Donairs!!!

I've always been a fan of donairs. Not only are they delicious but they also hold special meaning as I recall going to the Flea Market on saturdays with my dad and having donairs for lunch. I loved them then and I love them now - but rarely take the opportunity to get one. When I saw this at our local Wal-mart I had to try them. I was a little leary having tried a ginger beef kit recently that was HORRIBLE (not the same company), but I decided to do it anyways. It was only $5 (they are now $6) so I figured it wouldn't be too big a loss. Boy was I ever shocked - these donairs are AWESOME!!! The sauce, the meat - it's fabulous. I mean, there's nothing quite like a fresh hot donair - but this is definitely the next best thing. and for $6 you get enough for 4! You just can't beat that!

I try not to purchase frozen food but this is quickly become a staple in this house. I had a friend over for lunch one day and we made these up - she went out a couple of days later to buy a couple boxes! Super quick and easy - and totally delicious! And (as my friend and I thought) what a perfect idea when you are having a group together for appetizers or sporting events. Make a few of these boxes up, typical nachos and cheese, chips and dip, etc. And you've got yourself a lovely filling meal. They even give the suggestion on the box for making them into donair pizzas, which would probably work best for large groups. I add diced cucumbers, shredded cheese, lettuce, and sliced white onions to mine. Perfect!

Try them!!!

SERIOUSLY SCRUMPTIOUS RATING: 5 STARS!!!

BEST.ROAST.EVER.

Okay, I've made roasts quite a few times...and honestly they always turn out really yummy. But tonight's...mmm, tonight's was exceptional. I think because it was still pink and soooo tender....I don't usually overcook them, but they are often *cooked* as opposed to tonight....it was perfect.

I put a roast (actually half of one as we figured we can get two meals...so we froze one half) in the crock pot. I always put a package of *french onion soup mix* on top and add about 1/2-1 cup of water. It makes such yummy dark gravy....I also added veggies...I cut up an onion, some carrots, celery, mushroom, and zucchini. Then I threw on another package of *french onion soup mix* (because I felt like it..lol I don't always add a second one though) and some more water (to make lots of gravy) and let it cook. It cooked for 5 hours - 3 of those hours were on high.

Pour the drippings into a pot and cook on high until boiling...add water/corn starch mixture to thicken.

I often add potatoes to the crock pot too but this time decided to do mashed. I had some leftover hot potato salad from Monday still in the fridge so I threw those in when I mashed them. Just to use them up really - didn't impact the flavour much.

I would also have normally done a salad or garlic bread too but skipped out tonight. I can't wait to throw some roast in a pita for lunch tomorrow :D

SERIOUSLY SCRUMPTIOUS RATING: 5 STARS

Monday's Menu...

So after going grocery shopping today my fridge is STOCKED!!! I love it...drawers and shelves of vegetables...meat options...and lettuce - I LOVE lettuce (well salads actually. lol). Although surprisingly I didn't make a lettuce salad tonight....Here's what I did make!!!

Shish kabob (meat, celery, onions, mushroom, zucchini, and red peppers)
Hot potato salad
Sweet Potatoes
Cucumber Salad

And it was BRILLIANT!! A fabulous meal to sort of end the day.

The Shish kabob
...we use stewed beef although it can sometimes be a little tough...so if you want excellent meat, use a steak cut up. Then chop up the veggies and place in a bowl. I put the meat and veggies in separate bowls...drizzle with olive oil and season with Steak Spice (and I add a roasted garlic and peppers spice by Club House to the veggies as well). I let it sit while I get the rest of the food ready. And skewer and bbq. We only have wood skewers which are not the best...definitely invest in metal ones.For presentation purposes I love alternating between meet and veggies - but for cooking it's sometimes nicer to cook all meat on some and all veggies on others. Then you can put the veggies on a few minutes before the meat - otherwise the meat can overcook sometimes waiting for the veggies to be done. Just a tip ;)



Oh yes...Hot potato Salad....I have already posted this recipe but will post it here for kicks. It is DIVINE!!! I had invited a friend last night to come for supper tonight and she crazily declined. When I told her tonight what I was making she said, "So remind me why I declined the offer?" And when I said I was making hot potato salad she stopped dead..."Seriously?" - it's her favorite....bet she won't decline next time I offer! ;) By the way, Jenn - it was SERIOUSLY SCRUMPTIOUS!!! *giggle*

Peeled Potatoes (I count about 2 per person and then add a few just because)1 Package of bacon (cooked in the oven on parchment paper at 350 until crispy)1 Medium onion (chopped and then fried in the bacon grease poured off from cookie sheet - I know...*ick* but trust me...it is just brilliant!). Cook potatoes until done (don't overcook them). Add cooked and chopped bacon to pot of potatoes (cook it while potatoes are cooking). Add sauteed onions and mix. Add in mayonnaise (maybe about 1/2 cup - but play around with amounts a little) and season with seasoning salt (really it's a personal preference...I have no idea how much - I know that is not helpful at all...a few Tbsp maybe). Oh and don't *mash* the potatoes but most of them end up sort of creaming together...

Sweet Potatoes
*yay to my mother in law for coming up with this....or copying whoever told her about it. LOL*
Peel sweet potato and slice into strips about 1/2" wide and 2-3" long (just to give you an idea). Smash a few garlic cloves and spread around in dish. Drizzle with olive oil and season with oregano. Bake in oven at 350 for about an hour....(So I like to do this first so it can just cook while I do everything else). For me, the longer the better...I like some to get a little crispy. Mmmm

Cucumber Salad - I LOVE it when I make this. And our kids LOVE it too!!! This is my sister in law's recipe...I half this recipe for 1 whole cucumber - it's still a little bit too much dressing, so you could add another half a cucumber if you wanted :) I cut the cucumber in half lengthwise and then slice. So they are half circles.



1 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup sugar
4 tsp vinegar
1/2 tsp dill
1/2 tsp seasoning salt



Over all this dinner's SERIOUSLY SCRUMPTIOUS RATING IS: 5 STARS...my husband doesn't care for the sweet potatoes (nor does our daughter) so I should perhaps give them a 4 STAR rating. Although Jenn (the one who crazily declined dinner tonight) had them 2 weeks ago when I took her dinner (enchilada's, sweet potatoes, and orange almond salad) and she LOVED them. Guess it depends if you like sweet potatoes to start with. LOL

This was a great meal!

mmm...Enchiladas

This recipe comes from my sister in law, Rachelle (although I don't think she made it up). I've only made a few changes to customize it for our family :) It's a little more time consuming than some other recipes I use, but still is not too bad and is really easy - not to mention Scrumptious!

Appropriately named - Rachelle's Enchiladas :)

Filling:
1 lb. ground beef
1 medium onion, chopped (handy chopper again)
2 Tbsp flour
1 Tbsp chili powder (I use closer to 2)
1 tsp salt (I do not add salt)
1 tsp garlic powder (I use 1 1/2)
1/2 tsp cumin (I use 1)
1/4 tsp rubbed sage (I've never added this)
1 can stewed tomatoes (I blend these together first in either the handy chopper (of course) or my food processor)

Cook beef and onion. Add flour and seasonings and mix well. Stir in tomatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes. I just usually let it simmer without making sure it boils first.

Sauce:
4-6 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 cup margarine
1/2 cup flour
1 can beef broth
1 can tomato sauce (15 oz) (I just use our spaghetti sauce - president's choice brand with mushrooms)
1 cup water (use the tomato sauce can (half full) to get the remaining sauce out too)
1-2 Tbsp chili powder (I use about 3)
1-2 tsp cumin (I use about 3)
1-2 tsp sage (never added)
1/2 tsp salt (never added)

Saute garlic in margarine until tender. Stir in flour until well blended. Gradually stir in broth and bring to a boil. Cook and stir for 2 minutes or until bubbly (I just add the rest of the ingredients right away - I don't wait). Stir in tomato sauce and seasonings. Heath through. Lightly cover bottom of pan (casserole dish) with sauce (so tortillas don't stick).

Fill each tortilla shell with about 1/4 cup of filling (I don't actually measure it out - I just scoop some with a spoon)and some shredded cheese. Roll tightly to fit as many as you can into the dish (there is usually some extra space at the end of the pan - I usually squeeze some in going the other direction or I cut a couple in half and put them in for the kids). Pour the remaining sauce over top.

Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes. If you've just finished making the filling and sauce and they are still hot, you only need about 15 minutes to cook. Then top with shredded cheese and put in oven until melted.

SERIOUSLY SCRUMPTIOUS RATING: 5 STARS

**Add garlic toast and a salad to finish this meal off. The Orange Almond Salad is my favorite but any will work**

Seriously Scrumptious

It took a few days to come up with a name I am satisfied with - but more than that am THRILLED with...thanks to my cousin, Radelle for helping me brainstorm...as well as Jenn who put up with my phonecalls every 10 minutes with a whole new list to consider. LOL I plan to give the foods *seriously scrumptious* ratings. This will help everyone I hope to better determine if they also want to try the recipe.

So let's start. :) The other night I made a family favorite (my cousin, Kari still dreams about it I think.). It wasn't anything new but is always a meal that just hits the spot. And even better - it's soooo inexpensive, which also makes it a great meal to serve for company!

It's a marinated roast/steak! I haven't tried it with a roast...we just buy the small marinating steaks from the grocery store. They are between $3-$6 each usually. My husband and I can nearly polish off two ourselves so keep that in mind if you are serving it for a group bigger than that.

Here is the recipe - this is not an original me recipe and I haven't made any alterations (which is a bit unusual). This was found on allrecipes.com (and excellent resource) and first tried by my good friend, Karma.

Marinade:
3 cloves of garlic, minced (I use the black & decker handy chopper plus - I seriously think this is a kitchen essential)
1/2 cup of soy sauce
2 Tbsp of veg oil (use the same Tbsp for the oil and ketchup, doing the oil first...the ketchup just slides out of the spoon!)
2 Tbsp ketchup
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp pepper

**Poke meat with fork (I actually make slices on each side with a sharp knife) and marinate. You can do it for 20 minutes or 2 hours - a great recipe for something quick too!**

Place on BBQ for a few minutes on each side. The rarer the better (to a point of course). Then slice - on a diagonal...my husband says it tastes better that way. haha The *only* downfall of this dish is it does get cold quickly. So keep that in mind and try to have all other dishes ready.

I also made caesar salad, baked potatoes with carrots, and garlic bread. I make my own caesar dressing (I make most of my own dressings) and it is truly TO DIE FOR!!! I have two recipes that I'll share though - one I grew up with my mom making (delicious) and one my dad has found and perfected since. For this meal I did the second one.

Caesar Dressing #1 (my mom's)
In a blender:
3 cloves of garlic
1/2 cup of vinegar
1/2 cup of evaporated milk (pretty much the whole small can)
1 cup of olive oil (add slowly while blending the other ingredients)
2 glops of mayonnaise (or miracle whip)
1 1/2 tsp anchovy paste (I don't usually add it to this recipe)

*Keeps about a week*

SERIOUSLY SCRUMPTIOUS RATING: 5 STARS



Caesar Dressing #2 (found online but perfected by my dad)
In a bowl - and mixing after the adding of each separate ingredient:
1 medium clove of garlic, minced (using the handy chopper again)
1/2 tsp pepper
pinch of salt (I pretty much never add salt to recipes, so I omit this)
1 1/2 tsp anchovy paste (don't worry - it doesn't taste fishy)
1 tsp dijon mustard (the real stuff...I use French's in the glass jar)
1 tsp worcestershire sauce

Pour ingredient into blender and add:
1 large coddled egg (yolk only)**
3 Tbsp fresh lemon juice (I usually use the bottled stuff)
about 3 Tbsp parm cheese (give or take depending on how you like it...I'm a cheese addict, the more the better)
3 Tbsp mayonnaise (miracle whip)

Add 1/3 cup virgin olive oil while blending.

**To coddle an egg....Gently drop into boiling water (enough to cover it) and *cook* for 30 seconds. I usually do a minute just to be sure. Crack and pour out white part, adding just the yoke to the blender**

Pour over washed, romaine lettuce (I usually rip mine...but sometimes use my lettuce knife...**using a metal knife on lettuce causes it to brown**) with croutons.

SERIOUSLY SCRUMPTIOUS RATING: 5 STARS

Then for the garlic toast. I buy the french loaves for about $1 at the grocery store and cut them in half lengthwise (to get two halves, the top and the bottom).

Mix in a bowl:
5 Tbsp butter softened (or margarine - that's what I use)
2 tsp olive oil
3 cloves of garlic, minced (again with the handy chopper)
1 tsp oregano (dried)
salt and pepper to taste (I don't add these...but would only add the pepper if I was going to)
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (I don't usually do this...but it's great either way)

Spread mixture on bread and bake in oven at 350 for 10-15 minutes. I like to broil for the last few minutes but have been known to forget and end up with some pretty crispy, pretty black garlic toast. *eeks*. I prefer to do this in the oven as it's less time consuming than the stove. But either way will work! Then slice (as shown) into individual serving slices.

SERIOUSLY SCRUMPTIOUS RATING: 5 STARS

The carrots and potatoes...I cooked the potatoes in the microwave (making several cuts in each so there would be no potato explosion. lol) for about 5 minutes total (2, 2, 1).
I peeled and cut the carrots and steamed them just enough to make them a litle bit soft (otherwise they won't cook thoroughly in the oven and will still be too hard). When the potatoes were cool. I cubed them (bit-size) and mixed them all into a baking dish (corning ware is a beautiful thing) with a drizzle of olive oil. I sprinkled garlic salt and just a smidge of seasoning salt. Put them in the oven to bake (the time doesn't really matter....maybe 20-30 minutes I guess).


SERIOUSLY SCRUMPTIOUS RATING: 3.5 STARS
(they were good...but not knock your socks off good...although I make this regularly because it's a nice side dish and it uses up our potatoes)

I thought I would try something a little new this meal....I took the leftover marinade and turned it into a gravy for the carrots and potatoes. My only recommendation is that you DON'T TRY IT!!!
haha...I thickened it with water and cornstarch (1 cup of lukewarm water with a few Tbsp of corn starch...add to the boiling marinade and stir until thickened) which was great. But the taste was too strong....great for a marinade but not straight. I was excited when I thought to do it....but I will not be venturing there again. LOL


SERIOUSLY SCRUMPTIOUS RATING: 0 STARS

Let me know if you try any of these and what you think....It would be fun to compare your experiences too. Oh and don't worry, not every post will be this long....and I apologize to my photography friends for having to endure the less than *seriously scrumptious* photos of the food....I know I need a better camera. but for now - just be grateful you get photos ;)