Beef Meatballs in Marinara Over Rigatoni

I have to tell you, I am not a fan of ground meat.  I just don't dig the texture.  I definitely don't do hamburgers.  Too much ground meat all pressed together, I think.   But I do crave a good meatball.  Strange, I know.  But as Mr. Gooch has learned over the years, my food likes, dislikes and issues rarely make any sense.  I could do a whole post on why I don't like shellfish, tomatoes, beans cut into log shapes, mushrooms and a number of other foods.  That is for another time.

This post is about these tasty meatballs.  I have been following Le Petit Pierogi for some time now but haven't yet made any of her recipes.  If this one is any indication, I will definitely be trying more.  I actually have the recipe for Oven Roasted Chickpeas starred in my Google Reader and it should be coming up on deck soon.

These went together quickly and easily.  I used a dutch oven to brown the meatballs and to cook the meatballs in the marinara sauce since I wanted to try to keep the number of dirty dishes to a minimum.  Mr. Gooch loved them and said I would have to make them again. 

Even better, we had plenty left over to package up with some of the sauce and rigatoni to pop in the freezer for last minute meals. 

Beef Meatballs
(Modified Slightly From: Le Petit Pierogi)

Ingredients
1 lb ground beef (we used 18 oz)
1/3 red onion, finely chopped
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 egg
2 tbsp ranch dressing
2 tbsp red wine
3/4 cup Italian style breadcrumbs (more or less depending on how the meatballs hold together)
salt and pepper
1 tbsp Italian dried herbs
1 qt marinara sauce (I used my homemade marinara)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large bowl combine all ingredients except for the marinara sauce.
Mix by hand until all ingredients are thoroughly incorporated.
Roll into 1-2 inch diameter balls.
In a large dutch over, over medium-high heat, brown the meatballs on all sides.
Work in batches if necessary.
Once all meatballs are browned, place all back in to the dutch oven and cover with marinara sauce.
Stir gently to cover the meatballs with sauce.
Cover and bake for 1 hour.
Serve over pasta.

Beef Stew with Red Wine

After making Beef Cooked in Red Wine, we had quite a bit of stewing meat and most of a bag of potatoes left over.  What to make?  What to make?  How about Beef Stew with Red Wine?  I found this post on Two Novice Chefs, One Tiny Kitchen.  Since they talked about modifying the recipe, I decided to go to the source and change it up to our tastes.

We added more of just about everything and skipped the onions (since we didn't have any in the house).  Mr. Gooch loved it (though he wished it had onions in it).  Guess I will have to add them next time.  Even I, not a huge fan of stews liked this one.  I think it is because there were no mushrooms and no beans. 

Next time, I plan to double the batch to ensure we have enough to freeze for a quick and easy meal when pressed for time. 

Beef Stew with Red Wine
(Sourced from About.com: Southern Food)
Ingredients
1 1/2 pounds stew beef

3/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon Smokey 4/S Seasoned Salt
2 tablespoons olive oil or canola oil
2 cups carrot chopped to bite size pieces
3 ribs celery, chopped to bite size pieces
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups beef broth
2 cup dry red wine, such as Pinot Noir or Cabernet Sauvignon
2 cups potatoes, chopped to bite size pieces
1/4 teaspoon crumbled dried rosemary

Directions
Trim stew beef and cut in small bite-size pieces.

Put in a zip top plastic bag with the flour, onion powder and seasoned salt.
Toss to coat well.
Heat oil in a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium heat.
Add beef to hot oil and cook, stirring, until lightly browned.
Add the celery; continue cooking, stirring, for about 3 minutes.
Add carrots, potatoes, garlic, broth, wine, and rosemary, bringing to a boil.
After reducing heat to low, cover and simmer for 50 to 60 minutes, or until beef is tender.

Beef Cooked in Red Wine

This was one tasty and easy recipe. 

I am so loving my Best 3 & 4 Ingredient Cookbook.  The recipes are easy to follow and with a minimum of ingredients (as evidenced by the title of the book, of course).

Mr. Gooch said he really liked this recipe and asked that we add it to the recipe rotation.  That is high praise since I have had a couple of misses lately in the recipe department.  I liked that it was so so easy.  And it only needs one dish.  You marinate in the same dish that you ultimately cook in.  Score! 

I hope you like this as much as we did. 

Beef Cooked in Red Wine
(Source:  Best Ever Three & Four Ingredient Cookbook)
Ingredients
1.5 lbs beef stew meat
3 large garlic cloves, minced
1 bottle fruity red wine
salt and pepper to taste
crushed dried rosemary to taste

Directions
Place garlic in bottom of casserole dish that has a lid
Place meat (cut into bite sized pieces) in dish
Pour wine over beef
Cover and place in refrigerator for at least 12 hours to marinate - I marinated overnight
Preheat oven to 325.
Place covered dish with beef, garlic and wine in the oven.
Cook for 2 hours or until beef is tender.
Once cooked, salt and pepper to taste.
Serve with mashed potatoes and a sprinkling of dried rosemary.

This Brisket is the Bomb!!

I can say with some conviction that this photo in no way does this dish justice.  The smokey flavor, the juiciness, the easiness of preparation, none of it can be captured on film.  Can you tell Mr. Gooch and I liked this dish? 

We have had this twice since I found the recipe (two weeks ago), that is how much we liked it.  Though the second time, I made a few modifications which are found in the recipe below.  We also found that the next day, the brisket with a little cheese on a mini french roll toaster in the toaster ovden is pretty amazing.

I hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

Smokey Crockpot Brisket

(Modified from a recipe found on A Year of Slow Cooking)

Ingredients
2.5 lb round roast or other roast type meat

1/4 cup A1 Sauce

1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce

1/4 cup BBQ sauce
1/4 cup liquid hickory smoke
Kosher salt
Fresh ground pepper

Directions
Liberally season roast with salt and pepper.
Place in smallest crockpot you can (if it is larger than necessary, you will cover the meat with aluminum foil to help keep meat from drying out)
Combine A1 Sauce, BBQ sauce, Worcestershire sauce and liquid smoke together in a small bowl.
Pour over meat.
Cover with aluminum foil (if necessary).

Cook on low heat for at least 8 hours.

Shred with fork when done and serve on french rolls or other crusty fresh bread.

Tip:  When storing leftovers, make sure to pour some of the juices over the meat in the container.  This will keep the meat nice and moist.

Mr. Gooch Cooks (Seasoned Steak Perfection)

Or V for Victory!  Mr. Gooch believes, and I agree, that we have achieved steak perfection with this recipe. 
The spices and the balsamic glaze all combined with the tenderness of our thick-cut New York Strip steaks from Heartland Meats to create nirvana.

A quick plug for Heartland Meats - if you are located near Chicago and you can get some of their meats, do it.  You won't regret it.  After finding their booth at the Oak Park Farmers Market several years ago, we were regular customers until our move.  We miss our favorite meat man.

If anyone knows of a rancher of grass-fed beef in western Michigan, please leave a comment.  We are looking for a local supplier since we don't get to our old Farmers Market anymore.

Back to the recipe.  It is easy; however the only drawback is that two of the key ingredients are proprietary  blends.  The Chicago Steak Seasoning I purchased at The Spice House in Chicago.  They do, however, have an online store so you can order a batch for yourself.  And I would suggest that this is an ingredient that any beef lover should have in their spice pantry.  Mr. Gooch has added it to hamburgers with great success.  The Smokey 4/S Special Seasoned Salt is from Penzeys, our absolute favorite spice store ever.  Again, they also have an online store you don't have one of their physical locations near you.

Seasoned Steak Perfection
(Source:  Depths of Mr. Gooch's Brain)
Ingredients
1 tbs Worcestershire Sauce
1/2 tsp Balsamic Vinegar
1/4 tsp Mesquite Liquid Smoke
1 tbs Chicago Steak Seasoning (from The Spice House)
1/4 tsp Smokey 4/S Special Seasoned Salt (from Penzeys)
Directions
Combine Worcestershire Sauce, Balsamic Vinegar and Mesquite Liquid Smoke in a small bowl.
Combine Chicago Steak Seasoning and Smokey 4/S Special Seasoned Salt in a second small bowl.
Rinse and dry the steaks.
With a basting brush, brush one side of the steaks with the liquid, then sprinkle with the dry seasonings.

Flip the steaks and repeat.

Place seasoned steaks into a zipper bag and place in the fridge for at least 4 hours (overnight is better).

Heat your grill to a low to medium temperature. 

Cook low and slow on the grill until it reaches your desired doneness.

Then enjoy!

Stove Top Taco Pasta

(Photo is not particularly attractive , but I can guarantee, it tastes better than it looks)

I love Mexican food. OK, maybe not real Mexican food but the kind that most Americans grow up with. You know what I am talking about; tacos, fajitas, tortilla chips with salsa. I also love pasta. Mac and cheese, pesto with fusilli, creamy tomato with penne. Yum.

So it only figures that I am a huge fan of this dish - Stove Top Taco Pasta. It is a spin off of the Taco Bake which requires baking in the oven and takes much longer to prepare. This version is so easy and with only 5 ingredients, pulls together quickly for a filling meal.

I hope you like it as much as we do.

Stove Top Taco Pasta
(Source: Variation of the Taco Bake)
Ingredients
1 lb ground beef
1/4 c taco seasoning
3/4 c water
1 pkg low fat cream cheese (8 oz)
1 box pasta (we used medium shells)
optional: cheese of your choice to sprinkle on top (we used mozzarella since that is all we had)

Directions
Brown ground beef in a large dutch oven.
Combine taco seasoning and water.
Pour taco seasoned water over browned meat, stirring to ensure all meat is covered.
Simmer to reduce amount of liquid (approximately 5-10 minutes) on low.
Once reduced, add cubed cream cheese, stirring to incorporate fully.
Prepare pasta according to directions and drain.
Add drained pasta to dutch oven, stirring to coat completely.

Mexican Taco Shells

Why is it that the most tasty meals photography so unattractively? I suppose it is just one of those mysteries of the world. This is one of those situations. The dish doesn't photograph well, but it is so good.

After seeing the recipe for this dish on Get in My Belly, I knew Mr. Gooch and I would need to have it for dinner. We both love Mexican spices, pasta and cheese. This dish combines all three so how could we go wrong?

It was as good as we thought it would be. This is definitely going to be added to the dinner rotation.

Mexican Taco Shells
Source: Get in My Belly

Ingredients
1 lb. ground beef
1 package taco seasoning
4 oz. cream cheese (we used low-fat)
12 jumbo pasta shells (we used a lot so we could fill the whole pan)
1 cup salsa
1 cup taco sauce
1 cup cheddar cheese
1 cup Monterrey jack cheese (We used mozzarella cheese)
1 1/2 cups crushed tortilla chips
3 green onions (omitted because I didn't have any)
Sour cream

Directions
1. In a frying pan cook ground beef; add taco seasoning and prepare according to package directions.
2. Add cream cheese, cover and simmer until cheese is melted. Blend well. Set aside and cool completely.
3. While ground beef is cooking, cook the pasta shells according to directions; drain. Set shells out individually on cutting board/baking sheet so that they don't stick together.
4. Pour salsa on bottom of 9x13 baking dish.
5. Stuff each shell with the meat mixture. Place shells in 9x13 pan open side up. Cover shells with taco sauce.
6. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees.
7. After 30 minutes, add shredded cheese and bake for 10-15 more minutes.
8. Add any condiments you'd like (onions, black olives, etc.) Serve with sour cream and/or more salsa. Enjoy!

Flank Steak with Chimichurri Sauce

During a recent trip to a neighboring village, we stopped into an olive oil and vinegar tasting shop. While we didn't get any olive oil or vinegar, I did get a bottle of chimichurri sauce. At that time, I had no idea what dish I would use it for.

Fast forward two months and I am trying to figure out what to make for dinner. During a rummage through our pantries, I find the bottle of chimichurri sauce. Eureka!

I marinated the flank steak with about 3/4 cup of sauce for approximately 6 hours.

The steak was then grilled, over low heat, for about 20-25 minutes. Make sure to regularly apply extra marinade to keep the meat moist.

Sliced across the grain and served with crashed potatoes and a salad, we will definitely be making this dish again.

Chipotle's Barbacoa Beef - Or at Least a Close Approximation

I love Chipotle's Barbacoa Beef Burrito. I love it so much that for a long time Mr. Gooch and I had "Chipotle Wednesday." Translation: we would have Chipotle for dinner every Wednesday (with leftovers for lunch the next day). On many occasion, just knowing CW was coming helped me get through the early days of the week.

Since I am trying to do more cooking at home, I Googled "Chipotle Barbacoa Beef" to see if I could find the recipe. I found one that proclaimed to be the official recipe but it looked way more complicated and had a number of ingredients I would need to purchase (I mean don't we all have packets of avocado leaves in the pantry) so I continued to search.

I then found the recipe below. Simple, without complicated ingredients, and didn't require me to have my oven on for 7+ hours. In other words, my kind of recipe!

Result: This recipe was close but not exact. The taste and texture were a bit different, not as spicy and much moister. Not much I could so about the moistness but I did add Chipotle Tabasco to my burrito to spice it up a bit.

Chipotle Barbacoa Chuck Roast
From recipezaar.com

Ingredients
1 (2 lb) chuck roast
2 (2 ounce) packets seasoning (Ortega Chipotle Taco Season)
2 tablespoons cooking oil (I used Olive Oil)
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 dash hot sauce
2 cups water (enough to barely cover roast)

Directions
I have a 2 pound roast so the directions will vary due to weight. (1 packet of seasoning per pound, 1 TBS of cooking oil per pound, 1 TBS of apple cider vinegar per pound).

I put 2 cups of water in my crock pot and put the 2 packets of Ortega chipotle taco seasoning in and wisked. Then I added 2 TBS of cooking oil, 2 TBS of apple cider vinegar, and a dash of hot sauce and wisked again.

I placed the roast into a large skillet and seared both sides then placed in crock pot. (I skipped this step to save time.)

Set the crock pot to low setting and let it slow cook for at least 8 hours on low. Remove meat from crock pot and shredded with fork on cutting board and placed in serving dish. Cook time I would say 8 hours minimum on a low setting and less time for higher settings. (I did 2 hours on high and 4 hours on low)

We served with Le Tortilla Factory low-carb tortillas, lettuce, shredded cheese, cilantro basmati rice (click here for recipe), black beans and sour cream.

These were delicious and pretty darn close to the real deal. Depending on what size tortillas you use and how much meat you put into them determines how many servings this will make.

Mr. Gooch Cooks (Steaks with Sweet Mesquite Marinade)

Mr. Gooch was my hero last night.

I had a early evening meeting so I wasn't going to be able to cook dinner. Mr. Gooch took charge. (I love it when he does that!)

We ended up having steak in a marinade he created, left over pesto pasta from Monday night and his caprese-style salad. Can you say yum? I know I did.

The best part, he even took some photos so that I could post.

Sweet Mesquite Marinade Recipe

Ingredients
1/4 cup Olive Oil
1/2 cup water
2 Tablespoons Vinegar (he used 1 T garlic vinegar and 1 T basamic vinegar)
1 Teaspoon Worchestershire Sauce
1 Teaspoon Sweet Mesquite Marinade (Kirkland Brand)
1 Teaspoon Italina Seasoning (Tastefully Simple brand)
1/2 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
1 Teaspoon Rosemary

Directions

Combine all ingredients and place in ziploc with steaks.

Marinade for at least 4 hours.

Once meat is done marinating, you can use leftovers to keep steak moist during grilling.

Cooking with the Crockpot

Growing up my mother never used a crockpot for cooking. I am not sure she even knew what one was. However, this device that cooks meals while you are at work has intrigued me for years. So last week, I took one of my many 20% off coupons, headed to Bed Bath & Beyond and got myself a crockpot. My selection was the Hamilton Beach 3-in-1 Slow Cooker. I liked that this model had the flexibility of the 3 options of cooking sizes (2, 4 and 6 qt. crocks all able to fit into the single base).

My first experiment was the basic BBQ Chicken. Since this type of cooking was totally new to me, I spent some time checking out several recipe sites when I came to the conclusion that BBQ chicken didn't have to be any more complicated than throwing several chicken breasts into the crock and covering them with BBQ sauce then letting the whole thing cook on low for several hours. Once it was done, I shredded the meat and placed it on toasted buns. If I say so myself, it ended up quite tasty. And there was plenty left over for lunch the next day.

With my first (tasty) success, I decided to take on what appears to be one of the cornerstones of crockpot recipes, Pot Roast. To that end, Mr. Gooch got a shoulder roast at Costco for $2.99/lb. Again I searched the Internet to find a recipe that included ingredients that I already had in the house to help keep costs down.

The one I found on about.com is as follows


Crockpot Pot Roast with Herbs
1 pot roast (chuck, arm, shoulder, bottom round or similar cut)
1/2 C. chopped onion
1/2 C. red wine or apple cider
8 oz. tomato sauce
1 T. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 t. crushed rosemary
1/2 t. dried crumbled leaf thyme
1 t. crushed dried oregano
3 medium cloves garlic, minced
7-10 dashes of Chipotle Tabasco Sauce (I added this for a bit of zing)

Trim excess fat from roast and cut to fit into crock pot. Combine all other ingredients and pour over the roast. Cover and cook for 8 to 10 hours.


If you would like to make a gravy, pour juices into a sauce pan, skim fat and bring to a simmer. Reduce by 1/4 then gradually add a smooth mixture of 2 tablespoons of flour and cold water. Stir mixture of juices, flour and water until it reaches desired thickness.

I think my next attempt will be to roast a chicken. Wish me luck!