I appreciate you stopping by, Sara. I love to cook and to eat!

DonnaZ

Hi Linda,

I already had dinner, but talking about food is making me hungry all over again.

DonnaZ

Donna, yes, cook and eat - some of my favorite things also and it SHOWS!!

About that recipe, when I saw Sloppy Joes, I came to look because we do use a lot of ground beef around here. Always looking for more ways to fix it except Meat Loaf - why do men like Meat Loaf so well?? It is one of my least favorite foods and Wilson would eat it daily if I would cook it. Meat Loaf sandwiches, yuk! Not for me.

Having to cook so much and every evening, I look for one-dish meals whenever possible. I improvised another layered casserole using basic browned and drained ground beef.

Ground Beef (you decide amount) browned & drained. After draining, add 1 package mix of Taco seasoning and crushed garlic - about 3 cloves and heat that until the flavors mix, just a few minutes, add 1 can refried beans and stir those in.

In a 9 x 12 baking pan or size suitable for your preferred amount, spray with olive oil and crumble up bread to cover bottom of pan. I used freshly made bread that was a couple of days old (with added flax meal). Spread the ground beef mixture over the bread in pan. Add a layer of chopped tomatoes, layer of onion slices, add some sweet green pepper slices with that, fresh sliced mushrooms (if available) and then a layer of grated cheese (any kind available). Now, I love things very hot but most people don't, so I topped the dish with fresh Jalapenos, left whole - about 6 large ones. Then sprinkle top with more bread crumbs and a little cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes, remove from oven and add more cheese or cheese sauce, cook for another 5 minutes. For those of us who like it hot, we can slice the Jalapenos on the side and enjoy with it!

Believe me after it starts cooking, people and animals flock to kitchen to see what is that wonderful smell!!!

I have no title or name for this, so you can select your own. Enjoy!

Sara

Hi Sara,

I used to eat a lot of Beef as well, and yes my favorite was also Meat Loaf, including Meat Loaf sandwiches. Good Memories. Of course, I swore off of Red Meat all together about 2-3 years ago, so now I use a lot of Turkey. For example, here's one I really like...

Ground Turkey and Peppers

Ingredients

• Olive oil
• 1 cup chopped onion and onion greens
• 1 bell pepper (red or yellow preferred), chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• Kosher salt
• 1 lb ground turkey, preferably ground turkey thighs
• 1 teaspoon chipotle powder or chili powder (or to taste)
• 2 Tbsp chopped fresh parsley or cilantro

Method

1 Heat 2 Tbsp olive oil in a large skillet on medium high heat. Add the chopped onions and bell pepper and cook until onions and peppers are softened, a couple minutes. Add the garlic and cook 30 seconds more.

2 Push the vegetables to the edge of one side of the pan and position that side of the pan so that it is off the burner, away from the heat. The empty part of the pan should be right over the burner. Add one or two more tablespoons of oil to coat the empty part of the pan. Put crumpled chunks of ground turkey in the pan, sprinkle with salt and chipotle or chili powder.
3 Cook the turkey without stirring until it is browned on one side, then turn the pieces over to brown the other side. Once the turkey is just cooked through, stir in the onions and peppers, and sprinkle with more salt and chili powder to taste. Remove from heat. Stir in fresh chopped parsley or cilantro.

Serve alone, or with steamed rice or noodles.

Serves 4.