Mexican Meat & Potatoes

• 1 pound ground beef, cooked and drained
• 5 potatoes, peeled and sliced thin
• 1/2 onion, diced
• 8 ounces can tomato sauce
• Water to cover
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 2 teaspoons onion powder
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 teaspoons cumin
• Generous dash black pepper

Simmer, covered until potatoes are tender & most of the water has evaporated. Serve with toasted flour tortillas.

Homestyle Veg-All Beef Stew (Updated)

• 1 medium onion, peeled and cut in eighths
• 2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1 ½ pounds cubed beef stew meat
• 1 (14 ½ ounce) can no salt added diced tomatoes (do not drain)
• 3-4 cups (5-6) peeled and diced potatoes
• 1 cup baby carrots, cut in half
• 1 cup (2-3 large) celery diced
• 1 (14 1/2 ounce) can sweet peas, drained
• 1 teaspoon each paprika, marjoram, and chili powder
• Water to cover

1. In Dutch oven, saute onion in oil until soft; add garlic. 
2. Add meat, tomatoes, vegetables and seasoning. Add water to cover. 
3. Heat covered until meat and vegetables are heated through.

**This was adapted from a recipe on the label of the Homestyle Veg-All cans a few years ago.

Sweet Potato Casserole with Pecan Topping

Sweet Potato Mixture:

2 cans (29 ounces each) Bruce's Cut Sweet Potatoes (Yams), well drained

2 eggs, well beaten

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 cup butter, melted

Pecan Topping:

1/2 cup all purpose flour

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 cup chopped pecans

1/4 cup butter, melted

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 13x9 inch baking dish. In a large bowl, mash sweet potatoes. Add rest of ingredients for sweet potato mixture. Spread evenly in prepared dish.

In a medium bowl, combine pecan topping ingredients. Sprinkle evenly over sweet potato mixture.

Bake 30 to 35 minutes or until topping is browned. Let sit for 10 minutes before serving.

Variation: Can replace pecan topping with 2 cups miniature marshmallows (or just pile them on top!)

Adapted from the Bruce's Yams label

Ground Beef Hash Brown Bake

 

• 1 pound (16 ounces) ground beef
• 1 tablespoon dried minced onion (or 1/2 cup diced onion)
• 1 package (26 ounces) frozen shredded hash browns ( 4 cups fresh shredded potatoes?)
• 1 can (14 1/2 ounces) cream of mushroom soup
• 1 cup milk
• 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese, divided
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• salt & black pepper, as desired

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a Dutch oven, brown ground beef and onion. Drain the ground beef and return to pot. In the same pot, combine hash browns , soup, milk, garlic powder, salt, pepper, and 1 cup of the cheese. Heat until ingredients are combined and mixture is warm. Turn mixture into a 13 x 9 inch baking dish. Bake uncovered for 30 to 40 minutes, sprinkling top with the reserved cup of cheese in the last 10 minutes.

Original post here.

Smoked Sausage, Potato, & Green Bean Bake

• 1 (14 ounces) package smoked sausage, sliced ¼ inch thick
• 1 (14.5 ounces) can cut green beans, drained
• 3-4 potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
• 1-2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon Slap Ya Mama seasoning
• ½ teaspoon salt
• Dash black pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Mix all ingredients in a bowl. Transfer to a 13x9 inch foil lined baking dish. Cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

Adapted from this post.

Southern Milk Gravy

• 1 1/2 tablespoons all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tablespoons vegetable oil (or butter, bacon grease)
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• generous pinch of black pepper

In a skillet, combine flour and oil. Over medium heat, stir for about 2 minutes until mixture is a very light tan color. Add milk and stir flour mixture to combine. Add salt and pepper. Stir constantly until mixture comes to a boil. Boil for 2 minutes or until gravy is as thick as you prefer. Makes 1 cup.

Cook's notes: Once your gravy is cooking, there is not a good way to make it thicker but if you need it thinner add a little more milk. 

You can add cooked, drained sausage to this to make a sausage gravy.

Tater Tot Sausage Breakfast Casserole

• 2 pounds breakfast sausage
• 1 (30-32 ounces) package frozen tater tots
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
• ¼ teaspoon onion powder
• 1 ½ cups shredded cheddar cheese
• ½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 8 eggs
• 2 cups milk

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
2. In a large skillet brown sausage until no longer pink and drain. 
3. In a large bowl, toss tater tots, cooked sausage and cheeses. Pour into a lightly greased 13 x 9 inch dish.
4. Whisk together eggs, salt, black pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and milk. Pour over tater tot mixture. *Cover and refrigerate at this point if baking later.*
5. Bake uncovered for 50-60 minutes, or until eggs are set.

Original recipe here.

Slow Cooker Potato Soup

• 4 cups of potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 3/4 cup of onions
• 4 cups of chicken broth
• 1/2 Tbsp. of salt
• 1/2 Tbsp. of pepper
• 4 Tbsp. of butter
• 1/4 cup of flour
• 1 1/2 cups of heavy cream
• 1/4 cup of sour cream
• Shredded cheese
• Bacon
• Chopped scallions

1. Add the potatoes, onions, chicken broth, salt and pepper to the slow cooker. Set it to low for 6 hours or high for 4 hours
2. In a saucepan, combine the butter, flour, heavy cream and sour cream. Whisk until thickened. When the slow cooker is done, pour in the thickened mix. Stir, cover and set the slow cooker to low for another 30 minutes.
3. Serve with shredded cheese, bacon and chopped scallions. Enjoy! 

Cook's notes: I substituted a can of cream of chicken soup and a little milk for the heavy cream. I made this recipe on the stove.

This is a video recipe from Tasty on Facebook. You can view it here.

Melissa's Chicken Pot Pie

• 3 chicken breasts, cut into chunks; or, 2 (5 ounce) cans cooked, shredded chicken; or, 1 cup cooked, shredded chicken
• 2 cups frozen peas and carrots or mixed vegetables
• 1/2 cup diced onion
• 1 1/2 to 2 cups (about 2 medium) potatoes, peeled and cut into bite-sized chunks
• 1 can Campbell's cream of chicken soup
• 1 1/2 cups chicken broth or water
• salt, to taste (up to 1 teaspoon)
• 4-6 ready to bake frozen biscuits, baked according to package directions; or, use your own homemade biscuits

1. Place raw chicken and all vegetables in 5-6 quart Dutch oven. All water to cover chicken and vegetables. Season water liberally with salt, pepper,  and garlic and onion powder. This will give flavor to your chicken and potatoes. Boil until potatoes are done and chicken is cooked through.
2. Drain chicken and vegetables, reserving broth. You will need 1 1/2 cups for this recipe and can save rest of broth for another use, if you desire. Place chicken and vegetables back in pan.
3. Add cream of chicken soup and broth to pan and heat mixture. Adjust seasonings as desired.
4. Ladle chicken and vegetables into bowls and serve with split biscuits on top.

Cook's notes: You can place the heated chicken mixture in a 13x9-inch pan and place a pie crust on top. Bake according to the directions given on the pie crust box. Alternately, this will be a beautiful pie, baked in a pie plate with a crust on top and bottom.

Melissa's Ranch Dressing By The Cup

    

 

 

 

•  ½ cup mayonnaise, (or 1/4 cup mayonnaise and 1/4 cup sour cream)
•  ¼ cup milk
•  1 teaspoon dried parsley flaked, crushed in hand
•  1 teaspoon onion powder
•  ½ teaspoon garlic powder
•  ¼ to ½ teaspoon salt
•  Dash pepper 

Whisk ingredients together and place in a jar. Put in refrigerator and allow to set for several hours or overnight.

Update 4/21: I wanted more of a tangy "buttermilk" flavor so I used both mayonnaise and sour cream and I have updated the ingredient list to reflect this.

Taco Tot Casserole

• 1 small bag tater tots
• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 packet taco seasoning, or make your own
• 2 cups shredded cheese (I used Colby-Jack)
• Toppings of your choice: guacamole, sour cream, lettuce, tomatoes, sliced black olives

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.
2. Spray a 9x13 inch baking dish with cooking spray. Lay a single layer of tater tots on bottom. Make sure to pack them tightly. Bake for 25 minutes.
3. Cook and drain the ground beef. Follow directions on taco seasoning packet, except leave the meat mixture saucy. (This will give your tater tots flavor)
4. Evenly spread meat mixture and shredded cheese on tots. Return dish to oven and bake approximately 10 minutes more, until cheese is melted.
5. Garnish plated servings with toppings of choice.

Inspiration for this recipe is found at the blog The Iowa Housewife.

Homestyle Veg-All Beef Stew {Original Recipe}

• 1 teaspoon oil
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 ½ pounds cooked beef stew meat
• 1 (14 ½ ounce) can no salt added tomatoes, undrained
• 2 cans Homestyle Veg-All, undrained
• 1 teaspoon each paprika, marjoram, and chili powder
• Water to cover

1. In Dutch oven, saute onion in oil until soft; add garlic. 
2. Add meat, tomatoes, vegetables and seasoning. Add water to cover. 
3. Heat covered until meat and vegetables are heated through.

**This was from the label of the Homestyle Veg-All cans a few years ago.

Creamy Mashed Potatoes

I thought this would be a good basic recipe to include on my site...

• 3 medium potatoes (about 1 1/4 pounds), cut into chunks, peeled or not
• 1/4 cup Country Crock Spread (margarine in a tub)
• 1 pinch ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

1. Boil potatoes until they are tender; drain.
2. Mash potatoes until creamy. (I use a hand mixer)
3. Stir in cream Country Crock Spread, milk, salt & pepper.

From the lid of a Shedd's Spread Country Crock tub.

Italian Tater Tot Casserole

• 1 pound ground beef, browned and drained
• 1 jar (26 ounces) pasta sauce, any flavor
• 2 cups Mozzarella cheese
• 1 package tater tots, thawed (I prefer the flatter crowns)

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. In a 9 x 13 pan mix ground beef and pasta sauce together.
3. Layer cheese evenly over top of mixture.
4. Layer tots or crowns over top of cheese in a single thick layer. I only use about 3/4 of a package.
5. Bake until crowns are brown and crispy.