Mexican Lasagna

Prep Time: 30 minutes 

Cool Time: 30 minutes 

Assemble Time: 15 min 

Hold: up to 24 hours 

Cook Time: 45 min

Cool Time: 15 min 

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes 

Recipe Source: Make Ahead Cook (book) 

This is the first really new recipe that I've tried from this cookbook that I don't recognize from the magazines or tv shows. It might be featured in one of their other million cookbooks, of course. 

I don't mind that they are using old favorites, because I like what I've learned about making things ahead of time from working through this book. But, it is nice to try something completely new to me. 

This recipe was from the "Oven Ready Casseroles" chapter, which is casseroles to make the night before. I decided to do an experiment with this and make two smaller casseroles instead of one large one. I put the second one in the freezer (without the cheese on the very top). 

It was about 45 minutes total of work, and it was fairly easy work. Not much to chop and prep other than the scallions, garlic and cheese. 

It tasted very good. The inside corn tortillas did become quite mushy even though I did spray them with oil and microwave as directed. But it all tasted fine and the texture was not a problem. The ones on top got nice and crunchy. 

The frozen version was almost just as good. The top was not as pretty or crunchy, but overall it was still great and so nice to pull out of the freezer. It did take a while to cook from frozen. I cooked it like the lasagna and put in cold over, turned on to 400 and it took 70 minutes to heat through. Then I finished as directed without the foil and adding the cheese. 

This is almost a good gluten-free recipe, but it does use 3T of flour to thicken the filling. You could probably use corn starch or something else instead. 

Make Ahead Beef and Bean Burritos

Prep Time: 40 minutes
Cool Time: 20 minutes
Assemble/Wrap: 20 minutes
Finish Time: 6 minutes

Grade: A

Recipe Source: Cooks Country April 2013,
Make Ahead Cook (book)

I actually had tried the recipe from Cook's Country last year but never added it here. We liked it, but I forgot about it.

The recipe in the Make Ahead Cook is almost exactly the same except the ingredients were increased in a mostly proportional way (although not exactly) to make 8 burritos instead of 6. This larger version is more logical since it uses a pound of beef and 8 tortillas instead of 12 oz and 6, which leaves you with some waste.

These freeze nicely and the recommended way to serve is to microwave for 5 minutes and then bake in over for 5 minutes with some cheese sprinkled on top. That works really well.

This recipe may become a staple since these are so easy to pull out of the freezer and prepare quickly. They taste great too, and I'm sure the individual ingredients could be substituted easily for different variations. (The beans, meat, etc.)

Weeknight Beef Chili (Slow Cooker)

Prep Time: 40 minutes
Cook Time: 3-5 hours on high 6-8 on low 

Grade: A-

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Slow Cooker Revolution

I got a new Crock Pot for Christmas. The one ATK recommends, so I can finally make more of the recipes from this book. The new one is larger, and making the older recipes always involved cutting recipes in half.

This chili is good, but for a Weeknight recipe it took more prep than I wanted. Of course, the prep isn't done at night anyway. For me, cooking all the beef took some time, more than they suggested it should. You also have to saute the onions and spices and make a panade with bread and milk to keep the beef tender with the long cook times.

The nice thing about the recipe is that it makes lots and chili freezes quite well.

Favorite Chili

Prep Time: 70 minutes
Cook Time: 90-120 minutes

Grade: B-

Make Again: No

Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (January 2011)
Recipe Source: America's Test Kitchen TV Season 12

You can get recipe (and video) with free subscription at ATK website for the next year.

This was not as good as I hoped. And it was more work than I wanted. The flavor was not quite what I expected. That may be because I used slightly less chili's - I'm not sure. The meat was good and the beans were good, but the overall flavor just wasn't great enough to warrant 70 minutes of work. I could probably do it faster, but it would still take a while, so I probably won't do this one again.

I wouldn't say that other people shouldn't try this recipe though. The flavors may appeal more to others.

Slow-Cooker Turkey Chili

Prep Time: 35 minutes
Cook Time: 4 hours

Grade: A-

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (February 2011)

This recipe is featured on the Cook's Country website right now, so if you are interested, now is the time to print it out or save it.

I'm perfectly happy with the Cook's Illustrated Simple chili recipe but I guess I always am willing to try something new. The fact that the recipe was developed for a slow cooker appealed to me. 

This tasted great, but it was more work than the Simple Chili recipe. And it created another problem. It didn't fit in my slow cooker. I should have known. Most of their recipes are for the large crock-pot, and I have a smaller one. I should have cut the recipe in half.  (Although I'm happy to have lots of leftovers to freeze now.) 

I ended up just using the dutch oven I did all the prep cooking in, and cooked on low for 3 hours, although it would have been fine at 2 hours. 

I might make again, but most likely I'll stick with the Simple chili which takes just 20 minutes of prep and requires less cleanup. 

Chili and Cornbread

Emeril's Turkey Chili
Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Grade: B
Make Again:No

Recipe Source: Everyday Food (January 2011) 



Cornbread
Prep Time: 6 minutes
Cook Time: 20-25 minutes

Grade: A
Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Everyday Food (October 2011) 

The cornbread recipe is not on Martha's website yet, but I will check back later, but most of the recipes end up there.

The chili was fine, but nothing special. I think I will stick to the Cook's Illustrated version, which takes longer to cook, but isn't anymore effort.

The cornbread was very good. It should be with a stick of butter and 1/3 c. of sugar in it. As much as I love cornmeal, I don't always love the cornbread recipes I try, so I will probably make this one again.

Simple Turkey (or Beef) Chili

 Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours
Grade: A
Make Again: Yes
Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (January 2008) 
Recipe Source: Best Light Recipes

CI originally did this recipe with beef several years ago (or more than several.) The turkey recipe was developed for the Best Light cookbook after that and was the same, but used turkey and less oil basically.

I can't believe I haven't added this recipe to the blog yet, because I make it at least a few times every year.  It is so simple and exactly the kind of chili I like. It reminds me of the chili I had a kid and it hits the spot on cool days.

With the turkey version they suggest adding the 2nd pound of ground turkey for the last hour of cooking so it stays more clumpy. Sometimes I do that, sometimes I don't. It seems fine when I don't, but the texture it a little smoother I guess.

This is a go to recipe for when I don't have time to cook, but I am at home and can have this cook a while.

Hummus Bread

Prep Time: 10-15 minutes
Rise Time: 2 hours
Bake Time: 35-40 minutes
Cool Time: 30 minutes
Grade: C+ (B, when you eat it really fresh)
Make Again: Maybe
Recipe Source: Whole Grain Baking
Recipe: Hummus Bread

The link to the recipe above is not exactly the same as in their Whole Grain Baking book.  The ratio of Whole Grain to regular flour is flipped.  There is no bread improver called for in the book, and it uses olive oil instead of garlic.  The amounts are slightly different on some of the ingredients, but otherwise the ingredient list looks pretty similar.

This one didn't start out too well.  I weighed the flours and hummus but my dough was super soft and sticky.  I have been having this problem on the last few doughs, so I'm wondering if I am not doing a good job of measuring the liquids - I should probably weigh those also.

Sometimes this book gives good instructions, but usually not as thorough as Cook's Illustrated.  This one wasn't too explicit and didn't say how long I should need or if it was okay for the dough to be so sticky.  It said a soft dough.  Well, the dough never got very "soft" in my mind because it was using a whole grain flour (with a little all-purpose included.)

I ended up adding another 1/4 c of flour.  The dough still wasn't anything that I could shape really well into a loaf, so after the first rise I poured/pulled it into the pan.  I couldn't tell if it had doubled and I wasn't sure if it would rise 1.5" above the pan so I used 8x4 instead of 8.5x4.5 to be safe.  I didn't want a shorty loaf.  It ended up tall enough.  It smelled really good while baking.

This recipe uses 1 cup of hummus.  It also calls for toasted sesame seeds which I skipped.  Mine was really garlicky and I would probably try to avoid that next time although I still liked how the bread tasted.  There was a more crusty version of the recipe in the book and I can see why.  The crust on this bread is delicious.

The bread has a unique taste and I did like it. I wanted to eat more when it first came out of the oven.  However, it has more of a quick bread feel to me, and I don't feel like it was quite special enough that I will long for this in the future.  Since I made it right around the time I made the Rustic Rolls, which I loved, it does not live up to those high expectations.  I may make again if/when I have leftover hummus.

Southwestern Skillet Pie

Prep Time: 15 - 20 minutes
Cook Time: 20-30 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Everyday Food (November 2004)

I love this easy recipe. It is very flexible, fast, and usually can be made with ingredients you likely have on hand.

It came from Everyday Food, but I have changed it a little. Really, this is so flexible, you can substitute in a lot of ways.

The original recipe called for a red pepper chopped up. Although I love red peppers, I never felt like it added much with all the salsa, so I skip. It also called for mixing 1/2 c of the cheese in the biscuits. I feel the cheese doesn't add to the biscuits, so I skip that too. It doesn't even really need any cheese at all, but I use if I have some on hand.

Southwestern Skillet Pie

1 lb ground meat (preferably a lean beef or turkey)
4 cloves garlic minced
16 oz (2 cups) your favorite Salsa
1 15oz can beans (black, pinto, kidney), drained and rinsed
1/2 - 1 t. salt (to taste)
1/4 t. pepper
1/4 c. water
1 c. (or less) shredded cheese (cheddar, pepper jack, etc.)

Biscuit:
1 c. unbleached flour
1 1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t. salt
3 T. butter, cut into small pieces
3/4 c. milk or buttermilk

Preheat oven to 425.

NOTE: Use a pan that can be put in a hot oven while the biscuits cook.

1) Brown meat over medium heat in ovenproof skillet. Drain if too much fat.
2) Add garlic, salt and pepper and saute for 30 sec
3) Add salsa, beans and water, stir and heat to a simmer
4) In a medium bowl, mix the dry biscuit ingredients. Cut in butter with pastry cutter or knives until butter is mixed in fairly well (but not completely)
5) Stir in milk with a fork.
6) Sprinkle cheese over meat and bean mixture
7) Drop 8 evenly sized (as well as you can!) spoonfuls of the biscuit dough on top. The dough will spread so leave some space.
8) Bake 20-25 minutes until the biscuits are cooked and starting to brown.
9) Remove from oven and serve.

Bean Burritos

Prep Time: 60 minutes
Cook Time: 0 - 30 minutes

Grade: B+

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Everyday Food (November 2005)

This isn't a very exciting recipe or meal, but I tried it because I wanted something that I could freeze for meals in the future. I scaled up the ingredients a bit to make 10 burritos since that is how many tortillas came in the bag. If it was only one meal for me, the results probably wouldn't be worth the hour of effort, but since it was a lot of meals, I feel the effort is OK.

I reheated one today in the oven for about 20 minutes then microwaved for 30 sec to get the middle. It worked out fine. You probably could just microwave.

I definitely would make these again when I want to have some premade meals in the freezer.

Red Beans and Rice

Soak Time: overnight
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 90 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (January 2010)

This was delicious and easy. I have wanted to make red beans and rice for a while, but never have before. I think the recipes I've seen often require something I didn't have. But the most unusual ingredient was andouille sausage, which was easy to find. You can also substitute kielbasa. It wasn't the most attractive dinner ever, but it was very flavorful. I was glad to have a simple meal before I have a lot of more complex cooking to do for Christmas.

The recipe says small red beans are better than kidney beans and will cook up creamier. I could only find kidney beans, and they were fine. I did end up cooking them longer than 90 minutes total though. But they were very creamy, so I don't think it necessary to search for red beans if they aren't at your grocery store.

Hoppin' John

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 40 minutes

Grade: A-

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cover & Bake

This recipe is good, but the leftovers are not as good as the original. I had a littel trouble, because it calls for cooking the ham first, and then adding the bacon, and I never really got my bacon browned as much as I wanted. I used lean ham, which may be why. Next time, I'll reverse the order.

Stewed Pinto Beans

Prep Time: 5-10 minutes
Bean Time: 70 minutes or 4 hours (slow cooker)
Cook Time: 25-30 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Restaurant Favorites at Home (modified)

I have changed this recipe a little so that it is easier, for example using canned diced tomatoes with chilis, so I can avoid chopping onions and peppers. I also tried making the beans in a crock pot, so I have less stove time and heat in the kitchen. It worked pretty well in the slow cooker, but of course, takes longer.

I prefer to make this with a full pound of pinto beans, because I buy the bags, and dont' want to keep 1/2 c. of beans laying around.


Stewed Pinto Beans in a Slow Cooker

NOTE: The original recipe doesn't tell you when to cut the bacon, but tells you to leave the bacon in when adding onions. I assume that means you should cut bacon when raw. I cooked bacon whole and crumble it later, which is easier.

1 lb dried pinto beans, picked over and rinsed.
4 medium garlic cloves, pressed through a garlic press
Salt
3 slces thick bacon
1 small onion, cut into 1/4" dice (about 1 c.)
1 15 oz can petite diced tomatoes with chilis (hot), drained (or 3 plum tomatoes, seeded and diced, and 2 jalapenos, minced)
1/2 c. chopped fresh cilantro leaves

1. Put beans and 6-8 cups of water (enough to cover beans by an inch or so). Cook on HIGH for 1 hour.

2. Add minced garlic and 1 1/4 teaspoon salt, stir, and continue cooking on HIGH for 2-4 more hours, until beans are tender.

3. Drain beans and reserve the liquid. (Or do as I did, and use a ladle to remove most of the water and leave beans in crock, to keep warm.)

4. Cook bacon in a Dutch oven over medium heat until browned and crisp, about 10 minutes.

5. Remove bacon, and drain all but 1-3 T. of fat, depending on your preferences. Drain bacon on paper towels.

6. Add onions to pan, and cook over medium heat until softened and golden, about 3 minutes.

7. Add tomatoes and jalapenos and continue cooking about 10 minutes.

8. Crumble drained bacon and return to pan.

9. Combine beans and tomato mixture and cook for 5 minutes more to blend flavors.

10. Stir in chopped cilantro and season with salt and pepper.

I think the bacon adds a lot, but it does become unappealing in leftovers. I am wondering if saving it for sprinking on top would be best, if it won't all be eaten when first cooked. This makes a large amount of beans, so it is likely there will be leftovers. I may try this next time I make this.

Black Bean and Couscous Salad

Prep Time: 14 minutes

Grade: A-

Make Again: Yes (quick and easy for a hot summer day.)

Recipe Source: CI's bulletin board from Nancy, via Crystal, I think :-)

I modified it slightly to use a little less oil and so I could only open up one (slightly larger) can of black beans

Black Bean and Couscous Salad
1 cup uncooked couscous
1 1/4 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
8 scallions, chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped (I used jarred roasted)
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
1 (20 ounce) cans black beans, drained
salt and pepper to taste

1. Bring chicken broth to a boil in a 2 quart or larger sauce pan and stir in the couscous. Cover the pot and remove from heat. Let stand for 5 minutes.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lime juice, vinegar and cumin. Add green onions, red pepper, cilantro, corn and beans and toss to coat.

3. Fluff the couscous well, breaking up any chunks. Add to the bowl with the vegetables and mix well. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve at once or refrigerate until ready to serve.