Family Recipes
Easy Stuffed Peppers

Prep time:  25 minutes
Cook time:  45 min 350°

1/2 lb Ground Beef
1/2 lb Italian Sausage (mild or hot, depending on your taste)
4 large bell peppers
1/2 cup chopped onion
Various Seasoning (Garlic Salt, Season Salt, Pepper, Italian Seasoning, etc.)

Cut your peppers in half the long way (top to bottom) and hollow, clean and rinse out the seeds.  Pat them dry and set aside.

Mix the meat with whatever spices you like and the onion.  I use about 1 teaspoon each of Garlic Salt, Season Salt, and Pepper, and about 1/2 teaspoon of Italian Seasoning. 

Spoon the meat mixture into each pepper.  Place peppers, meat side up, in a cake or baking pan.  Pour in 1/2 cup water and bake for 45 minutes at 350°.  Drain liquid and serve with mashed potatoes and brown gravy.

An Italian variation I make is like this:

Make as above, however, pour 1 can of tomato sauce over peppers, sprinkle with Parmesan Cheese and bake as directed. Serve with buttered noodles (cook noodles/spaghetti, etc) and toss in 3 Tbs Butter and 1 Teaspoon of Garlic powder, salt and pepper to taste. 

Posted by usedtobeme on Thursday, October 04, 2007 at 07:22 PM
Filed in: Beef • Family Recipes • ◊ Permalink
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Potato Cheese Soup (not for the diet impaired)

Potato Cheese Soup (not for the diet impaired)

4-6 medium potatoes (chopped into medium size chunks)
1 onion (diced)
2 cloves garlic (chopped fine)
5-6 celery stalks (chopped)
3 medium size peeled carrots (chopped)
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon season all
1 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon basil
1/2 cup butter
1 pint Heavy Whipping Cream
2 cans chicken broth

Chop your onion, celery, garlic and carrots and saute in the butter in a 5 quart pan. When your celery is just about done, add the two cans of chicken broth, your spices and chopped potatoes (I leave the peels on, feel free to peel yours). Add the cream and bring to a boil. Once it is rolling, put on a lid, turn it down to a simmer and let it go for about 35 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand 2 hours. Bring to a slow boil once more and thicken with the cornstarch (mix cornstarch in 1/2 cup cold water add slowly to the soup). Once thickened, remove from heat and slowly stir in the shredded cheese. IMPORTANT - add cheese AFTER you thicken otherwise it will all go to the bottom and not blend correctly. Walla, you are done. Enjoy!

Freezes well also. I store it in ziplock bowls for about a month. It will look something awful when you’re reheating it but once you stir it, it is just as good as the day you made it.

Posted by usedtobeme on Thursday, January 25, 2007 at 06:44 PM
Filed in: Family Recipes • Soups & Stews • ◊ Permalink
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Cinnamon Swirl Yeast Bread

This is a hands on yeast bread.  Put your bread machine away and do it right!  It’s so much better when it’s handmade.  I do let my mixer knead this for a bit with the bread hook attachement til it’s a nice soft ball of impending yum but I still do most of the hand kneading because I like to do it.




6 to 6 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/3 cup sugar
2 packages quickRise Yeast
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 cup milk
1/2 cup water
1/3 cup butter or margarine, cut into pieces
2 eggs, lightly beaten with a fork
4 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons Ground Cinnamon
Raisins if desired
1 egg white, lightly beaten
more cinnamon sugar

Grease a large bowl with butter.  Set aside.

In large mixer bowl, combine 2 cups of the flour with 1/3 cup sugar, undissolved yeast, and salt.

Heat milk, water, and 1/3 cup butter until very warm -120 to 130° F - (VERY IMPORTANT!!  Do not overheat or underheat.  Use a quick read thermometer!!) Add into dry ingredients. Using your dough hook, with mixer on low, stir in eggs and enough remaining flour to make soft dough. You may have to turn the mixer to medium.  When it forms a nice ball, let the mixer go at it for a few minutes then remove and knead on lightly floured surface with floured hands until smooth and elastic, about 6 minutes.  Add more flour to the board if necessary to keep it from sticking.  Put it in the greased bowl cover loosely with plastic wrap and drape a clean kitchen towel over it.  Let rest in a draft-free area about 10 minutes.

Divide dough in half. Roll each half into an approximately 15 x 8 inch rectangle. Brush each rectangle with 3 tablespoons melted butter but not all the way to the edges.

Combine 1/4 cup sugar, cinnamon, and raisins (if using.) Sprinkle evenly over dough.

Beginning at short end of each rectangle, roll up tightly like a jelly roll; pinch seams and ends to seal. Place, seam sides down, in 2 greased 9 x 5-inch loaf pans. Brush tops with butter.  Cover with a clean dish towel and let rise in warm place until doubled, about 30 to 45 minutes.

Brush loaves with melted butter and sprinkle with more cinnamon sugar, as much as you like. Bake at 375°F for 40 to 45 minutes or until done.  A good way to test doneness is to knock on the bread.  If it sounds hollow, it’s done. 

Remove from the pans and brush with more melted butter.  You can sprinkle on more cinnamon sugar if you want.  Cool on wire racks....but not too long.  It’s the best when you eat it warm.  If you want to toast it later on, slice it on the thicker side and toast it in the oven, about 350°, right on the bare rack.  Keep an eye on it and remove when it’s toasted to your liking.  It tastes so much better when you toast it this way.  Don’t forget the butter!

You’ll never use that crappy bread machine ever again.  If you have a heavy duty mixer with a dough hook, this couldn’t be easier if you tried.  It’s just that easy and just that delicious!

Posted by Donna on Tuesday, January 23, 2007 at 01:50 PM
Filed in: Breads • Family Recipes • ◊ Permalink
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