Tamale Bake (From Mom's Recipe Card File)

This is another childhood favorite I resurrected last year.  Some people call it Tamale Pie.  To-may-to to-mah-to; po-tay-to po-tah-to.  Whatever you call it, casseroles from the 1960s are making a comeback at our house.



Tamale Bake

1 lb ground beef
1 c chopped onion
1 envelope taco seasoning
1 15-oz can chili ready tomatoes
1 15-oz can whole kernel sweet corn
1 15-oz can black beans, rinsed and drained

1 package Jiffy corn muffin mix
1 egg
1/3 c milk
1 T canola oil

Brown ground beef and onion.  Add the taco seasoning, tomatoes, corn, and beans and heat to a boil.  Pour the mixture into a 3-quart casserole dish sprayed with non-stick spray.

Mix the rest of the ingredients together, then spoon over the meat mixture.

Bake at 400 degrees for 25 - 30 minutes.


I will often substitute leftover chili for the meat mixture.  When I make chili, it's a HUGE pot, so there's always plenty left over, and this is one way to use it up.

Quick "Lasagna" (From Mom's Recipe Card File)

I've been browsing my recipe cards, and came across something Mom used to make when I was a kid.  I always loved it, but I'd forgotten about it after learning how to make "real" lasagna.  It's most definitely not even close to real lasagna, but it doesn't have to be real to taste good, right?

Quick "Lasagna"

1 lb  ground beef
14 oz tomato-based pasta sauce
8 oz egg noodles (CHEAPO ones, not the nice thick homemade style ones!)
8 oz cream cheese
1 c cottage cheese
1/2 c sour cream
3 green onions, sliced
2 T bell pepper, chopped (any color you prefer)

Brown ground beef.  Add pasta sauce and heat thoroughly.  While the meat sauce is heating up, cook the noodles as directed on the package, and drain.  In a bowl, mix the rest of the ingredients, then add the noodles and mix well.

Spray a 3-quart casserole dish with non-stick spray.  Put the noodle mixture in the dish, then top with the meat mixture.

Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes.


I serve this with a salad and dinner rolls.

Life Happens...AGAIN

I've been absent again!  Life happens.  Sorry.

That Girl had car trouble; it died on her way to work.  Long story short - the engine gave out.  We hauled it from Maryland to Indiana to have a trusted mechanic have a look.  Yes, it needed a new engine.  We lent her a car.  After replacing the engine, she drove our car home and swapped it for hers.  It did fine for a few weeks, then it started making an odd noise.

We went to Maryland, and That Man started to drive it back home to have the trusted mechanic look at it again.  About halfway home, the car quit on the interstate.  That Boy was notified, he rented a car trailer, and came to the rescue.  Another engine is on the way.  At least the first one was under warranty.

Different problems each time.  We're not sure (yet) what the second issue is, but the first one is a definite design flaw:  the water pump is INSIDE THE CRANKCASE. 

WHAT?!?!?!?!?!?!?

When I first heard that, I thought somebody was pulling my leg.  But no, it is true.  So, when the water pump leaks, water goes directly into the oil, and if you don't catch it immediately, BOOM goes the engine.  FUN.  Not one of Ford's Better Ideas.

So that is the first of the continuing sagas hijacking my attention.  Heavy sigh.

The other is That Other Knee Replacement in our house.  I had gotten into a rhythm with the required caregiving following the infection and was starting to spread my wings (a little).  Then it took a couple of left turns.  First, things weren't healing as they should, so another surgery and a wound vac.

If you don't know what a wound vac is, go Google it.  I'll wait here until you get back.

So, after many weeks of the wound vac, things were evening out again into another new normal, and I was again tasting a little freedom.  I went to Maryland for the first Grand's fifth birthday and took That Girl and all three Grands to the beach, and I took a watercolor class after I got home.

This week, That Other Knee Replacement took another left turn (any MORE left turns, and we'll be back where we started).  The Knee has apparently gotten bored with the wound vac and refuses to cooperate, so yesterday the wound specialists took it away (supposedly for only a week), and now I'm back to performing daily wound packing and dressing changes, and these are, well, ew.  That's the only way to describe them - ew.  A couple of months ago, I would have said I couldn't (read: wasn't gonna) do them, but here I am, stuffing medicated ribbon gauze into a void with what's basically a lo-o-o-o-o-ng Q-Tip.  That's as graphic as I'm prepared to get, so you're safe now.

Hopefully, this is just a bump in the road and things will begin to progress as we'd wish.

Think good thoughts for us - PLEASE!

Macaroni and Cheese (A Microwave Recipe)

When I helped them move into their first house and outfit the kitchen, That Girl's husband couldn't understand why anyone would want a large microwave oven.  "You don't cook in it; it's just for heating up food for the kids."

I beg to differ - I COOK in the microwave all the time!

This recipe is adapted from a book that came with my very first microwave (1984!).  The cheese sauce is cooked totally in the microwave.  The macaroni is cooked on the stovetop, the sauce is added, then it's all finished in the microwave.  It's a big favorite at our house, usually served with smoked sausage and a vegetable.


Creamy Macaroni and Cheese

1 pkg (14-16 oz) elbow macaroni
1/4 c butter
6 T flour
1 t salt
2 c milk
4 c (1 lb) shredded cheddar cheese (OR 1 lb Velveeta, cubed)

Cook the macaroni according to the package directions to just al dente.  You don't want the macaroni to cook to mush once it's added to the sauce.  Drain, then place in a 2-quart casserole dish.

While the pasta cooks, in a 1-qt microwave-safe bowl microwave the butter 30 seconds until melted.   Blend in flour and salt to make a paste.  Gradually stir in milk.  Microwave 4-6 minutes, stirring after each minute, until thick and creamy.  Stir in the cheese.  Add gradually to the drained macaroni, stirring to mix well.  Microwave at 50% power for 10 minutes, stirring after 5 minutes.


For an everyday meal, I use a 2-qt Pyrex glass measuring pitcher to make the sauce, then add the macaroni and do the final cooking in the pitcher.  One less thing to wash after dinner.  I'm all about making as little mess as possible.