Pepper Stew....aka: Hamburger Mac and Cheese

Pepper Stew is a comfort food staple at our house. Fear not, it has very little to do with pepper, or stew. There is a long story about how this dish got it's name, that has evolved over the years. But essentially, it is hamburger, corn and mac and cheese.

One of the things I have always disliked about this recipe is the need for many dishes to make it... you know... a pan to brown the hamburger in, a pot to boil the macaroni in, a dish to microwave the corn in, and finally a casserole dish to bake it in.

But now.... Enter the INSTANT POT! And there is no longer the many dish dilemma. There is ONE DISH! ONE. Yes you heard me. ONE.  Which is the stainless steel liner/pot of the Instant Pot.

Here is our recipe:

Pepper Stew

1 1/2 pounds ground beef
1 onion, diced
1 T. minced garlic (we like garlic... you could use less)
1 16 oz bag frozen corn
1 16 oz box Rotini Pasta Noodles (The type doesn't matter so much, as that you just want a fairly hearty type pasta shape... bow ties are a bad idea here).
2-3 cups chicken (or turkey or vegetable) broth
12 oz. Cubed Processed American Cheese (aka Velveeta)
1 cup or so of milk

Instant Pot Directions

Make sure the pot is inside of the big Instant Pot thing. Plug in.
Push the "sautee" button.
Add the hamburger and onion and garlic. Brown. I usually add about 1 tsp pepper here and maybe 1/2 tsp salt. DO NOT OVER-SALT... Velveeta has a lot of salt. Add more at the very end.
Add the corn.
Stir.
Add the Pasta. Stir
Add broth until the pasta is JUST COVERED.
Put the lid on the pot. Make sure the release valve on the top is in the middle, pressure building (not of to the left or right, venting).
Push the Manual Button. Set the timer for 20 minutes. Pot will turn "on". Once it has come to pressure the time will begin. SO this takes a bit longer than 20 minutes (but still maybe only 30 or so).
Once the timer goes off, use the QR (quick release) See video number 3 for this.
Once the pressure is all released open the pot. It won't allow you to open it until the pressure has been fully released. It will NOT EXPLODE!
Stir in the cheese and milk. It will melt.
Taste. Check seasonings. Adjust.
Serve!

And enjoy that you had 30 minutes of down time while it was doing it's thing to....fold laundry, help with homework, have a glass of wine, read your Christmas Cards that came today... ok ok... bills. But whatever. AND that after supper you only have ONE POT to wash!!! (and yes, it can go in the dishwasher!!!

Here are the links to my videos:

Pepper Stew 1 (Turning on the pot, sautee'ing/browning hamburger)
Pepper Stew 2  (Most of the recipe, securing the lid)
Pepper Stew 3 (Releasing the pressure, opening the lid, seeing the finished product.)

So.... Try out that new pot!!!This is SUPER easy and LOVED by kids and adults alike!!!! Post your comments and family reactions below!!!

Too much Turkey and a New Instant Pot???

GREAT!!! You are in Luck!!! I love turkey sandwiches, but eventually you get down to just the bits and pieces of turkey, and those are difficult to make a good sandwich. I recently found a new blog that I LOVE and found this recipe. YUM!!!! AND I just so happen to have an Instant Pot to make that rice OH SO FAST and easy!!

Well I decided to combine the two. And start figuring out how to do this whole post videos to YouTube. It's really good that the 11 year old loves to help out. SO..... Here is a link to my BRAND SPANKIN' NEW YouTube Channel and the first video on how to make RICE!!!

Rice Part  1

Rice Part 2

Rice  Part 3

Making the Turkey Rice Salad.

Link to the recipe for the Turkey Rice Salad
(Note: I added some red onion, and you don't see it in the video, because my phone ran out of memory... I also added some leftover bacon, 4 slices, I really liked the smoky flavor this added.) Additionally, the recipe calls for spinach... only I happen to have an over-abundance of fresh leaf lettuce, so I used that, and it added the green just the same.

If you follow my blog and cooking style for very long at all, you will quickly learn I am a cook of invention, inspiration, and minimal waste. I HATE throwing away food. If I don't get this lettuce used up.... it will become compost, not HORRIBLE, but not what its original intention was.

Here is the finished Rice Salad. It was delicious. So much crunch and texture.

SO... there you have it! My first attempt at blogging, vlogging, and teaching cooking skills all rolled into one. I'd LOVE your feedback! Constructive criticism is GREATLY appreciated (in a kind way please!) I learned a LOT from doing this over the past two days. I already have some ideas for how to improve what I'm doing, but for the first time at trying this.... I'm ok with how it turned out. THANKS for stopping by!!!

Culinary 101: Leftover Roast Beef, Onion Dicing and Garlic Mincing.

WOW! What a crazy week! And holy smokes the views on that random "what the heck" Facebook Live Video last Monday of me unveiling that roast! I have gotten so much feedback from friends encouraging me to "go with this" that....well... I'm going. So... if you want to come along for the ride.... here we GO!!!!

First the Recipe:  Food blogs that post the recipes they will be using at the end of their ramblings stresses me out!  It just frustrates me when I'm in a hurry to cook supper. LOVE to read their ramblings (and I hope you'll read mine) but when I want to make supper... I want that recipe top and center of the page the link took me to! We have enough stress in our lives to not have to have more of it on a food blog!

Beef and Noodles

Banana Cake with Browned Butter Frosting This is NOT my recipe. I have made it several times. It ALWAYS turns out! I linked to the page I originally found it on.

This is all about taking what you think is NEVER going to be anything, and gets sent to the TRASH because it looks dried out and well... not so great, into something DELISH!!!! ENJOY!

Culinary 101: Leftover Roast Beef, Onion Dicing and Garlic Mincing.

WOW! What a crazy week! And holy smokes the views on that random "what the heck" Facebook Live Video last Monday of me unveiling that roast! I have gotten so much feedback from friends encouraging me to "go with this" that....well... I'm going. So... if you want to come along for the ride.... here we GO!!!!

First the Recipe:  Food blogs that post the recipes they will be using at the end of their ramblings stresses me out!  It just frustrates me when I'm in a hurry to cook supper. LOVE to read their ramblings (and I hope you'll read mine) but when I want to make supper... I want that recipe top and center of the page the link took me to! We have enough stress in our lives to not have to have more of it on a food blog!

Beef and Noodles

Banana Cake with Browned Butter Frosting This is NOT my recipe. I have made it several times. It ALWAYS turns out! I linked to the page I originally found it on.

This is all about taking what you think is NEVER going to be anything, and gets sent to the TRASH because it looks dried out and well... not so great, into something DELISH!!!! ENJOY!

Culinary 101: Leftover Roast Beef, Onion Dicing and Garlic Mincing.

WOW! What a crazy week! And holy smokes the views on that random "what the heck" Facebook Live Video last Monday of me unveiling that roast! I have gotten so much feedback from friends encouraging me to "go with this" that....well... I'm going. So... if you want to come along for the ride.... here we GO!!!!

First the Recipe:  Food blogs that post the recipes they will be using at the end of their ramblings stresses me out!  It just frustrates me when I'm in a hurry to cook supper. LOVE to read their ramblings (and I hope you'll read mine) but when I want to make supper... I want that recipe top and center of the page the link took me to! We have enough stress in our lives to not have to have more of it on a food blog!

Beef and Noodles

Banana Cake with Browned Butter Frosting This is NOT my recipe. I have made it several times. It ALWAYS turns out! I linked to the page I originally found it on.

This is all about taking what you think is NEVER going to be anything, and gets sent to the TRASH because it looks dried out and well... not so great, into something DELISH!!!! ENJOY!

Long time no post.... but maybe it's time.

So it's been 2 years since I've posted. I guess it's about time. I want to write more about what I'm eating, thinking, feeling, doing, praying about. I thought about starting, yet another, blog, but no.... this one is just fine. The focus will still be on foods. But.... also about wellness. FULL wellness. Not just nutrition. Emotional, Spiritual, Physical, everything. So.... those of you who follow me... YEA!!!! Come back around. More posts coming soon! (I'm working on a "real post" right now even!)

This Week's Menu

First of all... I know I have a few people who have "missed me".... the blog has had to take a back seat to going back to work full time. I always forget just how 100% draining the first couple of weeks of school are. It probably doesn't help that Kyson starts school too (duh huh?) and football. And well... we go from lazy hazy days of summer to BAM Full speed ahead! Couple that with trying to squeeze every moment of "summer" out of our weekends... I haven't been doing any writing.

I have however taken pictures of some great recipes I've made. And I will blog them soon. No promises... this is just "week 2" of school. However, it is also the last week of "every day football pracitices" for Kyson.

Until then... I thought it would be fun to share my week's menu. Even though I'm busy, I am committed to making time for a family dinner. Oh, and I'm back to working really hard to eat "clean". For me that means very limited grains, dairy and no processed sugar.

Momday: Grilled Asian Short Ribs, Veggie Stir Fry, Brown Rice (for the boys) I will skip the rice.

Tuesday: Grilled Pesto Chicken, Mushroom/Spinach Rissoto (this is why I will skip the Rice on Monday, I LOVE this rissoto). Sauted zucchini, yellow squash and onions.

Wednesday: Grilled Burgers, Fresh sliced tomatoes, Corn on the Cob (the season is coming to an end!!! BOO!) and the boys will have Baked Beans.

Thursday: LEFTOVERS. If no leftovers (and with the way Kyson is eating these days... there might not be!!!) I will thaw out and make a pork tenderloin in the Covered Deep Dish Baker. (Pampered Chef!) I LOVE LOVE LOVE this product! W the pork we will have veggies from our CSA (we get that box on Wednesday... so not sure yet!) and mashed sweet potatoes.

Friday: Pizza on the Grill! One of my favorite fall foods!!!! I buy Mostly baked crusts from a local bakery (LaQuartier) and pull out any veggies left in the fridge from the week. Fresh Mozzarella. Panchetta. And do them on the grill. Great for an easy supper after a long week!

Saturday: I'm hoping we are going to the lake..... so "Boat food!"

Sunday: I'm hoping its as gorgeous of a day as today is, and I am going to fire up the smoker and make some smoked meats for the week ahead!!!

Share your menu plans for the week in the commnets!!! I'd love to read what eveyrone is making!!!!