Springtime Skillet Dinner

Here's another recipe from my old Betty Crocker's Picture Cook Book-- it is probably an edition from the late 1950's. In this book, above this recipe on page 276, there is this quote:

"Mrs. Claude Stuart of Florin, California, originator of this dish, wrote: 'It takes less time than regular stew . . . and tastes much better."

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What I am noticing about the recipes in this old cookbook is that they call for very common and well known ingredients!  Ingredients I don't have to ask about with, "HUH? WHAT is that? and ...  WHERE can I get it?"

Brown in 2 tablespoons fat (butter) in 10" skillet . . .
     1 clove garlic, cut up (don't let it scorch or burn).

Remove garlic.  

Then, add to pan, cooking until browned while stirring . . .
     1 cup finely diced onion
     1/2 lb. lean ground beef

Add . . .
     1/2 cup UNcooked rice
     5 to 6 cups water
Simmer uncovered over low heat 40 minutes.

Add . . . 
     1 cup finely diced carrots
     1 cup finely diced potatoes
Continue simmering until tender (20 minutes?)

Season with . . . 
     1 to 2 teaspoons soy sauce
     1 tablespoon salt (or less, if needed)
     1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

Serve hot . . . garnished with parsley.
AMOUNT:  6 servings

Cabbage Soup

What!?  Onions, apples, potatoes, garlic and cabbage together in one soup?  Oh,........yeah!

Granddaughter Megan is quite the little bread baker-- just yesterday, she brought us the 'braided bread' in the photo.   M-m-m-m-m-m-m.......

You are so right if you think I'm on a 'cabbage kick'!  You know how they say 'two heads are better than one'?   Well,....mine, plus a cabbage-- this works for me, and the end result is...

TA-A-A-A-STY!!

I like this cabbage soup!  PJ told me I should include a story about this recipe-- a few years back, Grandson Ben was watching as I peeled and sliced the apples and asked what I was making.  When I told him it was 'Cabbage Soup', he quickly added in a sweet but matter of fact way, "You don't have to make any of that for me."  It was funny how the 'apple' had gotten his attention, and how quickly the 'cabbage' word erased it!

As with almost all recipes, a little tweaking doesn't hurt-- but, here is the recipe for how I make it:

With the exception of the ground beef and the Italian seasoning, the following recipe is already doubled because we like it as a re-run (left-over).  You could easily use the same amount of lean ground beef and halve the rest of the ingredients for a smaller batch.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 pound lean hamburger, browned, drained well.
• 3 Tablespoons vegetable oil (I used light tasting Olive Oil)
• 2 cups very thinly sliced onions
• 4 apples-- peeled, cored, and finely diced.
• 6 cups shredded cabbage
• 2 cloves garlic, minced (or powder, to equal that)
• 2 large raw potatoes, shredded
• 6 cups vegetable broth (I used a large 46-oz. can of V-8 juice, but you could use your own homemade recipe of tomato 'cocktail'.)
• 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning (rub together between fingers, to release more flavor)
• 2 teaspoons white sugar
• 1 cup half-and-half or cream 
• salt and pepper to taste

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DIRECTIONS:

• Brown hamburger, drain.  Set aside.
• In a large heavy pot, cook onion and apple in oil over medium-high heat until just lightly browned. 

• Stir in cabbage and garlic, then reduce heat.  Stir in browned hamburger,  grated potato, broth (or juice), Italian seasoning,  sugar, salt and pepper; cover and simmer 30 minutes* (see my * note below). 
• Once everything is added, it looks like this.... now, it's ready to 'do its thing'.

Stir in cream.  Heat through and serve. (Adding the cream gives its V-8 soup base a lighter color at the end.)

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*Like I often do with other recipes like this, rather than watch it on top of the stove, I prefer to put my covered enameled cast iron Dutch oven of soup into the oven at 300-degrees for a '...see ya in an hour' kind of ease.  Slow-cooking crock pots work for this, also, and will give you an even longer time to be 'away' while 'the goodness is happening'!

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I found this recipe quite a few years ago in a magazine and saw that a similar one was on allrecipes.com.  One submitter wrote:  "I love cabbage and always try to come up with new ideas for cooking with it; it's a very economical staple in the fall and winter months, thus this recipe.  Add any vegetables or meats that you like--this is a recipe of great versatility! ...Enjoy!" 

The 'readers comments' section wasn't so favorable for this recipe.  It seemed there were a lot of complainers/whiners who left comments-- the recipe wasn't this,... it wasn't that,... nobody liked it, etc.  

Well,............I (we) DO like this recipe and I would give it 5 stars-- maybe it is the 'added hamburger' that contributes to our liking it so well. (?)    I can also see adding a very lean version of sausage (Kielbasa type?) to this recipe in place of the hamburger.  I, too,  think this is a recipe you can work up to suit yourself and your family.

Cabbage Patch Stew

This might look like chili, but I think it's the cabbage that adds so much!

While some cooks make this on top the stove, I prefer the slow-oven method because it gives me a couple of hours before the meal to have fun doing something else. This would also be a good crock pot (slow cooker) recipe.

Honestly, I could eat this for three meals a day until it's gone... yep, that's me!!!!

If you do a recipe search for Cabbage Patch Stew, you might bring up more recipes than you'll ever be able to look through!  I don't think the ingredients have to be exact in any way-- mine sometimes vary.  This time, I made it like this:

INGREDIENTS:

1 pound lean ground beef (could use turkey, or venison if you like that)

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 large onion, thinly sliced

2 and 1/2 cups chopped cabbage (coarsely chopped)

3/4 cup chopped celery

1 16-oz. petite diced tomatoes (can use stewed tomatoes)

1 15-oz can kidney beans, UNdrained (When doubling recipe like I did today, I use one can of light red, and another of dark red to make it 'purty'-- could add black beans, too!)

1 and 1/2 cup water

1 to 1and 1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 to 2 teaspoon chili powder (For my hubby's sake, I used just one, then added more to mine later.)

Bisquick 'droppings' for at the end, very optional. (Check recipe option at the bottom of this posting.)

DIRECTIONS:

• Cook and stir ground meat in Dutch oven until browned.  Drain. 
• Put olive oil in bottom of Dutch oven.  To the drained meat, add onions, cabbage and celery.    
• Cook together over medium heat for maybe five minutes, stirring, until vegetables are just a bit tender. 
• Stir in tomatoes, kidney beans (with liquid), water, salt, pepper and chili powder. 

• This is where I do things 'more differenter' than most other recipes describe.  Instead of making this on top of the stove start-to-finish and putting drops of 'dumpling dough' on the hot liquid just before serving,  I covered the Dutch oven, put it into a 300-degree oven and let it go for two hours.   When it came out of the oven, it looked like this:

• At this point, if you wish, you can add 'droplets' of biscuit dough and put into a 350-375 oven for maybe ten minutes, or so, until the 'biscuit droplets' show a tinge of brown...

EN-JOY!

 

  

* If you don't use brand-name Bisquick, you can make you own 'biscuit droplets' or dumplings by GENTLY mixing together this combination:

3/4 cup flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1/3 tsp. salt

1 and 1/2  tbsp. shortening

Little less than 1/2 cup milk

Combine first three ingredients, cut in the shortening; add the milk and gently stir only until incorporated.   

Poor Man's Supper

This recipe makes for a relatively 'economical meal' and it goes a long way.  AND, ...this 'quickie' doesn't call for any creamy soups or sauces to hold it together.  I've already used canned whole tomatoes in this recipe and that works, too.  I just break them up a bit before I put them in. 

Sometimes, I add a 15 oz. size can of corn (drained) to this casserole-- as you can see in the picture above, the corn is in because... it adds color.

Serves 4-6

• 1 large onion, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 lb. lean ground beef, browned and drained
• 2 of 15-16 oz. cans diced or  stewed tomatoes  (If you like a little 'kick', use tomatoes to which green chilies have been added-- or, just one of the cans with chilies.) 
• 1 of 16 oz. can of water
• 1/2 lb. elbow macaroni, uncooked (this is about 2 cups with a little heap)
• 1 of 15-ounce can of corn (optional for adding another color)
• Salt
• Pepper
• Cheddar cheese (optional, and added when casserole is totally done) 

1. Saute onions in olive oil until they start turning translucent. Just before done, add the garlic (garlic turns bitter if burned). Set aside.

2. In a skillet, brown the ground beef and drain off excess grease.

3. Combine the onion/garlic mixture, browned hamburger, undrained tomatoes, water, UNcooked macaroni, corn (optional), salt and pepper in a heavy dutch oven or casserole dish that has been prepared by lightly greasing, or spraying with non-stick oil.

4. Cover tightly and put into 350-degree oven for 30-40 minutes, or until uncooked macaroni is tender.  To avoid having 'overcooked macaroni', check after 30 minutes to see how this is doing with your oven.

5.  If desired, top with cheddar cheese after you remove it from the oven.  Use grated cheese, or pieces of cheese to go with each serving, like this...

Some prefer to add a 'blob' of sour cream...

To add a bit more interest and 'color', I can see adding a 15 oz. can of little black beans to this recipe.

Easy, EASY Oven Stew

Ingredients and Directions:

Mix the following ingredients together in heavy pot (enameled cast iron cookware works great for this)...

1-2 lbs. cut up stew meat (or small chunks of cubed steak)
6 medium or large potatoes (Irregular-sized chunks work fine)
6 stalks celery, sliced into 1/2" pieces
6 carrots (I like to have them in irregular shapes/sizes)
1 med. onion (sliced pole to pole)


MORE INGREDIENTS:

Thoroughly combine the following and add to the above...

1 and 1/2 cups tomato juice (I like to use one sodium-reduced 12 oz. can of V-8)
1/2 cup water
3 teaspoons Lawry's seasoned salt
1 tablespoon sugar
3 tablespoon flour

Do not add more liquid unless you notice it needs more after the first hour. Cover tightly and bake at 325-degrees for about 2 hours or until everything is tender.  Sometimes, I bake it at 350-degrees for 1 hour, and then reduce heat to 300-degrees for 2 hours.  Whatever works with your oven and your schedule.

Slum Gullion (We LIKE!)

                                                                                  Photo by Doris

 I have often doubled this recipe and made it on a Saturday so I can just re-heat it for a quick Sunday noon meal.  (When doubling this recipe, I can use the larger can of tomatoes and a larger 15-16 oz. can of tomato sauce, too.)   We like this with garlic bread and a salad.

Ingredient list and directions:

1-2 lb. lean ground meat (1 lb. works okay)
1 lge. onion, diced
2 tablespoons olive oil with dab of butter
1 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
1 of 15-16 oz. can stewed OR whole tomatoes

1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce
1 and 1/2 c. uncooked macaroni
2 cups water
1 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
Parmesan cheese

In a large skillet or Dutch oven that has a tight fitting lid, using medium heat, add oil and then brown onion for about 3 minutes minutes; add bell pepper(s) and cook another minute.  Add ground beef and with a spoon stir and breaking up into small bits; cook until meat is well done.  If there's a lot of visible fat, drain.
 

Add tomatoes, tomato sauce, water, cooked macaroni, salt and pepper.  Cover with tightly fitting lid and put into 325-degree oven for about 30 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes. Remove from the oven after 30 minutes and let sit with cover on for another 30 minutes before serving as this helps to blend all the flavors.  Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese or sharp cheddar cheese.

Day Out Oven Stew

This was the recipe of someone working nights.  She'd put this together when she came home in the morning and it would be ready for her evening meal with the family.  (It's wonderful for when you wish to spend six to eight hours away from home-- these days it would work in a slow cooker.)

You will need:

1 and 1/2 pounds stew meat
1 cup cut up carrots
2 large potatoes, in 1" chunks
1 can peas
2 onions, chopped
1 can tomato soup
1/2 soup can water
1 teaspoon salt

Mix all ingredients and place in sprayed casserole.  Cover with very tight fitting lid.  Bake for five hours at 275-degrees or for six to eight hours at just 250-degrees.

Submitted by Mrs. H. J. McBride of Herman, Nebraska.

Helen's Simple Beef Stew

Helen shared this with me back in the 70's.  It's a quick 'put together' and tastes good, too.

6-8 servings.   This can be made start-to-finish on the stove top but, instead of having to more carefully watch it 'simmer',  I prefer to put it in my enameled cast iron kettle and have a 325-degree oven do this for me after Step One, and again after Step Two.

STEP ONE:

Brown in about 1/4 cup vegetable oil (olive oil with a dab of butter works great!): 1 cup of chopped onion and 1 lb. stew meat* that's been coated with flour-- sprinkle this with salt and pepper and whatever else you like (garlic powder?).    When meat is browned and ready, add 1 reg. sized can totato soup, 1 and 1/2 soup can of water.  Simmer for about an hour, adding more water if needed.  Stir. 

*I've sometimes used browned hamburger in place of the stew meat, leaving it in small chunks as it browned.

STEP TWO, after an hour:

Add 3-4 cups diced potatoes and as many carrots as you like with sufficient water to just cover.  Simmer for another hour (stirring after about 30 minutes).  Season again according to taste-- usually it needs a bit more salt (?).