Hamburgers and Mushroom Soup Gravy

My mom made this when I was growing up and it ended up being one of my kids' favorites. I had forgotten about it until the other night when my daughter asked me how I made it - apparently, those she's asked didn't get it quite right. Just something quick and simple and easy - we all have THOSE nights.

1 lb. ground beef (or ground turkey - I do use ground beef, extra lean though)
1 can Campbell's Cream of Mushroom Soup
Milk
Purple Onion

Make hamburger patties - 1 lb makes 3 large patties - season with salt, pepper and Season-All
While hamburger patties are cooking, mix 1 can Campbell's Cream of Mushroom soup and 1/2 can of milk (for 2 cans of soup, use 1 can of milk, etc. depending on how much you're making) and cook as directed on can - do NOT add water; you are replacing water with milk, only cutting in half so 'gravy' is thicker
Dice purple onion

Place cooked hamburger patty on plate and cover with Mushroom soup/gravy - top with onions and add salt/pepper to taste.
That's it! Enjoy!

 

Hamburger patties cooking

Mushroom soup/gravy cooking - I do always use Campbell's, generic brands tend to have a different flavor

For some reason, we always had purple onions on this - I must be a creature of habit!

Finished product - very good! (and cheap and easy!)

Quick and Easy Goulash Recipe

Quick and Easy Goulash Recipe

My mom used to make this and I've continued the tradition. She invented it because as kids, we didn't like everything she put in it - this is the picky kids version! I know it isn't actual 'goulash', but that's what mom always called it, so I'll keep the name, thanks!

Ingredients:
1 lb. ground turkey (or ground beef)
1 16 oz. can tomato SAUCE
1 pkg. small shell pasta
1 yellow onion - diced
1 green bell pepper - diced
Pinch of Taragon Leaves
Pinch of Marjoram

Brown and drain ground meat (turkey or beef)
Cook shell pasta according to package directions while cooking ground meat - drain
Saute onions and peppers in butter while meat and pasta is cooking
Place meat, pasta, onions and peppers in a bowl
Add Tomato sauce, Taragon leaves and Marjoram - mix and eat

Enjoy!

BBQ Chicken with Bacon & Cheese

Of course, this isn't quite Ruby Tuesday's, but it's a good alternative!

Rinse boneless, skinless chicken breast and place in 9X13 glass baking dish. Cover with barbecue sauce of your choice (we like Bullseye).

Bake for about 1 hour in 275 degree oven

When there is about 15 minutes left on baking, fry a few slices of bacon until crisp. I pretty much exclusively use turkey bacon, but I have to admit, this is delicious with regular bacon!

Put a slice of cheddar cheese (or cheese of your choice) on each chicken breast - top with a few pieces of the crisped bacon. Leave in oven until cheese is melted.

Ruby Tuesday adds onion straws to their Bistro BBQ Chicken, but why add more fat than is already there with the bacon???

Serve with tossed salad with fat free ranch dressing or basalmic vinegrette (don't add any more fat to this meal!) and French cut green beans.

Enjoy!

Garlic Pepper Chicken

I'm always looking for something to do with chicken breasts. I prefer skinless, boneless, organic, antibiotic free chicken and buy that almost exclusively. One thing that we like and is very simple to make is garlic pepper chicken.

Simply rinse chicken breast pieces and place in a 9X13 glass baking dish. Put a couple pats of butter (Smart Balance Lite Olive Oil butter) on each chicken breast - no need to melt butter or make sure it's all over every piece of chicken, it will melt and run over the pieces. Sprinkle with Garlic Pepper (found in the spice section of your local grocery store).

Bake for about 1 hour at about 275 degrees - I baste some of the melted butter up over the chicken pieces while it's baking.

Serve with sides of choice - maybe some Chicken flavored Rice A Roni and Asparagus??

Enjoy!

Baked Sweet Potatoes instead of Bake Russet Potatoes

Instead of having baked potatoes, change to a baked sweet potato on occasion. This provides you with an easy alternative that is excellent in taste! We actually prefer baked sweet potatoes and eat them more often than regular baked potatoes.

A baked potato has 198 calroies per 100 grams; where a baked sweet potato has 90 calories per 100 grams. Both have about 1 gram of fat per 100 grams. But, consider all the topping that end up on a baked potato and your side dish can become 'loaded' with artery clogging junk!

A baked sweet potato has about 21 grams of carbohydrates; a baked potato has about 46 for the same size serving. The estimated glycemic load of a baked sweet potato is 9; a baked potato is 22 - typical daily glycemic load is under 100. Baked sweet potoates are also a great anti-inflammatory with an inflammation factor of 189; a baked potato is on the whole other end of the scale at -151 inflammation factor (meaning baked potatoes can aggravate inflammation).

Add the fact that baked sweet potatoes are a great source of anti-oxidants, vitamins A and vitamins C and you've got a healthier alternative to add to your meals!

Simply prepare as you would a baked potato. For those of us in a hurry at times :) simply wash potato, stab with a fork a few times, and pop it in the microwave - roughly 6 minutes for one potato; 7 minutes for 2 potatoes; 9-10 minutes for 3 potatoes (adjust until it's soft like a baked potato).

Make a slit in one side and open up - top with butter (again, I use Smart Balance Lite with Olive Oil) and sprinkle with brown sugar.

Enjoy!

Onion Soup Burger Patties Meal

Trying to do something not so 'common' on these posts. One thing that I like to do is to take ground turkey or ground beef (actually sometimes prefer ground beef on this one - sometimes ;) and add a package of Lipton onion soup mix - squish with hands to mix up (got a kid with clean hands???)

Make into patties and grill on BBQ grill - when done, top with slices of Borden Fat Free cheese and let the cheese melt. Remove from grill and top with a tomato slice and chopped green stem onion or cilantro (I just had a thought - wonder what pico de gallo or guacamole would be like as a topping?)

Serve on a plate like a piece of chopped steak (no bun, etc.) Can top with BBQ sauce or steak sauce as an option.

Serve with fried zucchini - slice zucchini into 1/4" slices and turn in milk and then flour - lighly fry in olive oil - salt to taste

Throw a few slices of pineapple (canned if you don't have fresh) on grill while burgers are cooking and you've got a decent meal that's not too unhealthy (could be if you let it) and is a little out of the ordinary.

Enjoy!

Meal Ideas....

I decided to add a category for meal ideas. Just simple, plain, everyday meals.

I've had a few requests for 'just something different' and remember raising 5 kids and when I would ask 'What does everybody want for supper?' They all wanted something different and they all wanted the same old boring thing we had last week. You know how it is. Man, it would have been great, back in the day, to just jump on the computer and get a new idea for a meal!

I would love some new ideas myself, so feel free to leave a comment with your own meal ideas!

One of my kids' favorites over the years was simple smoked sausage with potatoes and veggies. My daugther, who is a new mother, recently asked me how to make this, what I used, etc., and so I wanted to include it on here for my starter meal idea.

I do have to say, again, back in the day (before I knew what I know about fats), I usually made fried potatoes as a side. I can not tell you the last time I made or ate fried potatoes! I can feel my arteries clogging just from thinking about them. HA! Honestly, if I made fried potatoes, my husband would probably take me somewhere to get me checked - he can't eat fatty, greasy food very often anymore either.

Anyhoodle, I am who I am, so I buy, you guessed it, TURKEY smoked sausage (can't remember the brand, but it's in a green package if that helps LOL). Really, you can't tell the difference and my hubby actually prefers the turkey kind.

Slice the smoked sausage into 1/4" or so pieces, so you'll have a bunch of round pieces of smoked sausage.
Add olive oil (I use Smart Balance olive cooking oil) to a skillet to brown the smoked sausage pieces in

Dice potatoes into 1/2" or so squares and boil in water (like making mashed potatoes). Drain potatoes and add butter (I use Smart Balance Lite Olive Oil butter/spread) and top with a few bacon bits or chives - just to add some flavor since you aren't mashing with milk and butter

Grilled asparagus works great with this meal - but, I do like to splurge just a little and have 'Ranch Style' beans, because I like to put the juice on my smoked sausage.

**try your own variations on sides

Enjoy!