Pioneer Woman's Mac and Cheese

O.k., so this is my new winter comfort food.  Easy peasy and the kids love it too.  I also like that there are NO breadcrumbs on top.  That is the one thing I have never liked about homemade mac and cheese.  This is delish...try it on a chilly night with a salad.

• 4 cups Dried Macaroni
• 1 whole Egg Beaten
• 1/4 cup (1/2 Stick Or 4 Tablespoons) Butter
• 1/4 cup All-purpose Flour
• 2-1/2 cups Whole Milk
• 2 teaspoons (heaping) Dry Mustard, More If Desired
• 1 pound Cheese, Grated
• 1/2 teaspoon Salt, More To Taste
• 1/2 teaspoon Seasoned Salt, More To Taste
• 1/2 teaspoon Ground Black Pepper
• Optional Spices: Cayenne Pepper, Paprika, Thyme

Preparation Instructions

Cook macaroni until very firm. Macaroni should be too firm to eat right out of the pot. Drain.

In a small bowl, beat egg.

In a large pot, melt butter and sprinkle in flour. Whisk together over medium-low heat. Cook mixture for five minutes, whisking constantly. Don’t let it burn.

Pour in milk, add mustard, and whisk until smooth. Cook for five minutes until very thick. Reduce heat to low.

Take 1/4 cup of the sauce and slowly pour it into beaten egg, whisking constantly to avoid cooking eggs. Whisk together till smooth.

Pour egg mixture into sauce, whisking constantly. Stir until smooth.

Add in cheese and stir to melt.

Add salt and pepper. Taste sauce and add more salt and seasoned salt as needed! DO NOT UNDERSALT.

Pour in drained, cooked macaroni and stir to combine.

Serve immediately (very creamy) or pour into a buttered baking dish, top with extra cheese, and bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until bubbly and golden on top.

Sweet Shredded Pork

3lb. pork roast
5 oz. salsa
20 oz Dr. Pepper (or caffeine free coke if you don't drink caffeine and can't find caffeine free dr. pepper)
1 c. brown sugar

Place pork in crock pot and fill it 1/2 way up (the pork) with water. Cook on high for 5 hours. Drain off water. Cut pork into thirds. Mix together sauce ingredients and pour over pork. Cook an additional 3 hours on high. Shred pork with forks and leave it on low until ready to serve.

Serve as a burrito, taco or salad.

PF Chang's Mongolian Beef

This dish takes some time, but it is well worth it.

INGREDIENTS:
2 teaspoons vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon minced ginger
1 tablespoon chopped garlic
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup water
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
1 pound flank steak
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 large green onions

DIRECTIONS:
1. Make the sauce by heating 2 teaspoons of vegetable in a medium saucepan over med/low heat. Don't get the oil too hot or you'll get a major spatter when adding the other liquids. Add ginger and garlic to the pan and quickly add the soy sauce and water before the garlic scorches. Dissolve the brown sugar in the sauce, then raise the heat to about medium and boil the sauce for 2 to 3 minutes or until the sauce thickens. Remove it from the heat.

2. Slice the flank steak against the grain into 1/4-inch thick bite-size slices. Tilt the blade of your knife at about a forty five degree angle to the top of the steak so that you get wider cuts.

3. Dip the steak pieces into the cornstarch to apply a very thin dusting to both sides of each piece of beef. Let the beef sit for about 10 minutes so that the cornstarch sticks.

4. As the beef sits, heat up one cup of oil in a wok (you may also use a skillet for this step as long as the beef will be mostly covered with oil). Heat the oil over medium heat until it's nice and hot, but not smoking. Add the beef to the oil and sauté for just two minutes, or until the beef just begins to darken on the edges. You don't need a thorough cooking here since the beef is going to go back on the heat later. Stir the meat around a little so that it cooks evenly. After a couple minutes, use a large slotted spoon or a spider to take the meat out and onto paper towels, then pour the oil out of the wok or skillet. Put the pan back over the heat, dump the meat back into it and simmer for one minute. Add the sauce, cook for one minute while stirring, then add all the green onions. Cook for one more minute, then serve over rice.

Skillet Beef n' Rice

1 package beef flavored rice mix (Rice a Roni)
1 lb. ground beef
1 small onion, chopped
1 small green pepper, chopped
2 Tablespoons plus 1 1/2 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. garlic powder

Cook rice mix according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, cook the beef, onion and green pepper over medium heat until the meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the rice mixture, Worcestershire sauce and garlic powder; mix well.

4 servings

Southwestern Spaghetti

This may sound like a strange combination, but it's really very good. Easy and inexpensive too. Yields 8 servings

12 oz. uncooked spaghetti
1.5 lbs. ground beef
1 small onion, chopped
1 envelope taco seasoning
1 jar (26 oz) spaghetti sauce
1 jar or can sliced mushrooms, drained
1 small can sliced black olives, drained
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
Shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, sour cream and salsa

Cook spaghetti according to package directions. Meanwhile, in large skillet, cook beef and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain. Stir in the taco seasoning, spaghetti sauce, mushrooms and olives. Drain spaghetti; stir into beef mixture.

Transfer to a greased shallow 3 qt. baking dish; sprinkle with cheese. Bake, uncovered at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until heated through. Serve with lettuce, tomatoes, sour cream and salsa.