Mexican Lasagna

This picture doesn't look the greatest, I should have taken one after I cut a piece out, oh well. Also in this recipe I don't use the oregano but I do use chili powder. and when it is done let it sit out of the oven for about 10 minutes before you cut into it, otherwise it will be really soupy.

1 lb. lean ground beef cooked

2 cans refried beans

2 tsp. dried oregano

1 tsp. ground cumin

3/4 tsp. garlic powder

12 uncooked lasagna noodles

2 cups water

2 1/2 cups picante sauce or salsa

2 cups (16 oz.) sour cream

2 can (2.2 oz) sliced black olives, drained

2 cup (4 oz.) shredded Monterrey jack cheese

Combine beef, beans, oregano, cumin, and garlic powder. Place four of the uncooked lasagna noodles in the bottom of a 13 X 9 inch baking pan. Spread half of the beef mixture over the noodle. Top with four more noodles and the remaining beef mixture. Cover with remaining noodles. Combine water and picante sauce. Pour over all. Cover tightly with foil; bake at 350 degrees for an hour or until noodles are tender. Combine sour cream, onions, and olives. Spoon over casserole; top with cheese. Bake uncovered, until cheese is melted, about 5 minutes. Serves 12. Enjoy!

Creamy Broccoli Cheese Soup

Okay here is another soup, I found this on another cooking blog and thought I would give it a try. Well Joe loved this one and I have had to make it twice in the past two weeks for him. I like the other potato broccoli soup I posted better, but that's just me. This soup made a bigger batch but took like twice the time to make. Anyway give it a try and let me know what you think. I also added some minced garlic to this recipe. The first time I only added two cloves and that wasn't enough, so this time I added about 5 and that was better, I just cooked it in with the onions. Also the second time I made it I only added two large potatoes because the first time it had two many for me(I took the picture the first time).


4 potatoes peeled, and cut into small cubes
5 carrots peeled and chopped
2 heads of broccoli chopped (I justed used a bag of frozen broccoli)

Boil potatoes and carrots for 10 min. Then add broccoli and boil 10 more minutes. Drain and set aside.

Then:
half or whole onion diced
1/4 cup butter

Melt butter then saute onion in butter until tender. Set aside.

Then:
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup flour
4 cups whole milk
1 cup chicken broth
2 cups cheese shredded
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper

Melt butter in large pot. Add flour and whisk until mixed well. Add milk and broth. Stirring constantly, bring to a boil and boil for 2 minutes to thicken. Add veggies, onion, cheese, salt and pepper. Reduce heat to low. Serve with rolls or in bread bowls. Enjoy!!

My Birthday Dinner

So, I know this is a little late coming, but I wanted to finally post what I made for my birthday dinner. I made shredded chicken burritos and a bean dip and guacamole that didn't quite turn out like guacamole, but it was still good.

Shredded Chicken Burritos:

Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breast

Salsa

Shredded Cheese

Tortillas

Cook the chicken. I just put it in a frying pan and added salt and cooked it up until it wasn't pink in the middle. After it is done cooking, shred the chicken. I use two forks and hold the chicken with one fork and pull pieces away with another fork. Pretty easy. Mix the shredded chicken with some salsa. Put some of it on a tortilla and top with cheese. Pop it in the microwave until the cheese melts and wrap it up.

Guacamole Dip Stuff

So, I usually make amazing guacamole, but this time, it wasn't the same. It was delicious, but not quite guacamole. I added too much sour cream, so I got creative (well, not too creative, but whatever).

Avocados

Sour Cream

Lime

Salsa

Jalepenos

Cut the avocados in half. Remove the pit (if you haven't ever done this before, it is fun. You take a knife and slam it into the pit and then just pull the knife out and the pit comes with). Peel the skin off and mash the avocado. Mix in some sour cream. I put a lot in this time and it was still good. Mix in some salsa and squeeze half a lime into it. Add salt to taste. Top with jalepenos.

Bean Dip

For my bean dip, I actually made the beans from scratch. Pretty easy. It is easier with the dehydrated bean flakes from the cannery though.

Pinto Beans

Pepper Jack Cheese

Soak the pinto beans over night. Remove the soak water and boil them in fresh water. Drain off some of the water and mash the beans. Add in a ton of pepper jack cheese. Done.

I did not get a picture of the bean dip because I did not drain off enough water and I had to boil some off. It took forever and I was too tired to take a picture when it was finally done, but it was good. You can also mix salsa with the beans.

Enjoy!