Hamburger Gravy

It isn't anything fancy.

And the picture doesn't help advertise it at all.

But it was good.

How do I know?

There was NOTHING left.

Nothing.

I try to do "breakfast for dinner" just about every week. But I don't want to do the same thing over and over again.

Recently on Facebook, someone posted about having "hamburger gravy".  I have had it on my mind ever since.

So last night I rolled out some buttermilk biscuits (a first for me...I need more practice in that department).  I fried up some hashbrown potatoes (need to practice that too).  And I made a little hamburger gravy. Basically it is a white sauce (very similar to the starts of baked potato soup) and I added in some browned hamburger meat.  Then we poured it over the biscuits and the potatoes.

Yum.

It was just right for a cool evening.

(Note: Sausage would be good too...just not everyone in my crew likes sausage)

Ingredients:
6 Tbsp butter (I use unsalted)
6 Tbsp flour (all purpose)
3/4 tsp salt (more or less to taste)
3 cups of milk
1 lb ground beef, browned

Directions:
Melt butter over low heat in a saucepan.

Add flour and salt and stir until smooth and bubbly.

Remove from heat temporarily and add in milk.

Return to heat (I upped it to medium) and stir continuously until thickened.

Add in ground beef when the sauce is thickened as wanted.

It took about 10 minutes for mine to get pretty thick.

The key is to keep stirring so it doesn't burn on the bottom.

Like I said, nothing fancy. But it was good.  Apparently.  Because now it is all gone. :)

Reba

Roasted Lemon Garlic Shrimp

I have been trying to incorporate fish or shrimp at least once a week. I just wish shrimp were a bit cheaper.  Most of us eat it and it is just good food (to me :).  And it is fairly healthy (low cal, low fat).  It is just that darn sodium level that keeps it from getting a gold star.

Anyway, I had a recipe pinned that looked promising so I decided to give it a try.  I was a little hesitant with all of the lemon in it but after one taste, I was hooked.  Oh, yum.

And it was easy. And quick. 

Definitely yummy for my tummy.

I know not everybody is a shrimp eater, but if you are, I highly recommend this recipe!

Ingredients:
1/3 cup olive oil

1 lemon

3-4 fresh thyme sprigs, leaves removed (okay, I don't know if it is unhealthy but I just used the whole sprig...)

sea salt and freshly ground peppercorn

2 tbsp butter (I used light margarine)

1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined (the original recipe calls for fresh; that is hard to get around here...I did use about 2 pounds)

5 cloves of garlic, minced

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Zest the lemon (I had never done this. I used a vegetable peeler and just carefully peeled off bits of the peel, trying to not dig in too much).  Then halve it.  Cut one half into thin slices. Save the other half for later use, though I didn't ever use the second half.

Pour olive oil in a baking dish. The original recipe called for an 8 x 8 dish. Since I had so much shrimp, I used a 13 x 9.  There was still plenty of olive oil to cover the bottom of the dish. 

Add the lemon zest and thyme to the oil, then sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Bake in oven for 10 minutes or so, checking to not burn the zest (which I did because I was peeling shrimp).

Remove pan from oven.  Add butter and stir to melt in oil.  Toss in the shrimp and garlic.  Stir to coat.

Bake for 8-10 minutes (watch carefully) until shrimp is pink.

We ate ours over angel hair pasta with garlic bread and a salad. Oh, and I added a little freshly shredded Parmesan because Parmesan goes with everything. :)

And I enjoyed every single bite.

Reba

Panko Encrusted Swai

The other day, a parent of a former student posted about her new food blog. The first blog post focused on a fish named Swai.

Ironically, I had seen this fish in a display at our grocery store earlier that week. I had wondered about it but didn't buy it without knowing anything.

After reading my friend's blog post, I decided to grab some the nest time I was at the store.

Today I needed a quick meal due to some other commitments. The fish seemed like a good fit for our dinner.

So early this morning, I took six fillets out of their packages and put them in a pan of cold water on the counter. (This can be done and put in the fridge 24 hours ahead of time also)

Then I started googling.

I didn't have the sauce my friend Karen had mentioned using.

So I checked out other possibilities.

Then I combined those sources to make my own...

By the way, Swai (rhymes with Why?) is a catfish from Vietnam though it doesn't really look like our usual catfish. It is very reasonably priced, is low cal (200 calories with the ingredients I used), and is one of the "least fishy" types of fish I have ever eaten.

I couldn't WAIT to eat some more tomorrow for lunch. Yum, leftovers.

What I didn't count on was the fact that both my boys would race to eat every last morsel.

And they did.

Sigh.

I guess I should just be happy they liked it.

I sure did!

I will make this again.

Panko Encrusted Swai

Ingedients:
6-8 Swai fillets thawed (I put it out this morning in a dish of cold water)
olive oil
1/2 cup Panko crumbs (I just use plain)
Italian Seasoning
Parmesan (shredded...I HIGHLY recommend freshly shredded)
sea salt and freshly ground peppercorns

Directions:
Line a cookie sheet with Parchment Paper.

Brush both sides of each fillet with olive oil.

Sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. I did a good job with this. I was SOOO thirsty by the end of the evening. I also added Italian seasoning. Just a few good sprinkles here and there.

Shred Parmesan and sprinkle over one side of chicken.

Spread Panko crumbs over the top.

I also "misted" them with olive oil to help the fish brown.

Bake at 425 degrees for 10-20 minutes.

Like I said, they were a huge hit.

I will be making them again.

Next time, hubby wants to sear them first for a little crispness, then bake them.

Enjoy!

Reba
PS About 200 calories a serving. :)

Fall Pork Tenderloin

I just really started using my crockpot in the last two years. Now I wonder how I survived without it. Well, at least made dinner without it. I probably would survive.

Anyway, I think I got this recipe last year from a co-worker. "A" gives me good recipes. :) This is easy and yummy, my favorite combination.

My first essential for this recipe is the Reynold's Crock Pot Liner. I am not in any way getting kickbacks from Reynold's. I just love those bags. I am more likely to use my crockpot because of these.

Take a 2 pound pork tenderloin and place it in the crockpot.

Pour 1 can of cranberry sauce and 3 cups of apple juice (I use the 100 percent juice kind). Sprinkle 3/4 tsp of salt and 1/2 tsp of black pepper over the tenderloin.

Cook on low for 6-8 hours.

Yes, that is it.

I ran home during my activity period (mid day) to throw it all in the crockpot and get it cooking. By the time I got home, our whole house smelled like fall pork tenderloin. And my stomach started growling.

The only way to describe it is a perfect combination of salty and sweet. Yum.

Thanks to "A" for the recipe.

Here is a picture of the pork still in the crockpot. I just pull it out of the juices when we are ready to eat it.

Tonight's side dishes included fingerling potatoes, cheesy bread, and black-eyed peas. I will be sharing a couple of those other recipes
Did I mention that I am not a professional food photographer?

More soon!
Happy cooking!
Reba
Postnote: Just started counting calories this past month. This dish is one of the lower calorie meals I make! I think I may be making it even more often...