Spiraled Meatloaf Step By Step

I honestly do not remember where I came up with this idea at, but this is something I've made for many years. I can remember doing it out in Tucson, Connecticut (many moons ago), Houston, and now here. It has followed me all over the place. I've had several people try and wrestle the recipe away from me over the years, but have never parted with it. Until today. This feeds about 4 people.

1lb Ground Beef (not lean!)
1 Egg
2 tsp Chinese Hot Mustard
1 tsp Worechestershire Sauce
1 Garlic Clove, minced
1/4 cup Bread Crumbs (plain)
1 tbsp Oregano, dried
2 tbsp Parsley, dried
1/2 tsp Marjoram, ground
1/2 tsp Thyme, ground
1 Celery Stalk, diced small
1 Carrot, peeled and diced small
2 Mushrooms with stems, cleaned and diced small
1/2 cup Baby Spinach

1) Preheat oven to 350. Grease loaf pan with pam.

2) Insmall bowl, beat together egg, mustard and worechestershire. In a large bowl, gently mix together the meat, bread crumbs, garlic and egg mixture. Set in refrigerator while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

3) In another small bowl, mix together the oregano, parsley, marjoram and thyme. Set aside.

4) Dice up the remaining ingredients except the spinach. Set aside.

5) On a flat surface, lay out a piece of plastic wrap flat, about a foot wide. Flatten out meat to no more than 1/4" thickness, in a rectangle.

Evenly sprinkle the herb mixture

then the celery

and top it with the spinach.

Next, top it with the carrot and mushrooms and gently press down across it to mush everything together.

6) Using one end of the plastic wrap, gently begin to roll up the meat, in a jelly roll fashion.

Once it is finished, place the prepared loaf pan over the top of the roll so that the seam will be on the bottom on the pan.

Flip it upright, cover with foil and bake 30 minutes at 350.

7) Remove foil, and using wide spatula, gently tip the pan to drain out the grease. Return foil and increase the heat to 375 for another 30 minutes. Remove the foil in the last 10 minutes to brown up. Let rest 10 minutes before cutting into it.

Potatoes Au Gratin ala Meal

Once again I have come up with another way to use up some of those Holiday leftovers. If your like me, the same old things just doesn't cut it anymore. We want new and exciting flavors for our taste buds to enjoy.

To accomplish this feat, I was able to whip out my brand new Black and Decker 10 Cup Food Processor... Santa was sooo good to me this year! I was caught doing the happy dance while the sharp blades made short work of my potato slicing. I'm currently working on more ideas that would involve me using it! Like the perfect Pizza Dough tomorrow!

OK... on to the meal itself. This recipe serves about 6. Adding and subtracting ingredients is a snap so if you do not have something on hand, just improvise!

mmmm Just LOOK at all the cheesy goodness!


1 cup Half & Half
1/2 cup Milk
1 tsp Cayanne Pepper
1/2 tsp Salt
4-6 Potatoes, peeled and sliced thin
1/2 cup Gruyere Cheese, grated
1/2 cup Colby Jack Cheese, grated
1 cup sliced Mushrooms
1 cup Turkey & Ham, cooked and chopped
1 cup Spinach, ribboned

1) Preheat oven to 350. Line a casserole dish in foil and spray with butter flavored oil.

2) In medium saucepan mix together cream, milk, cayanne and salt. Bring to boil and add half the potatoes. Let simmer uncovered 5 minutes, stirring constantly with a heat resistant spatula and remove to prepared dish with slotted spoon. Add remaining potatoes into cream sauce and simmer another 5 minutes.

3) Meanwhile, Spread first batch of potatoes in an even layer in prepared dish. Layer on gruyere cheese, mushrooms, turkey, ham and finally spinach. Then cover with second batch of potatoes by pouring them straight on top and spreading out.

Inside this yummy goodness!

4) Bake, uncovered for 45-50 minutes until potatoes are tender all the way through. Sprinkle the colby on top and return to oven for another 10 minutes or until cheese has melted and turned a light brown.

Turkey and Bowties

Left over turkey this year? Tired of serving it the same old ways? Well, do I have a dish for you! This is a great twist on Turkey and noodles that will "wow" your family with its flavor! Serve this up for 4 or you can always expand it for more!

2 cups Bowtie Pasta, uncooked
1 tbsp Butter
2 tbsp Olive oIl
2 Carrots, peeled, diced
1/2 cup sliced Mushrooms
1/2 Red Bell Pepper, sliced
1 cup Turkey, cooked and chopped
1 tsp Garlic, minced (or 1 clove)
1 tsp Crushed Red Pepper
1/2 tsp Basil, dried
Salt & Pepper to taste
2 cups Spinach, ribboned
1/2 cup Gryuer Cheese, shredded
1/2 cup Mozzerella Cheese, shredded
1/4 cup Parmesan Cheese, grated

1) Preheat oven to 350. Line casserole dish in foil and spray with olive oil.

2) Cook pasta according to package. Drain.

3) Meanwhile, in large skillet heat oil and melt butter. Add carrots and saute until tender crisp, about 5-10 minutes. Add bell pepper, mushrooms and cook until mushrooms brown up, about another 5 minutes. Add in garlic, red pepper, basil and salt and pepper; remove from heat. Stir in spinach and add cooked pasta, gryuer and mozzerella. Pour all into foil lined pan. Top with Parmesan.

4) Bake 15 minutes until cheese has melted.

Italian Stuffed Mushrooms

No, your not going to find a bunch of Italian folks stuffed into these shrooms. But you will find Italian sausage, ricotta and a few other things that will remind you being in an Italian Bistro.

1 lb Mushrooms
1/2 lb Mild Italian Bulk Sausage (hot if you like it)
1 tsp Garlic, minced
1/2 cup Ricotta Cheese
1/4 tsp Thyme, dried
2 tbsp Butter
1/4 cup Panko
1 tbsp Parmesan
Dash Crushed Red Pepper
Salt & Pepper to taste

1) In large skiller, brown sausage with garlic and drain any excess oils/grease; return to pan. Over med-low heat stir in ricotta and thyme until cheese is creamy. Remove from heat.

2) Heat oven to 400. Line pan in foil and spray with non-stick spray.

3) Using a damp paper towel, gently rub off any dirt on mushrooms. Remove stems and place on foil lined pan, hole side up.  Using small spoon, fill cavities with meat mixture.

4) Bake for 10 minutes then remove.

5) In small bowl, melt butter then add Panko, parmesan, salt and peppers to taste. Stir to distribute butter evenly, then sprinkle on top of meat mixture and bake another 10 minutes until Panko turns brown.

Cumin Chicken with Apples & Mushrooms

Trying to change up meal plans can be hard when living way out here in the West Texas frontier. Not being able to purchase many things I would have back home makes this a big challenge... but one I happily except. This dish is something I came up with after researching many different recipes on line and not being able to come up with all the right ingredients. I've never been a big fan of Cumin, but found it really works well with the different ingredients I was able to throw together. Give it a try and let me know what you think!

3 boneless, skinless Chicken Breasts, cut in small pieces

2 tbs Butter

1 tbs Olive Oil

2 Apples, peeled and diced

2 Green Onion, chopped or 1 tb Garlic, minced

2 Carrots, grated

1 cup sliced Mushrooms

1 tbs Baking Mix (Jiffy or Bisquick)

1 10.5oz can Cream of Chicken Soup

1/2 cup Water

1 tbs Ground Cumin

1 tsp Worechestershire Sauce

Salt and Pepper to taste

3 tbs Bread Crumbs, plain

3 tbs Parmesan Cheese

1/4 tsp Chili Powder

*Hot Brown Rice 

1) Preheat oven to 350.

2) In large skillet, drop butter in oil to melt. Brown chicken and place in 13x9x2" baking dish. Sprinkle grated carrot on top of chicken. 

3) Using the drippings in the skillet, saute up the onion/garlic, apples and mushrooms until apples are crisp-tender. Add baking mix and stir to combine. Add soup, water, worechestershire sauce, salt and pepper. mix well to incorporate soup. Pour over chicken. Sprinkle top with bread crumbs. Cover baking dish and bake for about an hour, until the chicken juices run clear. 

4) After 45 minutes, sprinkle top with grated Parmesan and return to oven without cover.

5) When finished, ladle chicken dish over hot rice, sprinkle with chili powder and serve.

Hearty Italian Chicken & Veggie Soup

Here's another soup recipe made just for snowy weather. I was so surprised to find such pretty veggies here in West Texas that I had to through them all together in one pot! As it is, this recipe makes a thin broth. But if you like it to be a bit thicker all you have to do is mix 2 tsp corn starch in about 1/4 cup of water and pour it into the soup about 10 minutes before you serve it.

2 tbsp Olive OIl
1 lb Chicken breast, cut up
1 cup Fresh Green Beans, cut into 1" pieces
2 Carrots, peeled and sliced
2 Celery Stalks, sliced
1 cup Broccoli Florretts
1 Zucchini, halved then sliced into half moons
4-6 Mushrooms, sliced
1 can Itallian DIced Tomatoes (with garlic and olive oil)
1 tbsp Garlic, minced
1 tbsp Parsley, dried
1 tbsp Oregano, dried
1 tsp Basil, dried
2 tbsp Chalula Sauce (or Tabasco)
1 box (32oz) Chicken Broth
2 Chicken Boullion Cubes
Water

1) Heat oil in large pot. Add chicken and brown pieces on all sides.

2) Add in remaining ingredients except water. Stir well.

3) Fill empty broth box with water, shake to get all flavor out and pour in pot to cover veggies.

4) Cook for 30 - 40 minutes until veggies are crisp-tender.