Hamburger Soup

Being that we are still very much in the depths of winter I have turned to soups, to warm my families hearts and feed their bellies. It seems to be going pretty well thus far. :) Today I made my version of

Hamburger Soup that I recently saw on an episode of one of my favorite cooking show "The Pioneer Woman". She makes such great recipes! The soup was a hit.. the Hubby and my Little Man even had seconds. You can find the original recipe here, I changed it just a little.

Ingredients 

• 2-1/2 pounds Ground Beef
• 1 whole Large Onion, Diced
• 3 cloves Garlic, Minced
• 1 can (14.5 Ounce) Can Whole Tomatoes
• 3 cups Beef Stock Or Beef Broth, Plus More As Needed
• 1 Bag of Frozen Crinkle Cut Carrots
• 5 whole Red Potatoes, Cut Into Chunks
• 3 Tablespoons Tomato Paste
• 1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt (more To Taste)
• 1/2 teaspoon Black Pepper, More To Taste
• 2 teaspoons Dried Parsley Flakes
• 1/2 teaspoon Ground Oregano
• 1/4 teaspoon Cayenne Pepper (more To Taste)

Preparation Instructions

In a large pot over medium-high heat, brown the meat with the onion and garlic. Remove the pot from the heat and drain off as much fat as you can. (Discard the fat once it cools.)

Return the pot to the heat and add the rest of the ingredients. Stir to combine, then bring to a boil. Reduce the heat, then cover the pot and simmer the soup for 15-20 more minutes, until potatoes are tender but not overly mushy.

Soup should be somewhat thick, but if you'd like it to be more "soupy," add 1 to 2 cups more broth OR hot water and heat through. Taste and adjust seasonings, adding more salt if needed.

Mangia!

Awesome Sloppy Joe's

Sloppy joes are awesome! I don't care if you are 5 or 105 they are a great go to meal on a busy weeknight when you have tow hungry kids. To be completely honest sloppy joes were not something I had a ton of growing up, honestly I usually ate them at school but I still loved them. And so when my husband told me of his amazing ability to make them early on in our relationship I knew he was a keeper! :) And this recipe is so simple it'll come out great every time!

• 1 lb of ground beef, venison, turkey or chicken (whichever you prefer)
• 1/4 cup mustard
• 1/2 cup barbecue sauce
• 3/4 cup ketchup

Start by browning whatever ground meat you have chosen to use, we usually use beef or venison but it would work great with turkey or chicken as well. After the meat is brown add your barbecue sauce, ketchup and mustard to the pan. Mix until combined and the sauce and meat and bubbling. Then pile it on a bun and enjoy!

Mangia!

Finger foods

Last weekend after all the holiday festivities were done we decided to have a finger foods dinner. Just a few dishes that are easy to made, and more importantly easy to eat. One of them was my Mom's famous spinach dip. This dip is something my Mom made usually around the holidays or for any family party. And as a teenager my cousins and I would always make it on New Year's Eve. So making it always brings back great memories for me.

Here is the recipe;

• 1 Onion
• 1 Small bell pepper (I usually use green but any color is fine)
• 1 bag of frozen chopped spinach, thawed
• 1 small brick of Velveeta

(I usually serve this is a hollowed out round loaf of bread you can use any you like I usually go with sourdough)

Start by chopping up the onion and the pepper and begin cooking them in a pan with about 2 tablespoons of olive oil. When those have softened add the thawed spinach and cook that until heated through. As the spinach is warming cube up the Velveeta and once the spinach in warm add the cheese and stir until melted.

Once the dip is done place in a hollowed out bread bowl and serve with raw veggies and/or chips.

We also had pigs in a blanket which I love! And the joy is these things couldn't be more simple. I got a package of cocktail wienies and a tube of crescent rolls. I take the crescent roll dough a cut each triangles in half a roll one wienie in each piece of dough. Then I bake them according to the directions until they are golden brown. Enjoy@

Mangia!