Sunday, November 14, 2021

The Ultimate Versatile Taco Salad

A quick, customizable family favorite that balances fresh greens with savory beef and a sweet-tangy finish.

Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes
Servings: 4–6

Ingredients

The Core Base

1 lb Ground Beef (browned and drained)
1 head Iceberg or Romaine Lettuce (chopped)
1 bottle Catalina Dressing (the signature "end" to the salad)

The Mix-ins (Choose your favorite combo)

Vegetables: Diced tomatoes, corn (canned or fresh), diced onions.
Crunch: Fritos or Doritos (crushed slightly).
Extras: Salsa (mild or medium), shredded cheddar cheese.

Instructions

Prepare the Protein: In a large skillet over medium-high heat, brown the ground beef until no longer pink. Drain the excess grease. For extra flavor, season with a pinch of salt, pepper, or taco seasoning.
Prep the Greens: Wash and chop the lettuce into bite-sized pieces. Place them in a large serving bowl or individual bowls as the foundation.
Layer the Toppings: Add your chosen combination of tomatoes, corn, salsa, and cheese over the lettuce.
Add the Crunch: Just before serving, add a generous handful of Fritos or Doritos to ensure they stay crunchy.
Final Assembly: Top the salad with the warm ground beef.
The Finisher: Drizzle the entire salad with Catalina dressing. Toss gently or serve as-is for a layered look.

Building the Bowl Use whatever is in your pantry

This recipe is perfect for "kitchen sink" meal planning!

The Classic: Lettuce, tomatoes, salsa, corn, meat, and Catalina.

The Frito Crunch: Lettuce, Fritos, salsa, and meat.

The Zesty Nacho: Lettuce, salsa, Catalina, cheese, and meat with Doritos.

Saturday, November 13, 2021

Jerky Recipes

1st recipe
One 3-pound eye of round roast, trimmed of fat and silver skin
(I used venison)
1 cup (packed) dark brown sugar
1 cup soy sauce
3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon red pepper 🌶 flakes
1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 teaspoon garlic 🧄 powder

2nd recipe

3 pound meat of choice

(I used venison)

2 cups of soy sauce

Tbsp of Worcestershire sauce

1/2 tsp of liquid smoke

1/2 tbsp of garlic powder

1/2 tbsp of onion powder

1/2 tbsp of black pepper

Directions

Put all the ingredients together to make the marinade. Then coat all the meat evenly. Put in the refrigerator and let it marinate for 12 - 24 hrs. I slice my mea at 1/8 in -1/4 in thick. Turn a couple times during that period. Once done either put in the oven for 3-4 hrs at 170° to 200°. I try to do the lowest my oven can go because we are not baking, we are dehydrating. You can use your smoker like we did most of it on and get that amazing smoke taste 👅. We did the smoker at 170 for 4 hrs.

Keep on counter for up to a week or put in fridge to prolong further.

Spaghetti Sauce

I can’t believe I have not put this up until now.

So without further ado, here is my recipe for spaghetti. I make it vegetarian for my canning, then I add meat when I am ready for dinner. I do this because when I canned this the first time with the meat, it seamed to dry out the meat. So now I add that after.

Ingredients

1 cup Celery
1 cup Carrots 🥕
1 Onion 🧅
1 cup Corn 🌽
4 cups of tomato 🍅 (sauce)
1 Garlic 🧄 (to taste) I use a whole head
1 tbsp of rosemary
1 tbsp of Italian seasoning
1 pound of Ground Meat 🥩

Add it all to the pot if you are going to eat it and not cann it. Cook until you can put a fork in the carrot. If you are going to cann it, do not add the meat.

For canning, process in pressure canner.

Clean pint jars, lids and rings in hot soapy water.

Prepare your preserve.

Fill jars with 1 inch head space, place lids and rings properly. Place in canner.

Vent canner properly. Pressurize. Process for 55 min (adjust for your elevation).

Cool canner. down to 0 psi or until the canner looses all pressure.

When done. Take out and put on a rack. Let it sit until cooled. (About 12 hrs) When cooled, check to see if it has sealed properly. Look here to see how, and all other important info on canning.