Open-Face Roast Beef Sandwiches

I am sharing with you something you have probably had many times - open-face roast beef sandwiches. This recipe is a super simple, and tasty way to use up your leftover roast beef. I served mine with roasted montreal Brussels sprout. My family, including my daughter who only eats gravy sometimes, ate every single bite that was on their plates. Woo-hoo - dinner success!

Ingredients

3 cups chopped up roast beef
1 14.5 ounce can of beef broth
2Tb cornstarch
1/3 cup water
Any leftover beef drippings or gravy
Salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste

Directions

- In a skillet, over medium-high heat bring beef broth, dripping, and seasonings to a boil. (Beef drippings only, if you are going to be using gravy instead, save that for the end.)

- While you are waiting for the broth to come to a boil, mix the cornstarch and water together in a bowl.

- Once the broth has reached a boil, add cornstarch mixture, and continuously whisk for 1 to 2 minutes. Or, until mixture has come to gravy like texture.  This is also the part where you would whisk in any leftover gravy.

-Remove from heat and add chopped up roast beef, and cover for 3-5 minutes. 

- Serve over day old bread, or toast.

Roasted Montreal Brussels Sprouts.

I never liked Brussels Sprouts growing up. It was one of those vegetable that I would sit at the dinner table till bedtime because I absolutely refused to eat them. So, as an adult I never bothered trying them again until recently. My husband (yep, he cooks) made a vegetable mixture with Brussels sprouts in them, and I tried one. Oh, my! It was not the bitter little vegetable that I remember from my youth; it was so tasty. Needless to say I have been on kick with my new found love, and this is how I made them the other night to go with our open-face roast beef sandwiches. It was a perfect match-up.

Ingredients

12 ounce bag frozen baby Brussels Sprouts
2Tb Olive Oil
1Tb Montreal Steak Seasoning

Directions

- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- In bowl, mix Brussels Sprouts, Olive Oil, and Montreal Steak Seasoning.
- Pour mixture onto cookie sheet
- Bake for 20 minutes
* I shake the cookie sheet every 10 minutes so the Brussels Sprouts roast evenly without scorching.*

Crockpot Smoky Potato Soup

This soup came about simply because I had 15 pounds of potatoes and needed to use them up. Usually, we will make potato pancakes or kluski. But, it was a cold day outside, and I wanted something that would warm everyone up. This definitely did the trick, and to my surprise, was a huge hit with everyone. They were actually fighting over who was going to get the last bowl of soup. I love those moments; they are like the little rewards in mom-hood.

Ingredients

4lbs of potatoes, peeled, and cut into 1 inch cubes
1 1/2 cups of carrots, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
2 stalks of celery, chopped
1 large bell pepper, chopped
32 ounces chicken stock
1 can evaporated milk
1 heaping cup of smoked gouda, shredded.
salt, pepper, and garlic powder to taste.

Directions

-When you chop your vegetables make them on the large side, they will be in the crockpot, and you don't want them to turn to mush.
-Place in 4 quart crockpot, potatoes, carrots, celery, onion, and chicken stock. Cook on high for 4 hours.
- After 4 hours, take out 2 1/2 cups of the potatoes. It is okay to get the celery and onion, but I would make sure to pick out the carrots. Set aside
- Add green peppers.
- Once the potato mixture that you have set aside cools off a little bit, puree with the evaporated milk in the blender. This will be a nice thick consistency, should not be runny. Add this puree back into the potato mixture. Add the smoke gouda and seasonings. Stir, and let cook for a half hour.
- We topped ours with bacon, green onion, and more cheese!

Sweet Potatoes, Mushrooms, & Spinach Over Wild Mushroom Couscous

Cooking for my family is a constant challenge to say the least. We all have different ideas of what is appetizing  You will soon notice that I will be posting a wide variety of recipes. I love comfort food, whereas my husband enjoys meals with more of a gourmet flair. My two youngest like your typical kid friendly foods. Then there is my teenage daughter who gave up eating meat a year ago. Today I am sharing with you one of  her favorite vegetarian meals. 

Sweet Potato, Mushroom, & Spinach over Wild Mushroom Couscous

1 small onion, sliced

1 1/2 cups sliced mushrooms

2 handfuls spinach

2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 small baked sweet potato, cubed

1 box wild mushroom & herb couscous 

2 Tbsp olive oil

salt & pepper to taste

Cook the wild mushroom and herb couscous according to directions. While couscous is cooking heat olive oil in pan over medium-high heat. Add onions and saute for two minutes. Then add mushrooms, garlic, and spinach. Cook until spinach has cooked down. Last add your baked sweet potato, salt and pepper. Cook until sweet potato is heated through.  Serve over couscous. Serves 2-3 people. 

Is cooking for your family a challenge?

My Mam's Baked Beans

Growing up I was not a huge fan of baked beans, until my mam brought this dish to a family function. One taste and I was immediately in love. Actually, they are the only baked beans that I will eat till this day. Texture has always played a role for me when eating. For some that might sound weird , but I can not eat certain foods  like shrimp or clams. Not because of the taste, but because of the texture. With the mix of different beans, hamburger and bacon, this dish has a great balance of texture and taste. It is very simple to throw together, and comes out nicely in the crock pot.  

Mam's Baked Beans

1 lb hamburger, cooked

1 lb bacon, cut into 1 inch pieces, cooked until crispy

2 tbsp bacon drippings

1 medium onion, chopped

1-15 oz can butter beans, drained & rinsed

1-15 oz can kidney beans, drained & rinsed 

1-15 oz can great norther beans, drained & rinsed

1-31 oz can Bush's original baked beans (do not drain)

1/4 cup ketchup

1/2 tsp dry mustard

Mix all ingredients together in crock pot. Cook on high for 2 hours. 

Simple and delicious! 

Haluski Recipe

I made Haluski for supper last night, and I thought I would share the recipe with you. If you've never had Haluski before, it is a Polish dish that consists of cabbage and noodles. I add onion and bacon to mine to give it some extra flavor. This dish is always a hit with anyone that tries it, even for those that hate cabbage. 

Haluski Recipe - use this link to save this recipe to your computer or print out.