Little Wife On the Prairie





When you are everything to everyone, well, you had better act like you have it all together.



Tuesday, September 21, 2010

I need help!

I have a problem. I am sooooo tired of cooking the same things I have cooked for 10 years! I feel like that statement should be in all caps. Cooking meals is not my favorite thing. I really love to bake. I could bake something every day but my jeans would protest. Unfortunately, cooking is a necessity in my line of employment. If I didn't cook meals, my family would leave me. So help me! I am sick of being in a rut. I need some real recipes. Things that you cook often. I want answers people! Do you have something that you like to cook that is not spaghetti, enchiladas or chicken and rice? (I already have those on the menu.) Post your best! And I don't mean those fancy things you cook when company is coming. I mean the go-to, sloppy, throw it in a pan and go kind of dishes. Oh, and it has to feed the varying amounts of people that we have in our lives at any given dinner. So bring it on! We can all share. Thank you in advance for your cooperation.

8 comments:

Carrie said...

Ok, Rachelle, you asked for it! This definitely qualifies as sloppy, but I love it, and you can use it in a variety of ways.
1 can black beans (drained & rinsed)
1 can kidney beans (drained & rinsed
1 can chili beans
1 can stewed tomatoes
1 cup salsa
1 can chicken (or 1 lb ground beef browned with cumin, chili powder, onion, & garlic)

Toss it all in a pot together till it is warmed or the flavors have melded to your satisfaction. Serve on warm tortillas with cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, & sour cream (& whatever else strikes your fancy).
Sometimes we just eat it with tortilla chips. :-)
Enjoy!


My other go to meal is a tortilla pizza. (Michelle will say she doesn't like it, but she hasn't had it since I tweaked it.)
Preheat your oven to 400. Place your tortillas on cookie sheets and place in the preheating oven for 5 minutes, then turn over for 2 minutes.
Remove from oven, brush with olive oil & sprinkle with seasonings (pizza seasoning, garlic, etc.).
Spread canned spaghetti sauce on each tortilla & top with your favorite pizza toppings.
Bake for 10 minutes, then broil for 1-2 minutes until the tops are browned.
We love these!!! The kids and I have them for lunch at least once a week. Will eats 1/2 to 3/4 of a pizza. I eat a whole one.

Smiles!!!

Crystal said...

ok well, i'll just tell you a few easy things i cook (w/o recipes) b/c you KNOW i'm not the chef in our household. lol!
sloppy joes, french bread pizza, taco salad, lasagna or baked spaghetti, creamy chicken spaghetti, green chilie stew, beans/ cornbread, chicken pot pie . . . most of those are self explanitory but if you need details, email me. :) sometimes it's just nice to HEAR something someone else does. you can tweak it and make it your own. it really DOES get boring cooking the same stuff over and over!! love you tons!!

Anonymous said...

Ok, my favorite recipe from my mother-in-law that is SUPER easy and makes a TON of food (and is a hubbys fav):
Cowboy Fajitas
3 lb roast
Put in a large glass pan or dutch oven
Sprinkle garlic salt and spread 2 cans of chopped green chile over the meat.
Then add 3 cans of Rotell, 3 cups of dry pinto beans (Casserole brand is best), and a box or 2 of chicken broth.
(You make sure that the chicken broth is covering the meat)
Then put it in the oven on 300 degrees (or in a a crock pot) for 8 hours.
You have to check the level of broth and add more every hour or two (or if in a dutch oven, you can just fill to the top if you have to leave it).
Serve with tortillas, shreaded cheese and sour cream (just like fajitas)! YUMMO! Hope you like it!
Joi Lunsford

Little Wife on the Prairie said...

Thanks girls! I can't wait to try a few. I had lots of people tell me they are waiting to see what reponses I get so they can add new things to their menus. :)

Carrie said...

just a note to add to the first one -- a can of refried beans, otherwise it may be too soupy. just call it baby brain! :-)

molly said...

what we call "hamburger and rice"--all the boys in my house eat this up!

1 lb ground beef
1 diced onion
garlic powder
1 can cream of mushroom soup
i can milk (in the soup can)
rice (pkg directions)

brown ground beef with onion and garlic powder. I suppose you could salt and pepper here, but I don't generally cook with salt and pepper. drain the grease. add one can of cream of mushroom soup and one can of milk, then let simmer.

Cook rice according to package directions. (using minute rice) if you're using regular rice you may want to start it before you start your meat.

When rice is done, pile it in a bowl, plop some of the meat mixture on top and mix it up! I'm telling you, the male gender LOVES this meal! And it's so easy!

Rosita Designs said...

have you ever had mongolian bbq? i stumbled upon making it myself when i was whipping up a veggie heavy pasta for lunch one day.

as everything was cooking, i realized i could just change up the "sauce" and it would be an asian lunch, instead of italian.

it's super easy. use whatever veggies you want, or have on hand (ANYTHING works), and whatever meat you have on hand.

cook your veggies & meat while the pasta (spaghetti works best) is cooking, and then dump it all together.

i use sesame oil, lots of garlic, tons of red pepper flakes, and soy sauce as our "sauce", but olive oil works, and of course, adjust the flavors to your family's taste buds. (we like it spicy!)

i made it last night, and added the broccoli to the pasta when there was 6 minutes left, and it cut down the cooking time drastically!

it's delicious, and done in about 15 minutes.

Charity Martin said...

We eat a lot of Mexican food around here...green chile stew, tacos, burritos, quesadillas, posole, chile....but also some american faves...chicken pot pie, sloppy joe pie, good ole hamburgers and hot dogs, fetuccini alfredo, pizza, chicken and rice casserole and pot roast. Heavenly Homemakers has a lot of good and easy recipes that I have used! If you want recipes just facebook me! I hear you though...I have this problem A LOT!!! I get so sick of the same ole stuff.