Eggplant Lasagna
2 Medium Eggplants
Italian Breadcrumbs
Organic Valley Mozzarella Cheese (block, not soft)
Fresh Grated Parmesan Cheese
Freshly Sliced Provolone Cheese
3 large cans of whole peeled roma tomatos (good quality)
1 sliced white sweet onion
2 tsps fresh minced garlic (or 2 cloves chopped)
1/2 tsp of red pepper flakes
1 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
pinch of sugar
1 tsp butter
3 large eggs, beaten
1 cup flour
Fresh Basil Leaves
Preheat oven to 400.
Heat large saucepan to medium heat & slice onion. Add butter and olive oil to pan, after heated add onions & garlic... let sweat. Once onions have cooked down, add 3 cans of tomatoes, cover and let sizzle.
Slice eggplants into 1/4 inch slices. Line up 3 bowls of flour, egg mix & bread crumbs. Heat a sautee pan to medium, add about as much olive oil to pan as the thickness of your eggplant slices. Use tongs to dip eggplant in flour, then eggs, then breadcrumbs - add to hot oil. Cook about 1-2 mins on each side, careful to not crowd the pan. Only about 3 slices at a time. Set cooked eggplant slices to side.
To sauce, remove lid and turn down heat... take spoon and poke each tomato until then pop a little... basically mash the sauce, which should be pretty easy after its cooked covered for about 15-20 mins. Add salt, pepper, red pepper flakes and pinch of sugar. Cover.
Prepare cheeses... slice mozzarella into rectangle pieces... almost the size of mozzarella sticks. Slice sandwich size pieces of provolone & grate Parmesan.
Grease baking dish (large) and line bottom of dish with a good covering of sauce, top with eggplant slices and then mozzarella. Add another layer of sauce, eggplant and provolone slices. Add another layer of sauce and cover top layer with Parmesan cheese. Top with fresh basil leaves and slight drizzle of olive oil.
Add dish to oven, cook for about 20 mins, then set oven to broil and cook for about 2-4 minutes until cheese browns. Let cook for 10 mins and serve.
Not claiming this dish is "healthy", but it is carb and meat free!!
Sloppy Joseph's aka... grown up sloppy joes
Pack of Ground Beef
1/2 sweet white onion, diced
4 Celery stalks, chopped
1/4 cup ketchup
3 tablespoons mustard
2 tablespoons worchstister sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tsp hot sauce
1 tablespoon terriayki marinade
1 tsp liquid smoke
2 tsp's honey bbq sauce
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp cumin
salt & pepper
sprinkle of sugar
2 tblspoons butter
Seasame Seed Buns
Fresh crumbled blue cheese
Preheat oven to broil. In saucepan over medium heat add butter and let melt. Once butter is melted, add onions, celery & garlic. Cook until onions are soft & browned, add ground beef. Let beef cook, but while still just a little pink add sprinkle of salt, pepper & apple cider vinegar.
Once beef is browned, add in wet ingredients and then the cumin last. Mix together, set heat to low and cover.
While sauce is sitting on low, butter top bun of each roll and sprinkle on about a tablespoon of blue cheese. Set both sides of bun on cookie sheet & place in oven. You just want the cheese to melt and sides to brown up. Its on broil, so can burn fast... don't walk away. Probably only need to have them in there about 2-3 mins.
Take buns out, spoon sloppy josephs on bottom bun, top with blue cheese top bun & enjoy!!!
Healthy & Spicy Baked Buffalo Chicken Tenders w. blue cheese dipping saucePackage of chicken tendorloins
3 eggs - beaten
2 cups flour
4 cups panko bread crumbs
2 tsp hot sauce
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tblsp chilli powder
1/2 tsp cayenne powder
Favorite buffalo wing sauce
salt
pepper
olive oil
cut celery
baby carrots
Prehead oven to 350 - lay out cookie sheet
Place three bowls on counter... 1st bowl: flour, 2nd bowl: mix eggs & hot sauce, 3rd bowl: mix panko, garlic, chilli, cayenne powders.
Pick up tendorloins with grabbers (mind drawing total blank on name of this utensil??!!) and dip from flour, eggs and panko mix. Make sure each dip gets liberal amounts of the contents of each bowl. Lay each tender on cookie sheet until all have been dipped. Sprinkle salt & pepper and drizzle olive oil lightly over tenders. Reduce heat to 325 and Bake in oven for 20-25 mins, or until cooked through.
For Sauce:
1/4 cup sour cream
1/4 cup ranch dressing
1 tblsp skim milk
fresh grated blue cheese
Mix ingredients together in bowl.
Place wing sauce in measuring cup, about 1/2 cup and heat in microwave about 1 minute.
Plate chicken and drizzle wing sauce over. Serve with celery, carrots & dipping sauce.
Open Faced MonteCriscos
Whole Wheat Loaf Bread from bakery (not pre sliced)
3 eggs
1 tsp salt & pepper
1 tsp hot sauce
1 Leak
3 cups shredded lettuce
1 red tomato
1 yellow tomato
8 slices off bone bam
8 slices good quality turkey
8 slices turkey bacon
1/2 cup light maple syrup
3 tablespoons dijon mustard
1 cup shredded white cheddar (or any white cheese)
Place bacon slices on cookie sheet (be sure to oil sheet) and place in oven on 400 for about 10 mins or until cooked.
Cut leaks into slices, put in sauce pan, sprinkle with olive oil, a little lemon juice & salt and pepper. Cook until leaks are tender, about 7-8 mins over medium heat.
For bread you are going to make like you are making french toast, only savory. So get out pan, oil it and set to medium. Cut loaf of bread to about 1/2 inch slices, into four slices. Place eggs in mixing bowl, add salt, pepper & hot sauce and mix. Dip each slice of bread into egg mixture, so that the bread is totally soaked in eggs, place on pan and cook about 2 mins on each side. Set aside.
Slice tomatos in thin circle slices. Grate cheese. Mix leaks with shredded lettuce.
Layer on top bread 1 slice turkey & 1 slice ham (can use more if you like more meat), top with lettuce mix, one red & one yellow tomato, 2 slices bacon & handful of cheese. Place on cookie sheet and back in oven for about 5 mins to melt cheese and toast bread.
While in oven, add maple syrup to a mixing bowl and whisk in dijon mustard with a dash of evoo. I like the sauce to have a slightly more maple taste than mustard, but you can do 1 part mustard to 1 part maple for a more savory taste. I know, I thought this would taste gross, but I was suprised that I loved it and the meal would not have been as good without it. So trust me and at least try this sauce!!!
Pull sandwiches out of oven, plate and pour about 3 tablespoons of maple mustard sauce over. Eat like an opened faced sandwich. Yum!!!
Smoked Ham and Cheese Casserole:
A friend of mine at work used to make this and it was everyone's favorite. I asked her for the recipe and made a few twists of my own, so good.
What you need:
Gouda Cheese (Shredded)
Havarti Cheese (Shredded)
Package of Egg Noodles
1 Egg
Heavy Whipping Cream (or skim milk for lighter version)
Honey
1/2 Onion
Butter (Light)
Panko Bread Crumbs
Smoked Spiral Sliced Ham (thick packaged sliced baked ham)
Paprika
Chilli Powder
Garlic Powder
Salt
Pepper
Flour
1) Dice onion and put in pan over medium heat. Take sliced ham (not deli meat! the packaged kind in the meat section, one thick slab) and dice it into small squares - throw over onions in pan. Sprinkle about a tsp of chilli powder & paprika over mixture. Drizzle about a tablesoon of honey and stir. Cook about 5 mins - remove from heat and set aside.
2) Throw noodles in boiling water, egg noodles only take about 5 mins to cook, drain and set aside.
3) You are now going to make a rou. So start with about 2-3 tablespoons of butter, melt and then add about one tablespoon flour. Wisk together until thick, slowly add cream (or milk) until you have a think gravy like cconsistency. I usually use about half the small container of cream, or 2 cups of skim milk. Once you reach the right consistency, add handful of shredded gouda, stir to blend, once blended then add havarti. About 1/2 cup of each.
4) In a baking pan (what you would use for a sheet cake) - spray with non stick spray, add noodles and ham mix and stir. Then pour cheese spread over mixure. Add one egg, tsp of salt, tsp pepper, tsp of garlic powder and mix together gently. Sprinkle top with gouda cheese & panko bread crumbs.
5) Bake in oven at 350 for about 25 minutes, until top starts to lightly brown. Stir lightly again before serving so top noodles (which get a little crispy) mix with the bottom. So good!!
This recipe is a big hit for dinners, and can be prepared ahead of time so you aren't busy cooking when your guests are visiting! Its what I call a cupboard recipe, just kinda throw similar ingredients all in a bowl and mix:)
Slow Cooked Beef Ribs
6 Beef Short Ribs
1/2 Cup Honey BBQ Sauce
2 tbls Terryaki Marinade
2 tbls Soy Sauce
1/2 cup Coke Cola
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tbls balsamic vinegar
1/4 ketchup
2 shakes hot sauce
2 squirts lemon juice
1 tbls brown sugar
honey
cumin
garlic powder
kosher salt
cracked pepper
chilli powder
paprika
In a mixing bowl combine all liquid ingredients and brown sugar, whisk together and set aside.
Heat saucepan to medium heat, coat pan with thin layer of olive oil. Combine all spices together and pat on beef ribs. Place in pan, drizzle with honey let sizzle for about about 1 min, flip, drizzle and sizzle for another minute..
Place ribs in crock pot on low, pour liquid mixture over ribs.
Cook on low for 6-8 hours.
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Jons new favorite meal I make.... sometimes experimenting pays off!!
Tex Mex Corn Salsa Burgers w. chipotle mayo
Ground Beef
Corn on Cobb
Yellow Onion
Tomato
Avacado
Apple Cider Vinegar
Lemon Juice
Olive Oil
Seasame Buns
White American Cheese
Place ground beef in mixing bowl, season with salt, pepper, garlic powder and paprika. Mix together and form patties... make sure to form the patties so that the outsides are thicker than the inside so to cook evenly.
Shave corn cob and dice onion, place in frying pan with a spoon full of butter, 2 tablespoons olive oil, salt and pepper. Cook until corn and onions light brown. Place in bowl and set aside to cool.
Place patties in pan over medium heat, about 5 mins on each side, I cook in same pan as I cooked corn and onions so the beef absorbs the flavor. Place cheese on top of burgers, cover and set aside off heat.
Butter buns, place in oven on 350 for about 5 mins.
Dice tomato and avacado, sprinkle salt and combine with cooled corn and onion mix. Add dash of lemon juice, tablespoon apple cider vinegar and tablesoon olive oil. Mix.
Chipolte Mayo...
2 spoonfuls Light Mayo
1 spoonfull Light Sour Cream
1 teaspoon olive oil
2 shakes hot sauce
teaspoon chilli powder
teaspoon paprika
teaspoon taco seasoning
Combine ingredients, mix well.
Place buns on plate, top burger with corn salsa and lop mayo on other side of bun. Yummy!!!
