Meatballs

Wednesday was spaghetti night, or "pa-sketti" as my younger sister used to call it. Midweek was always a busy time for my family. My Dad would get home from work, we'd eat together and then be off to "Wens-dee prayer-meetin.'" Since my dad's drive home was a good forty minutes and our drive to church was at least thirty, it didn't leave a whole lot of time in between for eating. Supper had to be ready when my dad got home, easy to get on the table and quick to eat. And so my mom instituted spaghetti night. 

And while we don't attend a church with a midweek service anymore, we do still have those rushed evenings before Brad runs out to a meeting or those Sundays where we come home tired and hungry for something easy to get into our bellies. And for those meals, I rely on my mom's wisdom -- make it easy and make it ahead!

Meat Pie

It's hard to know what to do with leftover roast. You can eat it in sandwiches or make a stew, but sometimes you need something different. My grandma's method was to make Meat Pie. 

Meat Pie isn't strictly a pie. I'm not sure it's even loosely a pie, but it's a great way to use up leftover roast ingredients. It's essentially a soup on the bottom with biscuits or dumplings floating on the top. My grandma used to just make Bisquick biscuits, but my mom found a homemade dumpling that we use now. It's a simple, hearty dish stemming from the necessity of making a bit of leftover meat stretch into an entire meal. As a pastor's wife, my grandma's grocery budget was not large. 

It's a great recipe because it's flexible, depending on what you have leftover from your pot roast. Bare bones, you only really need leftover meat and gravy to make this, but you can also add in leftover onions, carrots and potatoes. 

The rich broth gets its flavor not only from gravy, but also smashed roasted onions and carrots that were from your pot roast. If you have them, they deeply enhance the flavor profile of the broth. Added to this is leftover roast chunks and bites of carrot and potato. The dumpling batter is dropped onto the top, where it cooks in the steam generated by your simmering "soup." A delicious way to turn boring leftovers into a satisfying meal.

Snow-Capped Pie

My mother called her Rhoda Dell. She was a robust woman with a happy face and snow white hair. Her big smile stretched wide and crinkled her face all the way up to her eyes, which glinted through practically squeezed-shut eyelids. Her laugh, more like a cackle, could be heard resounding through the church auditorium. She was there every Sunday, one of the first to arrive and last to leave, arms full of babies in the between.

This recipe is based on Rhoda Dell's, but doctored a bit by my mom. A key to this recipe that makes it so very tasty is the addition of Worcestershire sauce, celery salt and using the carrot "broth" in the pie. These ingredients add depth to the flavor profile, making this meal go from simple meat and potatoes to a tasty dinner.

Beef Stew

The holidays are over. The magical moments spent together with family and friends are memories now and we've turned the page to a new year. But while Christmas and New Years may be a thing of the past, the cold weather is not. There are at least a few more months of long, hard cold left before spring begins to turn her thoughts toward us. And after all the pies, puddings and cookies of the holiday season, I am ready for something hearty and warming to the bone. 

This stew is just that. A whole mess of onions is slow cooked with chunks of beef until the onions break down and melt into the velvety sauce, making it rich with color and flavor. Thick slices of carrots and hunks of red potato are thrown in at the end, cooked until just tender. Serve with a warm dinner roll slathered with butter, and you'll sit down to dinner and say, "Take that, Old Man Winter!"

Sweet and Sour Meatballs

I love old family photos. The black and white kind. My parents and grandparents as they used to be.  Young children, chubby cheeked and precocious, with large silk bows perched atop their curls or looking uncomfortable in knickers and buttoned-up shirt. Or maybe as young adults, flashing beautiful, carefree smiles, dressed in the classiest of dresses or looking handsome in uniform. Little moments, captured at a time when all of life was before them. 

Beef Chili

I really don't like beans. 

Not pinto. Or Kidney. Or Lima. Or any of them. 

Yuck. 

My aversion to these legumes has always been problematic when it comes to chili. Most people will tell you that chili just isn't the same without the beans. 

Stuffed Peppers for Two

Do you remember being a kid and the wonder of playing outdoors? The sense of adventure and freedom that it brought? The thrill of feeling fresh air on your face and the possibilities contained in having all the elements of nature at your disposal? A low, crumbling wall becomes the towering bulwark of a besieged fort and a small grouping of birches becomes a fairy den. Sticks becomes medieval swords, a rotting stump a devilish mountain and a blossoming apple tree a private bower hiding you from the all-too-eager-to-join-in younger sibling.

Simple Meatloaf

Let's face it; meatloaf doesn't usually make the "Top Ten" of favorite foods. It's a humble dish that is mostly unattractive and some versions are downright scary. The list of ingredients for this unassuming entree is as varied as can be with gems like hot dogs or hard-boiled eggs. A quick perusal of a cookbook on my shelf grabs your attention with appealing titles like "Zucchini Meatloaf", "Potato-Frosted Meatloaf" and "Pizza Meatloaf."

Yes, really, pizza meatloaf. Need I say more?

Spaghetti Pie

I love lasagna, but sometimes it's too much work. There's all those slippery noodles to deal with, layer upon layer to build and a cheesy filling to mix up. Sometimes I want something slightly simpler, but just as tasty.

Beef Hand Pies

Pot Roast is one of my favorite meals, but I always struggle with what to do with the leftovers. Redeeming leftovers so that cries of excitement greet your ears rather than groans of dread is always a challenge. Beef Orzo Stew or hash are always good options, but sometimes I get rather tired of reinventing my reinventions.

Beef Orzo Stew

I really enjoyed college. I miss the classes, friendships, dorm life and hours of piano practice (yes, even that). One thing I do not miss is Chucks, the campus cafeteria. Those four years are probably the most mal-nourished of my life as I lived basically on cereal, pb&j and the occasional orange. As the countdown to the nearest break would slowly dwindle down, I would begin to dream of my favorite, mom-made meal. I would sigh as I stared down at yet another bagel and the carb-laden meal would magically begin to morph into delicious slices of beef, carmelized carrots, and roasted potatoes all slathered with an abundance of dark gravy and finished with a bowl of homemade applesauce on the side. The first meal my mom would always serve when I got home was roast beef. I lived for those meals.