Ground Beef Casserole

Who wants more comfort food recipes???  YOU DO BECAUSE COMFORT FOOD IS THE BEST FOOD. Who wants to not get fat eating comfort food? ME. And you. And anybody that cares about themselves if we’re being real here. This is perfect for when you’re super hungry or it’s cold or want a good meal or just really any combination of those!! It’s gluten free and actually pretty low in calories if you use the low cal or fat free/reduced options – something I always try to do when cooking anyway!

Ground Beef Casserole

Serves: 2-4 (honestly depending on sides, hunger, etc)
Prep Time: 5 minutes                             Total Cook Time: about 1 hour

What you need:

• 3 cups chicken broth, divided
• 1 cup uncooked brown rice
• 2 onions, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, grated or minced
• 1 pound ground beef, I used 96% lean
• 4 oz can of green chiles (optional)
• salt, to taste
• pepper, to taste
• Italian seasoning, to taste
• cumin, to taste (optional)
• 1 8 oz. can tomato sauce
• 1/4 cup shredded cheese, I use 2% milk variations
• 1/2 cup sour cream, I used fat free
• salsa, to top (optional)

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 350*, line a small (8×8, etc) casserole dish with baking spray
• Cook the rice in 2 cups of chicken broth until tender
• Roast the onions and garlic in a skillet over high heat until they start to soften, about 3-4 minutes
• Add the ground beef and continue to cook until the meat is done, breaking it down into bite-sized pieces as you go
• Reduce the heat to medium low and add the green chiles, salt, pepper, cumin, and Italian seasoning. Stir well
• Stir the rice, tomato sauce, 1/4 cup cheese, and 1 cup of broth into the mixture. Simmer for 3 or 4 minutes, raising the heat if you need to
• Transfer the mixture to the dish and bake for 15 minutes
• In a small bowl, combine the remaining cheese and sour cream cream
• After 15 minutes, remove the dish and spread the sour cream mixture on top
• Bake for 13-15 more minutes or the mixture is firm, but bubbly
• Serve with salsa if you so desire

This recipe is adapted from Little Hungry Girl.

Three Minute Salsa

Can we just talk for like two seconds about the fact that the Premier League season starts tomorrow??? We had our fantasy draft last night – SO FUN. My friend, Jeff, found a draft league, which is already like a million times better than the old league we used to play in. Plus, three of the boys called me and we conference conversed whilst drafting and I was texting two of my other friends while the whole thing was going on. I cannot wait for the season to get here, there will be plenty of game day recipes coming your way soon as I get ready for Arsenal to KICK BUTT this season. CANNOT WAIT. Anywayyyyy, at work, we had a homemade salsa contest last week. I wasn’t going to enter, but then I remembered that I get to keep my salsa plus I have my awesome food processor and I am always looking for ways to use it! I found this gem of a recipe and let’s just say that I may not have won the contest, but I probably could have sucked this stuff through a straw until it made that slurpy noise when there isn’t anything else to suck up (sad face). ENJOY, and seriously, only three minutes. Also, sorry the pictures are ugly, my creativity was lacking that day…

Three Minute Salsa

Yield: 4ish cups            Total Time: 3 minutes

What you need:

• 2  14 oz. cans of fire roasted tomatoes, drained
• 3 gloves garlic, whole and peeled
• 4 oz. green chiles, drained
• 1 whole bunch cilantro (stems and all)
• 1/2 white onion (about 1/2 cup), loosely chopped (don’t have to cut it too small, the food processor will do its thing)
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• sprinkling of pepper

Directions:

• Combine all ingredients in the food processor and blend until smooth. THAT’S IT
• Keep it refrigerated, I’ve have mine for a week (working on my willpower obviously)and it’s still good 🙂

This recipe is adapted from Gimme Some Oven.

Tex Mex Egg Rolls

I finally have the final dish from my girls night: Tex Mex Egg Rolls. Full disclaimer: these things don’t look super pretty, but the taste more than makes up for it. It took me a few tries to get the egg rolls rolled just right, so I am here to share my secret with you. And don’t forget, even if they aren’t amazingly beautiful, they are super tasty.

Tex Mex Egg Rolls

Yield: 9-11

Prep Time: 15 minutes        Cook Time: 10-15 minutes

What you need:

• 1 cup corn (I used canned corn)
• 1/2 can (about 1 cup) black beans, rinsed and drained
• 3/4 cup shredded Mexican cheese blend
• 1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chilies, drained
• 2 whole green onions, chopped
• ¼ cup chopped cilantro
• ½ teaspoon chili powder
• salt and pepper to taste
• egg roll wrappers
• olive oil, for topping

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 425
• Mix all the ingredients, except the egg roll wrappers and olive oil in a small bowl. Stir well
• Using a spoon, scoop about 2 scoops of the mixture onto a flat wrapper. Place the mixture close to a long edge. You don’t want to overfill them!
• After you have placed the mixture on the wrapper, fold the side where the filling is once then fold the ends over
• Gently, and tightly, roll the egg roll from right to left or left to right. Place the egg roll seam side down on a parchment lined baking sheet
• Gently drizzle olive oil over the wrapped egg rolls (optional)
• Bake for 10-15 minutes or until they are golden brown and cooked through

This recipe is adapted from Nutritious Eats.