Are you in the mood for nachos that you can call dinner? Look no further.

Finished product on a lovely Fiestaware plate. Just know that I would have used 10 times more sour cream if we had not been about to run out.

This is called "Mexican Casserole", but I call it "The meal to go along with a Bulls or Bears game".

The only change I made is that I used REAL ground beef instead of meatless crumbles. I guess this would make a good recipe for you Veggie-Eaters! Especially if you crave bar food as often as I do.

Ok so first I sprayed my 13 x 9 inch rectangular baking pan with PAM. Then I sort of crushed 24 tortilla chips. I did not used baked ones, sorry. I think I probably crumbled more like 30 chips. I'm a rule-breaker.

Then I pre-heated the oven to 375.

Next I heated 2 teaspoons of oil in a big frying pan over medium heat. I added the onion to the pan and cooked 4 minutes or so. The add the garlic and jalapeño and cook 1 minute. Stir in chili powder, cumin, black pepper, and crumbles (or the BEEF) and cook 3 minutes - for the crumbles, or until thoroughly cooked through for the BEEF. Add the beef/onion mixture on top of the tortilla chips - spread as evenly as you can.


In the same pan add the pinto beans and mash them with the back of your spoon. This is a serious workout for your forearm, so don't lift weights beforehand. Stir in the lime juice. I used 1/2 a juicy lime rather than measuring the lime. Add the bean mixture on top of the meat or crumbles.


In a small bowl combine the tomatoes, cilantro, and salt. I squeezed in the other 1/2 of the lime because I love lime. Layer the tomato mixture over the beans in the dish. Top with the remaining tortilla chips, pressing to slightly crush. Sprinkle evenly with cheese.

Bake for about 13 minutes until the cheese is bubbly. Take out of the oven and sprinkle with the scallions. Then spoon as much sour cream as your body can take, and eat! You will need a fork and knife. Extra cilantro on top would be yummy too.

Spaghetti sauce - meat or not meat

For those of you that buy spaghetti sauce in jars, please stop! Not only is it full of junk (preservatives and god knows what else), it's just plain gross (in my opinion).

So here is a simple sauce that I make all the time. It makes enough to eat a big dinner, have a lunch and freeze enough for another dinner.

Ingredients to buy at the store
2 28oz cans of tomatoes. My favorites are the Muir Glen fire roasted, or San Marzano's. Plain old regular ones are fine but they won't give you as much flavor.
One medium-large onion (yellow or white)
Garlic (a few cloves)
Tomato paste (not necessary, but I think it helps)
Basil (preferably fresh, but dried is ok)
Salt, Sugar, Pepper, Olive oil (hopefully those are staples)
Red pepper flakes (if you like a bit of spice)
Spaghetti or Angel Hair or whatever noodles you want

Chop the onion. If you are not planning on blending this sauce (I use a stick blender that I adore), then cut the onion into the size pieces you would like to eat. Open the cans of tomatoes and either press or mince the garlic (or buy it pre-chopped like I do). Carefully cut up your basil if it is fresh.

Heat oil in a saute pan. If you don't know that means here is an example. You can probably use a dutch oven (like a Le Creuset) or really any sort of pot will probably do. When the oil is warmed up add the onion pieces. Stir so they don't stick or burn. Then add the garlic. Continue stirring for about 5-7 minutes to get out the flavor (I made that up....hopefully it brings out the flavor, I don't really know).

Then add the tomatoes. Here is where you have a choice. If you have a stick blender you can just dump them all in even if they are whole, because you can blend them later. If you aren't going to blend it, then what I used to do is wash my hands and then pick up each whole tomato and break it into little pieces with my hands. It will squirt, so beware!!! Now squeeze in some tomato paste (or from a jar....I am convinced the ones in the squirt tubes are better, but probably not). I don't measure an amount. If I had to guess I would say maybe 2 or 3 Tablespoons. Then I add a spoonful of white sugar (it helps cut the acid of the tomatoes....ok I made that up too, but it might be true) and a few sprinkles of salt and pepper. If you are doing fresh basil then add as much as you can. I'd say at least one cup chopped and loosely packed. If you are doing dry basil then maybe a teaspoon or so. Other people like oregano, but I do not. You can add it if you like it.

I turn up the heat to bring it to a boil. Once it boils I turn it down to simmer and put the top on tightly for about 30 minutes.

If you would like to add meat, I cook the meat in a fry pan separate from the sauce. When it's cooked through (or like 90% through) I spoon off all of the fat and then I dump it into the sauce AFTER the 30 minutes is up. I also like to add a sprinkle of red pepper flakes to the sauce for a bite.

After 30 minutes I take the top off and then I put on a pot of water to boil. Between the water heating up and the pasta cooking, that's probably about 15 minutes or so of more cooking.
First picture is AFTER blending it, second picture is BEFORE blending.

When all done I like to pour more Kraft Parmesan (I know, gross, but I love it) than humanly possible on top and eat eat eat.

So delicious Allison might eat it (if she could pick out the string beans)

Tonight's dinner is one of our staples. My mom used to make it when we were younger - and then she even made it when we were older, but then she used FAKE meat instead of real beef. I can remember her trying to tempt my high school boyfriend into eating it and he was NOT having it. It's quick and easy and it comes from the hysterically named book "Living the High Carbohydrate Way" by Jane Brody. Hey is that really any crazier than eating NO carbs and lots of bacon? Not really.

To prove how much of a staple this meal is, look at the recipe card! It is a mess. You can still make out my mom's impeccable handwriting though. Beware: I don't perfectly follow this recipe - well really I just double the amount of beef! Everything else stays about the same.

First put some rice on to cook. I don't know what proportion of rice you like to the stuff on top, but I like quite a bit. So for the two of us and leftovers I make 1 1/2 cups of rice. I am not including a recipe for rice because that would assume that whomever reads this is stupid. Check your rice package.

Have a helpful assistant (or yourself) cut off the ends of the string beans and then cut them into pieces. You can make them as small or large as you want. Here's how we do it in the Hodgman household:

Ok I lied that does NOT show you the size, but I cut them into about 1/2s of thirds or fourths if they are really big. Notice the AMAZING new Shun knife that Tom is carefully using. Really... they are worth the investment.

When your string beans are cut up put them in a bowl - you will need it for later.

Get a bowl and make the sauce. Dump in 1/3 cup of broth - I don't know why it says it should be warmed, I think that is ridiculous, one heaping Tablespoon of soy sauce, one heaping teaspoon of cider vinegar, one heaping teaspoon of sherry, and two teaspoons of cornstarch (to thicken it up). The heaping amounts should only be if you choose to double the beef. If you like skimpy amounts of beef then don't heap the liquids! Mix this all up with a whisk making sure to incorporate the cornstarch in. You'll need to stir this again later, but now you can just leave it.

Heat a frying pan over HIGH heat for however long it takes for it to get hot. The recipe says 30 seconds but currently we have an insanely slow electric stove. 30 seconds is good on a gas stove for sure. Put in some canola/vegetable oil - I'd say about 1-2 Tablespoons (2T) and swirl it around. Dump in the green beans and maybe turn the heat to JUST below high. Stir and let them sizzle. Don't burn them, but the sizzle is a good sign. Cook them for about 4-5 minutes. Then dump them out of the pan into the bowl and put to the side.

Now it is here that the recipe unwisely tells you to add garlic and ginger to the pan. If you do that (as I have done countless times) you will burn the crap out of the ginger and garlic, and it will spit and burn the crap out of you. Take the pan off the heat for a little bit if electric.....if you have gas just turn it the HECK down and let it cool down. When it is somewhat cooler and you feel safe, add a little more oil to the pan (I always need a little more) and add the garlic - 2 teaspoons (2t) and the ginger. I add way more ginger than it calls for. I probably do 2T instead of 2t. I like ginger. I use the pre-bottled kind because I got sick of peeling the ginger and having it be all stringy and nasty.

Ok so stir the garlic and ginger for maybe 30 seconds to get some flavor out. Sometimes I don't even add them first - I just add the meat and garlic and ginger at the same time. I do not think there is a big difference - so you choose. Now dump in your meat. Then add in a few shakes of red pepper flakes. Once again add as much as the amount of spice that you want. Like I said before I like to add 1 pound of meat instead of 1/2 a pound. This is where you veggie-only eaters could add tempeh or some other fake "I taste like meat" substance. Stir the stuff until the meat cooks through. Then very carefully spoon off the grease. I like to pour it into a glass jar that is now empty (veering off from this idea, I find it sad that only small things come in glass jars. I still have fond memories of the old Hellman's glass jars being reused by my parents. Isn't plastic worse than glass? Or is just that it's cheaper?) There will be varying amounts of fat depending on what meat you bought. Spoon off as much as you can.

Now at this point hopefully your rice is done!

Re-whisk the sauce and dump it into the beef/ginger/garlic/red pepper flakes mixture. Stir and turn the heat up a bit. When it starts to thicken (30 seconds) then add the string beans and stir them up so they can get warm again. Serve over the rice. Ta-da.

                          

I'd say it takes about 20 minutes from start to finish (including prep time). This serves 2 people with enough leftovers for one big lunch or two small lunches (I am basing that on the way Tom and I eat). I have made it to feed 4 people, but I feel like that is stretching it a bit. I'd say 3 normal eating people and maybe an anorexic friend too.... but not 4 normal people.