't know the proportions because I just kind of make it up as I go.

1 lb dried navy beans, picked through and rinsed

4-8 slices of really good bacon (depending on how much you want)

1 green pepper, diced

1 onion, diced

sauce (all measurements are guesses):

1 1/2 C Sweet Baby Ray's BBQ sauce, whichever flavor you like best

3/4 C brown sugar

2 T yellow mustard

1 T cider vinegar

1 t Worcestershire sauce

1 t garlic

1/2 C water

1 t salt

1/2 t pepper

Cook navy beans by bringing to a boil in 10 C of unsalted water, covering and let simmer for 1 hour or until done. Drain off the cooking water.

Cook the bacon and then crumble it. Saute the onion and pepper in 1-2T of bacon grease (or in butter or oil if the thought of cooking in bacon grease repulses you--it does add lots of flavor, but I'll admit that it took me years before I was even willing to try it).

In a bowl, mix the sauce ingredients. Taste it and add more of any of the ingredients to get it to your desired flavor. (If this isn't enough sauce, just add a little more of everything...like I said, I just make it up, so I don't know exactly how much.)

In a 9x13, mix the beans, onion, pepper, bacon, and sauce. The sauce should coat everything well so that it doesn't get dried out in the oven. Bake 350 for 1 hour.

Jambalaya

I got this recipe from Lyndi Briggs, and we love it and make it often. It's great for taking dinner in or having friends over because it makes a lot of food!

celery (I sometimes use celery seed)

onion

peppers (can use frozen)

olive oil

1 lb. ground beef

1 package Jimmy Dean hot sausage

2 eggplants, peeled and cubed

4 c. rice

Ranch Style beans

salt, pepper

red pepper }to taste, if desired

garlic

-Start rice cooking.

-Brown sausage and ground beef. }combine

-Sautee celery, onions and peppers in olive oil until soft.

-Boil eggplant until tender (can be mashed with a forK). Drain well.

-Mash eggplant and combine with meat/vegetable mix. Cook on low.

-Combine cooked rice with eggplant, meat, vegetable mixture.

-Serve with heated Ranch Style beans on top.

black bean salad

(for rebecca)

My sister in law made this for me and once I tried it it's all I wanted to eat for like three weeks. Seriously yummy.

Ingredients:

dressing

• 2 tsp minced garlic
• 2 tbl apple cider vinegar
• 1/4 c olive oil
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1/4 tsp cumin
• 1 tbs honey
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper

filling

• 1 can black beans drained
• 1 c corn (drained if canned)
• 1 red pepper diced
• 1 small red onion diced
• 2 tbl cilantro chopped

Directions:

Put ingredients for dressing in blender or food processor to combine. Mix with filling. Serve in warm tortillas.