Santa Maria Grilled Tri-Tip

I never used to buy tri-tip because I had no idea how to cook it. I loved eating it but didn't know how to prepare it and cook it well. This is no longer the case. When I make this tri-tip recipe, my family tells me it's one of the best meals I make. They all love it and gobble it up. It's really not hard to make so if you need a little help on cooking tri-tip, try out this recipe. You won't regret it. I found the original recipe on Allrecipes.com. You can find the original recipe here: Santa Maria Grilled Tri-Tip Recipe

Ingredients

Dry Rub
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons pepper
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 1/2 tsp paprika
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp rosemary (I grind mine with a mortar and pestle before I add it in. It adds better flavor)
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

1 beef tri-tip roast (about 2 1/2 lbs)

Marinade
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
4 cloves crushed garlic
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard (If you don't have this, that's okay. I've made it with and without Dijon)

Stir together dry ingredients in a bowl. Coat beef on all sides with spice mixture. Put beef into a glass dish. Cover the dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 4 hours.

Combine marinade and add to the glass dish. Turn beef to get marinade on all sides. Uncover and let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. I often do the dry rub and marinade at the same time. It's probably better letting the dry rub sit on the meat for 4 hours before adding the marinade but if you're short on time, you can do both steps at once.

Cooking
I have a small rotisserie machine that I typically cook the tri-tip on. I cook a 2.5-3 lb tri-tip for 30-40 minutes until the center is about 140 degrees. Let rest for at least 10 minutes before cutting.

You can also pan fry this in a cast iron skillet or grill outside. Place meat on pre-heated grill or cast iron skillet. Brush with the garlic-vinegar mixture. Cook meat 4 minutes, flip and baste. Repeat the flip and baste process every 4 minutes until beef reaches an internal temperature of about 130-140 degrees. (I find that the 130 is a little too rare for our family). Let rest for at least 10 minutes before slicing.

Enjoy!

I often double or triple the dry seasoning so I have extra on hand when I want to make a tri-tip.

Trippled Dry Rub
2 Tbsp salt
2 Tbsp pepper
2 Tbsp garlic powder
4 1/2 tsp paprika
1 Tbsp onion powder
1 Tbsp rosemary (I grind mine with a mortar and pestle before I add it in. It adds better flavor)
3/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Potato Soup

2 Tablespoons butter
1/2 cup onion, chopped
Melt butter in large saucepan.  Add onion.  Saute until translucent.

3 cups potatoes, diced
2 cups water or broth
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1/4 cup celery with leaves, chopped
1/2 cup carrots, chopped or shredded
1/8-1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg, dried marjoram, celery salt, dried dill weed, or paprika
Add, cover and cook until vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes.  For a creamier soup, remove some of the cooked potatoes, puree them and return to the saucepan.

2 cups milk
3 Tablespoons flour
Mix together until smooth.  Add to soup and cook until thickened, stirring constantly.  Garnish with fresh chopped parsley.

Optional additions: 1 cup cubed cooked ham ~ 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese ~ 1/2 lb. browned ground beef with 1/4 cup plain yogurt stirred in just before serving ~ substitute 2 cups corn for one of the cups of potatoes ~ dumplings: combine 1 large beaten egg, 1/2 cup flour and 2 Tablespoons milk, drop dough by teaspoons into simmering soup and simmer 5 more minutes.

Spaghetti

Cook 1/2 package of extra thin noodles. 

Saute 1 chopped green pepper in lard, when mostly done add 1 lb. ground beef to brown.  Then add:

4 cloves garlic, minced

grind pepper over all

1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. dried basil

1-2 TBSP ground oregano

Salt

1 4oz. can mushroom pieces
2 15oz. cans tomato sauce

Simmer, add to drained noodles, let sit for a bit for flavors to absorb.

Borscht

½ head cabbage, cut up
4 beets, in strips
2 big carrots, in strips
4 potatoes (often I use less or no potatoes)
1 lb. stew beef, cubed
1 onion, diced
1 small can tomato sauce (optional, I leave out)
1 tsp. each dried dill and parsley, use more if fresh
salt to taste
pepper - I use 1/8 - 1/4 tsp.
sour cream

Boil meat, add salt when it starts to boil (I use beef stock when I have it). When it’s almost done, add the potatoes and cook midway. Meanwhile in a different pan put oil (I use lard) and the beets and carrots cut into strips. Add ½ cup water and simmer until softer, continue watching and stirring. When halfway cooked, add onions and tomatoe sauce/paste and cook until almost soft. Then dump it all into the other pot of meat and potatoes and add cabbage. Let it all cook together until the cabbage is cooked. At the very end add the dill and/or parsley and black pepper, then let it simmer 5 minutes to get the full flavor. Serve with sour cream stirred in.  It's delicious!

There are many, many ways to make Borscht.  The above are the instructions I got from Russian friends.  Other methods include:  Put it all in the crock pot. ~ Simmer all the veggies together, then add cooked meat.  ~ Simmer everything together except the beets, omit the carrots.  Steam the beets, then add (I guess that's quicker?  Beets do take a long time to soften).  ~ Use ground beef instead of stew meat, make small meatballs with salt & pepper added, put these in at the end as they cook quickly.  ~ Add diced tomatoes and garlic.  ~ Use browned ground pork sausage instead of beef.  ~

French Dip Roast

My whole family loved this, including my 1 and 4 year old daughters! I think they like the dipping element.

from Patti Boston, out of the Fix-it and Forget-it Cookbook

1 large onion, sliced (fine without it for onion-haters)
3 lb. beef bottom roast (fat trimmed, if desired)
1/2 cup dry white wine, or water
1 pkg. dry au jus gravy mix
2 cups beef broth

1. Place onion, if using, in slow cooker. Add roast.
2. Combine wine and gravy mix. Pour over roast.
3. Add enough broth to cover roast.
4. Cover, cook on high 5-6 hours, or low 10-12 hours.
5. Remove meat from liquid. Let stand 5 min. before slicing thinly across the grain. Serve on Kaiser or French rolls with au jus on the side.

Pot Roast Pie

Here's another one of my favorite meals that was brought to me after I had my son. What a blessing these meals were! If you like pot roast, you will like this recipe. Honestly, my husband was a little skeptical before it arrived and it wouldn't be something I would THINK that I would like but I LOVED it and my family enjoyed it as well and Phil said I could add it to our meal idea list.

If you have a smaller family, like me, you might find it hard to make a yummy pot roast and actually eat all of it before you either get sick of it or it goes bad in the fridge. I often have these roasts that sit in my freezer for awhile because I keep waiting to make them when we have friends over and then, when we do have friends over, it's usually spontaneous and we don't have time to cook a big roast in the crock pot for 6 hours. So, here's what you do...

Cook your pot roast how you normally would. A little seasoning, possibly sear it on both sides before sticking it in your crock pot with an onion or two, carrots, potatoes and anything else you like. It doesn't really matter what recipe you follow. However you normally do it will work fine. I just looked up a pot roast recipe in a cookbook I had and basically followed that.

After you eat your meal, take the remaining pot roast, drippings/gravy left in the crock pot, and any remaining veggies and smush everything up. I just used a fork to break apart the pot roast and cut the potatoes and carrots I had into smaller pieces. I then mixed it all together along with the drippings in the crock pot. My friend, Tracey, who made this meal for us, added a bag of frozen mixed veggies to the mixture and a few more spices. I don't know exactly what spices she used so just use a little of what sounds good to you. :)

Depending on how much you have, you can make either one or two pies. I have some small pie pans so I made two smaller pies with the leftovers which are easier for our family to eat. Make your own pie crust or use a store bought one if you'd like. Put the pie crust in your pan and then pour the pot pie mixture on top. Make a batch of mashed potatoes (which you can make with butter and cream/milk or healthy and plain). Put about a 1 inch layer of the mashed potatoes on top and freeze until later.

These pies are great reheated and taken to a family who needs a meal or for your family to eat later. A family in our church gave us the arm roast that we used so I basically used a half bag of carrots, 4 potatoes and a few misc. ingredients and made 3 tasty meals for my family!!! This is such a great way to use the leftovers for another meal. Hope you try it sometime!

Fiery Volcanos

This is from my mom's kitchen, I don't know where she got it. But it's good! And easy to make. I often serve this to company.

Fiery Volcanos
Ingredients:
1 ½ cups rice
1 lb. ground beef
¼ cup onion, chopped
1 tsp. salt
¼ tsp. pepper
1 15oz. can pineapple tidbits
1 4oz. can mushroom pieces
1 15oz. can tomato sauce
2 TBSP. vinegar
1 TBSP. cornstarch


Directions:
Prepare rice.

Brown and drain ground beef. When meat is half cooked, add the onion. Then add the salt, pepper, pineapple, mushrooms, tomato sauce & vinegar.

Remove ½ cup of the broth and wisk in the cornstarch. Return it to the pan and bring to a boil to thicken. To serve, spoon over rice “volcanos”.

Flatbread Tacos with Ranch Sour Cream

These are a little different from the same old tacos or burritos. My husband raved about them! It is from Taste of Home magazine.


1 cup (8 ounces) sour cream
2 teaspoons ranch salad dressing mix
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1-1/2 pounds ground beef
1 can (15 ounces) pinto beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (14-1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained
1 envelope taco seasoning
1 tablespoon hot pepper sauce
1 tube (16.3 ounces) large refrigerated buttermilk biscuits
Optional toppings: sliced ripe olives and shredded lettuce and cheddar cheese

1. In a small bowl, combine the sour cream, dressing mix and lemon juice; chill until serving.

2. In a large skillet, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink; drain. Add the beans, tomatoes, taco seasoning and pepper sauce; heat through.

3. Meanwhile, roll out each biscuit into a 6-in. circle. In a small nonstick skillet over medium heat, cook each biscuit for 30-60 seconds on each side or until golden brown; keep warm. (I use my electric griddle and do several at once - much faster!)

4. To serve, spread each flatbread with 2 tablespoons ranch sour cream; top each with 2/3 cup meat mixture. Sprinkle with toppings if desired. Yield: 8 servings.

Beef Burgundy

From Katie Laven

2 lbs stew meat
1 cup burgundy wine
1 pkg onion soup mix
2 cans golden mushroom soup

Cook all day in slow cooker
30 minutes before serving, add 8 oz sour cream

Sauerkraut Stew

This is a flexible stew that is apparently rather popular in Eastern Europe. I first had it at a restaurant in Old Salem, NC, and liked it so well that I looked up recipes online so I could make it for myself. This recipe is my own adaptation of several variations. One of my favorite things about this recipe is that nothing has to be measured exactly! I like to prepare it in a crock pot for convenience. This recipe is for a 5-6 quart crock pot.

Ingredients:
2 lbs meat (I used beef stew meat and kielbasa, but have also made it with beef and pork - any combination will work)
6 medium-large white potatoes
1 lb Carrots
1 lb Sauerkraut
Seasonings, to taste
3-4 cups water

Directions:
Cut the potatoes and carrots into bite-sized pieces and put into the crock pot. Spread sauerkraut over the carrots and potatoes. The sauerkraut can be drained and rinsed first, if preferred (I do not drain mine). Cut the meat into bite-sized pieces and brown it briefly on the stove. Add meat to crock pot. Add seasonings, to taste (I used black pepper, celery salt, celery flakes, freeze-dried chives and a vegetable bullion cube). Pour water over the meat to draw some of the seasoning down into the vegetables. Cook on low heat for 8-10 hours or on high heat for 4-5 hours. Stir and add water as necessary before serving. You can serve it with sour cream or prepared brown mustard for additional flavor and character.

Prep time is approximately 30 minutes.

Spicy Italian Beef (Sandwiches)

1 boneless beef roast (3-4 lbs)
1 jar (12 oz) peperoncini
1 can (14 1/2 oz) beef broth
1 can (12 oz) beer
1 pkg. (1 oz) Italian salad dressing mix
1 loaf French bread, sliced thick
10 slices provolone cheese (optional)

Trim fat from roast. Cut if necessary to fit in slow cooker, leaving meat in as many large pieces as possible. Place in slow cooker.

Drain peppers, remove stem ends and discard. Add peppers, broth, beer and dressing mix to slow cooker; do not stir. Cover; cook on low 8-10 hours.

Remove meat from slow cooker; shred with 2 forks. Return shredded meat to slow cooker; mix well. Serve on French bread, topped with cheese, if desired. Add add'l sauce and peppers if desired.

Beef Porcupine Meatballs

Another dinner-exchange recipe from my friend Katie.

8 oz pkg beef Rice-a-Roni, divided
1 lb ground beef
1 egg, beaten
2 1/2 cups water
Prepared egg noodles

Combine Rice-a-Roni with beef and egg, setting aside seasoning packet from mix. Shape into small meatballs; brown on all sides in a skillet. Drain. Combine contents of seasoning packet with water; pour over meatballs. Cover and simmer over low heat for 30-40 minutes. Serve meatballs and sauce over cooked egg noodles. Makes 4-6 servings.

Hungry Jack Casserole

1 pound ground beef or ground turkey
1/2 cup chopped onion (my husband doesn't like onion, and it works fine without)
1 can baked beans
3/4 cup barbeque sauce
2/3 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1 can refrigerated biscuits

Heat oven to 350. Brown meat with onion, drain. Add remaining ingredients except cheese and biscuits and place in casserole dish. Sprinkle with cheese. Cut each biscuit in half and place on top of casserole. Bake for 20 minutes or until cheese melts and biscuits are lightly browned.

This is soooo flavorful. I like it because it's easy to keep most of the ingredients on hand, and make when I can't think of anything else for dinner! I usually use Pillsbury Grands biscuits.

Spaghetti Pie

1 cup ricotta cheese
6 oz mozzarella cheese, shredded

Crust
6 oz vermicelli, cooked and drained
1/2 clove garlic
1/4 cup butter (softened)
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1 large egg, beaten
1 tsp dried basil

Filling
1/2 lb ground beef
3/4 lb Italian sausage
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 15 oz can tomato sauce
1 6 oz can tomato paste
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
1/4 cup white wine

To make crust, combine vermicelli with other "crust ingredients. Chop mixture with a knife and press mixture into a 10-inch pie plate.

To make filling, cook ground beef, Italian sausage and onion together. Drain fat. Stir in remaining ingredients. Heat thoroughly.

To assemble pie, spread ricotta cheese on "crust". Top with filling and cover with mozzarella cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until golden brown. I put a piece of foil under the pie while it's cooking since it sometimes drips.

You can make one really big pie or two smaller ones for a 3 person dinner each. They freeze really well.

Beef Stew

Ingredients:
2 lbs beef stew meat
1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 clove garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon paprika
4 carrots (I add more)
3 potatoes (I add more)
1 1/2 cup beef broth

Mix meat, flour, salt and pepper in crockpot. Add remaining ingredients and stir. Cover.

Cook on low for 10-12 hours or on high 4-6 hours.

Grandpop's Chili (Wayne Kuhner)

Brown 1 lb ground beef.
Put cooked ground beef in crock pot with 1 can kidney beans (undrained), 1 16 oz can tomato sauce, 2 small cans tomato paste and 2-3 cups of water. Add 2-4 teaspoons of chili powder.

Optional- add 2 cups of uncooked macaroni

Cook on high for 4-6 hours.

*Double recipe for lots of servings. Freezes well.

Rice Hot Dish

This recipe is a family favorite, and it comes with a story. It is a recipe passed through my mom's family by her aunt, so it has been around for a long time. I had no idea what it was actually called, however, as the Pooles have their own name for it. When I was a kid, it was tradition to bring the dog(s) to family meals. Each dog would have a plate of leftovers made up for them after dinner with everything mixed together. Someone made the observation that this dish resembles the concoction fed to the dogs, so we always call it "dog food"! It has a somewhat lengthy cook time, but I think it tastes great reheated the next day, so if you have time today but know that you won't have much time tomorrow, this might be a nice option. As with another recipe, this one isn't the prettiest looking food, as the family name for it implies, so it may not be the first thing you feed guests, but I think it's delicious!

1 lb ground beef
1 cup chopped celery
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
2 cans water
3 T soy or Worcestershire sauce
1/2-3/4 cup rice, uncooked

Brown the ground beef and cook the celery and onion. This can be done all together or separately. I find that it's easier to cook them all together. Mix the ingredients together and pour into a 2 quart or larger casserole dish. Bake, uncovered, at 325 for 1 1/2-2 hours. Stir before serving.

This is what it looks like just out of the oven. The 2 quart dish I use is quite full, but it has never bubbled over on me.

And once it is stirred and served:

Beef Stew with Sun-Dried Tomatoes

I thought for my first post that I would share a fall/winter classic. This is a pretty basic and very tasty beef stew recipe. It comes from Betty Crocker's Slow Cooker Cookbook. I don't have a picture to offer, unfortunately.

1 cup sun-dried tomatoes (not oil-packed)
1 1/2 pounds beef stew meat
12 medium new potatoes (1 1/2 pounds), cut in half
1 medium onion, cut into 8 wedges
1 bag (8 ounces) baby-cut carrots (about 30)
2 cups water
1 1/2 teaspoons seasoned salt
1 bay leaf
1/4 cup cold water
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

1. Soak tomatoes in water as directed on package; drain and coarsly chop.
2. Mix tomatoes and remaining ingredients except 1/4 cup water and the flour in 3 1/2- to 6-quart slow cooker.
3. Cover and cook on low heat setting 8 to 9 hours (of high heat setting 3 to 5 hours) or until beef and vegetables are tender.
4. Mix 1/4 cup water and the flour; gradually stir into beef mixture.
5. Cover and cook on high heat setting 10 to 15 minutes or until slightly thickened. Remove bay leaf.

I've made the stew using both the high and low heat settings and really recommend using the low heat setting. The meat and vegetables are all more tender and the flavors all blend together better. The directions do not tell you to brown the meat before you add it to the crock pot, but it will have better flavor if you do. I have also used meat tenderizer (unflavored) and added dried celery flakes. The celery flakes rehydrate nicely and add an nice complimentary flavor. Any kind of potatoes will work, but I found that using a few different varieties together gives the stew additional character.

It took me around 30 minutes to get the stew started, and the time required for soaking the tomatoes is adequate for chopping, measuring or browning the rest of the ingredients.

The recipe says that it serves 6, but I find that it really serves 4 adults.

Make-Ahead Meatballs

Here's my first post on here! Sorry it's taken so long. :) These meatballs are yummy and this recipe makes 5 batches, so you can use one right away and freeze the other 4 to use later. Very "busy-mom" friendly! You'll need to devote a chunk of time to making them the first time, but once they're made, you can make any meatball recipe using homemade (and less expensive than store-bought) meatballs. A couple of our favorite meatball recipes are tried-and-true Spaghetti & Meatballs and Sweet & Sour Meatballs.
Make-Ahead Meatballs

4 eggs
2 cups dry bread crumbs
½ cup finely chopped onion
1 tbsp salt
2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
½ tsp white pepper
4 lbs lean ground beef

In a large bowl, beat eggs. Add the next five ingredients. Add beef; mix well (using your hands is easiest!). Shape into 1-in. balls, about 12 dozen.

(Alternate method for preparing the balls: Lightly pat meat mixture into a 1-in.-thick rectangle. Cut the rectangle into the same number of squares as meatballs in the recipe. Gently roll each square into a ball.)

Option #1 for cooking balls (my favorite since it's easier to turn them and it doesn't heat up the kitchen as much): Place one batch of meatballs (about 30) in a non-stick skillet. Turn occasionally until brown on all sides. Remove to a plate with paper towels to cool & repeat with the next batch.

Option #2 for cooking balls: Place in single layers in ungreased 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pans. Bake at 400 degrees for 10-15 minutes or until no longer pink, turning often; drain. Cool on plates covered in paper towels.

Place about 30 meatballs each into freezer containers. May be frozen for up to 3 months.

Yield: 5 batches (about 30 meatballs per batch).
Time: 1 hour.

Chili Meatloaf

I know what you're thinking... "meatloaf?! What, are we in the 1950s?!"... that's exactly what I thought when I came across this recipe (plus I've always hated meatloaf!). But I got the "Splenda" cookbook as my hubby has Type 1 Diabetes and I'm always looking for ways to cut out carbs and sugar. (I've done a fair amount of experimenting with Splenda, and I have to say that its not too bad!) What I love best about this meatloaf is that it is a little spicier than traditional meatloaf, which makes it really good! (I grew up on a lot of Mexican food, so I love spicy!) Enjoy!



Chili Meatloaf

Source: Splenda Cook Book

Yield: Serves 4

1 c tomato sauce, divided
3 Tbsp Splenda Granular, divided
2 tsp yellow mustard
1 ½ tsp chili powder, divided
1 Tbsp dried onion flakes
1 Tbsp dried parsley flakes
½ tsp salt
1 lb extra-lean ground turkey or beef (I use turkey, but I’ve also tried it with ground venison!)
¼ c Italian seasoned bread crumbs

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray 9x5 loaf pan with cooking spray.
2. Mix 1/3 c tomato sauce, 2 Tbs Splenda, mustard, 1 tsp chili powder, onion flakes, parsley, and salt in large bowl.
3. Add ground meat and bread crumbs; stir well.
4. Shape the mixture into the pan.
5. Mix remaining tomato sauce, chili powder, and Splenda together in a small bowl. Spoon mixture over the meat mixture.
6. Bake 55-60 minutes. Remove and cool for 3-5min before slicing.