BBQ Roast Beef Nachos

Everything about these nachos sounds good!  They looked good too as Jeff Mauro prepared them on my new favorite cooking show, The Kitchen on The Food Network.  The whole thing came together very quickly with the help of a trip to your local deli.

Check out the link for the show episode which includes other recipes and great tips from that episode.

Recipe courtesy of Jeff Mauro
The Food Network
Show: The Kitchen
Episode: Weeknight Shortcuts

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 pound rare deli roast beef, thinly sliced and julienned
• 1 cup your favorite BBQ sauce
• 1 cup shredded sharp Cheddar
• Tortilla chips
• 1 cup French-fried onions
• 1/2 cup pickled cherry peppers, sliced
• Honey Horseradish Crema, recipe follows

Honey Horseradish Crema:

• 1/2 cup sour cream
• 2 tablespoons prepared horseradish
• 1 teaspoon honey

Directions


Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add in the roast beef, stir once and let the meat brown, about 2 minutes, and stir again. Add in the BBQ sauce and simmer for 5 minutes.

Layer the shredded cheese on top of some tortilla chips on a large platter. Pour the piping hot meat over the cheese and then top with the crispy onions, cherry peppers and dollops of the Honey Horseradish Crema.

Honey Horseradish Crema:
Mix the sour cream, horseradish, honey, mustard and salt in a bowl. Let the crema sit for 20 minutes before serving.

Homemade Lemonade

Since we have lemon and lime trees, I love to make homemade lemonade, but did not have a good recipe until now.

Recipe and photo courtesy of Linda Larsen, About.com . . . love this website for reference on just about anything!  The source link follows the recipe.

The secret to this lemonade recipe is to use simple syrup, made by boiling together sugar and water, then cooling. The sugar is completely dissolved and blends beautifully with the tart lemon.

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

Yield: 6 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 cup water
• 1 cup sugar
• Juice from 4-6 lemons
• 4 cups cold water
• Mint sprigs

Preparation:

Blend 1 cup water and 1 cup sugar well in small saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently, until sugar dissolves completely. Let cool and refrigerate. (This is the simple syrup.)

Mix the simple syrup well with the juice from 4-6 lemons (strained or not, as you like) and stir well. Add 4 cups cold water and mix. Try using sparkling water for some fizz! Pour into thermos or large jug, adding thin lemon slices if you'd like, or garnish with mint sprigs.

Make more lemonade and freeze it in ice cube trays, adding the cubes to the lemonade so it's never diluted as the 'ice' melts.

You can increase the amounts of this recipe proportionately, depending on the amount of lemonade you want.

Source

Fresno Pepper Hot Sauce

Hot Sauce is a staple in our kitchen.  

The Captain loves putting it on all types of food and I'm learning how to expand my horizons, even though I have always cooked with hot peppers.  He makes our hot sauce and we will be sharing his recipe as soon as he puts it into words!

The source link goes to the episode page of Fiery Foods, which includes other recipes featured on the show.

My favorite thing she made with the pepper was the fiery compound butter she used to make a roasted chicken.  OMG, that gave me so many ideas!

Wouldn't the hot sauce taste great in a mayonnaise sauce for sandwiches and burgers?  The possibilities are endless!

Source: The Food Network
SHOW: Kelsey's Essentials
EPISODE: Fiery Foods

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 8 Fresno peppers, chopped
• 1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
• 1/2 habanero pepper, chopped
• 4 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 shallots, chopped
• 1/3 cup cider vinegar

Directions

Heat the oil in a saute pan over medium heat. Add all the peppers, the garlic and shallots, and saute until softened and fragrant, 5 to 7 minutes. Then add 1/2 cup water and simmer an additional 4 to 5 minutes.

Place the cooked mixture into a blender and add the vinegars and salt. Blend until completely smooth and pureed. Adjust the seasoning and serve.

Beef and Bean Burritos from The Pioneer Woman

Fast and easy . . . semi-homemade from The Pioneer Woman.  A delicious meal in 16 minutes!

Burritos are one of my favorites.  Actually, The Captain introduced me to the versatility of tortilla wrapped meals and we have many meals of this type with all kinds of variation.  Coming up with new combinations is half the fun!

This recipe comes from The Pioneer Woman's website included in one of my favorite sections . . . 16 minute meals.  Click here to go to that section of her website.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds Ground Beef
• 1/2 whole Medium Onion
• 1 can (7 Ounce) Mexican Tomato Sauce Or Enchilada Sauce
• Salt And Pepper, to taste
• Cumin, Oregano, Chili Powder, Garlic To Taste
• 1 can (28 Ounce) Refried Beans
• 3/4 cups Grated Cheddar Cheese
• 12 whole Burrito-sized Flour Tortillas
• Extra Grated Cheese, For Sprinkling
• Extra Sauce, For Drizzling
• Cilantro Leaves (optional)

Optional Filling Ingredients: 

Mexican Rice, Sour Cream, Guacamole, Green Chilies, Pico De Gallo

Preparation Instructions


Brown ground beef with onion and season to taste. Pour in sauce and simmer over low heat. Add water if mixture gets too dry.

Heat refried beans in a saucepan. Add cheese and stir in till melted. Keep warm.

Heat tortillas in microwave for one minute.

Spread a small amount of beans on each tortilla. Add meat. Fold over ends, then roll up. Place two burritos on a microwave-safe plate. Drizzle red sauce over the top and sprinkle with more grated cheddar. Microwave for one minute, or until cheese is melted and burritos are very hot. Serve immediately.