Beef Filled Twice Baked Potatoes.. in a different way!

So I stumbled upon this recipe while browsing through the archives of another website, and it stuck in my head so much that I had to make it that same weekend. So I did make it that saturday. However, I was in a cranky mood and I was hot and tired and I didn't feel like taking pictures. So I didn't. Take that.

Anyway the finished product had so much flavor. We devoured them. I wound up with a lot of extra filling that I couldn't fit in the potato skins, which was fine with me. I ate it the next day. We really liked all the flavors of the dish but the having to bake the potatoes for an hour and then split them and gut them and fill them and blablabla. It was really just too much work. But I thought while I was making them that aren't they just really like tiny little sheperds pies? Beefy mixture on the bottom, mashed potatoes on the top? So I remade the recipe except this time I boiled and mashed the potatoes and I threw the meat into a casserole dish with the potatoes on top before baking it.

The result: awesome. I love it this way and will continue to make it like that in the future. I'll show you how I did it, but if you want the instructions to make the twice baked potatoes, go check my link down by the recipe.

Now come along with me to flavor town, people. The water is fine. And delicious.

Now, this looks like a lot of stuff, but it's all stuff I had in my fridge and cupboards, so hopefully you have the same. Ground beef, garlic, onion powder, curry powder, seasoning salt, tomato paste, salt, pepper, ketchup, mustard, worcestershire sauce, bbq sauce, tabasco sauce, butter, cheese, milk. Unpictured is the bell pepper, the frozen corn, and the potatoes, of course. Sounds like a lot but this is all basic pantry stuff. Well except maybe the curry powder but.. it's so delicious. It pains me daily that Sean doesn't really like it. But the curry in this recipe doesn't impart a strong flavor, so Sean is okay with it. I went a bit heavy handed on it the first time, he could tell. Anyway, enough rambling! 

First you'll wanna get your potatoes peeled. While I was peeling those potatoes, I flashed back to memories of when mom and dad would make mashed potatoes and Jen (my wonderful big sister) and I would be forced to peel the potatoes. I didn't think much of it at the time but suddenly everything was clear. Why people really have kids. To pawn off all the jobs you don't feel like doing! Free manual labor! It all makes seeeeeense! Anyway, I digress. Peel your potatoes but try to do it with less issues than me.

Then halve or quarter them.

And stick'em in a pot of cold water.

Now on the subject of potatoes going into simmering water or starting with cold water.. Ree makes hers by putting them into simmering, but I've always been told to use cold water. So I looked it up on THA INTERNETZ and I found a suitable answer!

1. Starting the potatoes in cold water allows for more even cooking as the temperature of the potatoes rises slowly.
2. Harold McGee, author of On Food and Cooking, says that starch granules gelatinize, or swell up, between 137°F and 150°F. If you just throw the potatoes in already boiling water, the outside starch granules will gelatinize on contact with the water, effectively blocking the water from penetrating farther into the potato.

And there you have it. You don't want your potatoes to gelatinize. That's good enough for me.

So annnyway. Dice yourself up a bell pepper, whatever color you want. And get some frozen corn out. About half to a whole cup will do. And mince or press a whole mess of garlic.

About this time I started my potatoes on the stovetop, since it would take a good while for them to hit boiling point and then 20-30 minutes to cook. Then I tossed my hamburger into a bowl and went nuts!

To my hamburger, I added 1 tsp of salt, a generous amount of black pepper, 1 tsp of onion powder, a heavy handed half tsp of curry powder.. Now the ketchup, mustard, worcestershire and tabasco.. I just kind of put in a nice big blorps worth. Yes, a blorp. That's a technical kitchen term, you know. So just put a little bit and don't worry about it too much. Worse comes to worse you can add more later but it shouldn't need it with all those yummy flavors mingling and having a party so awesome that your mouth will be lost on a sea of yum.

Or something.

So mix it all up well. Don't mind that fist mark in the middle. It was cold so I raged on it a little. Just a little. I felt all better afterwards.

The potatoes! They boil! I kept my lid on but kept it cracked while they simmered away. I remember sooo many times where the potato water would boil up and over the sides. Hearing the sound of the water hitting the element and mom or dad cursing and running for it. Ah good times.

And then you brown your meat over medium highish heat, drain some of the fat..

Add in your pepper, corn and garlic. My meat was a lil dry after I drained it so I added a spoonful or 2 of water for the initial veggie cooking process. I cooked it over around medium heat. Cook for about 5 minutes or so.

Then suddenly my potatoes were done. Oh noes. They kind of melted a little so I'm wondering if I cut my potatoes too small or if I used the wrong potatoes for boiling or what. I used russets if it matters. Regardless they were still delicious.

By the time I got my potatoes drained and back on the stove, 5 minutes had elapsed and I added a squeeze of bbq sauce, 3 tsps of tomato paste and 1/2 cup of water to my meat mixture.

Then I simmered it over medium low heat for 10 minutes until it wasn't really wet anymore.

In the meantime, I mashed my potatoes. I threw in a spoonful of butter, and added some milk, 1/2 tsp of seasoning salt and 1/2 tsp of black pepper. I had to add a bit more milk till they were creamy enough, then I tossed in a handful of chedder cheese.

For what it's worth, I asked Sean how they were and he said they were "like oatmeal". I asked him to elaborate. He didn't. I've had my fair share of oatmeal, far more than he has. There was nothing "oatmealy" about them. But they definitely weren't perfect. Still, good first try. That picture doesn't do them justice, I made them a bit creamier after I took it. ANYWAY, mashed potato insecurities aside, let's finish assembling this baby.

Put your meat mixture into a big casserole dish.

And then cover it with them mashed taters. I actually had too much mashed potatoes and I stubbornly used them all. It kind of worked anyway, the lightness of the potatoes with the supremely flavorful meat base.

Then I covered them with a little more grated chedder and I baked it for about 20-25 minutes in a 400 degree oven.

I love the skin that mashed potatoes get when you bake them.

And I dished some right out!

And then I added a sprinkling of more chedder because if some is good, more is better. At least that's what Ree always says!

Delicious! Here's the recipe. Or something resembling it.

Beef Filled Twice Baked Potatoes (except not) (adapted from recipe here)

• 4 to 5 potatoes
• 1 bell pepper
• 1lb ground beef
• 3tsp tomato paste
• 1/2 to 1 whole cup frozen corn
• 1/2 cup water
• salt
• pepper
• seasoning salt
• ketchup
• worcestershire sauce
• mustard
• tabasco sauce
• 1/2 tsp curry powder
• bbq sauce
• grated cheese
• 3-5 cloves of garlic
• milk
• knob of butter
• onion powder

None of those are in order by the way. First, peel and cut up your potatoes. Place them in a pot in cold water, bring to a boil and cook for 20-30 minutes, until a knife or fork goes in with no resistance.

Add your ground beef, 1 tsp salt, lots of pepper, 1/2 tsp curry powder, ketchup, mustard, worcestershire sauce, tabasco sauce, and onion powder to a bowl. Mix it up well.

Brown your meat over medium high heat. Drain the meat and add in your peppers, corn and garlic. Cook over medium heat for 5 minutes or so. Then add a splash of BBQ sauce, 3 tsp of tomato paste, and half a cup of water. Mix well and simmer over medium low heat for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, drain your cooked potatoes and mash over low heat to help let the steam or leftover water evaporate. Add your butter, some milk, seasoning salt, pepper and cheese. Mash well until desired consistency.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

When meat is done, place inside a casserole dish. Cover with mashed potatoes. Sprinkle some grated chedder over the top, and maybe even some paprika. Bake for 20-25 minutes at 400 degrees. If you go for 25 minutes, keep an eye on it so you don't burn your cheese. Mine was fine though.

Let sit for 5-10 minutes after taking out, then dish it out.
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And let me just say..

It was good. Really good.

Yum. Yumyumyum.

Try it, it was deeeeelicious. And it reheats not too bad at all. I just finished eating some for lunch! Oh it's good stuff.

And if you were wondering what they looked like as potatoes?

They were also delicious. But we definitely prefer the big casserole way. Try them soon!

Mmmm Bacon Cream Pasta

I was looking through the pictures on my camera and I found a handful of pictures I had taken the week after I made the meatloaf and had a bunch of leftover bacon that I hadn't posted. I didn't really follow any recipe but mostly I just felt naughty because of all the bacon. My word it was good.

First I cut up the leftover bacon..

Then I boiled some pasta.. I love this shape.

Gemelli!

Then I cooked the bacon down, rendering all that yummy bacon grease out and removed the bacon to a bowl.

Then.. And this is where I felt really bad.. I measured out the bacon grease, it was about 1/4 cup.. and I added another 1/4 of butter back into the pan with an equal amount of flour.. And made a bacon roux.

Then I made a white sauce made of milk and some chicken broth, salt, pepper, some spices..

And I added the pasta and all the bacon back into it.

It was amazing. The cream sauce itself tasted like bacon. I'll never make it again because it was just too good.

There you have it.

Oh and hey, look what I found at the store.

Whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat? YES.

They're pretty good. I love me some creamsicles.

Anyway tonight I'll be making a recipe I made a few saturdays ago but didn't wind up taking pictures of. It was beef stuffed twice baked potatoes. I liked the flavors a lot but I found that the baking and the scooping and the filling and so on was a bit much effort and I'd like to try it as a big sheperd's pie type casserole. So I will! Because it's my kitchen!

Three Cheese Stuffed Shells with Meaty Tomato Sauce

Okay so maybe it wasn't shells. It wasn't my fault that the grocery store didn't have any! Don't judge meeeee!

So anyway, Happy Easter! I hope everyone has a good weekend. Sean and I went to his parent's house and hung out with his mom, Tina, and we watched Toy Story 3. I had a lot of fun.

I'd also like to introduce you to a friend of mine. Fairy Bunny.

Isn't Fairy Bunny cute? Almost cute enough... to eat?

You have to start with the head so that it can't feel it when you eat the rest of them. Sean said it's the humane thing to do.

I'm all about being humane. Being humane was never so delicious.

So about those stuffed shells that aren't shells. I decided to make manicotti instead. It's basically the same thing. Stuffed noodles. So let's make it, shall we? Oh Italian food. I love you so.

You will neeeeeed: Italian sausage, shells or manicotti, ricotta cheese, not pictured grated romano (I used kraft, don't hate), salt, pepper, parmesan cheese, egg, basil, parsley, garlic, crushed tomatoes, sugar and olive oil. Oh and an onion but I switched my onion out for a green pepper. Because I'm a rebel like that. POWER TO THE PEPPERS. Oh and RED WINE. What is going on?! WINE?! In my kitchen? Yes.

Fry up your onion(pepper) and garlic for a few minutes.

Then add your half pound of sausage and fry it up, baby!

Now add in your wine, feel naughty. Sean asked why it suddenly smelled like beer or something in here.

Let that cook down for a couple of minutes.

Add in your crushed tomatoes and sugar and salt and pepper and whatever else makes your heart sing.

I think it's important for your heart to sing at least once per cooking session. If not more! Simmer that, covered, for 30-45 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Now grate up a huge bunch of parmesan cheese. The recipe called for 8 oz, I grated a block that was 10 oz and then just took a little away, hoping it was something resembling 2 oz. I'm not very good with numbers.

And roll up your basil leaves tightly and chiffonade. Oh yes. Look at it, it's beautiful. SUCH TECHNIQUE. Also, is there anything like the smell of fresh basil? Hoo doggie. Good stuff.

Now mix your ricotta, your egg, romano, half the parm, salt, pepper, basil and some parsley.

By now your noodles should be done (Only cook them part way since they'll be baking in the oven) and 30-45 minutes of simmering on your sauce shall be done too.

Nom nom nom. Adjust seasonings if it needs any.

Now spread a thin layer on the bottom of your baking dish. I used a 9x13.

And stuff those manicotti. Boy those were annoying, I have to say. I imagine jumbo shells would have been a lot more simple with less swearing involved. Anyway I cooked up a whole box of those but had to leave 2 out because they wouldn't fit in the dish. Just as well, they had broken anyway. I also wound up with a fair amount of filling and a bit of sauce left. I turned it into leftovers with some penne, but that's not really part of this recipe, now is it?

Cover with meat sauce and the other half of the grated parm cheese and bake for about 25 minutes.

So good. Here's the recipe!

Three Cheese Stuffed Shells with Meaty Tomato Sauce (original recipe by Pioneer Woman)

• 8 ounces, weight Jumbo Pasta Shells
• 30 ounces, weight Whole Milk Ricotta Cheese
• 8 ounces, weight Parmesan Cheese, Grated, Divided
• ½ cups Grated Romano Cheese
• 1 whole Egg
• 12 leaves Basil, Chiffonade
• 2 Tablespoons Minced Parsley
• Salt And Pepper, to taste
• SAUCE
• 2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• ½ whole Medium Onion, Chopped
• 5 cloves Garlic, Minced
• ½ pounds Italian Sausage
• ½ cups Red Wine
• 1 whole 28 Ounce Can Crushed Tomatoes
• 1 whole 15-ounce Can Crushed Tomatoes
• 2 Tablespoons Sugar
• ½ teaspoons Salt
• 2 Tablespoons Minced Parsley

Cook pasta shells for half the cooking time; make sure not to overcook. Drain and rinse in cool water. Set aside.

Heat olive oil in large skillet or dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onions and garlic and saute for a minute or two. Add Italian sausage and brown, breaking it up into small pieces as it cooks. Pour in red wine and let it cook for a minute or two.

Pour in cans of crushed tomatoes and stir. Add sugar and salt. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Cover and cook 30 to 45 minutes, stirring occasionally. Check for seasonings; can add crushed red peppers if you like a little heat.

In a separate bowl, mix ricotta, half the Parmesan, Romano, egg, salt and pepper, basil, and 2 tablespoons parsley. Stir until combined.

To assemble, coat the bottom of a baking dish with sauce. Fill each half-cooked shell with the cheese mixture. Place face down on the sauce. Repeat with shells until cheese mixture is gone. Top shells with remaining sauce. Sprinkle on extra Parmesan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes, or until hot and bubbly.

Cheesy and hearty. Sean really liked them, so did Garret. 

 Honestly the most annoying part was stuffing the manicotti. If you can get your hands on some shells, the meal would be a lot easier. Try it sometime soon!

Pioneer Woman's Lasagna

I've loved lasagna for as long as I can remember. I can be kind of critical sometimes though, I hate big chunks of onion in my sauce because nobody ever seems to be able to cook them right so I can't tell they're there. So while I love lasagna, I don't eat it very often.

Ree says on her website that this is The Best Lasagna Ever (and was quickly shut down by food snobs) and well, maybe it is, maybe it isn't. But it was fantastic. And the ingredients are really easy to get ahold of. So let's make lasagna, shall we?

Here's what you need: Ground beef, hot jimmy dean's sausage, two cans of tomatoes, salt, pepper, dried parsley, dried basil, two cans of tomato paste, cottage cheese, kraft parm, eggs, a pound of mozzarella, and lasagna noodles. Oh and garlic. Can't forget the garlic.

See? Basic stuff here.

First, you cook up your ground beef, sausage and garlic. Man did that smell good. I love garlic. Sometimes when I go to use my cutting board I just smell it before putting it down because I've cut up so much garlic on it, it permanently smells like it.

Drain off most of (or all of) the fat. I left a little bit because I was feeling naughty and I bet it made it taste better. Then add in all your other stuff! Tomatoes, tomato paste, parsley, basil, salt, pepper. The original recipe called for 2 cans of whole tomatoes, I used one can of whole and one can of diced.. I'd probably use two of diced next time, but I don't like large chunks of tomato all THAT much.

Simmer that for 45 minutes. That sounds like a long time but it really is the longest part of the recipe and the resulting thick meaty sauce is delicious. But boy, it's pretty thick so you may have to mess with your temp a bit, it kind of doesn't simmer so much as it poofs up until some air can escape, then it deflates. But not in a messy way. Just cook those tomatoes down, is what I'm saying. I think.

While that is cooking, or after it's done, put your cottage cheese, salt, parm, eggs and parsley in a bowl.

And mix it up!

Num. Cottage cheese makes me think of my Auntie Ruth, who is no longer with us. She used to make me wagon wheel noodles and cottage cheese when I would stay at her house when I was little. I miss her dearly.

45 minutes later, your meat sauce is cooked down a bit!

Yum, and boy is it tasty. Mine had a hint of spice cause I went a little heavy on the pepper. But you could add red pepper flakes if you wanted. Oh and I threw a little onion powder in too, just for kicks.

Also while your meat sauce is cooking, you should probably have been boiling your lasagna noodles. I took a look at my pan ahead of time, decided how many noodles I would need, then made a few extra in case some broke or ripped. I didn't boil the whole box of noodles. Though now I have 1/4 box of lasagna noodles and don't know what to do with them. Anyway, add a tablespoon of oil to your water so they don't stick. Lay them out on some foil when they're done so they're ready to go and not sticking!

Begin assembling! I used a 9x13 glass baking dish. Put a layer of noodles on the bottom of the dish, it's okay if they overlap.

Next, half of the cottage cheese mixture.

Then half a pound of your mozzarella cheese.

And finally half of your meat sauce.

At this point, I was starting to worry that it might go over the top of the dish.

Then repeat your layers again, layer of noodles on the meat sauce, the last of the cottage cheese on the noodles, the other half pound of cheese on the cottage cheese layer, then the last of the meat sauce on top. Then cover the top in a generous layer of Kraft Parm!

Mine was a little more generous than intended, but I was just finishing off my container of cheese.

Look, it fit perfectly!

And then you bake it in the oven for 35-45 minutes till it is hot and bubbly. Watch your topping if you wind up going closer to 45, mine was starting to brown around the edges when I took it out.

Yum.

And then EAT IT!

Sorry about my messy plate. That was my second piece. Oh, don't forget to let it sit for 10 minutes before you cut it of it'll fall apart. Moreso than usual.

It was so great. Cheesy, savory, just packed with flavor. And if you think you don't like cottage cheese.. you won't even know it's there.

Make it today! But not for two people, we ate it for days and still couldn't eat it all!

Pioneer Woman's Lasagna (original recipe found here)

• 1-½ pound Ground Beef
• 1 pound Hot Breakfast Sausage
• 2 cloves Garlic, Minced
• 2 cans (14.5 Ounce) Whole Tomatoes
• 2 cans (6 Ounce) Tomato Paste
• 2 Tablespoons Dried Parsley
• 2 Tablespoons Dried Basil
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• 3 cups Lowfat Cottage Cheese
• 2 whole Beaten Eggs
• ½ cups Grated (not Shredded) Parmesan Cheese
• 2 Tablespoons Dried Parsley
• 1 teaspoon Salt
• 1 pound Sliced Mozzarella Cheese (I used grated)
• 1 package (10 Ounce) Lasagna Noodles
• (add 1/2 Teaspoon Salt And 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil To Pasta Water)

Bring a large pot of water to a boil.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet or saucepan, combine ground beef, sausage, and garlic. Cook over medium-high heat until browned. Drain half the fat; less if you’re feeling naughty. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, 2 tablespoons parsley, basil and salt. After adding the tomatoes, the sauce mixture should simmer for 45 minutes while you are working on the other steps.

In a medium bowl, mix cottage cheese, beaten eggs, grated Parmesan, 2 more tablespoons parsley, and 1 more teaspoon salt. Stir together well. Set aside. Cook lasagna until “al dente” (not overly cooked).

To assemble:
Arrange 4 cooked lasagna noodles in the bottom of a baking pan, overlapping if necessary. Spoon half the cottage cheese mixture over the noodles. Spread evenly. Cover cottage cheese with a layer of mozzarella cheese. Spoon a little less than half the meat/sauce mixture over the top.

Repeat, ending with meat/sauce mixture. Sprinkle top generously with extra Parmesan.

Either freeze, refrigerate for up to two days, or bake immediately: 350-degree oven for 20 to 30 minutes, or until top is hot and bubbly.
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Now that was some lasagna, folks. Do yourself a favor and eat some. And be happy!