Sloppy Janes (aka vegetarian sloppy joes)

4 Kaiser Rolls

1 tbsp veg oil (or more as needed)

1/2 onion, diced

12 ounces soy "ground beef" crumbles

1 cup diced celery

1/2 cup bbq sauce (or more as needed)

1/4 cup vegetable stock

dashes hot sauce to taste (optional)

shredded cheese

Preheat oven to 475. Slice rolls in half, cutting off the upper third of the roll to leave the larger bottom section. Scoop out the inner portion of each bottom section and set the tops and bottoms aside on a large baking sheet. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When hot, saute the onions for about 5 minutes. Stir in the ground beef, celery, bbq sauce, vegetable stock and hot sauce. Cook over medium heat for 4 or 5 minutes, or until the mixture is heated through. Remove from the heat. While mixture is cooking, toast the buns in the oven (about 5 minutes). Spoon equal portions of the mixture into the bottom section of the rolls. Sprinkle each filled roll with cheese and put back into the oven for a few minutes until cheese is melted. Remove from oven and serve!

Easy Blender Salsa

We've been eating so much of this lately. It's so good and super easy. We tone down the spicy but I like that you can make it as spicy as you like!

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can Rotel tomatoes (we always use mild)

1/2 onion, roughly chopped

1 clove garlic, pressed

1/2 - 1 jalapeno, seeded or not

handful cilantro, roughly chopped

1 tsp. honey

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. ground cumin

juice of one lime

Put all ingredients into a blender or food processor and blend to desired consistency. You may adjust spices according to taste. Enjoy!

Recipe from mountainmamacooks.com

Chicken Katsu

I decided to add a few of my recipes to the blog cause its been a while.

Chicken Katsu (and sauce)

Recipe somewhere online

Chicken thighs, de-boned (NOT breasts)

1-2 Eggs, beaten

Panko bread crumbs or Corn Flake/Rice Krispy crumbs

Oil (for deep frying)

Cut off any access fat to the chicken if needed. Lightly pound into 1/2 inch thickness. Dip, not soak, the chicken into egg batter. Lay the chicken in the breadcrumbs and be sure to coat them. Get a large skillet or wok heated with the cooking oil. Once the oil is hot and sizzling, slowly drop the chicken pieces into the pan. Use the sides of the pan to drop the chicken in to avoid oil splattering. Remove chicken pieces once they are a golden brown color on both sides and is no longer pink inside. Serve on a bed of lettuce for good looks.

Katsu Sauce

1/3 Cup ketchup

1/4 Cup soy sauce

1/4 Cup sugar

2 tsp Worcestershire sauce

1/4 tsp ground red pepper (or cayenne)

Pour the ingredients into a sauce pan. Mix together and bring to a boil. Serve on the side as a dip for the chicken or lightly spoon over chicken.

Balsamic Glazed Steak and Pasta

Balsamic Glazed Steak and Pasta

Rrecipe from tastyplanner.com

Adapted by Tyson Finlinson

Steaks

2-3 Thin cut steaks

2 Tbsp olive oil

Salt

Course ground pepper

Pasta

1 Lb boy tie (or any) pasta

1 Box beef broth (or use beef bouillon cubes in water)

Balsamic Sauce

1/4 Cup balsamic vinegar

1/4 Cup olive oil

2 Tbsp Dijon mustard (yellow mustard works fine)

1 Tbsp parsley, roughly chopped (or 1 tsp dried)

2 Cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp rosemary

1/2 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce

1 tsp sugar

Toppings

1 Sliced green onion

Feta Cheese

Sprinkle steaks with salt (liberally) and pepper. Put 2 Tbsp olive oil into a frying pan and heat the pan on high until steaks are hot enough to sear. Place steaks in frying pan until seared on both sides (doesn't take long so be careful) and cook until cooked the way you like. If steaks are a little thicker you could put them in the oven. Slice steaks into thin strips.

Bring beef broth to a boil and add pasta. Cook until al dente. Strain.

Add in all sauce ingredients except parsley (if using fresh) into a small sauce pan. Heat up sauce to a very light boil (whisk constantly), turn heat down until everything is mixed and homogeneous.

Once noodles are cooked, place some noodles on a plate/bowl and add steak slices on top. Drizzle sauce on top. Add green onions and feta cheese.

Chicken Gnocchi Soup

Chicken Gnocchi Soup (Olive Garden)

Recipe from CopyKat.com

4 Tbsp butter

1 Tbsp olive oil

1 Cup onions, diced

2 Cloves garlic, minced

1/2 Cup celery (2 stalks), sliced

4 Tbsp flour

1 Quart half and half

1 14-oz Can chicken broth

1 Cup carrots (2 carrots), shredded

1/2 tsp Thyme

1/2 tsp parsley

1 Cup shredded cooked chicken

1 lb gnocchi cooked (in the pasta aisle)

1 Cup fresh spinach, coarsely chopped

Fresh ground Parmesan cheese (optional)

Saute onions, garlic, and celery with butter and oil over medium heat until softened and translucent. Add flour and let thicken for 1 or more minutes. Add half and half 1/4 at a time. Add chicken broth, carrots, thyme, parsley, and chicken. Combine. Then add gnocchi. Simmer for 20 minutes. Add spinach just before serving. Top with Parmesan.

Honey-Ginger Glazed Tilapia

Sorry I keep posting so much but we've tried a few new recipes this week and they've been so yummy I had to share!

3 Tbsp. honey

3 Tbsp. soy sauce

3 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar

1 tsp. grated ginger root (I just sprinkle in some ground ginger)

2 tsp. minced or pressed garlic

2 tsp. olive oil

4-6 4 oz. tilapia filets

Whisk together the honey, soy sauce, vinegar, garlic and olive oil. Marinate fish in the mixture for 20 minutes to 1 hour. While marinating make the dipping sauce (below). Broil or bake fish until it flakes easily.

Dipping sauce:

6 oz. plain greek yogurt (I used sour cream because I ran out of yogurt. I bet the yogurt would have better flavor but the sour cream was tasty too.)

1 small garlic clove, minced or pressed

1/2 tsp. grated ginger root (again, I just sprinkled in some ground ginger)

1 1/2-2 tsp. soy sauce

2 Tbsp. green onions, chopped

1-2 tsp. cilantro, finely chopped

Juice of 1 small lime (about 2 Tbsp.)

1 tsp. lime zest

sriracha sauce to taste (I skipped this)

1/4- 1/2 tsp. kosher salt

"Quesadillas"

This recipe's name was "quesadillas" but I don't think that's very fitting. I also can't think of a good name for it. Oh well. Eva loves these dipped in sour cream.

1 small red onion, chopped

1/2 red or orange bell pepper, chopped

7 oz. canned corn (1 c. frozen works well too)

1 can black beans

1 c. cheddar cheese

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar

1 Tbsp. honey

corn tortillas

salsa

Heat oil in a pan and cook onion and pepper for 3 minutes. Add corn and beans and cook for about 2 minutes or until onion and pepper are soft. Add vinegar and honey and heat for about 1 minute then remove from heat. Spread half of each tortilla with salsa. Top with corn mixture and some cheese. Roll the tortillas and put on a cookie sheet. Sprinkle with cheese. Broil until filling is hot and topping is golden brown.

*Can add shredded chicken if desired.