One Pot

10.08.

Cajun Stew

(Recipe: Courtesy of Martha Stewart’s “One Pot” Recipe Book)

I’m soooooooo happy to share this post with y’all! I found the “Holy Grail” of fast Gumbo recipes!

Not too long ago, I made Gumbo for the first time ever. It was FANTASTIC! …………….. It also took me 4 1/2 hours to make!

Now don’t get me wrong. Gumbo…….. “authentic” gumbo just can’t be duplicated completely in only 50 minutes. But it can definitely come in at a close 2nd!

I bought Martha Stewart’s new cookbook the other day and couldn’t wait to start trying out the recipes!

I did what I usually do when I get a new cookbook………………..

I attacked it!

……………With Post It Notes! 😉

I fully recommend this book and depending on what recipes you choose to fix, only because certain cuts of meat are more expensive than others, it can be really reasonable to cook these recipes.

Most of them only have 7 to 10 ingredients and considering that most of those ingredients include staples like oil, salt/pepper and spices……… I don’t thing that is a lot. It surprised me because most of her stuff seems to take forever and involves a ton of steps and ingredients, but not this book!

Considering that everyone is pressed for time and wants good, wholesome, quick meals for their families and themselves, I think this recipe book is a WINNER!

This recipe only took 50 minutes to make, which half of that time was really just contributed to simmering so I definitely wasn’t standing at the stove that entire time.

My kids loved it. The girls went back for 2nds and even 3rds. My littlest only ate his sausage and shrimp, but he is also going through his “picky faze”, and the hubster near about made himself sick on how many extra servings he got. Even with all that eating, we still had leftovers for lunch the next day.

I decided to serve the Stew over Cheese Grits and OH BOY! So good!

Recipe: Cajun Stew

Ingredients:

– 2 Tbsp. Vegetable Oil

– 2 Tbsp. All-Purpose Flour

– 1 Red Onion, thinly sliced (*I used pre-chopped red onion from the produce department b/c red onion is not nice to my poor eyes)

– 2 Garlic Cloves, minced

– 2 Celery Stalks, coarsely chopped

– Red or Green Bell Pepper, coarsely chopped (*I used red)

– 1/4 Tsp. Cayenne Pepper

– Coarse Salt

– 1 Can (28oz.) Diced Tomatoes

– 1 1/2 Cups Water

– 3/4 lb. Andouille or Kielbasa Sausage, sliced into 1/2 in. thick rounds (*I used Kielbasa)

– 2 Cups Frozen Sliced Okra (from a 12 oz package), thawed

– 1/2 lb. Shrimp, peeled and deveined (*I used a whole lb. because my family wouldn’t have forgiven me for only using 1/2!!!!! LOL!)

Directions:

– Heat a large skillet (*I used my large cast iron) over medium heat. Add oil and flour; cook, whisking constantly, until golden brown, 5 to 7 minutes.

– Add onion, garlic, celery, and bell pepper; cook until crisp-tender, about 7 minutes. Add cayenne and 1/2 teaspoon salt.

– Stir in tomatoes (with their liquid), the water, and sausage. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook, partially covered, until slightly thickened, about 25 minutes.

– Add okra and simmer 3 minutes. Add shrimp and cook until opaque, 3 to 4 minutes more.

– Season with salt.

– Serve either over white rice or cheese grits, like I did.

*And here is just one more pic to make your mouth water…………………

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as my family and I did!

Can’t wait to try some of the rest and share the best ones with y’all!

Enjoy your Tuesday, friends!

XOXO,

Esther

Tags: 50 minutes, Cajun, Cheese Grits, Filling, Gumbo, Kid Approved, Martha Stewart, One Pot, Post Its, Quick Meal, Recipe, Shrimp, Stew, Wholesome

08.27.

Beef Orzo Skillet

Now that school is back,

I really want to utilize my time and be more productive during the day. I have all these wish lists of things I want to accomplish. Like for instance, simplifying MY LIFE! LOL! That will always be #1 and most important on my list. However, I will probably NEVER accomplish it……. and I’m ok with that……… most of the time.

One thing I can probably, maybe, sort of do that with is dinner. You always hear about 30 minute meals and while some of them are good…… others are GREAT!

I happened to find one of those the other night when I was scouring the internet for some culinary inspiration. I ended up finding this one on my Calendar site I use, www.cozi.com.

It was SOOOOOOO good! The best part was that my kids gobbled it up and my little one didn’t even realize that there was Spinach in it!

It’s so nice to only mess up one pan when cooking and not a million bajillion (is that a word?) of them. I honestly do not know how my fingers do not shrivel up and wither away from all the pots and pans I wash????

You MUST give this one a try!

Recipe: Beef Orzo Skillet

Ingredients

½ tsp salt
1 lb ground beef
1 onion, finely chopped
2-4 cloves garlic, minced
1 can (14.5 ounce) diced tomatoes ( I use the garlic, basil, oregano flavor)
1½ cups low sodium beef broth
1 tsp minced fresh oregano or ½ tsp crumbled dried oregano
¼ tsp pepper
8 ounces orzo pasta, dried (1 cup) – try whole wheat if you can find it!
1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed
½-¾ cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:

Sprinkle salt into a 10 to 12 inch frying pan over medium-high heat. Crumble beef into pan and cook, stirring often, until meat begins to brown, 3 to 5 minutes.
Reduce heat to medium, stir in onion, and continue to cook, stirring, until onion is soft but not brown, about 5 minutes. Drain grease from meat in a colander and return to pan.
Add garlic, tomatoes (break them up with a spoon) and their liquid, broth, oregano, and pepper. Bring mixture to a boil then stir in pasta. Reduce heat, cover and simmer gently until pasta is tender to bite, 10 to 12 minutes.
Meanwhile, squeeze as much liquid as possible from spinach. Stir spinach into pasta mixture just until heated through. Serve with cheese to add to taste.