Meatball Soup

My Mother & Father-in-law are visiting for the holiday season.  As always, my father-in-law brought along some great recipes!  Tonight, we had meatball soup which was a simple and filling supper when paired with a loaf of crusty bread!  I ramped it up a bit with fresh baked meatballs which I made earlier today.  You can use packaged turkey or beef meatballs if you don’t have time to make your own.  I’ll include the meatball recipe after the soup recipe.  

Meatball Soup:

(Serves 10)

2 tbsp olive oi

1 cup carrots diced

1 cup onion diced

3/4 cup celery diced

1 medium zucchini 

1 Jalapeño Pepper

4 green onions sliced thin

1 (15oz) can great northern beans, rinsed & drained 

2 (14oz) cans of diced tomatoes, undrained

1 (32oz) carton of reduced sodium chicken broth

3 cups water

6 tbsp brown rice

2 tsp Italian seasoning

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

16-20 meatballs, frozen & cooked according to package or fresh (see recipe below)

1. Heat oil over medium heat in a large pot. Add all the diced vegetables. Cook for 6-7 minutes, stirring occasionally.
2. Add beans, tomatoes, broth, water, rice, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and allow to simmer for 20 minutes.
3. Add meatballs, cover and allow to simmer for another 45 minutes.

Baked Meatballs: 

1 pound lean ground beef 

1 pound ground pork

1 cup Italian breadcrumbs

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 tbsp minced garlic

1 small onion, diced

4 tbsp marinara

2 tbsp fresh rosemary, chopped

2 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped

2 tsp basil

1 tsp kosher salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1. Preheat oven to 375°F. Prepare a baking sheet by lining with parchment paper.
   
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine all ingredients. Mix well, do not over mix or you will have tough meatballs.
3. Roll about 2 tbsp portion of meat mixture into a ball and place on baking sheet. Repeat with remaining mixture to make approximately 40 meatballs.
4. Bake for 35-40 minutes, until the meatballs are browned and cooked through.
   

Enjoy!

Baked Sea Scallops

Hello, All!!  I’m back!  It has been a long while since my last post. Life has been so crazy the last couple of years, I haven’t had the time to post.  I missed it so I’m going to make a bigger effort to get back in the blogging groove! 😊

My family really enjoys seafood so I try to make it at least once s week.  Shrimp is our usual fare and I’ve publish quite a few recipes using shrimp,  Tonight’s dinner was sea scallops which are my husband’s favorite!  Scallops cook quickly when you pan sear them which makes timing sides a bit tricky.  I found a baked recipe which I like because it takes 20 minutes without over cooking the scallops.  It is super flavorful with Parmesan cheese and a nice mix of spices! Hope you try this recipe & enjoy it as much as we do!

Baked Sea Scallops

Ingredients

 • 1.5 lb. large sea scallops 

 • 6 tblsp butter, melted

 • 2 tbsp sherry 

 • 1 tbsp lemon juice

 • 1/2 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

 • 1 tsp kosher salt

 • 1/2 tsp black pepper

 • 1 tsp garlic powder

 • 1 tsp dried parsley

 • 1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

 • 1/4 tsp sweet paprika

Instructions

* Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

* Rinse the scallops and pat dry. Place in a lightly greased casserole dish.

* In a small bowl, use a fork to mix together the butter, wine, lemon juice, 1/2 cup Parmesan, salt, pepper, garlic powder, dried parsle, sweet paprika & cayenne pepper,

* Spoon a little of the mixture on top of each scallop.

* Cover the pan with foil and bake until scallops are cooked through and opaque. This should take about 20 minutes.

* Uncover the scallops and broil for a minute or two to brown. Serve immediately!!

Slow Cooker Roast Chicken

One of the easiest ways to make chicken!   It only takes 10-15 minutes to prep and it slow roasts in the slow cooker for 5-6 hours on low.  I’ve been making whole roast chicken this way for many years because the meat comes out so moist and delicious!

Slow Cooker Roast Chicken

1 whole chicken, patted dry & giblets removed

2 lg Onions, cut in eighths

4 tsp Lawry’s Season Salt

1 tsp Garlic powder

1 tsp Onion powder

1 tsp Thyme

1 tsp Parsley

1/2 tsp Black pepper

1/2 tsp Cayene pepper

Place the onions in the bottom of the slow cooker. Put the chicken on top of the onions.  Mix the remaining ingredients together in a small bowl.  Rub the spice mixture all over the chicken.  Cook on low for 5-6 hours.  Remove the chicken from the slow cooker & let rest for 15 minutes before removing skin & carving.  Enjoy!!

Finally Back Live!

Hi, Everyone!! I’ve been away quite awhile because the Blogger App that I was using stopped working.  I found a new app that allows me to hook back up to my blog.  I’m so excited to be back! 

I will catch up on my posts over the next few days as I have lots of new recipes to share!  

Hope to see comments & maybe sharing of your recipes, kitchen tips & tricks!

Best Regards,

Debbie

Lemon Garlic Green Beans

 

Last week, I needed a quick vegetable to compliment the Buttermilk roast chicken recipe that I copied from Facebook 

Lemon Garlic Green Beans

2 Tbsp Butter

2 Tbsp Olive Oil

3 Cloves Garlic, minced

2 lb Green Beans, trimmed

Zest & Juice from 1 Lemon

1/4 Cup Walnuts, chopped

Salt & Pepper to taste 

Directions:

Melt butter with olive oil in a skillet over medium heat.  Add garlic & sauté for 1-2 minutes. Add the green beans to the pan and salt & pepper to taste.  Cook for 4-6 minutes stirring several times.  Add lemon zest and juice, cook for another 2 minutes.  Toss walnuts into pan, cook for an additional 3-4 minutes.  Enjoy!

Tender Crispy Baked Chicken

I was in the mood for fried chicken, but I didn't have all the ingredients such as buttermilk.  I pulled out a couple of cook books and found a recipe that used sour cream and was baked instead of fried!i didn't have all the ingredients, but was able to make substitutions with my own end of spices and rice wine vinegar instead of lemon juice.  This recipe was super simple to prepare.  It would be a great weeknight option!  I hope you make this recipe and taste it for yourself!

Tender Crispy Baked Chicken:

1 cup sour cream

1 tbsp dried parsley

2 tbsp rice wine vinegar

1 tsp celery seed

2 tsp paprika

2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 tsp garlic salt

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

4 skinless boneless chicken breasts 

2 cups bread crumbs

3 tbsp butter, melted

In a bowl, mix together the sour cream and all the other ingredients through the pepper.  Dip each chicken breast in the sour cream mixture and make sure each piece is well coated.  Place the costed chicken on a parchment paper covered baking sheet.  Refrigerate for 2-8 hours.  When you remove the chicken from the refridge, preheat the oven to 350*F.  Place the 2 cups of breadcrumbs on a shallow dish and dredge the chicken through them.  Place the chicken on a wire rack that is sitting inside of a foil covered backing sheet.  Bake the chicken for 45 minutes.  Melt the butter and drizzle over the chicken then return it to the oven for another 15 minutes.  When you remove the chicken from the oven, let it rest for 10 minutes prior to serving.

A Summer Favorite: Teriyaki Flank Steak

It's summertime and the grillin' is easy! We grill 2-3 times per week during the summer.  It has a couple of great advantages. It keeps the kitchen cool plus my husband does the cooking!😎. 

Teriyaki steak is one of our favorite recipes from my mom.  It is as simple as can be to throw the meat into the marinade for 8 to 24 hours before grilling.  The marinade makes the meat tender and juicy! I pair the steak with twice baked potatoes and corn on the cob for a great company meal that allows you to be with your guests a not in the kitchen!  

I grilled the corn alongside the meat which was super simple.  If you want to try it, here's what you do:

Grilled Corn:

Peel back husks, but don't tear them off the ears.  Remove the silk. Cover the ears back up with the husks and soak in a large bowl of salt water for 29-25 minutes.  Dry the ears after removing from the water.  Place the ears on the grill over medium heat for 20 minutes.  Turn the ears every 5 minutes.  Brush with butter & season to taste before serving.  

Teriyaki Flank Steak:

1.5 lb flank steak

1 can beef consommé

1/3 cup soy sauce

4 tbsp brown sugar

Juice of 1 lime

1/2 cup green onions, sliced

1 1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

Garlic salt to taste

Directions:

Cut steak into 2-3 inch pieces.

Mix remaining ingredients in a sealable container or bag.  Add steak pieces and seal the container.  Place in the refrigerator at least 6 hours and up to 24 hours.  Remove container from refridge 30 minutes before grilling.  Grill over a medium-high heat for about 8 minutes per side or until desired level of done.  Enjoy!!