This tater tot casserole is perfect for busy nights when you don’t have much time to cook. This casserole consists of cooked ground beef mixed with cream of chicken soup, cheddar cheese, and tater tots. The only real work that is involved in this recipe is browning the meat. You can add additional vegetables if you want such a celery, peas, or carrots. Just throw them in the fry pan with the beef and onion mixture. You can also use different types of cheeses if you want. Enjoy.

Ingredients:
1lb ground beef
1 small onion (chopped)
1 (10 ½ ounce) can cream of chicken soup
½ cup milk
1 teaspoon dried oregano
18 ounces tater tots (1/2 of a bag)
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: Pre-heat the oven to 375 degrees. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, add the ground beef and onion. Cook until the ground beef has browned. Drain any excess liquid and set aside.
Step 2: Lightly grease a casserole dish. Add soup, milk and oregano. Add the ground beef mixture and mix well. Top with tater tots. Sprinkle cheese over the top of the tater tots.
Step 3: Cover and place into the oven. Bake covered for 40 minutes. After 40 minutes uncover and bake for an additional 15 minutes or until bubbly and the cheese browned.
(Makes 4 Servings)

Yes, you can bake hot dogs in the oven. This is not some type of hot dog casserole but rather hot dogs with buns that are actually baked in the oven. These baked hot dogs are topped with chili, onions and cheese. The condiments include mayonnaise, mustard and relish. These three ingredients are spread onto the hot dogs buns before they are baked.  I admit I was a little skeptical of this recipe when I first saw it. I had no idea how it would turn out. In the end, it turned out to be very good. The hot dogs buns were hot too soggy or crunchy but had just the right texture. This is a super easy recipe that takes very little time to prepare. Enjoy. This recipe was adapted from In The Wabe.

Ingredients:
8 hot dogs
8 hot dog buns
1 (14.5 ounce) can of chili with beans
½ cup onion (diced)
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
mayonnaise
mustard
sweet relish

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: Spread the inside of each hot dog bun with mayonnaise, mustard and sweet relish. Fill with hot dogs and place into a 13×9” baking dish.
Step 2: Top each hot dog with chili, cheese, and onion. Cover with aluminum foil, place into the oven and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes.
(Makes 4 Servings)

Enchilada stuffed shells make a quick and easy dinner. Boiled pasta shells are stuffed with cooked seasoned ground turkey and refried beans. The shells are placed into a baking dish topped with enchilada sauce and cheese and then baked in the oven. If you want you can use ground hamburger instead of turkey. After the shells have finished baking you can top them with any additional ingredients you want such a green onions, cilantro, tomato, black olives, and sour cream. This recipe can easily be double to feed several people. Enjoy.

Ingredients:
15 jumbo pasta shells
1lb ground turkey
2 (10 ounce) can enchilada sauce
½ teaspoon dried minced onion
¼ teaspoon dried oregano
¼ teaspoon dried basil
¼ teaspoon ground cumin
½ cup refried beans
1 cup shredded Colby jack cheese

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Cook pasta shells according to package directions. Drain and set aside. In a large skillet over medium heat brown ground turkey until no longer pink. Drain any excess fat. Stir in onion, oregano, basil, and cumin. Stir in 1 can of the enchilada sauce. Stir in refried beans. Set aside.
Step 2: Fill each cooked pasta shell with the turkey/refried bean mixture. Coat an 11 x 7 inch baking dish with nonstick cooking spray and pour half of the remaining can of enchilada sauce evenly over the bottom. Place each shell into the bottom of the dish. Pour the remaining enchilada sauce over the tops of the shells.
Step 3: Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. During the last few minutes of cooking, uncover and sprinkle the tops of the shells with Colby-jack cheese. Bake until the cheese has melted.
(Makes 3 servings)

Quesadillas are always a delicious idea and when you add breakfast ingredients into the mix it’s even better. These are perfect for breakfast or dinner. This recipe combines scrambled eggs, ham, bacon, cheese, green pepper and green onion. All of these ingredients are put onto a flour tortilla and then fried in the pan. You can add additional ingredients if you choose or leave out whatever you want.  These go perfect served with salsa or even country gravy would go great as well. Enjoy.

Ingredients:
4 large eggs
2 tablespoons milk
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon salt
butter
¼ cup green pepper sliced
3 green onions (sliced)
½ cup ham diced
½ cup bacon (cooked until crispy and crumbled)
8 ounces cheddar cheese (or Colby jack)
4 large flour tortillas
Salsa (to serve)

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: In a medium bowl whisk together the eggs, milk, salt, and pepper. Add a tablespoon of butter to a medium pan and melt the butter over medium high. Add the egg mixture and the green pepper. Stir constantly with a spatula while breaking into pieces. Cook until the eggs are fully cooked.
Step 2: Heat a nonstick skillet to medium heat. Butter the bottom of a flour tortilla. Place butter side down into the skillet. Sprinkle the top of the tortilla evenly with cheese. On one side of the tortilla sprinkle scrambled eggs with green pepper, ham, bacon, and green onion. Once the tortilla has browned on the bottom, fold one side of the tortilla over the top and press down with a spatula.
Step 3: Remove from the pan and repeat until all the tortillas are gone.
(Makes 4 Servings)

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that buffalo chicken would go great on sliders. Buffalo chicken is piled onto slider rolls and topped with blue cheese slaw. Instead of using breaded chicken this recipe uses pulled chicken mixed with buffalo sauce. You can use leftover cooked chicken or you can cook the chicken any way you like. What I did was boil the chicken breasts until fully cooked, I then gave them some time to cool and shredded them using two forks. The blue cheese slaw is nothing more than coleslaw mix tossed with blue cheese salad dressing. This is another fantastic recipe for game day. Enjoy.

Ingredients:
1/2lb boneless skinless chicken breasts (cooked and shredded)
½ cup hot sauce
2 tablespoons butter
2 ½ cups shredded cabbage and carrot mix
4 tablespoons blue cheese salad dressing
12 slider buns
Butter

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: Place cabbage and carrot mix into a medium bowl. Add blue cheese salad dressing and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate until needed.
Step 2: In a medium sauce pan add butter and hot sauce. Cook over low heat until the butter has melted. Stir until well combined. Add shredded chicken and cook until heated through.
Step 3: Split the sliders buns in half and butter each half. Place face down in a fry pan over medium heat and cook until browned on the bottom. Pile buffalo chicken onto the bottom half of each slider bun, top with blue cheese slaw and place on the top half of the bun.
(Makes 6 Servings)

This is by no means an authentic Cuban sandwich but just a simple idea for a Cuban sandwich inspired grilled cheese. This recipe does not use sliced or pulled pork but uses sliced turkey instead. Ham, turkey, Swiss cheese, and dill pickles are piled onto sour dough bread and lightly grilled on both sides in the pan. For the dressing you can use either mayonnaise or mustard or both. I like to pile massive amounts of ham, turkey and Swiss onto my sandwiches, but this actual recipe calls for less. These Cuban grilled cheese sandwiches are very easy to make. Enjoy.

Ingredients:
8 slices French bread
4 slices deli ham
4 slices deli turkey
8 slices Swiss cheese
8 dill pickle slices
mustard (or mayonnaise)
6 tablespoons butter

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: Pre-heat a skillet over medium high. Spread butter on one side of a slice of bread. Place bread butter side down onto the skillet. Top with 1 slice of cheese, 1 slice of ham, 1 slice of turkey, 2 dill pickle slices, and 1 additional slice of cheese. Butter another slice of bread on one side and on the other side lightly spread a layer of mustard or mayonnaise. Place butter side up on top of the sandwich. Grill until lightly browned and flip over. Continue grilling until the other side has browned and the cheese has melted.
Step 2: Repeat with remaining sandwiches.
(Makes 4 Servings)

This is pretty much the easiest chili recipe you will find anywhere. This one is perfect for a busy day because the slow cooker does most of the work for you. Just brown the beef, chop a few vegetables, add all the ingredients into the slow cooker and you are finished. If you like your chili a little spicier you can add more hot sauce. I like my chili a little bit thicker so I drained the beans. If you like a soupier chili you can add the beans to the slow cooker with the juice. This recipe is simple and perfect for cold fall or winter nights. Enjoy.

Ingredients:
1 pound ground beef
¾ cup onion (diced)
¾ cup celery (diced)
¾ cup green bell pepper (diced)
2 garlic cloves (minced)
2 (10.7 ounce) cans tomato puree
1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans (with liquid)
1 (15 ounce) can kidney beans (drained)
1 (15 ounce) can cannellini beans (with liquid)
½ tablespoon chili powder
½ teaspoon dried basil
¾ teaspoon oregano
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
1/8 teaspoon hot pepper sauce (or more, to taste)

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: In a large skillet over medium high heat, add ground beef and cook until evenly browned. Chop up with a metal spatula while browning. Drain any excess grease.
Step 2: Place beef into the slow cooker. Add onion, celery, green pepper, garlic, tomato puree, kidney beans, and cannellini beans. Season with chili powder, parsley, salt, basil, oregano, black pepper, and hot pepper sauce. Mix well.
Step 3: Place cover onto the slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hours.
(Makes 8 Servings)

Beers brats are perfect for cook outs and mainly, tailgating. These brats are first simmered in beer and butter and then grilled to perfection. Try to find some good fresh ground bratwurst if you can. These will be a lot fresher and have better flavor overall. This recipe is fairly easy, you will want to pierce the bratwurst to keep them from exploding while they simmer. This is another great recipe for football season. Enjoy.

Ingredients:
2lbs bratwurst sausages
2 onions (thinly sliced)
1 cup butter
6 (12 ounce cans of beer)
1 ½ teaspoons ground black pepper
10 hoagie rolls

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: Prick bratwurst with a fork to prevent them from exploding as they simmer. In a large pot add bratwurst, combine beer, butter, and onions. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes. Remove from the pan with a slotted spoon.
Step 2: Lightly oil the grill grate. Heat the grill to medium-high heat. Place bratwurst onto the grill and grill for 10-14 minutes, turning occasionally until browned on all sides.
Step 3: Place bratwurst into the hoagie rolls and top with onions.
(Makes 10 servings)

Buffalo chicken tacos are an interesting combination of boneless Buffalo wings and tacos. Breaded chicken is deep fried and then tossed with hot sauce and butter. You can adjust the amount of heat by the spiciness of the hot sauce you use. I used frank’s red hot and needless to say, these were pretty hot. These tacos are topped with lettuce, tomato, cheddar cheese, and blue cheese dressing. This does require a little work breading and frying the chicken but that’s about it. This is another great game day recipe. Enjoy.

Ingredients:
3 boneless skinless chicken breasts (sliced into 1 inch chunks”
oil (for deep frying)
1 cup all purpose flour
½ teaspoon black pepper
2 teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoons garlic powder
1 egg
1 cup milk
½ cup hot sauce
2 tablespoons butter
1 package small flour tortillas
romaine lettuce (sliced)
roma tomatoes (chopped)
shredded cheddar cheese
blue cheese dressing

Cooking Instructions:

Step 1: Heat oil in a deep fryer to 375 degrees. In a large bowl combine flour, black pepper, salt, and garlic powder. In a medium bowl beat together the eggs and milk. First roll the chicken pieces in the flour mixture, then dip into the egg mixture and roll the chicken bits once more in the flour mixture until well coated.
Step 2: Deep fry breaded chicken bits in batches at 375 degrees for about 5 minutes per batch or until chicken is fully cooked. Drain on paper towels.
Step 3: While chicken is frying, in a small sauce pan over low heat add hot sauce and butter. Cook until the butter has melted and is combined with the hot sauce. In a large bowl toss the chicken bits with hot sauce until fully coated.
Step 4: to make tacos- place a few buffalo chicken pieces onto the bottom of a flour tortilla. Top with lettuce, tomato, cheddar cheese, and blue cheese.
(Makes 4 Servings)