Grape Jelly Meatballs

2 lb. ground beef, lean
1 env. dry onion soup mix
2 eggs
1/2 c. dry bread or cracker crumbs

(or a bag of frozen meatballs)

SAUCE:

12 oz. bottle BBQ sauce
10 oz. grape jelly

Mix BBQ sauce and grape jelly with a wire whisk. Heat well. Pour over cooked meatballs and keep warm.

*All the above Michelle found online*

I know that sounds scary.  I always get the weirdest faces when I say it before people have tried it.  If I tell them after they have tried it they don't care because they think they are so dang good!  Jake loves these so I usually make them to bring to functions just so he gets a chance to eat them.  We have eaten them on rice before, and we have made another variation, but they are best as an appetizer.  Such an easy recipe! Ready?

1 bag of homestyle meatballs

Equal parts BBQ sauce and grape jelly- we use a whole bottle and jar
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Mix sauce and jelly over heat on stove, add meatballs and cook till heated through.  Usually after I mix it all, I just put it in a crock pot and let it warm all day until we need it. 

I'll add a pic later, but it doesn't do it justice.

Mexican Starter

This recipe came from the website cooks.com; however, I made a few modifications.  I have made this about 4 times, and I finally now really like the recipe (original recipe called for oregano, which was too weird in a Mexican dish, so I substituted cumin; I also changed some of the ratios, but didn’t change any other ingredients).  It is extremely versatile, and it can make several main dishes, but our favorite for taste was just simple tostadas (see picture below). I also made zucchini boats with it, stuffed bell peppers (also picture below), both of which we liked a lot.  The recipe can easily be doubled or tripled. I doubled it every time I made it, and it was great left over.

Ingredients:

1 lb. ground beef, browned and drained

1 T. olive oil

1 onion, diced

1 T. minced garlic (2-3 cloves)

1 green bell pepper, cored and diced (could use just ½ pepper)

6 oz. can tomato paste

1 C. water (add more to thin if needed)

1 small jar salsa (mild or medium to your taste)

½ t. cumin

1 T. Taco Seasoning

1 T. balsamic vinegar

2 T. brown sugar

½ t. salt

¼ t. black pepper

To increase heat, you can add 1T. minced jalapeño, or ¼ to ½ t. chili powder, or a few dashes of Tobasco, or you could even add all three if you feel really hot and spicy!

Directions:

After browning ground beef, set aside.  In a large skillet, sauté the onion and green pepper till soft, about 5 minutes, adding the garlic after about 2-3 minutes.  Add all remaining ingredients, including cooked ground beef.  Simmer for 30-45 minutes on low heat.  If using jalapeño, add it to onions and pepper while sautéing. 

Suggestions:

1.       Stuffed Peppers-combine 1:1 with cooked rice.  Fill peppers and bake at 350⁰F until peppers are tender (about 20-25 minutes).  Top with cheese.

2.       Tostada-layer on a fried corn tortilla: refried beans, cheese, meat mixture, sour cream, lettuce, tomato, avocado

3.       Serve with chips as a dip

4.       Chili-add 2 cans of beans, drained and rinsed.  (Could add corn too.)  Top with cheese. 

5.       Zucchini boats-scoop out zucchini centers and fill with meat mixture.  Top with cheese or buttered bread crumbs and bake at 350⁰F until zucchini is tender (about 25-30 minutes).

6.       Sub sandwiches-Top a sub with meat mixture and cheese and broil on high until cheese melts.  Top with thinly-sliced jalapeño if desired.

Taco Soup

From an old roommate.  Scott has called me about this recipe over the years.  He used to come over whenever I cooked it back in college.

1 1/2 lb ground beef
1/2 c chopped onion
2 cans water
1 can corn with juice
1 can rinsed kidney beans
8 oz tomato sauce
24 oz can tomatoes with juice
1 pkg taco seasoning

Cook above ingredients in crockpot for 3-4 hours.  Top with cheese, chips (we like frito's) salsa, sour cream.

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

1 1/2 lbs ground beef
2/3 c saltines
1/3 c minced onion
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 c milk

Mix above ingredients and form into meatball shape.  Bake at 350 degrees till done.  While baking, mix sauce and add meatballs in when finished cooking.  Serve on rice.

Sauce:

2 T cornstarch
1 13.5 oz pineapple slices with juice
1/3 c vinegar
1/2 c brown sugar
1 T soy sauce
1/3  chopped green pepper

Cook sauce over medium heat till it thickens.  Add meat and green pepper and pineapple towards the end.  Use the pineapple juice to help thicken the sauce.  Serve over rice

Meatloaf

Also known by Mom as Beef Roll Mozzerella

hambuger
1/2 c bread crumbs or saltines
minced onion
milk to moisten
salt and pepper
egg
white cheese

Mix ingredients excluding the cheese.  Lay out flat, fill cheese in middle and roll edges up around it into meatloaf shape.  Cook 1 hr and 15 minutes at 350 degrees.  Add a can of tomato sauce on top and cook for 30 additional minutes.

Porcupines

First tried these when someone brought dinner to us when Carter was born.

1 lb. ground beef
1/2 c uncooked rice
1/2 c water
1/3 c onions ( I use onion powder instead)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp celery salt
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp pepper

Mix and make into meatballs.  They should be very wet.

Cover with sauce:  15 oz tomato sauce, 1 c water, 2 T worchestershire sauce.

Cook covered with foil at 350 degrees for 45-60 minutes till rice is done.

Sloppy Jo's

Mom's recipe.

1-1/2 lbs ground beef
1/4 c chopped onions
1 c celery or some celery salt to taste
1tsp chili powder
1/2 c boiling water
2 tsp vinegar
1 tsp mustard
20 ounces ketchup
1 tsp worchestershire sauce
1/2 c milk


Brown ground beef in big pot.  Add other ingredients and simmer on low heat.  Serve on hamburger buns with lots of napkins nearby.

Doug's Chili

Ingredients:

Browned Ground Beef with onion pepper and black pepper
Two Cans Ranch Style Beans
One Can Ranch Style Beans with Jalapeno
(Any other kind of bean you want to add like black eyed peas, light or dark kidney, etc)
Chili powder to taste (about 1 T or more)
Worchestershire Sauce to taste (2T or more)
One Can of Tomato Sauce with half can of added water
One Can or 2 C of Stewed Tomatoes
Any chopped onions or peppers you'd like.

Place all ingredients in a crock pot and cook on low for 6-8 hours.  Eat topped with cornbread, cheese, red onions, and/or sour cream.

This is usually the recipe we follow, and it is adjusted every time according to what we have on hand.  Our most recent batch included red peppers, anaheim's and also banana peppers and I loved how sweet it tasted.  It is not "hot" at all.
    
Of course, like stew, I love this better the next day!