Smothered Steak

Mom has made this for years. I cut the amount of oil down by more than half and added onions, which made it a little healtheir but didn't add much to the prep. In fact, it's easy to make and is comfort food at its best. The extended baking time makes the meat fall-apart tender. This is wonderful with mashed potatoes.

Smothered Steak

1 1/2 lb round steak, trimmed and cut into 2-inch pieces
1/2 c vegetable oil
1/2 c flour, plus extra for dredging
black pepper to taste
3 c. beef broth
1 large onion, chopped

Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 8x11 glass casserole dish with cooking spray. Combine flour and pepper in a small bowl. Heat oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Dredge steak in flour mixture and cook in skillet until browned, about 3 minutes on each side. Use tongs to remove steak to prepared casserole dish. Cover steak with onions.

Whisk flour into remaining oil. If too dry, add a tablespoon of oil at at time until the lumps are out of the flour. Slowly stir in beef broth, stirring constantly. Cook over medium-high heat for about five minutes, or until thickened. Carefully pour gravy over steak and onions. Cover dish tightly with two layers of aluminum foil. Bake for one hour at 350. Reduce heat to 200 and bake another hour. Can sit, covered, for up to an hour before serving.

Serves 4.

Taco Stuffed Peppers

I needed a freezer-friendly recipe for a friend who'd just had a baby, and amazingly, I didn't have a single dish that fit that bill for the hot summertime. Everything I freeze is what I consider a winter dish - soups, chilis, etc. After a little digging, I finally settled on stuffed peppers, but I knew I didn't want to make the standard tomato soup version. I lumped together ideas from several different recipes and came up with this version. The picture only shows four peppers - I could have easily filled six. I had a little leftover filling, and it was wonderful on baked potatoes.

Taco Stuffed Peppers

6 bell peppers, any color
1 lb. ground beef
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 c. cooked rice
3/4 c. salsa or picante sauce
1/2 packet taco seasoning
1/2 c. shredded Mexican blend cheese

Preheat oven to 350. In a large skillet, brown beef and onion. Meanwhile, cut tops off peppers and scoop out seeds and membranes. Rinse thoroughly and drop in boiling water for no longer than two minutes. Remove with tongs and set upside-down to drain.

Once beef is cooked, drain excess fat. Stir in rice, salsa, taco seasoning, and cheese. Spoon into peppers. (If desired, top with extra cheese.). Place peppers in a cake pan lined with foil. Bake for 35 minutes. If tops are becoming too brown, lightly cover with foil.

Once cooled, these can be frozen. Wrap individually in foil or freezer paper. To reheat, microwave on high for 5 minutes, or bake 30 minutes at 425.

Serves 6.

French Dip Subs

This one just left me speechless.

It is that good.

Nuttin' else to say, 'cept that they won't last long!

French Dip Subs

1 3-lb eye of round roast, trimmed of fat
1 can condensed French onion soup, undiluted
1 can beef consomme, undiluted
1 can beef broth (the Campbell's kind)
1 tbsp beef bouillon granules
pepper to taste
hoagie rolls

Cut roast in half and place in bottom of slow cooker. Pour soups and bouillon granules over the roast. Cook on low for 8-10 hours. Shred meat with forks and place on hoagie rolls. Strain broth if desired and serve with subs.

(I'm just guessing, but a 3-lb roast should serve at least 8-10 people.)

Moo Shu Sloppy Joes

Have I got your attention? I combined two recipes to come up with this really tasty - albiet rather unusal - sandwich. Don't knock it until you try it - the ingredients are easy to throw together, and it's got a nice, spicy kick. (I will try to post nutrition info once I figure it out.)

Moo Shu Sloppy Joes

1 lb. lean ground beef
2 tsp. cornstarch
1/2 c. cold water
1/4 c. barbecue sauce
1/4 c. hoisin sauce
1/2 c. soy sauce
3/4 tsp. ground ginger
3 c. broccoli slaw mix
8 8-in whole wheat tortillas

In a large skillet, brown beef until no longer pink. Meanwhile, mix all remaining ingredients except broccoli slaw in a medium bowl. Whisk until well blended. Drain any fat off beef. Add sauce mixture. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Cook 1-2 minutes, or until thickened. Stir in broccoli slaw and mix until coated well. Spoon 1/8 of mixture onto one tortilla.

Serves 4.

Spiced Pot Roast

When it comes to cooking a roast, I have tried a million different things, and I never make it the same twice. I've also never used a recipe, until now. I adapted this from a Weight Watchers cookbook to use my CrockPot. You can cook it with the vegetables, but I prefer to cook mine separately. Serve it with roasted potatoes and a salad. The leftovers are also perfect for vegetable beef soup (recipe to follow next week).

Spiced Pot Roast

1 1/2 pound lean eye of round roast, trimmed of all fat
1 14.5-oz can reduced-sodium beef broth
1 tsp. Tabasco sauce
1 tsp. ground coriander
3/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground ginger
1/4 tsp. ground pepper

Spray a skillet with olive oil spray. Sear roast over high heat on all sides. Transfer to slow cooker. Add remaining ingredients. Cook on low 8-10 hours, or until meat is cooked.

Serves 6-8

Reuben Casserole

I really love a good Reuben. Sauerkraut, cheese, thousand island dressing, and corned beef doesn't sound like an especially good combination - but it's so yummy. This casserole is actually easier to assemble than a sandwich, and you can stick it in the fridge and eat from it for several days. Because there's no pre-cooking required, all you have to do is throw it in the dish and bake.

Word to the wise: get as much liquid from the sauerkraut as you possibly can so the dish doesn't become watery. Also, the stuff in the bag that's in the cooler section (usually by the hot dogs) is infinitely better than its canned counterpart. You can use low-fat 1000 Island dressing, but it doesn't taste as good. Reduced-fat Swiss is fine, if you can find it. I usually "butter" the bread with a low-cal butter spray instead of real butter.

Reuben Casserole

1 14-oz can sauerkrat, rinsed and drained
1 c. Thousand Island salad dressing
1 lb. thinly sliced deli corned beef, cut into strips
2 c. shredded Swiss cheese
4-6 slices rye bread, buttered

Preheat oven to 375. Combine sauerkraut and salad dressing; spread into a greased 9x13 dish. Top with corned beef and cheese. Place bread, buttered side up, over top. Bake, uncovered for 25-30 minutes or until heated through and bubbly.

Beef Stew

Mmmm... I've had this recipe for years, and it is the ultimate fall stew. Because the original version was stovetop and seriously labor-intensive, I adapted it for the slow cooker. The addition of tapioca gives the broth a nice, thick consistency. It freezes well. If you are lucky enough to have space for one of the really big slow cookers, double the recipe and freeze half for later. It keeps well in the fridge for up to a week, and is a good choice for camping trips.

Beef Stew

1 lb stew meat
2 cans V8 juice
2 tbsp. dry tapioca
1/2 cup choppped onion
2 tbsp. beef boullion granules
2 cloves minced garlic
2 bay leaves
1/2 tsp. basil
1/2 tsp thyme
2 c. sliced carrots (or baby carrots)
3 c. diced potatoes
1 c. diced celery

Combine all ingredients in a slow cooker. Mix well. Cook on low for at least 8 hours. (This will vary, depending on how fast your "slow" cooker cooks! I always let mine go for 10 hours.) Discard bay leaf before serving.