Garlic Pepper Sausage, Green Beans, and Potatoes

Not exactly a catchy name I know, but it does well at describing the dish. ;)  I love this meal for multiple reasons. It's a one dish meal so cleanup is easy. It tastes delicious. My family loves it. It's quick to make. Serve it with a side salad and some fresh fruit and there you go. Dinner in under an hour.

1 lb. smoked sausage (make sure it's gluten free if that's a concern)
4-6 red or gold potatoes, cut into 1" pieces
1 lb. fresh or frozen green beans
McCormick Garlic Pepper Seasoning

Slice sausage into 1/4" rounds. In large skillet with lid, brown sausage. Add potatoes, stir, and cover skillet. Check often to make sure the potatoes aren't sticking to the pan/burning. Add a bit of water if need be to help them steam and keep them from sticking. When potatoes are done, add green beans, sprinkle liberally with seasoning, stir and cover. Cook until green beans are tender. Be careful not to overcook. Enjoy!

P.S. Be sure and use red or gold potatoes. Russets will turn to mush and do not work well for this recipe.

Sunflower Cake - Gluten Free

I realize I haven't been around for a while. It's been rather busy lately. Even though Easter is long past, I wanted to share this cake that I made. I got the idea from Pinterest, my latest obsession. :)  I used the coconut cake recipe posted here. Rather than using homemade frosting I was in a hurry and used Betty Crocker milk chocolate frosting. Peeps were placed around the edge of the cake and mini chocolate chips sprinkled in the middle. It was super fun and easy to do. I can't wait to do another one next year!

Sloppy Joes

When DH and I got married, his mom introduced me to a recipe for sloppy joes that used Campbell's chicken gumbo soup, ketchup, and mustard. I thought that was THE oddest combination ever. Then I tried it. Oh my gosh...BEST sloppy joes ever!  Now that I have to eat gluten free I just had to find a way to make them again but without the chicken gumbo soup because these sloppy joes stuffed into a baked potato and topped with sour cream & cheese is one of hubby's most favorite meals ever.

 

1 - 1 1/2 lbs extra lean ground beef
1 medium onion, finely diced
black pepper
Mrs. Dash
2-3 tsp. Better Than Bouillon (beef) Paste
1 cup ketchup
1/2 TB yellow mustard
2 cups water

Brown ground beef in deep skillet with onion. Season liberally with black pepper & Mrs. Dash.  When beef is done cooking, add water, bouillon paste, ketchup, and mustard. Stir well to make sure ingredients are thoroughly blended. Make sure the taste is just right. Trust me, you'll know if it is or isn't. It shouldn't taste too much like ketchup or too much like mustard. If it seems to be lacking a bit of flavor, add more Mrs. Dash. Reduce heat and simmer until the sauce thickens up. Serve on buns or over baked potatoes.

Olive Garden's Pasta Fagioli Soup

I clipped this recipe from the newspaper nearly 7 years ago. It is my absolute favorite soup to make when it's cold and snowy out (next to chicken & dumplings). :)  Normally I make it in a pan and let it simmer. Today when I made it, I used my crockpot because I had a crazy busy day. If you're using a crockpot, simply add the ground beef and all the other ingredients to the crockpot rather than simmering in a dutch oven. (Don't forget to wait to add the noodles till shortly before serving). Easy peasy and incredibly delicious!

2 cups small shaped pasta (I use Schar gluten free fusili)
1 lb. extra lean ground beef
1 cup chopped onion
1 TB minced or chopped garlic
1 cup sliced celery
1 cup diced carrots (regular or baby carrots)
2 cans Italian diced tomatoes (14.5 oz)
1 - 15 oz can white beans, drained and rinsed
1 - 15 oz can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 - 15 oz can tomato sauce
2 - 5.5 oz cans V-8 Juice (I've never seen cans this small, I simply used a 12 oz. can)
3 cups beef, chicken, or vegetable broth (I use Pacific Foods beef broth)
1 TB white or rice vinegar
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 tsp. basil
1 tsp. oregano
1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese (optional)

Cook noodles according to package directions, drain & set aside.  In large dutch oven, brown ground beef until nearly cooked through. Add onion, garlic, celery, and carrots and cook together for 5 minutes. Add all remaining ingredients, except pasta, lower heat, and simmer for about 45 minutes. Stir in cooked noodles and simmer for about 15 more minutes. If desired sprinkle parmesan cheese over each bowl of soup when serving.

Chicken Enchiladas

I'll warn you now, this is a VERY Americanized recipe but oh so delicious! It's easy peasy to put together and quite honestly served over some steamed rice it's a great comfort food. You can find the soup mixes I use at http://www.momsplaceglutenfree.com. No, I don't work for them or have any stake in recommending them, but I have used many of their products and find them to be delicious and a way to enjoy some of my favorite comfort foods. Okay, now on to the recipe. :)

1 package Mom's Place Gluten Free Cream of Mushroom Soup Mix
1 package Mom's Place Gluten Free Cream of Chicken Soup Mix
1/2 container Philadelphia Cooking Cream Original Flavor approx.
1/2-3/4 cup sour cream
1 small can diced green chiles
1-2 cups diced, cooked chicken (I use either leftover chicken or a can of white meat chicken chunks) couple of handfuls of shredded Colby Jack or 3 cheese blend
____________________________________
Corn Tortillas
More shredded cheese

In a medium saucepan over med-high heat whisk together soup mixes and 2 1/2 cups cold water. Cook until thickened. Remove from heat. Add the remaining ingredients and mix well. Put a thin layer of sauce in the bottom of a casserole dish. Layer with corn tortillas, more sauce, tortillas, sauce, until you run out of sauce. Sprinkle some cheese on top and bake at 350 degrees until the casserole is all bubbly and the cheese is lightly browned.

Sweet Potato Souffle

1 large can sweet potatoes (or yams) drained & mashed

1 C. sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 C. milk

3/4 stick of butter (don't use margarine)

Mix all together and put into a greased 9X13 dish.

Topping:

1 C. brown sugar

1/3 C. (a little less) rice flour

1/3 C. butter (don't use margarine)

1 C. chopped pecans

Melt butter and pour over sugar flour & pecans. Cook at 350 for about 30 minutes or until the center isn't jiggly.

Egg Rolls

I learned how to make these from a friend's mom and they have been a favorite ever since. They are not Asian in any sense of the word other than the egg roll wrappers used. It's a completely Americanized dish and we love them. Hubby & the kids beg me to make them. To make them gluten free, use rice paper wrappers instead of egg roll wrappers. Rice paper wrappers/sheets can be bought at just about any Asian food store. They are shelf stable and need to be rehydrated to use them. I was thrilled when I found them and we all shouted for joy that we didn't have to give up our egg rolls. :)

1 lb. ground beef
3-4 potatoes, scrubbed & diced
1 medium onion, finely diced or put through a food processor
2 cans french cut green beans, drained
salt & pepper

Brown ground beef with onion & salt & pepper. When ground beef is cooked through, add the potatoes and cook until potatoes are tender. Add green beans and remove from heat. Let mixture cool enough to be able to handle it and so that the heat won't melt the egg roll wrappers. Put a small amount of filling in the center of a wrapper, roll and seal. Repeat until filling & wrappers are gone. Fry egg rolls until golden brown and drain on paper towels. These are delicious with sweet & sour or duck sauce. You can also experiment with the fillings.

We had these for dinner last night and we filled them with the above listed ingredients and a bag of tricolor coleslaw mix. I love coleslaw mix for stuff like this because it's already cut up. All I have to do it cook it. :)