Recipes

You have no idea how ironic it is that I'm posting recipes for other people to try. My mother taught me how to cook and I took home ec in junior high but I'm certainly not going to be given my own cooking show on cable TV. As a matter of fact, I couldn't even tell you what channel is the cooking channel on TV. When Randy and I were first married I experimented with a new recipe. It involved chicken, red wine, potatoes, and the crock pot. In my mind, you can never go wrong with a crock pot. I'm not sure what the name of the recipe was but it should have been called, "Excuse To Call Dominoes Chicken" but that kind of stuff doesn't exactly sell recipe books. My "Purple Chicken" went straight to the trash can that night and has been a source for many laughs throughout our marriage.


Now that I'm a stay at home mom, I've had more time to try out new recipes and cook extra batches of old favorites to freeze for future meals. Before trip 3 to Moscow, I cooked a big batch of Beef Chowder and froze the extra for our return thinking that we would have to sequester ourselves in our home to keep Artem from being overstimulated. Artem totally proved us wrong in that department but it worked out anyway as I just finished the last of the Beef Chowder this week.



Beef Chowder is my mother's recipe and it is EXCELLENT and does not take long to prepare. It is a great dish to freeze for the future. Here's the recipe for all of you that asked me about it back in April. (I know, better late than never)



Beef Chowder (8 Servings)
1 1/2 lbs ground beef, at least 90% fat free

1/2 cup chopped celery

1/2 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped green pepper (also called Bell pepper)

2 10 3/4 ounce condensed cream of celery soup

2 14.5 ounce cans of S&W readicut tomatoes (can use any brand)

1 can Green Giant vacuum packed corn (make sure you get vacuum packed, it tastes fresh and stays crisp through cooking)

1/4 cup snipped parsley



You'll need a good sized pot for this. Cook beef, celery, onion, and green pepper till meat is browned, drain. Add remaining ingredients and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Simmer, covered, 30 minutes. Enjoy!



Make sure you simmer it on low as the celery soup sticks to the bottom of the pan. I found at my local grocery store, I can buy celery and onion already chopped making this recipe even easier.

Artem LOVES Beef Chowder!

Melissa's Taco Soup (this is a crock pot recipe)

1 lb ground beef (you do not have to brown first)

1 can Mexican style diced tomatoes

1 can mild Rotel tomatoes


1 can yellow corn


2 cans chili beans


1 packet Hidden Valley dry ranch dressing mix


1 packet dry taco seasoning



Combine all ingredients in the crockpot and simmer the whole day. I serve this over Tostitos scoops chips and cover with cheese, lettuce, tomato, etc. If you are like me and hate spicy food, you can use regular tomatoes instead of Rotel. If you like it spicy, then kick it up a notch with your tomatoes. In the summer I put the crock pot on the back patio on top of the grill lid so it can heat the outdoors and not our house.

Enjoying a big bowl full of Taco Soup!