Delicious and Easy to Make Tamale Pie

August 23, 2012 by Mom on the Make Leave a Comment

Tamale Pie

One of my favorite “go to” dinners to make for my family is my Mom’s recipe for Tamale Pie. It is so easy to assemble, and tastes great every time.

The cornmeal is so tasty on top of the meat and veggie mixture. You will cook the pie until the cornmeal is slightly crisp at the top.

Everyone is happy with this dinner in my household, and if there are any leftovers, it heats up again very well.

I remember my Mom always making this dish on Halloween night. We would have a piece before trick or treating, then have another piece in between rounds of our trick or treating outings. 🙂 It was nice to have a little nutrition in between all of the heavy sugar rounds.

Below are the steps to making this yummy pie:

Gather Tamale Pie ingredients: Note that I used sliced cheese this time, but shredded works better.

Saute chopped green peppers and onions until soft.

Brown Turkey Meat with sauteed peppers and onions

Add the next 4ingredients including: olives, corn, 2 cans of tomato sauce, dash of pepper.

Simmer for 20 minutes until the ingredients thicken.

Meanwhile, while meat mixture is thickening, stir 3/4 cup yellow cornmeal, 1/2t salt and 2 cups cold water until starts to thicken, then add 1T butter and stir

Place meat mixture in 13×9 inch pan

Spread Cornmeal mixture on top of meat mixture

Place cheese on top of cornmeal layer now or you can wait until there is 10 minutes left of cooking time to put the cheese on. If you put it on before putting in the oven, the cheese will be crispier in the end.

Place Tamale Pie in 375 degree oven for about 25 minutes

Finished Tamale Pie

Piece of Tamale Pie Ready to be Enjoyed!

You can always add extra ingredients, like garlic and chili powder to spice things up a bit. If it were just Mountain Man and I, I would add chili powder, cumin and garlic, but with the little ones, they like everything as non-spicy as possible, so I restrain from those ingredients. Sometimes, I will sprinkle chili powder on the grown ups plates of the pie.

Also, I have added green chili peppers in the past which are really yummy as well.

Here is the recipe for print out:

Delicious and Easy to Make Tamale Pie

Prep time

20 mins

Cook time

25 mins

Total time

45 mins

Author: Mom on the Make

Recipe type: Dinner

Serves: 6

Ingredients

1 cup chopped onion
1 cup chopped green pepper
1 lb ground turkey or beef
2 cans (8oz) tomato sauce
1 can (12oz) yellow corn
1 can (8oz) sliced olives
12 oz of shredded cheddar/monterey jack cheese
CORNMEAL TOPPER
¾ cup yellow cornmeal
½t salt
2 cups cold water
1T butter

Instructions

Saute onion and green pepper in olive oil until tender.
Add meat and brown lightly.
Add next four ingredients and simmer until thick for 20 minutes.
Meanwhile, make the cornmeal topper by stirring ¾ cup cornmeal with 2 cups cold water and ½t salt.
Cook and stir until thick.
Add 1T butter and mix well until melted.
After simmering for 20 minutes, place meat mixture in 13x9 inch pan.
Spoon the cornmeal mixture on top of the meat mixture and spread.
Bake in a 375 degree oven for 25 minutes.
When there are 10 minutes left of cooking time, sprinkle cheese on top of the cornmeal mixture.
Voila! The perfect tamale pie. Enjoy!!

The Best Lasagna

August 13, 2012 by Mom on the Make 4 Comments

Best Lasagna Ingredients

I love lasagna. My whole family loves lasagna. In fact, this might be one of the few dishes that my entire family is really excited to see on the dinner table.

We use several different lasagna recipes, but the one below is our favorite.

I think it is because of the unique ingredients including goat cheese, fresh basil leaves, and sliced mozzarella.

My brother and his family were in town over the weekend, so I decided to make this favorite for everyone.

I found the recipe in my “Ina Garten Barefoot Contessa Family Style Cookbook”.

Here’s the low down on how to make this special lasagna.

LASAGNA WITH TURKEY SAUSAGE

2 T olive oil

1 cup chopped yellow onion

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 1/2 pounds sweet Italian turkey sausage, casings removed

1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes in tomato puree

1 6 ounce can tomato paste

1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, divided

1/2 cup chopped fresh basil leaves

Kosher salt

Freshly ground black pepper

1/2 pound lasagna noodles

15 ounces ricotta cheese

3 to 4 ounces creamy goat cheese, crumbled

1 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus 1/4 cup for sprinkling

1 extra large egg, lightly beaten

1 pound fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced

Follow these steps:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Heat the olive oil in a large (10-12 inch) skillet. Add the onion and cook for 5 minutes over medium low heat, until translucent. Add the garlic and cook for 1 more minute. Add the sausage and cook over medium low heat, breaking it up with a fork, for 8-10 minutes, or until no longer pink.

Onions and Turkey Sausage cooling in olive oil

Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, 2 tablespoons of the parsley, the basil, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Simmer, uncovered, over medium low heat for 15 to 20 minutes, until thickened.

Tomatoes, tomato paste, fresh chopped basil and parsley, onions, Italian turkey sausage simmering together for 15-20 minutes until thickened.

Meanwhile, fill a bowl with the hottest tap water. Add the noodles and allow them to sit in the water for 20 minutes. Drain.

Lasagna Noodles in Hot water for 20 minutes to soften up

In a medium bowl, combine the ricotta cheese, goat cheese, 1 cup Parmesan, the egg, the remaining two tablespoons of parsley, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Set aside.

Mix ricotta cheese, goat cheese, 1 cup parmesan, the egg, parsley, salt and pepper

Ladle 1/3 of the sauce into a 9x12x2 inch rectangular baking dish, spreading the sauce over the bottom of the dish. Then add the layers as follows: half the pasta, half the mozzarella, half the ricotta, and one third of the sauce. Add the rest of the pasta, mozzarella, ricotta, and finally, sauce. Sprinkle with 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese.

Layers for Lasagna: sauce, pasta, mozzarella, ricotta

Bake for 30 minutes, until the sauce is bubbling.

Can you believe, I forgot to take a photo of the finished product?! :0 Well, I can tell you it was beautiful and absolutely delicious. This lasagna was gobbled up quick. No leftovers.

Enjoy!

Carrot Ginger Tofu Soup

July 25, 2012 by Mom on the Make Leave a Comment

Carrot Ginger Tofu Soup made in my Vitamix

In my quest to add more raw food meals to my daily routine, I found a recipe in my Vitamix cookbook, called “Carrot Ginger Tofu Soup”. It was so yummy that I think I might be adding this one to my list of meal regulars in our house.

The taste is so creamy and loaded with fresh veggie goodness. The combination of fresh ginger, carrots and tofu creates a perfect flavor medley.

It is also Very easy to whip up for a quick lunch, as I did today.

Below are the steps to this super healthy and easy to make soup.

What you need:

4 medium carrots, halved

1/4 small onion, peeled

4 garlic cloves, peeled

2 T oil

1/2 t salt

pinch of white pepper

1 T fresh ginger root or ginger paste

1/3 cup light silken tofu