Catherine's Recipe Box

Note:  I had some mac and cheese on hand that just seemed too boring to make by itself.  This was a super cheesy dinner and it was loved!  Of course, I made some modifications.... Ingredients 1 pkg. (14 oz.) macaroni & cheese dinner (with cheese sauce packet) 1 lb.  ground beef (or 1 cup cooked ground beef and 1 can of black beans) 1 pkg. taco seasoning 3/4 cup sour cream (or 6oz Plain Greek Yogurt) 1-1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided 1 cup salsa Directions 1) Spray 8in square baking dish (or equivalent) with non-stick spray. Preheat oven to 400. 2) Prepare macaroni as directed.  While macaroni is cooking, cook meat (and beans) with Taco seasoning as directed. 3) When the macaroni and cheese is finished, stir in the sour cream until well blended. 4) Spo...

Note:  This was so delicious, quick to throw in the crockpot, and vegetarian to boot!  Great for a quick, inexpensive meal. Ingredients 1/2 cup rice 3/4 cup lentils* 1 can Rotel (or 1 15oz can of petite diced tomatoes + 1 4oz can of green chilies) 3 cups of water 1/2 tsp. cumin 1/2 tsp. chili powder 1/4 tsp. garlic powder Directions 1) Rinse and drain lentils 2) Put all ingredients in your crockpot 3) Cook on high for 3 hours 4) Serve hot in a bowl or over tortilla chips "nacho style".  Top with cheese and/or sour cream. 5) Dig in! *When cooking lentils in the crockpot, they should be cooked on high for a short period of time. If you want to modify this recipe to cook on low for 8 hours, then pre-cook the lentils.  source: http://marriedtotheempire.blogspot.com/2010/08/lentil-rice-casserole-mexican-style.html 7cup rice cooker: 1 cup rice 1 cup lentils* 1 can Rotel (or 1 15oz can of petite diced tomatoes + 1 4oz can of green chilies) 1 15oz ca...

Note: These are really good. Mike didn't realize they weren't from a can. And I could eat more than just a little (the canned stuff is too smooth for me). No picture. Think about what re-fried beans look like. You probably don't want a picture. Ingredients 1 pound of pinto beans (or black beans if you prefer) Chicken bouillon Cumin chili powder Directions 1) Soak and cook the beans as directed on packaging (if you use canned, skip this step) Optional: When cooking the beans, add half a jalapeno and one onion to the water for more flavor. 2) Save the liquid used to cook the beans. You will need approximately 1/2 cup, maybe more. 3) Let the beans cool. 4) Put the beans in a food processor, 1 cup at a time. Add 1 tsp of bouillon, 1/2 tsp of cumin, 1/2 tsp of chili powder, and a splash or two of the bean liquid. Process until at the desired consistency. Add more liquid if necessary. 5) Repeat step 4 until all the beans are mushed up really good. 6) Serve warm or cold...

Note: Modified from The Packet Queen. We really liked this, so hopefully it will become a new addition to the menu (Sorry, no picture! Will try to get one next time I make this.) The major change that I made was to replace the salsa with crushed tomatoes. I thought it was still very flavorful and much cheaper this way! Ingredients 1 pound of ground beef 1 can of black beans 1 can of corn 1 large can of crushed tomatoes 1 pound of pasta, cooked (any kind you like, but medium sized shells work nice) 1 packet of taco seasoning (or equivalent) 2 cups shredded cheese Sour Cream (for serving) Directions Brown beef in a large skillet(drain grease if necessary). Add in the beans and then the taco seasoning and water (according to packet directions). When the beef is done, add in the corn and half a can of crushed tomatoes. Mix the beef mixture and the pasta together (you may have to transfer to a large bowl if your skillet is not large enough). Add a cup of shredded cheese and stir some...

Note: This turned out quite well. I made a bunch of changes from the allrecipes recipe that is linked below as my original "source". I was really amazed at the flavor of the broth considering I just started with water and a bone! Total cook time - 2:30 hours. Ingredients 1 pound dry Navy beans 8 cups water 1/2 teaspoon salt (optional) 1 ham bone, with some meat on it 2 cups chopped carrots 3 stalk celery, chopped 1 cup chopped onion 1 teaspoon minced garlic 2 bay leaves 2 cups chopped ham (less if your ham bone has lots of meat left on it) ground pepper Directions Rinse th...

Note: I created this recipe myself. If you make your own tortillas, this is even better. Ingredients 1 Can Refried Beans 1 Can Black Beans 4-8 oz of shredded cheddar cheese (or other mexican-y cheese) 1/2 - 1 cup of Salsa 8-10 Tortillas Directions Mix all ingredients (except tortillas) in a large bowl. If you wish, you can put the black beans through a food processor first to have a creamy constancy the whole way through, but I like them whole as well. When you are finished mixing, place 1/8th or 1/10th of the mixture on each tortilla. Do not overfill the tortillas! There should be enough room on either side to fold over past the middle of the filling. Overfilling the tortillas will make them hard to fold and also make them take longer to heat. Folding the tortillas is the most difficult part of this recipe. Fold in the bottom and top of the tortilla so that the fold is touching the filling. Then, fold in both sides of the tortilla so the fold is touching the filling. Turn the b...