Running Mama Cooks

Wow, life has been busy!! Which means dinner usually isn't too exciting around here. I did make this new recipe on Monday night and they were very good. I saw it on Lauren's blog, it is originally a Rachael Ray recipe.

Next time I will take Lauren's idea of adding some green pepper for color and flavor, and probably use provelone cheese instead for the sauce.

Philly Cheesesteak Sloppy Joes
Recipe adapted from Rachael Ray

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon EVOO - Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 pound ground turkey breast
1 softball-sized onion, chopped
1/4 cup steak sauce
1 cup chicken stock
Salt and ground black pepper
4 dinner rolls (or 8 finger rolls), toasted if desired
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon flour
1 cup milk (I used skim)
1 cup desired cheese, shredded

Directions:

In large skillet over medium-high heat with 1 turn of the pan of EVOO, brown the ground turkey, about 5-6 minutes. Add the onion and cook another 3-4 minutes, until the onions start to get tender. Stir in the steak sauce and chicken stock, season with salt and pepper, bring up to a bubble and cook about 2 minutes.

While the meat is cooking, melt the butter in a medium-size skillet over medium-high heat. Stir in the flour and cook about 1 minute. Whisk in milk, bring up to a bubble and let thicken, about 2 minutes. Turn off heat and stir the cheese in a figure-eight motion until it is all incorporated.

To serve, place a scoopful of the meat mixture onto the bottom of the rolls, then top with the cheese sauce and replace the top of the roll.
ZACH'S RATING - *** 1/2

I was thrilled to find out that this week's theme for the recipe swap was sandwiches. Quick weeknight meals is what I am in need of the most since I am now teaching every evening during the week except for Tuesdays. Healthy sammies and wraps are the perfect fit for our family right now.

I was assigned Elisha's "Graceland" Eggplant Panini and it was great! I lightened it up by baking the eggplant instead of frying and also skipping the oil on the sandwich itself. I actually cooked the eggplant in the afternoon and all I had to do was assemble and cook the panini after putting the kiddos to bed.

Here is Lishie's original Recipe. I shared our go-to recipe for French Dip Sandwiches, one of our family favs.

Eggplant Panini
Recipe adapted from DeLish

1 Eggplant
1 egg, whisked
1/2 cup Bread crumbs
Italian Sub Rolls or full Italian Bread, sliced into sandwich sizes
1 Jar of Roasted, Sweet Red Peppers or 1 Fresh Red Pepper, Roasted
Fresh Mozzarella, sliced
Fresh Basil
Approximately 2-3 tsp Balsamic Vinegar

Directions:

Clean, peel, & slice the eggplant length-wise. Set up a mis en place: Whisked egg in one shallow bowl, Bread Crumbs in another. Heat oven to 400. Dip the eggplant slice first in the egg then coat the slices with bread crumbs & place on a baking sheet. Cook for 15 minutes or until golden brown.

After the eggplant is breaded & cooked, assemble the sandwiches... Bread, eggplant, peppers, mozzarella slices, basil leaves (I leave them whole) & finally the splash of balsamic vinegar.

Close the assembled sandwich & cook it either on a panini maker OR on a grill pan with a weight on the sandwich (another pan or heavy plate) until the mozzarella is melted.

ZACH'S RATING - *** 1/2

Ok, I lied. THIS will be my last apple post (maybe!). I came across this recipe and couldn't resist. What a treat this was for lunch today! And such a creative way to use apples!

Caramelized Apple Grilled Cheese

Recipe from Closet Cooking by way of Beantown Baker

serves 1

1 Tbsp butter
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1 dash of cinnamon
1 apple (peeled, cored and sliced)
2 thick slices of good cheese (cheddar or gouda work well)
2 slices of good bread
1 Tbsp butter

Melt the butter in a non-stick pan.

Add the sugar and cinnamon and cook until bubbly.

Add the apples and saute until tender, about 5 minutes.

Assemble sandwich and grill until golden brown on both sides, about 2-4 minutes per side or place in a preheated panini press

My first meal in exactly 3 weeks! Allison tried this one out a few weeks ago, so I thought Id give it a try. An easy crockpot meal seemed like the best way to get back into cooking while also juggling 2 kids. Here is the original recipe.

I really liked these sandwiches a lot, but they were very spicy! Definitely depends on what kind of wing sauce you use, the one I used was "medium." I was definitely sweating a bit when I was done!!

I shredded the chicken right in the crockpot about an hour before eating, so it would soak up some of the sauce. We topped them off with some shredded Mexican cheese and Zach put blue cheese on his (I am not a fan).

Crockpot Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches
Recipe from Allrecipes.com

Ingredients

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 (17.5 fluid ounce) bottle buffalo wing sauce, divided
1/2 (1 ounce) package dry ranch salad dressing mix
2 tablespoons butter
6 hoagie rolls, split lengthwise

Directions

1.Place the chicken breasts into a slow cooker, and pour in 3/4 of the wing sauce and the ranch dressing mix. Cover, and cook on Low for 6 to 7 hours.

2.Once the chicken has cooked, add the butter, and shred the meat finely with two forks. Pile the meat onto the hoagie rolls, and splash with the remaining buffalo wing sauce to serve.

Another cute Finn picture :D


ZACH'S RATING - ***

Update - I used the leftovers to make buffalo chicken pizza. It was awesome.

So, I have been the worst blogger ever, but I guess I have a pretty decent excuse! Baby boy is due any day now and even though I have been cooking here and there, I haven't been making anything too blog worthy. We have been eating a lot of repeat recipes (taco mac, spinach tortellini salad, Chicken spinach wraps, French's Fried Onion pork chops).

This morning, Zach picked several really nice green peppers from our garden, so I defrosted some turkey sausage we had in the freezer and made sausage and pepper sandwiches. They were really yummy.


Italian Sausage and Peppers Sammies
A Running Mama Cooks Original Recipe

Ingredients:

6 mild Italian turkey sausage links
2 tbs Olive oil
3 medium green peppers
2 medium onions
4 garlic cloves
1 large can crushed tomatoes
Basil
Italian seasoning
crushed red pepper flakes
salt and pepper
4 hoagie rolls

Directions:

Brown sausage on medium heat. Remove and set aside. Heat olive oil and saute garlic until lightly browned. Add peppers and onions and cook until tender, about 5 minutes.

Cut sausage into chunks and return to pan. Add crushed tomato and seasonings to taste. Simmer. Serve on lightly toasted hoagie rolls.

ZACH'S RATING - ****

Update - I ended up going into labor that night!!!

I knew I wanted to make a french dip sandwich and looked at a ton of recipes to find one that fit the bill. Most used a roast and the crockpot, which looked good, but I wasn't in the mood to do it that way. I didn't want the meat to be shredded, I prefer it thinly sliced.

When I saw Rachael Ray's recipe, I knew I found the one. It was quick, easy and used yummy deli sliced roast beef. I made a few changes, using my small crockpot to allow the meat and au jus to hang out for about an hour before serving. Plus, I need cheese on my French Dip!!

French Dip Sandwiches
Adapted from Rachael Ray

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons butter
1 shallot, chopped
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 jigger dry sherry, optional
2 cups beef broth
1 lb deli sliced roast beef
coarse salt and pepper
4 french sandwich rolls, split
4 slices provolone cheese

Directions:

Pile meat loosely across your cutting board or a large work surface. Season meat with salt and black pepper. Place meat into crockpot and set to low.

In a large, shallow skillet over moderate heat, melt butter. Add shallots to butter and saute 2 minutes. Add flour to butter and shallot and cook a minute longer. Whisk in sherry and cook liquid out. Whisk in broth in a slow stream. Bring sauce to a bubble and pour into crockpot over the meat. Allow to simmer over low heat until ready to serve sandwiches (about an hour).

Set out 4 ramekins or small soup cups for dipping sauce and 4 split french rolls. To assemble, using a pair of kitchen tongs, pile meat into rolls. Please sandwiches on a baking sheet. Set ramekins or cups with extra dipping sauce. Place a slice of provolone cheese on top of sandwiches and broil until melted and browned.

ZACH'S RATING - A Solid ****

Update - This recipe has turned into a family favorite. I make it at least once a month and have also used it for entertaining. Great for when you have a small group of friends hanging out. Highly recommend it!

This is the 2nd recipe from The Neely's that I've made and was definitely not disappointed. Easy and delicious. Here is the original recipe.

Pat's Smoked Sausage and Pepper Sandwich
Recipe courtesy The Neelys

Ingredients

1 tablespoons olive oil
1 pound smoked sausage, sliced into quarters then lengthwise (I used turkey)
1 red bell pepper, sliced
1 yellow bell pepper, sliced
1 orange bell pepper, sliced
2 medium yellow onions, sliced
3 garlic cloves, chopped
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 cup beer
1/2 cup Neely's BBQ sauce
4 fresh hoagie rolls

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Heat the olive oil in a large cast iron skillet or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the sausages and brown on all sides, about 7 to 8 minutes. Remove from skillet and reserve.

Add onions and peppers to the skillet and saute until tender and golden brown, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic and saute until fragrant. Stir in the tomato paste, beer, and BBQ sauce. Cook for a few minutes, then add the sausages back to the pan. Reduce the heat and simmer until the sauce is nice and thick, about 10 minutes.

Slice the bread open, put on sheet tray, and toast in the oven while the sausage is simmering. Remove the bread from the oven and fill with the sausages and peppers.

Transfer to serving dishes and serve.