Extra Hearty Chili

Servings: 5

You'll need:
1 large onion, chopped
1 pound boneless top round or sirloin steak, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 pound ground beef
1 can (10 ounces) Ro-Tel Chili Fixins, undrained
1 can (15-19 ounces) red kidney beans, undrained
1 package chili seasoning mix

Directions: 
Cook and stir onion in 1 tbsp. hot oil in large pot; transfer to bowl. Cook steak cubes and ground meat in batches in 3 tbsp. hot oil until well-browned; drain well.

Add onion, meat, 3/4 cup water and remaining ingredients to pot. Heat to boiling, stirring. Reduce heat to medium-low. Cook covered, 1 hour or until meat is tender; stirring often.

Andouille Sausage with Red Beans

This recipe is great for a busy night or long day, when you need something quick to prepare!

Servings: 2-4

You'll need:
1 Andouille Sausage, diced
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 stalk celery, diced
1/2 medium onion, diced
1/2 green pepper, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup water
1 bay leaf
1/2 tablespoon cayenne pepper (optional)
1 can (16 oz) light red kidney beans, drained
salt and pepper to taste
white rice, cooked according to instructions on package*

Directions:
In a skillet, brown the sausage in oil for 2-3 minutes. Add celery, onion, green pepper, garlic, water, bay leaf, cayenne pepper, and kidney beans. Cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes, careful not to over cook the vegetables. Remove bay leaf. Serve over rice.

*I would recommend cooking the rice with some Cajun seasonings to keep it from being bland compared to the rest of the dish. I made this mistake the first time I made this dish.

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Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

It's that time of year where the weather won't make up it's mind whether it's going to be 50 or 75... and sometimes you see both in just one day. As a result, I've been feeling congested and my poor boyfriend woke up this morning with a sore throat, so I decided to make us some quick homemade chicken noodle soup.

Makes about 10-12 cups

You'll need:
1 (2-3 lb) Rotisserie chicken, shredded
8 oz egg noodles
1 small yellow onion (or 1/2 of a large yellow onion), diced
3-4 celery stalks, diced
3-4 medium carrots, peeled and diced
3 medium cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 cup parsley, minced
4 cups of water
4 cups chicken broth
2 chicken bouillon cubes
salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Combine water, chicken broth, chicken bouillon cubes, onion, celery, carrots, and garlic in a pot and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Add chicken and parsley and continue simmering for an additional 20-30 minutes.

In another pot, boil water and cook egg noodles according to directions- careful not to overcook them.

Once the noodles are done, add in to soup and serve.

I planned on making a lot, so we could eat it as needed over the next few days- and so I can freeze some of it to reheat on another sick or cold day.

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Crockpot Creamy Ranch Pork Chops

Photo courtesy of livinglaughingloving.com

I saw this recipe on livinglaughingandloving.com and decided to give it a try last night since my boyfriend and I were both working late and I knew I wouldn't want to cook when I got home. It's super simple, requiring only 3 ingredients, really inexpensive to make, AND the crockpot does all the work for you!

All you need is:
Pork chops
1 pack Hidden Valley Ranch dry seasoning mix
1-2 cans cream of chicken soup*
1-2 cans of water*

Mix ingredients well, pour into crockpot, add pork chops. And that's it!

*Depends on the size of your crock pot and how many pork chops you're making. I made 4 thinly sliced pork chops and used 1 1/2 cans of cream of chicken soup and very little water because I wanted the liquid to cover the chops and it to be somewhat thick like gravy- it's completely up to you.

This dish is great because you can serve it with whatever side(s) you want. I made some rice and a salad when I got home and used the left over liquid as sort of a gravy to top the porkchops and rice with.

I think I'm going to try this recipe with chicken sometime, also- just an idea. Let me know how it turns out if you try it first.

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“You don't have to cook fancy or complicated masterpieces - just good food from fresh ingredients.” 
-Julia Child