Camille's Meatballs

Recently, a Facebook friend was looking for a good meatball recipe. When my friend Heidi shared this recipe from her Sicilian friend, I immediately printed it out and jotted down on my grocery list the applesauce (yep!) and A1 sauce I'd need.


Oh, YUM!!

I grew up on my grandma's delicious sauce and meatballs, but as sad as I am to admit it, I think Camille's will be replacing Grandma's...

These meatballs were absolutely fantastic!!

CAMILLE'S MEATBALLS

• Start cooking sauce (Classico, Tomato and Basil): add salt, pepper, sugar, olive oil

• Throw all of these ingredients in a large bowl:

~1 pound – ground beef
~2 eggs – not scrambled
~1/4 cup – milk
~4 tablespoons – apple sauce
~3/4 tablespoon – parsley
~1 tablespoon – A1A Steak Sauce
~1/4 cup – grated cheese
~1 tablespoon – Italian seasoning

• Mix together – with hands and fingers
• Pour some olive oil (I'm personally a canola oil girl) – keep mixing
• Pour Italian breadcrumbs – pour and mix until the meat is firm enough to make and hold a meatball (shape and roll with hands)
• Place one meatball at a time in sauce
• Cook in sauce (medium to low heat) – for 1 hour
• Remove meatballs and use sauce for pasta!

(You will see that I shaped the meatballs and placed them on parchment-lined baking sheets. I also doubled the recipe, which made 56 large 2-3" meatballs.


I baked in a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes.


If I was serving with pasta, I would have cooked them in the sauce - for me, my own combination of crushed and pureed tomatoes and seasonings - but, since I was making the meatballs for meatball subs, I baked them a day ahead of time and then heated them through with some canned Hunts garlic and cheese sauce. YUM!)


Camille, Thanks for sharing with Heidi! Heidi, Thanks for sharing with me!! :-D YUMMM!

Recommend: YES



**Disclaimer: Each review is based on the reactions and opinions of myself and/or family.**
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Hamburger Gravy

Hamburger Gravy may not be ranked among the most photogenic meals, but this dish is easy and hearty and filling! Hamburger Gravy is also an easy dish to tweak to your family's likes and dislikes.

After browning 1 pound of ground beef (with chopped onions or minced onions),

Add 1 can of cream of mushroom soup (and dried onion soup mix, if you didn't already add onions and want that stronger, distinct flavor).

Thin gravy with chicken broth or milk and bring to a simmer. I like to plan this meal after this or this so I can use up the leftover chicken broth.

Additions are easy and optional - fresh or canned mushrooms, sour cream (if you're looking for more of a stroganoff taste)...

Season with salt, pepper, and parsley. Spoon Hamburger Gravy over mashed potatoes, noodles, bread, or rice.

Hamburger Gravy is also an easily stretchable meal if you have a large family. Add another can of soup to make more gravy...less meat.





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Tags: recipes ground beef ground beef recipes beef hamburger gravy

Homemade Macaroni and Cheese

I just made more macaroni and cheese last week. I love homemade mac & cheese, don't you??

This time, I doubled the recipe and grated a quarter of a fresh onion. I really think the secret to this particular super cheesy, ultimate comfort food recipe is the worchestershire sauce!

Steph's Mac & Cheese

¼ c. flour
1 tbsp. dried minced onion
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. pepper
¼ c. margarine
¼ tsp. worcestershire sauce
½ tsp. mustard
¾ to 1 c. chicken stock
1 c. milk
2 c. shredded sharp cheddar cheese (the sharper the better!)
½ box elbow macaroni

Prepare macaroni according to package directions. Drain and set aside.

In a small bowl, mix together flour, onion, salt and pepper. In a saucepan (I use the same pan I cooked the noodles in…saves dishes!!) over low/medium heat, combine margarine, worcestershire sauce, and mustard until margarine is fully melted and lightly bubbling.

Add flour mixture and whisk until smooth. Cook about a minute or until mixture begins to bubble. Slowly add chicken stock and milk, whisking to combine flour mixture. Increase heat and whisk continually until mixture begins to boil/thicken. Reduce heat and let simmer for 2 minutes or until thickened.

Add cheese gradually, stirring to melt. Once all cheese is melted, add cooked macaroni to cheese sauce and stir to combine.

Pour mixture into a lightly greased casserole dish. Sprinkle with paprika, if desired.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes, or until top is golden brown and bubbly.

Recommend: Mmmmhmmm!!




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Tags: recipes homemade macaroni and cheese mac and cheese macaroni and cheese recipes cheddar cheese comfort food pasta

Easy Alfredo Sauce

I saw this recipe for Easy Alfredo Sauce several months ago on Melissa's blog and immediately put it on my next month's menu to try.

I poured the finished sauce over some sauteed chicken cutlets that I'd sprinkled with garlic and herb Mrs. Dash and tossed them with some penne pasta and steamed broccoli. The finished dish tasted VERY close to the Olive Garden! :-)

The sauce was just a bit thick for me. I didn't think so at first, but after I ate it...I thought that the next time I make the sauce (and I will!!), I will probably thin it with a little chicken broth (or more milk).

Now, here's the recipe!

Easy Alfredo Sauce

1/2 cup butter
1 (8 oz) package cream cheese
2 teaspoons garlic powder
2 cups milk
6 oz grated Parmesan cheese
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper

Melt butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add cream cheese and garlic powder, stirring until smooth. Add milk, whisking to smooth lumps. Stir in Parmesan and pepper. Remove from heat when sauce reaches desired consistency. If it is too thick, you can add a little milk. Toss with hot pasta to serve.

*I thought about cutting the recipe in half, per the original blogger's suggestion. But, the full recipe was perfect for my 1/2 pound box of pasta, 5 chicken cutlets, and 12 oz. bag broccoli. Of course, it made plenty of leftovers...and, although the leftovers were still delicious, alfredo sauce is always better fresh!*

Recommend: YES




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Tags: recipes Easy Alfredo sauce Fettucine Alfredo Alfredo recipes chicken broccoli alfredo cooking pasta

Homemade Mac & Cheese!

It has been said that you are either a baker or a cook. Baking requires sticking to a recipe and precise measurements to get a perfect product. Cooking is much less rigid. You can add more of this or make substitutions or just use a recipe as a base for your own creation!

Honestly, I'm not sure which category describes me best...I'm both. I love baking and have no problem sticking to a recipe when I know it's required. However, I LOVE to experiment and adjust recipes to our own family's tastes and needs.

That being said, here's our (sorta) recipe for tonight's dinner. Homemade mac & cheese!! YUMMY! Nothing like it! Since I'm a cook...I really don't have a recipe! A friend asked for it, so this is as close as I could think of as to what I do. :-) If I have fresh onions on hand, I finely dice one as a substitution to the dried (actually, I love to GRATE my onion)!

And, I often double the recipe... and, well, I often do a lot of different things! :-) Here's the base:

Steph's Mac & Cheese

¼ c. flour
1 tbsp. dried minced onion
½ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. pepper
¼ c. margarine
¼ tsp. worcestershire sauce
½ tsp. mustard
¾ to 1 c. chicken stock
1 c. milk
2 c. shredded sharp cheddar cheese (the sharper the better!)
½ box elbow macaroni

Prepare macaroni according to package directions. Drain and set aside.

In a small bowl, mix together flour, onion, salt and pepper. In a saucepan (I use the same pan I cooked the noodles in…saves dishes!!) over low/medium heat, combine margarine, worcestershire sauce, and mustard until margarine is fully melted and lightly bubbling. Add flour mixture and whisk until smooth. Cook about a minute or until mixture begins to bubble. Slowly add chicken stock and milk, whisking to combine flour mixture. Increase heat and whisk continually until mixture begins to boil/thicken. Reduce heat and let simmer for 2 minutes or until thickened.

Add cheese gradually, stirring to melt. Once all cheese is melted, add cooked macaroni to cheese sauce and stir to combine.

Pour mixture into a lightly greased casserole dish. Sprinkle with paprika, if desired.

Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes, or until top is golden brown and bubbly.

Recommend: YES




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Tags: recipes homemade macaroni and cheese mac and cheese macaroni and cheese recipes cheddar cheese dinner ideas