Meatless Lents are great for learning new things in the kitchen and stepping out of my comfort zone I have found! Today I really wanted to make rice and beans, but I couldn’t find a recipe that I had all the ingredients for, so I read a few recipes then put an idea together and this is what I came up with:

 

1/2 onion – diced

3 cups cooked brown rice**

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can green peas

1 12 oz package of cooked shrimp

salt

pepper

oregano

cayenne pepper (optional)

oil (to coat the bottom of the pan)
1. In a dutch oven or a large pot, heat oil over medium heat then place onions in pan. Let the onions cook until translucent then add the rice.

2. Stir together until rice is heated then add the peas and tomatoes. Stir to combine then add the rest of the ingredients, stirring to combine.

3. Let the mixture cook over low heat for about 1/2 hour, until flavors combine.

Serve with cornbread. Top with jalapenos, if desired.

 

**I am lazy and scared when it comes to rice, I have burned it more times that I care to mention, so when I make rice, I do it in the oven. Place the rice and water (usual ratios) in an oven proof cookware (I used Corningware), put a lid on it and bake for about an hour. Keep an eye on it to make sure there is enough water. I usually use brown rice, and it has a longer cooking time, so if you are using white rice, the times may be less.

 

 

Last Friday I attempted to make bean burgers but did not have all the ingredients to do so (mainly a lack of bread crumbs) but didn’t realize it until I had already started putting things together. I was also going to make a recipe using quinoa but in the end decided to mix the two. Joshua was helping in the kitchen and this is what we came up with:

 

Quinoa and Bean Burgers

1 can kidney beans

1 can white kidney beans (or navy beans)

2 eggs

2 cups cooked quinoa

1/2 medium onion, diced

4 oz shredded cheese

1/3 cup flour (or enough to help hold the mixture together)

to taste:

garlic powder

onion powder

salt

pepper

cumin (optional)

 

Mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl and set aside.

Pour  about 1/4 inch of oil into a pan and heat to 350. (I used my new bff, my electric skillet)

Form into patties, about 3″ wide and 1/2″ thick and place in hot oil until brown on each side.

Top with extra shredded cheese.

 

We served them on buns topped with cheese, tomatoes, mayo, and jalapeno chips, but they would be great served without the bun.

This recipe made 24(ish) burgers, enough for three meals for our little family, I am sure it can be halved.

Enjoy!

With Lent starting tomorrow, I thought I’d share this link with you all! Barbara over a Bless us O Lord put together a list of meatless meals. Thank you!!!

Today I had a nice meal planned out for the Feast of St. Cyril and St. Methodius, then a headache struck mid-afternoon. It was pretty bad and I planned on going to bed when Joshua got home, even though it was his feast day. I felt bad about leaving him with the dinner rush, so I sucked it up and got dinner started, then moved on to thinking about dessert. I ended up making this recipe.

I forgot to get pictures while making the dough, but it was pretty easy to put together. Here the dough is, divided into 8 balls.

I rolled it out to about 5 1/2 inches and about 1/4 inch thick. I usually just eyeball when rolling out dough, but tonight I felt like being “technical”.

I put the oil in one of my cast iron pans and turned on the heat . I knew the oil was ready when I splashed a drop of water in the pan and it spattered. (do not do that with kids around). Cooked on one side for 50 seconds

And the other for 45.

Place on to a paper towel lined baking sheet.

Top with cinnamon and sugar.

Devour (aren’t they cute?)

Enjoy on your own late, with a nice glass of milk.

 

You too can make your own, learn how, here. Make sure you have a tall glass of milk to wash it all down!

I recently saw a recipe involving something called Quinoa. I had never heard of it, or so I thought, turns out it is pronounced keen-wa and I had discussed it with a friend a while ago. I bought a box at our one and only organic market here in our small south Georgian town and headed home. It sat in the cupboard, neglected, because I had not saved the recipe I was going to use it for. This past Friday, I was trying to think of something meatless but high in protein to serve to the family. I like to do rice and black beans topped with cheese, sour cream and salsa, but that is not a big hit here, “dry” has been one of the complaints filed. So I did some searching for uses for Quinoa then put together a recipe. Let me just tell you, it was a big hit.

Check the recipe out over here: Family Hearth

….we had some friends over for dinner. It was an informal dinner, served buffet style. Sam and his lovely wife, Michele, shared a delicious Buffalo Chicken Dip along with a chocolate birthday cake for Baby Jesus. They also brought a bottle of wine, which is always nice too.

We did a quick manger scene for the kids, enjoyed “Charlie Brown Christmas” while eating our dinner then visited for a few hours while the kids ran around being kids.

Here are a few pictures from our part:

**Edited: when you click on the pictures, they are pretty huge, I will fix those when I get a chance, but for now, I am very tired.

Chicken Fried Steak

I was given a Fannie Farmer Cookbook for Christmas of 1990 from my Grandma Kress. It has seen it’s time and was a wonderful help for me learning to cook when I was first married. It started to show its age a few years ago, so I put it in “storage”. A few weeks back, while at Goodwill, I found a copy like mine and picked it up, so now I am back to using my favorite cookbook. Here is a recipe I found and used last night:

Chicken Fried Steak

1 lbs top round steak (I used cubbed steak)

1 C plus 3 T flour

Salt and freshly ground pepper

3 T vegetable shortening

1 large onion, coarsely chopped

1- C milk

Cut the steak into 4 to 6 serving pieces. Pound 1/4 C flour into the steaks using a meat pounder or the rim of a sturdy plate. Pound in as much flour as you can until the steaks are saturated and quite thin. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper.

Heat the shortening in a large skillet over high heat. Cook the steaks very quickly, about 2-3 minutes on each side, until golden brown. Remove to a platter and keep warm.

Remove all but 2 T of fat. Add the onion and saute, over medium heat, for about 2 minutes, or until soft. Stir the remaining flour into the onion, continuing to stir, and let it cook for 2 or 3 minutes. Slowly add the milk, constantly stirring, and cook until the gravy is thickened. Serve with mashed potatoes.

This recipe served our little family of 4.