Cold Spinach Pesto Pasta Salad

This is my favorite pasta for one because I LOVE pesto and spinach. Its really easy to make and a great dish to take to a dinner at someone's place when you need to bring something.

Ingredients:

One box of bow tie pasta
One bag of spinach
One jar of pesto
Parmesan cheese fresh in a bag...not the shaker kind
Garlic Salt
Olive oil

Start off with cooking your bow tie pasta. Dont overcook them. When they are cooked dump into strainer and then immediately rinse with cold water. Let pasta sit in strainer until it is cool.

Cut up your spinach into small chunks or strips.

Once pasta is cooled add to a large bowl.

Drizzle some olive oil over the top. Dont get too carried away and drizzle too much oil.

Add your spinach and the whole jar of pesto.

Stir all together and add a dash of garlic salt.

Sprinkle with some Parmesan cheese and mix in. Probably about a cup of it.

With this salad you can experiment and add more or less depending on your tastes. I find after it sits a bit you may want to add a bit more garlic salt or the cheese for that salty flavor.

Keep in the fridge and eat fresh or later. I like to eat on it all day. 

Quick Asian Marinate

There are some nights I just want to have something Asian-ish. You can use this for any meat. I usually cut up my meat into small bite size chunks. Chicken, pork or steak or any other game like elk or deer.

Marinate:
Now I dont measure my marinate. I just throw some of this stuff together.

Hoisin sauce
Seasoned rice vinegar
Soy sauce
minced garlic
chopped ginger
sesame oil
oyster flavored sauce

mix it all together and let it marinate for awhile

cook up some rice in your rice cooker

cook your meat up with marinate in a saute pan

when meat is cooked and rice is done add meat over rice and sprinkle with chopped fresh cilantro and toasted sesame seeds.

This is the greatest Asian style quick meal.

Miso Soup with Tofu.

Whenever I make sushi you always have to have a bowl of miso soup to go with it. This recipe is easy and it how I make it. As always you can do your own thing as you make it each time.

Ingredients:

Miso paste...I prefer white miso.....white miso is made from soybeans
One big bag of Shitake mushrooms....freeze dried sliced...this is the easiest and cheapest way I have found.
Extra firm tofu
green onions
sesame seeds toasted
filtered water

This is a recipe good for about two people.

In a small soup pan add in about 3 to 4 cups filtered water
a large hand full of freeze dried Shitake mushrooms.

Simmer on low/ medium until mushrooms are soft. I simmer about 15 minutes till almost at a boil. Turn down heat to low or warm. This is what they refer to as a Dashi soup base.

Not at this time you can strain out your mushrooms and cut them up into small pieces or you can break them up not small pieces when you first add them since they are crisp. Kind of easier that way.

Cut up your tofu into small square chunks. You will only need about a fourth of the tofu block. Add to your water mushroom base.

Spoon out some miso and then mix into the hot water. This can take a few minutes as the miso is think but it will dissolve into the water.

Now you will have to add several spoon-fulls depending on how you like the flavor of your miso to be. More will make it saltier.

After you dissolve all to taste warm it up a bit and then add your green cut up onions and stir in. Don't let your soup sit and simmer for long periods of time. The miso will end up chalky.

Serve up with a sprinkle of toasted sesame seeds garnish on top.

Where to purchase Miso paste???

You can go to any of your Asian type food stores to get it. I have also ordered it online from the Asian Food Grocer. Great place with reasonable priced food stuff and great price for shipping too. You can get your mushrooms there too.

http://www.asianfoodgrocer.com/

Poor Man's Meat Stroganoff

Just like the Poor Man's Alfredo I have a beef or some kind of meat Stroganoff. Cheaper and I think healthier for you.

For this recipe you can use any meat. Steak cut up into small strips or the other night we used our elk cube steak. Yes, it worked.

Meat.....use anything that is accessible and you want to use. If cube steak is cheaper for you to buy then get it...it will work.

Ingredients:

One family size can of Cambell's Cream of Mushroom soup
one can of stems and pieces canned mushrooms or fresh
meat
some spices
garlic

In a saute pan heat up some olive oil and add in some garlic toasting that up
add your meat...in this case I cooked up our cubed elk steak

I got out our electric pan and added the can of soup and started it out on warm and when the pieces of meat were done I cut them into strips and put in the soup mixture. When the meat was done I warmed up my mushrooms in the pan and then added to the whole mixture.

I seasoned my cube steak with Johnny's seasoning salt, steak seasoning and some new roasted garlic salt we just got. I didnt clean out my pan so when I warmed up the mushrooms in the same pan so they also got seasoned with what was left in the pan.

Simmer all the ingredients till it bubbles and you can serve over rice or any type of noodles. You can add some milk to make the sauce thinner too.

ENJOY !!!

Poor Man's Chicken Alfredo

Do you hate paying the price for those jars of alfredo sauce. I mean sometimes they are on sale and mostly they are not. The ones that are on sale really don't taste all that great anyways either. Well we solved the problem. I actually think its healthier too for you.

So Im going to show you how to get the same thing basically on a cheap budget.

One large family size can of Cambell's Cream of Chicken soup.
Chicken
fresh garlic from a jar or clove
Large pan or skillet of some sort.
Some spices
Can of mushrooms optional

Cut up your chicken into small chunks. You can use breast or thighs. Whatever is on sale. Fresh or frozen.
In your pan heat up some olive oil and simmer up some fresh garlic.
Add your chicken and cook till brown.
Season with Johnny's Season salt of something similar.
Garlic salt
And I like to add a garlic herb seasoning or Montreal Chicken seasoning and any other seasoning you may want. Add your mushrooms at any time.

In a skillet or same big type pan add the can of cream of chicken and some water or chicken broth.

Simmer as you cook some noodles or rice.

Serve it up with a sprinkle of Parmesan on top.

And that's it. Very cheap easy and I think healthier.

Ground meat Minestrone Soup

This is a great soup to make when you a bit under the weather or its cold outside.

olive oil
chopped garlic
onion
2 cups celery
2 cups carrots
2 cups water
2 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup red wine
4 cups tomato sauce
1 can kidney beans, drained
1 large can petite diced tomatoes
2 cups baby spinach
oregano
basil
parsley
salt and pepper to your taste
1 to 2 cups mini/small seashell pasta
ground meat of some kind or you can leave the meat out

Cook your pasta first and set aside when cooked.

I cut up my onion, celery and carrots in small pieces.
In a sauté pan I heated up some olive oil and saute my garlic in the oil then added the onions, celery and carrots. I cooked them until they were el dente. Then added my meat, some oregano, basil, parsley, garlic salt, and Johnny's Seasoned Salt. Cook until meat is done.

In a stock pot of large pot for cooking soup in I added the water, broth, one large can tomato paste, one large can petite diced tomatoes, wine, kidney beans, some more oregano, basil and parsley. Put on stove to start warming up.

When your veggie meat mix is cooked set aside. Add your pasta to the soup pot and then add in your veggie meat mix and bring to boil. Add your 2 cups of spinach and mix in. Keep on low until you want to serve it up to eat. Sprinkle some parmesan cheese on top when serving with some toasted rustic baguette bread.

You can also add zucchini or beans to your soup. But really you can add any veggie you want.

 

Hamburger Stew

A very easy stew to make.

You will need:

Ground Meat of some kind....deer, elk, bear, beef, turkey, chicken, etc
carrots
celery
potatoes
onion
garlic
large can of petite diced tomatoes
large can of crushed tomatoes
seasonings

In a skillet heat up some olive oil and add chopped garlic and finely chopped onions. Cook till almost transparent then add ground meat. Cook till almost done. You can season with Lawrys Seasoned salt, garlic salt, and anything else you would like to use. I also use this steak and chop seasoning.

In a large stock pot put in both cans of tomatoes. Heat on warm as you cut up your carrots, celery and potatoes.

Add your meat mix to the tomato mix. Mix and then add your veggies. Add a few cups of water to the mix to thin it out.

Add some more seasonings and I also add a salt free vegetable seasoning and like a garlic herb one.

Heat on medium high until all veggies are cooked. You can also add canned beans or corn too. Mix it up and be creative !! Even serve with rice.

Spoon up in a bowl and ENJOY !!!

Any questions ask me !!