Sloppy Joes

1 lb ground beef
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp prepared yellow mustard
3/4 cup ketchup
3 tsp brown sugar
salt to taste
ground black pepper to taste

In a medium skillet, over medium heat, brown the ground beef, onion, and green pepper; drain off liquids.

Stir in the garlic powder, mustard, ketchup, and brown sugar; mix thoroughly. Reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes or pour into crock pot and cook on low for 3-4 hours. Season with salt and pepper. Serve on a roll.

To freeze leftovers fill muffin cups or half cup containers. Once frozen remove from container, wrap in plastic wrap and foil and store. Reheat individual serving sizes in the microwave.

Summer Steak and Chicken Kabobs

1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup soy sauce
3 tbsp honey
2 tbsp white vinegar
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 1/2 lbs boneless beef sirloin steak, chicken or a combination of the two, cut into 1" cubes
1/2 lb fresh mushrooms
2 medium onions, cut into wedges
1 medium green pepper, cut into 1" chunks
1 medium yellow summer squash, cut into 1/2" slices

In a large resealable bag, combine oil, soy sauce, honey, vinegar, ginger and garlic powder. Add steak and chicken. Seal bag and turn to coat; refrigerate for 8 hours or overnight.

Drain and discard marinade. On 12 skewers, alternately thread steak, mushrooms, onions, pepper and squash. Grill, uncovered, over medium heat for 12-14 minutes or until meat reaches desired doneness. Turn occasionally.

Enchilada Casserole

1 lb ground beef *
1 large onion, chopped
2 cups salsa
1 can (15 ounces) black beans, rinsed and drained
1/4 cup reduced-fat Italian salad dressing
2 tbsp taco seasoning
1/4 tsp ground cumin
6 flour tortillas (8 inches)
3/4 cup sour cream
1 cup shredded Mexican cheese
1 cup shredded lettuce
1 medium tomato, chopped
1/4 cup minced fresh cilantro

In a large skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the salsa, beans, dressing, taco seasoning and cumin. Place three tortillas in a 2-qt. baking dish coated with cooking spray. Layer with half of the meat mixture, sour cream and cheese. Repeat layers.

Cover and bake at 400° for 25 minutes. Uncover; bake 5-10 minutes longer or until heated through. Let stand for 5 minutes before topping with lettuce, tomato and cilantro.

* I am not a huge fan of ground beef in tacos but I think this would be great with chicken or beans

Slow Cooker London Broil

2 pounds london broil
1 can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 can condensed tomato soup
1 package dry onion soup mix

Place meat in the bottom of the slow cooker; if necessary, slice meat to make it fit!

In a medium bowl, mix together mushroom and tomato soup. Pour mixture over beef. Sprinkle dry onion soup mix over top.

Cover, and cook on Low for 8 to 10 hours.

Fajita Skillet

2 flour tortillas, 10"
3 tbsp olive oil
1/2 lb chicken breast
1/2 lb beef sirloin steak
1 medium green pepper, sliced
1 small onion, sliced
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 tbsp brown sugar
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp pepper
2 tbsp lime juice
1 cup cubed pineapple
1 medium tomato

In large skillet, fry strips of tortilla in olive oil on both sides until golden. Drain on paper towels. Cut chicken and beef into thin strips. In skillet cook chicken, beef, pepper, onion, soy sauce, brown sugar, chili powder, cumin and pepper for 3-4 minutes.

In a small bowl combine and stir cornstarch and lime juice until smooth. Stir into skillet. Bring to a boil, cook and stir for 1 minute or until thickened. Stir in pineapple and coarsely chopped tomato and head through.

Beef Stew

2 lbs stew meat
6 carrots
4-5 potatoes
1/2 tsp pepper
5 tbsp minute tapioca
1 onion
1 cup celery
1 large can V8
1 tsp salt

Combine all ingredients in a crock pot. Cook for 5 hours.

Mini Meatloaves

1 lb ground beef
1 box of stuffing
1 cup water
1 seasoning, 1 add-in and 1 cheese from the following

Italian: 1 tsp Italian seasoning, 3/4 cup spaghetti sauce, 3/4 cup mozzarella cheese

Fiesta: 2 tsp chili powder, 3/4 cup salsa, 3/4 cup Mexican style cheese

Mediterranean: 1 tsp dried oregano, 3/4 cup chopped roasted red peppers, 3/4 cup feta cheese

BBQ: 1 tsp garlic powder, 3/4 cup BBQ sauce, 3/4 cup cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 375

Mix hamburger, stuffing, mix, water and seasoning until well blended. Press evenly into well greased muffin tin. Make an indentation into the center of each "muffin" with the back side of a spoon. Spoon add-ins evenly into indentations.

Bake 25-30 minutes, until meatloaves are cooked through. Top evenly with cheese; continue baking for 5 minutes.

Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Spaghetti Sauce

1 lb hamburger
1/2 lb Italian sausage
1 onion diced
1 clove garlic (pressed)
1 can tomato puree (28oz)
2 cans tomato paste (6oz)
2 cans tomato sauce (8oz)
1 can red clam sauce (10.5oz)
1 envelope spaghetti sauce mix

Brown hamburger, Italian sausage, onion and garlic. Add browned ingredients and remainder of ingredients to crock pot. Cook on low for 4 hours.

Chili

2 cans red kidney beans (15oz each)
1 can tomato paste (6oz)
2 medium onions, chopped
1 can mushroom pieces
2 cloves crushed garlic
3 tbsp chili powder
1 tsp ground cumin
2 cans diced tomatoes (14.5oz each)
2 lbs browned ground beef
2 ribs celery, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 can baked beans
1 tsp pepper

Mix all ingredients in crock pot. Cook 4ish hours in high or 6 to 8 hours on low.

Waikiki Meatballs

Meatballs:
1 1/2 lb hamburger
2/3 cup cracker crumbs
1/3 cup minced onion
1 egg
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ginger

Sauce:
4 tbsp cornstarch
1 cup brown sugar
2 cans crushed pineapple (20oz each)
2/3 cup vinegar
2 tbsp soy sauce
2/3 cup diced green pepper

Mix all meatball ingredients and shape into meatballs. In a large skillet, with 1 tbsp of oil, brown and cook meatballs. Drain fat from skillet.

Mix cornstarch and brown sugar. Stir in reserved pineapple juice (add enough water to equal 2 cups), vinegar and soy sauce. Stir until smooth. Pour into skillet. Cook over medium head, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens and boils (will turn dark brown). Boil and stir 1 minute. Add meatballs, pineapple and green pepper. Heat through. Serve over rice or egg noodles.

(When I make this I shape all the meatballs and freeze half of them for later. Then I halve the sauce recipe. Then when I want to make them again I just pull the meatballs from the freezer, thaw, cook and make the sauce.)

Grandma Vi's Meatballs and Sauce

Meatballs:
1 1/2 lbs ground beef
3/4 cup milk
1 1/2 cup soft bread crumbs
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper

Sauce:
3/4 cup water
3/4 cup ketchup
1/3 cup water or apple cider
2 tbsp Worcestershire Sauce
4 1/2 tbsp sugar
3/4 cup chopped onion
3/4 cup chopped green pepper

Blend all meatball ingredients. Form small meatballs. Place in baking pan. Mix all sauce ingredients together. Pour sauce over meatballs. Bake at 350 for 30 minutes.

Flavorful Pot Roast

2 boneless beef chuck roasts (2-1/2 pounds each)
1 envelope ranch salad dressing mix
1 envelope Italian salad dressing mix
1 envelope brown gravy mix
1/2 cup water

Place the chuck roasts in a 5-qt. slow cooker. In a small bowl, combine the salad dressing and gravy mixes; stir in water. Pour over meat. Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours or until tender. If desired, thicken cooking juices for gravy.

Taco Salad

1 1/2 lbs ground beef
2 envelopes taco seasoning, divided
1 medium head of iceberg lettuce
1 package (14 1/2oz) nacho tortilla chips, coursely crushed
2 pints grape tomatoes, halved
2 cans (16oz each) kidney beans, rinsed and drained
3 cans (2 1/4oz each) sliced ripe olives, drained
1 1/2 cups (6oz) shredded cheddar cheese
1 large sweet onion, chopped
2 cans (4oz each) chopped green chillies
1 1/2 cups Thousand Island salad dressing
1 jar (11oz) salsa
1/3 cup sugar

In a large skillet over medium heat, cook beef with 1 envelope plus 2 tbsp taco seasoning until no longer pink; drain.

In a very large serving bowl, combine the lettuce, chips, tomatoes, beans, olives, cheese, onion, chillies and beef mixture. Combine the salad dressing, salsa, sugar and remaining taco seasoning; pour over salad and toss to coat. Serve immediately.

Sage Meatloaf

1 egg, beaten
2/3 cup milk
1 tbsp Worchestershire sauce
1 cup crushed saltines
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp rubbed sage
1/4 tsp pepper
1 1/2 lb. ground beef
1/4 cup ketchup
3 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp ground mustard
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

In a large bow, combine the egg, milk, worchestershire sauce, saltines, onion, salt, sage and pepper. Crumble beef over mixture and mix well. Pat meat mixture into an ungreased 9x5x3" loaf pan. Bake, uncovered, at 350 for 50 minutes.

Combine the ketchup, brown sugar, mustard and nutmeg; spread over top of meatloaf. Bake 15-20 minutes longer or until meat is no longer pink and thermometer reads 160. Let stand for 10 minutes before slicing.