Ground Beef & Spinach Quiche

1 pound ground beef

1 small onion

1 package frozen chopped spinach or 9 oz. fresh spinach

1 cup mayonnaise

1 cup milk

4 eggs

2 Tablespoons self rising flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

pepper to taste

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
pie crust

Cook and drain the spinach. Use a spatula to press it against the sides of a colander and squeeze out most of the water.  Brown the ground beef and onion in a skillet. Drain any fat.  Stir in spinach.  In a large bowl, whisk together the mayonnaise, milk, eggs, flour, salt and pepper.  Stir in the cheese, spinach, beef and onions. Pour into two greased pie plates with or without crust.

Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes or until the center is set.

Comments:  This recipe called for 2 pie shells, making 2 pies.  I had one deep dish pie plate and used one roll-out shell making it a deeper dish.  With it being thicker I did have to cook it for about 45 minutes but boy was it worth it.  Just a bit of crust and a lot of the delicious filling.  This is a must try dish.

Ground Beef Stuffing

1 lb. ground beef
1 pkg. stuffing mix
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
4-5 slices provolone cheese
1 can cream of mushroom soup (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Brown and drain the ground beef.  Mix stuffing according to package mix.  Add ground beef and shredded cheese.  Pour evenly into a 8 x 8 (approx) baking dish.  Top with Provolone cheese.  Bake 20-25 minutes or until cheese has melted inside and out.

Comment:  This dish is so simple yet so delicious!  I've made this with chicken in the past but decided to try changing it by using the ground beef.  I cooked this without the mushroom soup so it isn't showing in the picture.  When I heated the leftovers up I added the soup.  That was even better but the soup is optional.

Beef Spinach Casserole

1 pound ground beef

1 medium onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 can (4 ounces) mushroom stems and pieces, drained

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon dried basil

1/4 teaspoon pepper

2 packages (10 ounces each) frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry

1 can (10-3/4 ounces) condensed cream of celery soup, undiluted

1 cup (8 ounces) sour cream

2 cups (8 ounces) shredded mozzarella cheese, divided

In a large skillet, cook beef, onion and garlic over medium heat until the meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the mushrooms, salt, basil and pepper. Add the spinach, soup and sour cream. Stir in half of the mozzarella cheese.

Transfer to a greased 2-qt. baking dish. Bake, uncovered, at 350° for 15 minutes. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese; bake 5 minutes longer or until cheese is melted. Yield: 6 servings.

Weight Watchers Points 12 per serving

Comment:  This dish might not look tasty but believe me, it is!  The basil gives it a flavor that has you wanting another bite.  All of my food testers raved about it and ask that I make it again.

Ground Beef & Hashbrowns

1 lb lean (at least 80%) ground beef 

1 cup nacho cheese sauce (from 15-oz jar)

1 can (4 oz) mushrooms, chopped, drained

1 cup shredded Mexican blend cheese (4 oz)

6 frozen hashbrowns (4 x 2 ½”)

Heat oven to 425°F.  In 10-inch ovenproof skillet, cook beef over medium heat 5 to 7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until no longer pink; drain. Stir in cheese sauce and mushrooms. Top with cheese.  Place hashbrowns on top of cheese.  Bake about 25 minutes or until potatoes are crispy and golden brown and mixture is bubbling. Serves 6

Comment:  This is part of a recipe that I found on the Kraft site.  I changed from peas to mushrooms and used the large hashbrowns.  After the cooking time I did turn on the broiler and let the tops of the hashbrowns crisp just a little. For my skillet I used a square cast iron frying pan.  It worked perfectly.  This dish is so good and if you have a meat and potato foodie, they will love it!

Shepard Pie

1 lb. lean ground beef
1 med. onion, chopped
1 med. bell pepper, chopped
1 box (4.2 oz.) Hungry Jack Hashbrowns
2 cans (10.75 oz.) condensed cream of mushroom soup
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup French-fried onion rings, crushed
salt & pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Prepare hashbrowns according to package directions to puff them up.  Spread evenly into a 9 x 13 x 2 baking dish sprayed with non-stick spray.  Sprinkle with a little salt & pepper.  Brown ground beef.  Add more salt and pepper if needed.  Spread over hashbrowns.  Saute onions and bell peppers until tender.  Add both cans of cream of mushroom soup.  Mix well.  Spread over ground beef.  Sprinkle with cheese.  Bake 20-25 minutes or until cheese has melted and dish is bubbly.  Add onion rings and bake another 5 minutes.  Serves 6-8

Comment:  I was going through some old cookbooks and found a printed page that had the name Tater Tot Hot Dish! and the list of ingredients but no directions, so I made it up as I went and renamed it Shepard Pie because it seemed to fit it best, especially after I changed the tater tots to hashbrowns.  The Hungry Jack hashbrowns simply call for water that allows them to puff back out.  The original didn't call for the bell peppers but I decided they would taste good.  It also called for 1 can of mushroom soup and 1 can of celery soup.  I used 2 cans of mushroom.  I also added the cheese and layered the dish.  Sure did turn out good!

Tex-Mex Lasagna

16 tortilla shells
1 lb. lean ground beef
1 pkg. Taco seasoning
1 can Garbanzo beans, with juice
1 carton (16 oz.) sour cream
2 Tbsp. flour
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1 jar (15.5 oz.) salsa
1 cup Mexican blend shredded cheese

Crumble and brown ground beef.  Add Taco seasoning and Garbanzo beans with juice.  Heat until beans are hot.  Mash with a potato masher to partially crush beans.  In a bowl combine sour cream, flour and garlic powder.  In a 9 x 13 x 2 baking dish sprayed with non-stick spray place 8 shells evenly.  Top with 1/2 of the ground beef mixture.  Top with 1/2 of the sour cream mixture.  Top with 1/2 of the salsa.  Repeat with remaining shells, ground beef, sour cream and salsa.  Sprinkle with cheese.  Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 2-3 hours, over night is even better.  Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes.

Comment:  The original recipe called for 1/2 lb. ground beef, onions, chili powder and cumin.  I increased the ground beef and used a package of taco seasoning instead of the spices and left out the onion.  It also called for an 8 oz. carton of sour cream which I increased to 16 oz.  I changed the enchilada sauce to salsa and added the cheese.  Came out simply delicious!  I really don't think I would have enjoyed it as much with less meat, sour cream and no cheese.  This worked perfectly.

Ground Beef & Rice Casserole

(Original Recipe from  Cooks.com

1 lb. ground beef
1 cup rice (I used Wild & Brown Rice Blend)
1 can (10 3/4 oz.) cream of chicken soup (I used cream of mushroom)
1/4 cup celery
1/4 cup green peppers
1/4 cup onion (optional)
1/2 tsp. black pepper and salt (optional if using soup mix)
1/2 cup mild Cheddar cheese (I used 1 cup)
(I added 1/2 pkg. onion soup mix, 1 tsp. minced garlic & topped the dish with French fried onions)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Brown ground beef with salt & pepper.  Cook rice.  Saute celery, green pepper, onion (& garlic).  In a medium baking dish combine all ingredients and mix well.  Bake 30-35 minutes.

Comments:  I did this a little different.  I cooked my rice in a sauce pan.  When done I moved it to a large bowl.  I then brown my ground beef and added it to the bowl.  In the same pan I sauted my celery, peppers, onion, and garlic.  I added that along with the mushroom soup and onion soup mix to the bowl.  Blended well.  Poured into my baking dish sprayed with non-stick spray and baked for 30 minutes.  I then added the French Fried Onions and baked another 5 minutes to let them brown just slightly.  This is a super delicious dish no matter which way you make it. 

Taco Casserole

1 pound lean ground beef
1 can Ranch Style beans
8 oz. macaroni, cooked and drained
1 can Ro-tel tomatoes
1 small onion, chopped
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
1 package taco seasoning
1 can cream of chicken soup
sour cream and salsa for serving

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a large skillet, brown meat and drain off fat. Stir in beans, tomatoes, onion, taco seasoning, soup and water. Simmer over medium-low heat until everything is well combined and heated through.

Grease a 9×13 casserole dish. Pour cooked macaroni into dish.  Top with 1 cup of cheese.  Pour meat mixture over noodles.  Top with remaining 1 cup of cheese.  Cover with foil and bake for 20-30 minutes, or until bubbly.

Let sit for 5-10 minutes before serving. Top with sour cream and salsa

Comment:  This is so easy to make yet so delicious!  This dish actually came from a 1980's cookbook.  I wasn't sure about a can of cream of chicken soup but it actually added to the dish by creaming it out some and keeping it from being too harsh.  I made no changes in this recipe.

Comments from Carol:  Ground beef, beans, taco sauce (slightly hot) mixed with macaroni and topped with cheese melted in the oven make this recipe a popular one for a variety of ages.  We toyed with the idea of chopping some tomatoes and putting sour cream on top of the serving but decided that the dish was good just as it is and we didn't want to mess with the balance of flavors in this recipe.  This is a great dish for making a lot so that you can have multiple meals out of it.

Chili-Beef Casserole - 1967 cookbook

1 Tbsp. oil (I didn't use this)
1 lb. ground beef
1 med. onion, chopped
1 clove of garlic, minced
2 Tsp. chili powder
1 can chili-beef soup (I used a can of hot dog chili)
1 cup sour cream
2 cups egg noodles, cooked
Grated Parmesan cheese (I used Colby, shredded)



Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Heat oil in skillet; add meat, onion, garlic and chili powder (my ground beef was 85/15 so I didn't use oil). Cook, stirring, until meat loses its pink color and onion is lightly browned.  Stir in soup and sour cream and simmer 5 minutes.  Place half of the cooked noodles in 1 1/2 quart casserole dish (sprayed with non-stick).  Sprinkle with a generous amount of cheese.  Cover with half of the meat mixture.  Repeat layers with remaining noodles and meat.  Top with another generous amount of cheese.  Bake 40-45 minutes.  Serves 6



Comments:  This recipe came from 1967 cookbook Favorite Recipes of Episcopal Churchwomen - Meats.  It's simple to make and so delicious.  I didn't use the egg noodles but used wheat noodles which gave it a firmer texture when biting into the noodles.  As for the cheese change, I really thought the Colby or even Cheddar would fit my taste best.  I probably used about 1/2 cup of cheese in each of the layers calling for it.  I've not seen the chili-beef soup but did have a can of hot dog chili in the pantry.  This is a dish that will never go out of taste.

Black Bean Hummus Orzo

1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped bell pepper
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 lb. lean ground beef
1 container (10 oz.) Eat Well Embrace Life Sweet & Spicy Black Bean Hummus
1 cup uncooked orzo.
1 1/4 cup shredded cheese
salt & pepper to taste
sour cream
chopped green onion tops

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Cook orzo according to package directions.  Drain, add 1 cup of cheese, salt to taste and stir to blend cheese.   In a sauce pan heat oil.  Add onion and bell pepper and saute until onions are transparent.  Add beef.  Cook until done crumbling as it cooks.  Drain if needed.  Stir in Black Bean Hummus.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Spray a 2 qt. baking dish with non-stick spray.  Add orzo to the dish, smoothing out evenly.  Pour meat mixture over orzo, smoothing out evenly.  Sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup of cheese over meat.  Bake 15-20 minutes or until heated throughout and cheese has melted.  To serve, top with sour cream and onion tops.  Serves 6.

Comment:  Boy did I move away from an old recipe I had planned on revamping.  I found a 1967 cookbook that had a recipe for Hamburger Upside-Down Casserole that I decided to make.  It called for an 8 oz. can of tomato sauce and I was out.  What to do.  I had a container of Eat Well Embrace Life Sweet & Spicy Black Bean Hummus in the fridge that has a Mexican taste so I decided this would be perfect to take the place of the tomato sauce.  The recipe also called for 3 cups of cooked macaroni and I only had enough to make 2 cups but I then spotted the orzo.  Why not.  Well, this recipe took a big turn when I used the Hummus so that is where the old recipe stopped for me and I'm really glad it did.  This dish is delicious!  It has just enough spice and heat to flavor the meat and the orzo but I added just a bit more by using a Mexican blend cheese.  You can use that or go with cheddar.  Both will work.  So, if you want a quick, easy dish to make that everyone will love, you must try this one.  These are the kind of dishes you can come up with when you Think With Your Taste Buds.

Tex-Mex Ground Beef Casserole

1 lb. lean ground beef
1 cup, uncooked rice (I use brown and wild rice mix)
1/2 red or green bell pepper, chopped
1 jar salsa, about 1 cup
1 can (8 oz.) tomato sauce
1/4 cup black olives, sliced
2 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. oregano leaves
1 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. ground cumin
1 cup cheese shredded (I used Provolone)
French fried onion rings.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Cook rice according to package.  Brown ground beef and drain.  Add bell pepper and cook over medium high heat until tender.  Add salsa, tomato sauce, olives, chili powder, oregano, salt and cumin.  Let simmer over medium heat for about 10 minutes allowing the ingredients to blend.  Stir in rice.  Pour into a 3 quart baking dish sprayed with non-stick spray.  Bake 25-30 minutes.  Top with cheese and add crushed onion rings around the outside of the cheese.  Bake another 5 minutes or until cheese has melted.

Comment:  The recipe that brought on this dish came form a 1981 Creamettes booklet.  I've made other dishes from this book and they have all been delicious.  This recipe was called Mexican Beef Casserole and called for noodles, onions, garlic, canned tomatoes, tomato paste, corn and cheddar cheese.  As you can see, I didn't include those ingredients.  I used the salsa in place of the canned tomatoes, onions and garlic, which are ingredients within the salsa.  A friend had given me a jar of brown and wild rice that I wanted to use instead of the macaroni.  This turned out to be a great change.  The cheese I changed to Provolone instead of cheddar and I sprinkled the onion rings around the edge instead of corn chips.  This dish had so much flavor and texture that I could have eaten a lot more than I allowed myself.  It is simply delicious!

Comment from Food Tester Carol:  This dish has several layers, each of which is tasty in itself, yet together they are surprising and exciting to eat.  The blended rice (made up of a variety of rices and grains) mixed with the ground beef, tomato and spices is delicious but with the melted provolone layer, it's double delicious an then you find the crispy fried onions on top and it's super delicious!

Taco Pie

Taco Pie

1 1/2 lb. lean ground beef
1 cup chopped, mixed onions & bell peppers
6 oz. cream cheese, cut into chunks
1/2 cup sour cream
3 Tbsp. dry Taco seasoning mix
1 large can (8) and 1 small can (4) crescent rolls
1/4 cup (1 small can, drained) sliced black olives
1 cup cheddar cheese
Salsa

Sour Cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a frying pan on med. high heat cook beef, onions and peppers until beef is done.  Drain.  Add cream cheese, sour cream and Taco seasoning.  Stir until smooth over med. heat.  Separate crescent rolls.  Place in deep dish pie pan, sprayed with non-stick spray, by laying them out like pie slices.  Press to seal seams.  Pour meat mixture into the pie shell. Bake 30-40 minutes or until crust is done.  Remove from oven and add black olives and cheese.  Return to oven for about 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.  Serve with salsa and sour cream.  Serves 6.

Comment:  This idea came from a recipe I found for Hamburger Pie in one of my older cookbooks.  I thought the concept would make a great Taco Pie.  The original recipe called for 1 can of crescent but that wasn't quite enough for my pan so I used 3 from the small can to make my full crust.  The Taco seasoning I used was the mild McCormick brand and I added until I had the flavor strength that I personally wanted.  You might want to add more or less, depending on your own taste.  The black olives were a last minute decision and they not only made the dish look good but also added a delicious taste.  And when I say mixed onions and bell peppers, I buy a frozen combination that is actually about 2/3 onion to 1/3 bell peppers.  This too is something you can adjust to your own taste buds.  I will say that the crust may not look as professional as a regular pie crust but the slight sweetness from the crescents are a great addition for the taste of this dish.

Comment from Food Tester Carol:  Imagine a flaky pie crust and a pie filling made up of the very filling you would make for tacos!  It's as simple as that and ten times more delicious than you can imagine.  This is the recipe that my family wants me to make every two weeks, a new family tradition!  Martha has simplified the recipe for us, starting with the crescent rolls used as the pie crust and the taco seasoning.  The taco flavors are all there form the ground beef and onions to the sour cream.  A truly delicious meal!