Taco seasoning from scratch

You can use this as a base for seasoning your Mexican food when you don't have the store bought kind.

2 Tablespoons ground cumin
2 Tablespoons red chili powder
1 Tablespoon garlic salt

Mix together, store tightly sealed if you don't use it all.  Season to taste tacos, burritos and sauces.

Chicken and Eggplant Tostadas

1 eggplant, cubed
3-4 yellow squash, peeled and cubed
1 large onion, diced
2 teaspoons garlic salt
1 large can green chile
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 can cream of chicken soup
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2 chicken breasts
1/2 cup water
taco seasoning, see my recipe if you don't have it on hand.
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precooked tostada shells
cheese, salsa and sour cream, if desired

Saute onion and squash in large pot for 10 minutes.  Add eggplant and saute until tender.  Add cream of chicken and simmer 10 minutes.
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Cube chicken breasts and simmer 20 minutes or until they are cooked through.  Shred and season with taco seasoning.
-----To serve:
Top one tostada shell with eggplant, then 2 Tablespoons or so of chicken, then top with desired toppings.

Pizza Pasta

1/2 pound Penne

1/2 jar  of your favorite pasta sauce

2 cups Mozzarella cheese

12 pepperonis

Boil Penne according to package directions, drain and place in skillet with a lid(I also boiled mine in this deep skillet.)  While the pasta is draining, pour the sauce into the skillet and bring it to a simmer.  Add pasta and gently fold in.  Top with cheese and pepperoni.  If you have an oven-friendly skillet you can place it in the oven to melt the cheese.  I did not, mine has a plastic handle I would like to keep, so this is what I did:  After placing pepperonis on top, put the skillet lid on and put the heat on as low as it will go.  Heat for 5-10 minutes or until cheese melts.  Be careful not to have the heat on too high, you don't want the pasta to stick on the bottom.

Another Attempt to Replicate Grandpa's Chili Beans

2 pounds dry beans

2 large onions, diced

1 7oz can green chile, diced

1 can tomato sauce

1 Tablespoon ground cumin

1 Tablespoon chili powder

1 Tablespoon garlic salt

2 teaspoons ground black pepper

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1 or 2 Tablespoons corn starch

Water

1. Soak beans according to package directions.  Drain the liquid out.  Saute onions with cooking spray in skillet.

 2. Place beans in Crock-Pot with onions and chiles and about 11 cups water, set it on high. Simmer without lifting lid for 8 hours. 

Pay attention: if the water starts to run out, you may need to add more boiling hot water, but try not to add too much water or lift the lid unless necessary. 

3. After 8 hours in the slow cooker, brown the ground beef with the spices and add it and the tomato sauce.  4. Dissolve one tablespoon of cornstarch in 1/4 cup water and add it to thicken.  You may need to add another tablespoon depending on the thickness desired.  Taste it and add more salt if desired.

You want it spicy?  I roasted 3 fresh jalepenos and another green chile from the garden, chopped them and added them as well.  I let them cool after roasting and peeled them wearing gloves.

Quick Creamy Noodles

1 pound ground beef
1 large onion, diced
garlic salt and pepper, to taste
1 pound egg noodles
1/4 cup(1/2 cube) butter or margarine
1 cup milk
2 cans cream of mushroom soup

Brown ground beef and onions together, season with the garlic salt and pepper.  Boil egg noodles  in large pot according to package directions, drain well.  When ground beef is done and onions are tender, add butter, milk and soup.  Simmer while egg noodles finish cooking.  After draining noodles, place them back in the pot and add skillet contents.  Fold in gently, simmer a few more minutes if desired, and serve.

Hot Jalepeno Squash

Hot, hot, hot!!

4 small yellow squash
2 small onions
1/4 cup bottled or canned jalepenos, chopped(use half for medium heat)
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1/4 cup seasoned bread crumbs
Cooking spray

Preheat oven to 425. Peel squash, quarter lengthwise and slice in 1/4" slices.  Dice onions, chop jalepenos.  Mix squash, onion and jalepeno in a large mixing bowl with garlic salt.  Spray 9x13 casserole dish and add contents of the bowl.  Sprinkle breadcrumbs on top and cover with foil.  Bake 45 minutes, then remove foil and bake for 15 minutes more or until breadcrumbs brown.  Leftovers are even hotter the next day.

Andy's Chicken(Cream Cheese Chicken)

A huge hit from the last family reunion...my cousin Andy and his wife's contribution

4 chicken breasts, cubed
1 package dry italian dressing mix
1 can cream of mushroom soup
milk(enough to fill soup can halfway)
1 8 oz pkg cream cheese
Place chicken in crock-pot with italian dressing mix. Let cook for one hour. Stir. Add the can of cream of mushroom soup, then fill the can halfway with milk and add that to the crock-pot. Stir. Cut up the cream cheese into a few pieces and add that to the crockpot, then cover and cook on high for 3-4 hours. Serve over rice. Serves 4.

Alternate quick cooking method: Brown chicken on stove with seasoning mix. Add other ingredients and simmer on low for 30 min.