big kid recipes and baby food making

I came across a couple of really good recipes in the last week that I wanted to share:

Country Salisbury Steak
prep: 10 min. total: 35 min.

Ingredients:
1 1/2 lb. extra lean ground beef
1 pkg. (6 oz.) Stove Top Stuffing Mix for Chicken
1 1/2 cups water, divided
3/4 cup chopped onions
1 pkg. (8 oz.) fresh mushrooms, sliced
1/2 cup barbecue sauce

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Mix meat, stuffing mix, 1 1/4 cup of the water and the onions until well blended. Shape into six 1/2-inch-thick oval patties. Place on 15x10x1-inch baking pan.

Bake 25 min. or until cooked through (160 degrees F).

Meanwhile, spray large nonstick skillet with cooking spray. Add mushrooms; cook on medium-high heat 5 min. or until lightly browned, stirring occasionally. Add barbecue sauce and remaining 1/4 cup water. Reduce heat to low; simmer 1 to 2 min. or until sauce is heated through. Serve over the patties.

Makes 6 servings.

Taco Bake
prep: 15 min. total: 35 min.

Ingredients:
1 pkg. (14 oz.) Kraft Deluxe Macaroni and Cheese dinner
1 lb. ground beef
1 pkg. (1 1/4 oz.) Taco Seasoning Mix
3/4 cup water
3/4 cup sour cream
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese, divided
1 cup Thick N Chunky Salsa

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Prepare mac and cheese as directed on pkg. While macaroni is cooking, brown meat; drain. Add taco seasoning mix and water to meat; simmer 5 min.

Stir sour cream into prepared mac and cheese. Spoon half of the mac and cheese into 8-inch square or 9-inch round baking dish; top with layers of the meat mixture, 1 cup of the cheese and remaining mac and cheese mixture. Cover.

Bake 15 min. Top with salsa and remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Bake, uncovered, an additional 5 min. or until cheese is melted.

For extra crunch, top with 1/2 cup coarsely crushed tortilla chips along with the salsa and cheese. (This is good topped with lettuce and tomatoes as well.)

Makes 6 servings, 1 cup each.


I've also ventured into the world of making my own baby food for Charlie. One...it's much cheaper. Two...it gives Charlie alot more variety. I mean, have you ever seen a Gerber jar of avocadoes? Well, Charlie gobbled one up the other day! I can also buy organic and give him fresh produce. It's quite time consuming so far but I'm sure once I get a good stockpile, it will just be maintaining the supply. So far, it's working out well. For any other moms interested, I found a great website for this...

http://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/