Chinese Beef Skillet

Mom loves Chinese food, so it is no surprise that Mom's recipe box has some recipes for Chinese-style dishes. This recipe is so delicious. I occasionally make stir fry meals using whatever ingredients that I have on hand, but I have never added pea pods to my stir fry dishes. I plan to do so now because they added great flavor and crunch to this dish.

This recipe comes together quickly. The recipe calls for frozen pea pods, but I used fresh sugar snap peas. Only after I started making this recipe did I realize that I was out of fresh onion, so I just used dried minced onion. I served this recipe over brown rice, but it would also be good with rice noodles. This recipe is a delicious and easy dish that is a good addition to your quick meal rotation.

Chinese Beef Skillet 

• 1 pound round steak, cut in cubes
• 2 Tbsp. oil
• 1 cup water
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 beef bouillon cube
• 1 medium cauliflower, broken in buds
• 6 ounce package frozen pea pods, chopped
• 2 Tbsp. cornstarch
• 3/4 cup water
• 2 Tbsp. soy sauce

In a skillet, brown meat quickly in hot oil. Add one cup water, onion, garlic, and bouillon cube. Heat and stir until cube is dissolved. Add cauliflower, seasoned with salt and pepper. Cover and simmer for five minutes. Stir in pea pods. Cover and cook for five to eight minutes more or until cauliflower is just tender. With a slotted spoon, transfer meat and vegetables to warm serving dish. Combine cornstarch, remaining water, and soy sauce. Stir into pan juice. Cook, stirring constantly, until mix thickens and bubbles. Pour over meat and vegetables.

Tuna Au Gratin

Mom had a lot of recipes using canned tuna that she used during lent when we always had fish on Fridays. This tuna recipe is delicious and easy. I especially liked the slight crunch that the bell peppers gave the dish.

Nowadays, I rarely use canned tuna, but instead prefer to use the tuna pouches. For this recipe, I used three 2.5 ounce pouches. I am not sure if that amount of tuna is exactly equivalent, but it worked out fine. Also, I did not have pimento on hand, so just used more bell pepper. Because pimento adds a bit of spice, adding a few dashes of chili sauce could give the dish some zing. This casserole dish allows for you to modify the amounts of ingredients to suit your taste. When I made this recipe, I turned on the broiler for the last three minutes to brown the cheese and bread crumbs.

Tuna Au Gratin 

• 2 (7 ounce) cans funa, flaked
• 2/3 cup chopped onion
• 1/4 cup chopped bell pepper
• 1/4 cup chopped pimiento
• 2/3 cup mayo
• 1/4 cup bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

Combine first five ingredients. Spoon into small shallow baking dish. Sprinkle with bread crumbs and cheese. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Enjoy!

Grated Potato Casserole

I had some extra potatoes, so I looked through Mom's recipe box for something to use them up. I found this casserole. It makes an excellent side dish. Adding some chunks of ham could make it a great main dish. With such common ingredients, this casserole has a classic flavor and is great for using up items that you might have around the kitchen.

When I made this recipe, rather than throw all the ingredients in a blender, I just finely chopped all the vegetables and mixed everything by hand. I did not have green pepper, but used the red and yellow pepper that I had around the house.

Grated Potato Casserole 

• 1 cup milk
• 3 eggs
• 2 Tbsp. butter, melted
• 1 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 cup diced cheddar cheese
• 1 small onion, sliced
• 4 medium potatoes, sliced
• 1/2 green pepper, diced

Place milk, eggs, butter, and salt in blender. Start blender; add cheese and vegetables gradually. Blend until all the vegetables are cut fine. Turn into buttered casserole dish. Bake at 350 for one hour. Enjoy!