Cora, A Sidelines Story from Clayton

Recipes : Cooking with Caleb

Below are 3 super simple food hacks that get you a flavorful meal with minimum skill and effort. SO easy even Caleb could make them to impress a Red Dress. 

Crockpot pulled pork or beef (or even chicken).

3-4 Lbs roast 

1/2 tea minced garlic

1 med onion, julienned

1/2 tea salt 

Mix together sauce

      1/2 cup brown sugar

      1/4 cup molasses, or honey, or 1/8 cup corn syrup

      1 - 1 1/2 cup of salsa, any level of spiciness or a can of Rotel

1 beer - I prefer a lager or a stout.  

Place Onions and Garlic in bottom of crockpot.  Salt Meat and place on top of Onions and Garlic. Pour  first the Beer then the Sauce over meat. Slow cook on Low  for 6-8 hours. Use a fork to 'shred and pull' the meat apart and serve over bread of your choice. 

~~~~~~~~~~

Faux Italian Meat Meals

1 1/2 - 2 lbs ground beef and pork mix, just beef or even ground chicken

1 can Italian stewed totmato puree

1 finely diced small yellow onion

1 finely diced bell pepper

2 tea sugar

1 tea Italian blend seasoning

1 egg beaten (optional but necessary if making meatloaf or meatballs.

salt and pepper if desired 

Mash it all together in a bowl. 

NOW comes the fun part: What to make? Some meals require browning the meat mix, some require cooking the meat with the other ingredients. Some are less work, some are more.

Meat sauce: easy peasy - Brown the meat (no egg needed) ( about 10 minutes). Add in 16-24 ounces of pasta sauce. Simmer 20 minutes, serve over cooked pasta. 

Meat loaf: maybe not so peasy - Add 1/2 cup milk to meat mix, fold together. Add 1 cup breadcrumbs, fold together. place in a loaf pan (bread pan) and pour 1 small can of tomato sauce (about 1/2 cup) over the top. Bake at 375 degrees for 45-60 minutes. Drain, and use spatulas to remove from pan and place on a bed of mashed potatoes to serve. 

Meatballs: A bit more work- Same ingredients and prep as Meat Loaf except you use a large melon baller or small Ice Cream scoop to make Meatballs of even sizes. Cook on for 30 minutes at 350 or in skillet. 

Lasagna : Many steps : Cook the meat mix in a skillet, while Half cooking lasagna noodles - Only cook them half way!!!! (although my sister has just used macaroni and made casserole). While noodles and meat cool a little. 2 cup ricotta (or cottage cheese if mom's cheap), 2 cup shredded mozzarella. Put 1/3 of the meat in the bottom of a large glass baking dish. Place noodles on top, followed by half the ricotta, drop it all over in small bits with a spoon and sprinkle over with 1/4 of the shredded cheese. This is your next layer too. Meat - noodle - both cheeses. The last layer is meat then noodle then the remaining mozzarella. Cover very loosely with foil  or lid and bake at 350 for  45 minutes, remove foil or lid and allow cheese to brown - about 5-8 minutes. 

~~~~~~~~~

 Quickie Calico Chili

A "pretty " and simple dish for the cooking impaired.  ( I make this often at our school concessions, it always sells out)

1-2 lb ground beef, chicken, pork or a mix, (basically  some ground meat). 

2 bell peppers, 1 green and 1 yellow, chopped medium

1 medium onion (any color) chopped medium

In a skillet : Brown and caramelize together. Drain excess fat, and sprinkle with 1-2 tablespoon of flour or cornstarch. 

In a 2-3 qt pot. Place Meat and veggies in bottom

1 can stewed and diced tomatoes with chilis and garlic (mexican seasoned)

1 cup corn, can be fresh, frozen, or canned

1 can each, drained and rinsed: Black beans, Kidney beans, Pinto beans, Navy beans.

1/4 - 1/2 tea chipotle or red chili flakes (opt)

1/8 cup sliced Jalapenos or anaheim chilis(opt)

1 Tbl sugar

1/2 tea oregano

1 1/2 -2 cups water (barely to cover) ( for chicken chili, I use chicken stock)

Simmer on low 2 hours or bring to a boil and simmer 30 minutes if you're too hungry to wait. You can make it as mild or spicy as you like it is a very easy to adjust recipe.  It freezes well, and goes on top of almost anything or as a soup. 

To convert to Quick Thick Queso, simply leave out the beans, sugar, oregano, and water. Add everything else and simmer medium high for 5 minutes. Reduce heat to medium low. Slowly stir in 1 1/2 cups of milk and  then add 3 cups of cheese (I prefer a blend of sharp or medium cheddar and monterey jack.) Add Cheese in 1 cup increments to get even melting.  Stir regularly to keep cheese from burning. It should all be melted and bubbly in less than 5 minutes.  Good with chips, over burgers, or on fajitas.

~~~~~~~~~~

thanks Monica @agentmg17 for the lovely covers

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

9.2018 - CLAYTON is published!!!

Clayton (The Wildflower Series) by Rachelle Mills https://www.amazon.com/dp/164034487X/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_U_x_S8sbDbB084P46 via @amazon

2.2019- DALLAS is published!!!

Dallas (The Wildflower Series Book 2) by Rachelle Mills https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07MXRVB7M/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_U_x_o9sbDbPFY61NH via @amazon
Find them on Amazon

::Thank you to Rachelle for allowing this CLAYTON Fanfiction to be published.:: 

If you are reading this on a site that is not Wattpad, it has been taken

and published without my permission.