Vegetable Beef Barley Soup

I made this soup over the weekend to take in my lunch this week and next. It made a lot so I probably could get 8-10 days out of it. It is a bit bland so I will add more seasoning next time.

Vegetable oil
1 1/2 lb beef chuck, cut in 3/4" cubes (I used pre cubed stew meat)
1 medium onion, chopped (our onion was bad so I just used some onion flakes)
4 cans beef broth (I used two boxes low sodium)
1 can (28-35 oz) plum tomatoes (I used crushed)
2 cups water (I used a little less water and more broth)
1 bay leaf*
1/4 tsp dried thyme*
1/4 tsp pepper
1 lb carrots, peeled and diced
1 lb red poatoes, peeled and diced
3 celery stalks, diced (opps, I just realized I forgot this-I even bought some)
1 pkg frozen peas
1 pkg frozen corn (I used a can-drained)
Barley (I think I used 1/2 cup)

Brown beef in vegetable oil. Add onion and cook 5 minutes. Stir in broth, tomatoes, water, bay leaf, thyme, and pepper, bring to a boil. Cover, reduce heat and simmer 45 minutes. Once it came to a boil I added the barley and cooked it unti lthe barley was tender.

Add carrots, potatoes, and celery, cover and simmer 45 minutes. Add peas and corn and cook 15 minutes.

*I didn't have the right seasoning so I added some thyme, parsley, and Italian seasoning. I would just make this part up, use whatever seasoning you like.

As I'm sure you can tell this was a real recipe that I just adapated to what I wanted and had around the house. It would be great without the meat or with additional vegetables. It is a basic vegetable beef soup. It worked well for me and was a lot more cost effective than buying 8 cans of $2 soup.

Rhubarb Crunch

This recipe came from the Gilbert Lutheran Church Cookbook.

3 cups sliced rhubarb
1 cup white sugar
1 TBL flour, rounded
Pinch of salt
Cinnamon
1/4 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 cup flour
3/4 cup oatmeal
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter-melted

Mix the first 5 ingredients and place in greased 9X9 cake pan. Mix the rest of the ingredients except butter and put on top of rhubarb. Pour the melted butter over the top of the topping, doing your best to cover the entire top. Bake at 375 for 30 minutes

Emily's Notes:
I doubled this and made it in a 9x13 pan. It was very good, but a little sweet. If your rhubarb is very sweet you might want to reduce the sugar or add a bit of lemon juice. I also baked mine for a lot longer until it looked golden.

This is very good and I will make it again.

Menu for the Week of May 2

Ok, this month is getting away from me and I haven't done the menu or shopping. But we do have a menu for this week. I really hope to get the rest of the month done tonight so I can shop on Saturday.

Monday-Hot dogs and mac and cheese
Tuesday-Enchiladas
Wednesday-Breakfast casserole
Thursday-Whatever you can find
Friday-Scalloped potatoes and ham

Unfortunatly, there are no new recipes this week :( However, I made my Mexican Cheesecake for a party on Saturday so I'll post that as a special treat sometime this week.

Chicken and Rice

This is a recipe that I adapted from one give to me by a friend. I really liked the way she made it, but a few alterations were needed to get Connor to eat it.

Chicken and Rice

2 chicken breasts cubed and cooked
Hot cooked rice (I use however much is made when you use 1 cup of rice and 2 cups of water)
Peas
1 can cream of chicken soup (you can use cream of mushroom)
1/2 cup sour cream (you can use mayo)
2 cups shredded cheese
A few sprinkles of dried onion flakes.

Mix it all together saving 1 cup cheese for the top. Top with cheese and bake at 350unilt hot and the cheese is melted.

The original recipe calls for green peppers and onions instead of peas.

This is very good and pretty easy to make. It also reheats will for lunch.

Pizza Burgers

This is an adaptation of my grandma's pizza burger recipe. I have made a few changes that in my mind made them easier but just as good. I'm going from memory here so hopefully I won't leave anything out. If I find I did, I'll update.

Pizza Burgers
1 1/2 lb ground beef browned with chopped onion
1 can Spam cut into small cubes (yes, that's right, Spam)
1 cup shredded chedder cheese
1 cup shredded mozzerella cheese
1-2 jars pizza sauce

Mix it all together. Top 1/2 a bun with the mixture and broil until hot. If you like the tops toasted you can butter them and put them in the broiler too.

You want the mixture wet enough to hold together but not soupy like a sloppy joe, so the amount of sauce you use might vary. I think I used 1/2 small jars last time I made them.

I added green olives and canned mushrooms last time I made these and it was really good. I've usually added olives but the mushrooms were a first. You could also add green peppers or any other pizza topping you like. I have thought about chopping up pepperoni to add as well.

These reheat surprisingly well. Just heat the mixture up in the microwave and put on a bun. Yummy lunch!

Catching Up

Well, it has been a crazy couple of weeks with sick babies, birthday parties, and baseball games. So, I'm going to attempt to catch up. I think I owe at least two recipes and a menu. Folks, I'm sorry to say but the menu just isn't going to happen this week. I haven't had a chance to work on this month's menu so I'm trying to get that done this week and figure out what we are eating this week at the same time. Last night we had chicken and rice, tonight we are grilling something, and either tomorrow or Thursday we will have pasta. Who knows what we will have the other day. I'm hoping to get back on track with menus in the next couple of days. But until then, here are a couple of recipes.