Tag: chef

Not Your Average Taco Meat

I use this recipe in place of traditional taco meat. It’s perfect for tacos, nachos, chip dip, burritos, or taco salads! I like it because it has a ton of flavor without having to rely on a lot of salt or spices. I keep the ingredients on hand in the pantry (aside from the meat) so that I can easily make it any time. Also, it can be made in less than 30 minutes! Bonus!

  • Prep time: no prep time unless you count opening packages.
  • Cook time: approx. 10-15 minutes.
  • Makes about 1-2lbs of meat mix.

Ingredients

  • 1 lb ground beef (I use the leanest I can afford)
  • 1 lb ground turkey meat (I use this to add volume without adding more beef, but you can use whichever meat choices work for you)
  • about 16oz your favorite salsa (I use chunky Pace because I like the texture it adds)
  • 1 can black beans (about 16oz)
  • 2 Tbsp taco seasoning

Instructions

  1. Put all meat into a large cooking pan. Brown and mash the meat into crumbles on medium heat until only a slight amount of pink remains in the meat.
  2. Add the can of black beans. Simmer for a minute or two.
  3. Add taco seasoning and mix into meat using the juices created by the cooking meat to help mix it in.
  4. Once taco seasoning is mixed into the meat, add the salsa. Mix all ingredients well until they are evenly mixed.
  5. Set heat to low and simmer for about 5 minutes. This allows the beans to soften and the flavors to mingle.
  6. Serve hot and enjoy!
Steps 1-2 in the instructions above. Brown meat, add beans.
Steps 3-6 in the instructions above. Simmer beans to soften, add taco seasoning, add salsa, stir, and simmer. Enjoy!

Notes

It was really tough to come up with a name for this recipe because in our family, we affectionately refer to this meal as “Taco Slop” because it is so versatile and can be slopped on anything from a tortilla, a chip, or a salad. When I first started writing my blog, I knew that I wanted to share this family favorite from the start, but I knew that if I titled it “Slop” I probably wouldn’t get that many views. I hope when you try this recipe that you can develop your own name for it. Call it whatever you like! But if you find things about it that you like to change or add, please write a comment below and share it. I’d love to hear about your version!

Nutrition

  • Serving size: 1/2 cup of meat mix
  • 1 serving is approximately 144 Calories; 10.7g Fat; 2.3g Sat. Fat; 42.4mg Cholest.; 439mg Sodium; 8.5g Carbs; 1.8g Fiber; 2.5g Sugar; 14.8g Protein.

Breakfast Scramble

I love this recipe. It’s quick, easy AND delicious. You can eat this for breakfast, lunch or dinner! We usually treat this as one of our breakfast-for-dinner recipes. It’s definitely comfort food; perfect for a cold night or any time you want something that can easily feed a whole family in about 30 minutes. It is easiest to cook this on a griddle or in a very large frying pan.

INGREDIENTS

Most of the ingredients needed for the breakfast scramble.
  • 1 package/bag of uncooked shredded hash browns (about 1-1/4lbs or 20oz)
  • Eggs (1-2 per person being served)
  • Milk (about 1/4 cup per 8 eggs)
  • Garlic salt for sprinkling
  • Pepper for sprinkling
  • Dried parsley for sprinkling
  • 1 medium onion (any color works)
  • Your favorite cheese, shredded works best
  • 1 package bacon (or preferred breakfast meat, about 12oz)

DIRECTIONS

  1. Heat griddle or pan to medium high heat (I set my griddle to 350 degrees specifically). No need to pre-grease pan because bacon will cook first, and bacon grease can be used for the remainder of foods. If other breakfast meats are used instead, grease griddle or pan accordingly.
  2. Dice onion into about 1/4″ pieces.
  3. Remove bacon from package, keeping pieces together (making it easier to cut). Using a sharp knife, make vertical slices through bacon slab about every 1/2″ until all bacon is cut into pieces about 1/2″ x 1″ pieces. It’s not necessary to separate the pieces, as they will come apart while cooking. *See photo below for example.*
  4. Break eggs into a bowl big enough for all of them plus milk and seasonings. Add milk, some garlic salt, pepper and parsley. I usually eyeball amounts, but to help you estimate- I used 8 eggs for 4 servings (2 eggs per person), about 1/4 cup milk, 1/2+ tsp garlic salt, 1/4+ tsp pepper, 1 Tbsp parsley. Mix until eggs are beaten and all ingredients are evenly mixed in.
  5. Add bacon to heated griddle/pan. Cook bacon until it’s thoroughly cooked. Remove bacon from griddle/pan and set aside on a plate with paper towels to soak up excess grease.
  6. Add cut up onion pieces to griddle/pan using the bacon grease already in place. Brown onion until it is translucent and caramelized.
  7. Remove onion from heated surface and set onion aside on a paper towel covered plate like bacon. Bacon and onion can share a plate at this point if necessary.
  8. With griddle/pan still sufficiently greased, add hash browns. Flatten hash browns with a spatula so that the majority of them are making contact with the heated surface. Sprinkle garlic salt and pepper over the hash browns. Let them cook for about 5-7 minutes on one side before flipping and doing the same on the other side. (5-7 minutes on each side while keeping close watch on them as to not let them burn).
  9. Once hash browns reach desired doneness, add bacon and onions back to the grill/pan.
  10. Slowly and carefully add beaten egg mixture into the hash brown, bacon, onion pile. Begin mixing everything together while also letting the egg cook on the hot surface. The egg mixture will begin to hold the hash brown mixture together.
  11. Once egg is completely cooked, turn off heat and cover mixture with shredded cheese. There should still be enough residual heat to melt the cheese. Enjoy while still hot!
The three stages of the bacon for this recipe. Whole, chopped, and cooked.

This meal can be easily reheated and enjoyed again IF there are leftovers!

Nutrition

  • Serving size: as cooked with 8 eggs serves about 4 people.
  • 1 serving is approximately 498 Calories; 25.2g Fat; 11.1g Sat. Fat; 468mg Cholest.; 829mg Sodium; 38.9g Carbs; 4.4g Fiber; 7.6g Sugar; 35.1g Protein.

My Honest Review: Onion Goggles

There are thousands of ridiculous gadgets on the internet today. Kitchen gadgets is probably the genre with the greatest number of unnecessary items. I worked for 5 years at a retail job that focused largely on kitchen gadgets. I’ve seen it all- strawberry hullers, banana slicers, corn cob butterers. If there is some process that takes place in the kitchen, some hopeful inventor has devised a gadget to “make your life easier.”

Because I spent 5 years exploring what we called the gadget wall, I had the chance to try many gimmicky gizmos. Some of them withstood the test, and some of them became clearly unnecessary. One gadget that I never saw in the store but ran across during one of my late night online impulse buys was called Onion Goggles.

At first, I thought it was silly. Sure, cutting onions sucks…but does it really require eye protection? But, thinking back to all the times I’ve cut onions, I reconsidered my skepticism. It seems like every time I cut onions, my eyes pour tears in defense against the onion’s stinging particles released from the cut. It’s a job I dread. I spend a lot of time cooking. I’m the main cook in our house, and I genuinely enjoy cooking, so I come across this problem frequently. Many times, my husband offers to cut the onions for our dinner because he knows how seriously I react to them. Apparently, his eyeballs are a lot tougher than mine!

So, I purchased a pair of onion goggles and waited for my first opportunity to use them. Recently, we had a meal of pulled pork sandwiches, and I wanted to make caramelized onions to go with it. Caramelizing the onions brings out their natural sweetness and goes very well with the tangy zing of the barbeque sauce on the pork. So, I busted out my newest kitchen fashion accessory and gave them a try.

I wish you could smell pictures!

I was very skeptical. Over the years, I’ve tried many of the Old Wives’ Tales based around ways to keep onions from hurting your eyes and had yet to find one that works. I’ve tried leaving the roots on while cutting the onion. I’ve tried using a very sharp knife. I’ve tried coating my knife in several different substances before cutting into the onion. I’ve tried many others. None of them worked for me, so the onion goggles were really my last effort before giving up on fighting it.

I needed to cut up the entirety of my red onion, so I was able to give my goggles a fair first try. As I began to cut the onion, I noticed that the lenses started to get what looked like tiny water droplets on them. That must be what normally gets in my eyes. Yikes! To me, that was physical proof that the goggles worked. After getting through an onion cutting experience tear-free, I’d say that these onion goggles lived up to their purpose. I’ll be keeping them handy in my kitchen from now on.

With the onion goggles I didn’t have to worry about cutting myself because of impaired vision so I was able to get perfect slices!

If you’re looking to get a pair for yourself, I’m not here to recommend any specific brands, but I can recommend some criteria for your search. Make sure that the goggles you purchase come with some sort of particle blocking material around the frames where they sit against your face. This is the main protection against the onion’s sting. Additionally, it is useful to purchase a pair with a strap that goes around the back of your head to hold them on rather than them just sitting on your nose like a regular pair of glasses. Even with a foam barrier between the glasses and your face, if they’re not held against your face tight enough, there will be plenty of gaps for onion particles to sneak in and make your purchase pointless. The pair I purchased were like regular glasses but came with an optional band that attaches to the frame. This band worked perfectly and was quite stylish, if you ask me! They made me feel like a kitchen superhero!

Kept my eyes protected AND made me look cool! Haha!

I give this product: 5 out of 5 Bear Tracks!

Keto “bread”

I don’t follow KETO specifically but I try to substitute proteins for carbs whenever I can. My body seems to function better that way. And I stay fuller longer. I found this recipe a couple months back and saved it to my “healthy recipes to try” Pinterest board.

I have found many pins using this same recipe so I have no way to credit the original recipe creator but I will leave the original pin as I found it for proper credit to that pinner.

Here is the original PIN I found next to my finished product:

My Attempt

  • 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
  • ½ cup shredded parmesan cheese
  • 1 egg
  • Garlic salt sprinkled on top before baking

I used the convection setting on my oven which puts it at 375°.

They only needed 15 minutes to cook. Any longer might have made them too crispy.

PROS:

  • Easy to make
  • Easy to double or triple recipe to make more
  • Very fast prep time
  • I could successfully pretend this was bread
  • Very versatile

CONS:

  • Could be bland without some spice for flavoring which is why I sprinkled garlic salt on it.
  • Needs to be eaten soon after it’s made. Doesn’t age well.

In the future, I plan to use this recipe to make:

  • Bagels
  • Breakfast sandwiches
  • Mini pizzas
  • Cheese sticks

Nutrition

  • Serving size: 1 whole regular-sized bagel (2 halves) or 1 regular-sized hamburger bun (top and bottom).
  • 1 serving is approximately 271 Calories; 20.8g Fat; 11.5g Sat. Fat; 156mg Cholest.; 705mg Sodium; 1.5g Carbs; 0g Fiber; 0.7g Sugar; 15.4g Protein.

Crock-Pot Chili

This chili is a recipe I have been making for years now. It changes a little each time depending on how many of each item we have laying around. I don’t like to waste food, so I find ways to incorporate unclaimed items into my recipes. The recipe below is the most common version that I make. There are many options for changes or substitutions that I will note below the recipe. Look for the * symbol for specific notes. It’s an easy recipe. The most time consuming part is cutting up the vegetables.

  • Prep time: approx. 30 minutes
  • Cook time: on low 6-8hrs, on high 4hrs
Most of the main ingredients for Crock-Pot Chili
  • 1 lb ground turkey*
  • About 1 lb cubed steak*
  • 1 medium yellow onion*
  • 1 red pepper
  • 1 green pepper
  • 1 jalapeño pepper (optional for spice)*
  • 1 can black beans (15 oz.)
  • 1 can kidney beans (15 oz.)
  • 2 -15 oz. cans of diced tomatoes
  • 1- 15 oz. can tomato sauce
  • 1 small can of tomato paste
  • 16 oz. chicken broth*
  • 3 cloves of garlic or 3 tsp minced garlic
  • 3 Tbsp honey
  • 1 Tbsp chili powder
  • 1 Tbsp cumin
  • 1 Tbsp cinnamon
  • 1 Tbsp Himalayan Pink Salt*
  • 2 bay leaves
The spices used in the Crock-Pot Chili recipe
  1. On medium heat, brown and crumble ground turkey in a frying pan (using a little oil to grease the pan).
  2. Trim fat from cubed steak and cut steak down to small pieces- about 1″ cubed or smaller.
  3. Using high heat and an oiled frying pan, sear (brown) each side of the steak pieces but try not to cook them all the way through. The Crock-Pot will do the rest of the cooking and this will keep the steak pieces tender.
  4. Cut onion, red and green pepper, and optional jalapeño into small pieces.
  5. Add all ingredients (except the bay leaves) to the Crock-Pot. With a large spoon, stir ingredients until evenly mixed.
  6. Tuck the bay leaves into the chili alongside the inside of the pot.
  7. Cook in the Crock-Pot on Low for 6-8 hours or on High for 4 hours. Stir ingredients occasionally but it’s not necessary.

Notes:

*This recipe calls for ground turkey but you can substitute ground beef or even take it out entirely for a vegetarian option.

*This meat is also not necessary for the option of a vegetarian chili.

*I typically use a sweeter yellow onion but any type will do. White onions are also a good option but typically yield a stronger onion-taste.

*The jalapeño is totally optional but is a great addition if you like a little bit of spice. Some jalapeños are spicier than others. Sometimes you can find mild jalapeños. You can add these but they usually won’t be spicy enough to notice in the chili. One “hot” jalapeño is a good amount of spice for this recipe. But feel free to add as much or as little as you want!

*For the chicken broth, I usually use scoops of condensed broth paste dissolved in hot water but you can also use bouillon cubes dissolved or already prepared broth from a package instead. It’s all a matter of choice and convenience.

*Himalayan pink salt has less sodium than table salt. If you have to substitute table salt, make sure to only add a teaspoon or two and possibly just add more to taste after it cooks.

Nutrition:

  • Servings: there are about 15 servings measured with a regular sized ladle.
  • 1 serving is approximately 178 Calories; 1.8g Fat; 0.2g Sat. Fat; 14.7mg Cholest.; 465mg Sodium; 24.7g Carbs; 5.5g Fiber; 8.1g Sugar; 18.5g Protein.
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