Monday Munchies - Steamboat Recipes!

Well, I just got back from my annual skitrip in Steamboat Springs, CO - and it did not disappoint! I had a great time skiing and got to see some amazing performances, but I'll talk more about that on Thursday... for now, I'll focus on the food.

I did the majority of the cooking for the people in my condo this trip, not because I had to, but because it's something I love to do. In addition to our nightly meals, I also threw a dinner party for a couple of my favorite bands - and their wives, girlfriends, soon-to-be fiancés, sisters, etc, etc, etc. By the time all was said and done, I think there were ~22 people in a condo made for 6 people - we were cozy to say the least! Ha ha!

Anyways - I always tend to get asked for the recipes I use, so I thought I'd just share them all here. I don't have pictures - just links to the recipes I used. And as I've stated before, I'm not one to come up with new recipes in the kitchen, my forté is recognizing what will be good once it's all said and done, and then making it! So here are all of the recipes I used throughout the trip...

Day 1: Dinner party

Salad - no recipe - just make a salad people.

Garlic Cheese Bread - Oh me. Oh my. I could have eaten this for dinner and been 100% content. It was freaking good. And it was even good when we got home from going out that night and had what was left of it... YUM!

Pioneer Woman's Lasagna - Well, I think this was pretty good. And the reason I 'think' is because I didn't actually have any. I was a few servings short on this one dish, but everyone said it was awesome, so I guess I'll have to make it for myself again sometime! And I used all turkey meat in this version (2lbs of ground turkey and 1 pkg of turkey sausage links) - no one would ever know...

Tuscan Chicken Simmer - I made this in addition to the lasagna just to have some variety. I doubled the recipe and there was definitely enough to go around. And the leftovers were eaten up the next day, so obviously it was worth returning to! I'll definitely make it again - easy and good - I love me some pesto!! (I made it with farfalle pasta and it worked really well, I think better than it would work with spaghetti, and I sauteed bite-size pieces of chicken rather than whole chicken breasts so it would feed a crowd more easily).

Pioneer Woman's Apple Dumplings - Another shining spotlight - people were talking about these all week! SO SO GOOD! I would only allow myself one after seeing what all went into it, but it's worth the rare indulgence! And I used diet Mountain Dew and it was just fine... if you want to cut *some* calories along the way...


Day 2:

Enchilada Casserole - this is a recipe that my family has made for YEARS. I think we got it out of a Fredricksburg cookbook when we were on a family vacation. I can't even begin to count the number of times I have made this one, and it never fails...

1 lb ground beef (you can use turkey too, or even sauté cut up chicken breasts)
1 pkg taco seasoning
8 flour tortillas
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can milk (fill up the CoM soup can)
2 cups shredded cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350*
2. Mix the ground meat and taco seasoning to make taco meat.
3. Mix the Cream of Mushroom soup and 1 can of milk and heat through.
4. Cut the tortillas into bite size pieces (I use a pizza cutter for this)
5. Spray 9X13" pan and layer 1/2 of tortillas, then 1/2 of meat, then 1/2 of soup mixture, then 1/2 of cheese. Repeat layers.
6. Bake for 30 minutes.

That's it. For this trip I did 3 layers (additional ingredients, but not quite double everything either). I knew it needed to feed quite a few people, and would make a great late night snack when returning from the concerts/bars. I was right.

Creamy Jalapeno Dip - This Chuy's classic goes PERFECTLY with the Enchilada Casserole. I ended up making 2 batches throughout the week because I knew it would go fast. And it did. I also make the Spicy Crackers that can be found in the same recipe post from a couple years ago...

Day 3:

Pot Roast and Creamy Mashed Potatoes - Both of these recipes are also from Pioneer Woman's site - can y'all tell I like the way she cooks? I've only had pot roast with red wine one other time, and I turned up my nose. I think it was just because it wasn't what I was used to (roast + onion soup mix), so I decided I'd give it another shot. Everything else seemeed like it would work, and I haven't had one of PW's recipes fail me yet, so I went with it. Thank goodness it was a success and people enjoyed it. And these mashed potatoes... well, I think it's the only recipe I'll use going forward. I made them for this meal and I made them for Christmas dinner too - YUMMY!!!

Day 4:

Almond Chicken Casserole - This was just something easy that could be cooked and frozen quickly and would heat up well once we got there. And it did just that! I didn't have to worry about a thing...


Day 5:

Ranch Chicken Pot Pie - This recipe is from Picky Palate and it was really, really good. So good that I had seconds later on the same night! And a guy that was with us told me that he didn't even like chicken pot pie (as I was pulling it out of the oven!) even gave this one the thumbs up... it was EASY to make and super tasty! I'd make it again in a heart beat!


Lunch/Random:

Michelle's Chili - I got this recipe from a friend of mine. She's made it numerous times and a lot of other people I know have made it well and it's always gotten good reviews. This was all gone at the end of the week - along with bags of fritos and lots of cheese - the ultimate way to consume chili IMO... Thanks for sharing Michelle!


2 pounds ground beef chuck
2 large white onions, chopped
2 (14.5 ounce) cans diced tomatoes with juice
2 (15 ounce) cans tomato sauce
1 (12 fluid ounce) can beer
2 (15 ounce) cans spicy chili beans
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
3 tablespoons hot pepper sauce (e.g. Tabasco™), or to taste
1/3 cup chili powder
3 tbsp cumin
4 fresh jalapeno peppers, seeded and chopped (I use 4 TBSP jarred jalapenos)

Cook beef, then let all simmer on stove for up to 2 hours.



And that is it my friends... if you see anything that's missing, please let me know!