Italian Beef Hoagies (Slow Cooker)

This is something I've made quite a few times, and we really enjoy it.  When you find roast on a BOGO sale, this is a great meal to make -- easy crockpot goodness!  We like to melt provolone cheese on our sandwiches in the broiler.  The recipe book also suggests spreading garlic butter on the bun before toasting it.  Mmm! Mmm!

 

Italian Beef Hoagies

 

3 to 4-lb beef chuck roast

2 .6-oz pkgs zesty Italian salad dressing mix

2 c water

24-oz jar pepperoncinis, drained and liquid reserved

15 to 18 hoagie rolls, toasted and split

Garnish: shredded provolone cheese

 

Slice roast across the grain into 4 pieces and trim any fat.  Place in bottom of a slow cooker.  Mix together dressing mix and water; pour over beef.  Cover and cook on low setting for 8 to 10 hours, until tender; use forks to shred beef in slow cooker.  Slice pepperoncinis into rings and add to slow cooker along with reserved liquid from jar.  Cover and cook for a few more minutes, until heated through.  Serve beef on toasted rolls, topped with cheese.  Serves 15 to 18.

 

Photo from bing.com and recipe from Gooseberry Patch Slow Cookers, Casseroles & Skillets.

Grilled Mozzarella Cheese Sandwich

This is one of those instances where you say, "Why didn't I think of that?"  I came across this idea on Pinterest a while back.  The novelty has worn off a little, but the kids and I were eating it a couple times a week for lunch after we learned about it.

 

Grilled Cheese . . . using Mozzarella cheese (or provolone, which is our preference) . . . served with a side of marinara sauce.  {sigh}  HELLO!!! It's amazing!

 

Here's a side bar:  I just went on the assumption that the recipe said, "make grilled cheese sandwich the original way but use mozzarella."  Well, Martha Stewart has her own high-calorie, high-fat version of the Grilled Mozzarella Cheese sandwich.  I'm sure it tastes great if you can afford buffalo mozzarella and all the other ingredients, but the cheese we use from the local discount store works just as well also.  I've also seen recipes that include tomato and basil, pesto or spinach as a combo with the mozzarella if you want to try something a little more extravagant.

 

Best Burger Ever

Have you ever had someone ask you a question like, "If you could only eat one food for the rest of your life, what would it be?"  Well my answer would be hamburgers.  My husband teases me that I always get a burger when we go out to eat.  I just like a good burger, a moist and flavorful burger.  This recipe makes a good, moist and flavorful burger.  It's best cooked inside (see notes below), so it's great for this time of year.

 

Recipe and photo from Little Miss Momma.

 

Best Burger Ever with Secret Sauce

 

Ingredients

 

Burger

• 2 lbs ground beef 85/15
• sesame seed buns
• ½ cup of grated Monterrey jack cheese
• ¼ cup BBQ sauce
• season salt to taste
• cracked black pepper
• onion powder

 

Secret Sauce

• ¾ cup of mayo
• ¼ cup ketchup
• ¼ cup relish
• 2 tablespoons worcestershire
• seasoned salt

Instructions

1. Combine the ground beef, grated cheese, bbq sauce, and seasonings. Shape patties that are about 1 inch thick.
2. Then it is very important to push a ½ inch indent into the center of the patty–this is what prevents the patty from becoming a dome. These burgers stay extra moist because the bbq sauce and cheese are mixed in with the meat.
3. Wait for the skillet to get super hot and then apply a very thin layer of butter to the pan. Place the patties on the pan, indent side up.
4. Reduce heat to medium and allow this side of the patty to cook for about 4-6 minutes, but make sure it doesn’t burn. Then flip the burger over and cook until done.
5. For the sauce: Combine all ingredients and whisk until well mixed. Taste and adjust ingredients to your liking.
6. Assemble the burgers and serve with avocado, lettuce or your choice of toppings!

 

 

Notes: 

 

I also butter and toast the buns on a skillet Pioneer Woman style. Something about a sesame seed bun makes the burger seem more legit. 

 

Many of you have had trouble with the burgers falling apart. For some reason, I have made these burgers many times and this has not yet happened to me. But for those who are experiencing this, here are a few of my suggestions. 1. I don’t ever put this type of burger on the grill because it is too moist and will fall through the grates–which is why I use a grill pan. 2. I wait to flip the burger until one side is very thoroughly cooked, so that it holds together better before flipping. 3. If you are worried about them falling apart still, perhaps use less BBQ sauce than what I have listed in the recipe (try 2 tablespoons instead). 4. Some commenters have suggested adding some bread crumbs. I hope these tips help. These really do have a yummy flavor, sorry for those having trouble.

BLT Paninis

This isn't anything special -- just something we've come to love!  I created it after eating a BLT Wedge from a local eatery.  At six-something a piece, I had to recreate it since I couldn't afford to keep buying it.  Tried making the wedge first.  Don't know that I'll ever master pizza dough without a pizza oven (or at least that's my excuse), so I thought of making it into a panini.  All the ingredients, bread exluded, are from Aldi -- another reason I love this recipe!

Typically, I pull out my George Forman grill to make these, but I didn't feel like adding one more thing to my kitchen to clean!  So we used a flat griddle on the stove that can be cleaned in the dishwasher.  I'm willing to sacrifice those special panini marks on my sandwich to have one less thing to clean.

BLT Paninis

You will need:

Bread (we like fresh Italian sliced bread from the deli)

Butter/margarine

Bacon bits

Cheese (we like munster)

Tomatoes (we use cherry tomatoes since they taste a little better this time of year), sliced

Lettuce (picutured is Romaine, but Iceburg is better -- I think), broken up into bite-sized pieces

Ranch dressing

1.  Heat griddle and butter outsides of bread.

2.  Lay half of your bread, butter side down on heated griddle.

3.  Sprinkle about 1 - 2 Tbs of bacon bits on top of each sandwich.  (You may not think the order of bacon & cheese is important, but it is VERY important unless you want bacon bits all over the griddle when you flip the sandwich which I have proven by trial and error.)

4.  Layer sliced cheese next. Place remaining bread, butter-side up on top.

5.  Allow bread on the bottom to brown to desired level.  Flip sandwich and brown on the other side.

6. (This step is time sensitive as cheese will cease up if it cools down.) Remove sandwich from griddle.  Open sandwich.  Add lettuce, tomato and ranch dressing while cheese is still warm.  Close sandwich and serve warm.

ENJOY!

New Twist on Grilled Cheese

Back many ages ago in Jr. High Home Ec class, we made this recipe.  It came to mind this week.  Unfortunately, my kids aren't big fans, but most kids are.  As an adult, I enjoy them once in a while -- Pizza Grilled Cheese!  The photo isn't great, but it illustrates how to make them.  I intended to put a photo of the final product on here also, but alas, I burnt the sandwich while getting lunch for my family.  I wanted to make another sandwich, but that would have required me to thaw bread from the freezer and to eat two sandwhiches!

Pizza Grilled Cheese

Sliced Bread
Cheese
Ketchup
Oregano or Pizza Seasoning

Butter one side each of two slices of bread.  Lay one slice of bread butter side down on griddle.  Add American cheese slices (or cheese of your choice), a squirt of ketchup and a sprinkle of oregano or pizza seasoning before adding other slice of bread butter side up.  Grill on one side, then turn over and grill on the other side.

NOTE:  The amount of ketchup pictured may be a bit much.  The ketchup dripped out a little.

Ham & Cheese Loaf

We've used this recipe for lunch or for group gatherings. Different meats and cheese can be used. My kids like to help make this too!

Ham & Cheese Loaf

1 loaf of refrigerated pizza crust

9 oz fresh-shaved ham

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1 egg, beaten

1 tbsp grated parmesan cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Roll out dough on to flat surface into a 12x8-inch rectangle with rolling pin. Layer ham to within 1/2 inch of edge. Spread mayo over the ham evenly. Sprinkle cheese on top.

3. Moisten edges of dough with water. Fold lengthwise into thirds; pinch seams together to seal. Place seam-side down on a lightly greased baking sheet.

4. Lightly cut several slits in top. Brush with egg; sprinkle with parmesan.

5. Bake 30 to 40 minutes or until golden brown. Cook 10 minutes before slicing.

Variations:

Ham & Swiss

Roast Beef & Swiss

Tex Mex: Turkey & salsa (in place of mayo)

Pizza: Pepperoni (16 slices), 1/3 c pizza sauce & mozzarella cheese

Recipe courtesy of kraftfoods.com.