AKA I’m sick of turkey, please give me something different.
Congratulations! You've survived Thanksgiving! And by now you've probably even eaten up most of the leftovers.
But that means everyone in the house is getting tired of Thanksgiving leftovers, doesn't it? And we bet they all still want to eat, don't they?
You did all that work just a couple days ago, and they just don't seem to get that you're all cooked out. They - or maybe even your own stomach - still want you to make more food.
No worries! We've got you covered. This post will feature two recipes that you don't have to stress about or fuss over. Everything will come together in 30 minutes or fewer, and you won't have to resort to takeout.
Shrimp Pesto
Somehow, the kids always seem to think shrimp is fancy. No one needs to know this is a one pot wonder.
Ingredients:
1 12 oz package extra small precooked shrimp
1 lb pasta of choice (we suggest tricolor rotini)
1 8 oz jar pesto sauce (or you can head over here and make your own)
1/2 cup matchstick carrots
1/2 zucchini, chopped
2 tsp butter
1 tsp minced garlic
Tools:
large pot with lid, colander, cutting board, knife
Fill your pot with water and put it over medium-high heat. Salt the water if desired, and place the lid on the pot.
While the water comes up to boil, wash your zucchini and chop it into small chunks or thin slices, whichever you prefer.
Once the water begins to boil, add your pasta. Please do not put the lid back on the pot after this step, lest you risk a messy boil over.
Bring the water back up to boil and cook your pasta according to package directions. We usually shave a minute or two off the recommended cook time (this house does not appreciate mushy pastas).
In the last two minutes of cook time, toss in the whole bag of shrimp, your carrots and your zucchini and allow it to all cook together.
Drain your pasta, shrimp and veggies. Leave it all in the colander for a minute while you use the pot to melt the butter and sear the garlic.
Once your garlic has been seared, turn the heat down. Empty your jar of sauce into the pot and give it a good stir. Let it warm up a little over medium-low heat, maybe two minutes or so.
Pour your still warm pasta and veggies into the sauce and stir. A little dash of Parmesan cheese never hurts a dish like this, either. Dinner is ready to plate!
Cornbread Skillet Bake
This one is a little bit pot pie, a little bit casserole, and a lot of "grocery day isn't until tomorrow - what do we have lying around the house?"
Ingredients:
1 lb ground beef
1/2 yellow onion, chopped
1/2 green pepper, chopped
1 Roma tomato, chopped
1 12 oz bag frozen corn
8 oz mild salsa or tomato sauce
1 15 oz can of beans (pinto or black work best)
1 8.5 oz box corn muffin mix (if you like to make everything from scratch, you can try this)
1/3 cup milk plus 1 tablespoon
1 egg
1/2 cup shredded cheese
2 teaspoons garlic powder
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon dried chives
1 tablespoon hot sauce (we like sriracha) - more or less, to taste
salt and pepper, to taste
Tools:
oven-safe skillet, colander, knife, cutting board, mixing bowl, measuring cup/spoon
Start your ground beef browning in the skillet. Season with your garlic, chili powder, cumin, chives, and hot sauce. If your family doesn't care for spicy foods, you can adjust the hot sauce some, but we don't think you should eliminate it entirely - the dish suffers some without the spice for depth. Add however much salt and pepper you'd like.
While the seasoned beef browns, open up your can of beans, drain and rinse. Let them sit in the colander until you've had a chance to get around to the veggies.
Wash and chop your tomato, pepper and onion. If you've got picky eaters, we suggest chopping things extra-fine to hide a little better. You can also adjust amounts, add in or substitute with something your pickiest eaters like better.
Drain the beef, but don't rinse out all your spices. Return it to the skillet and pour your tomato sauce or salsa over it.
Add your chopped veggies in with the beef, then toss in the beans and that bag of frozen corn. Give everything a good stir and let it simmer together, stirring frequently. Try to make sure nothing sticks to the bottom of the skillet and scorches there. In the event it's giving you trouble, you can toss a tablespoon of butter in.
In your mixing bowl, whisk together the milk and the egg. Pour in the contents of the box of corn muffin mix and stir. It will still be a little lumpy, and that's okay. (If you want it to be extra smooth, you can sift the muffin mix before this step.) Let your batter rest a minute or two while you take care of other things - like stirring the beef and veggie mix.
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
Remove the beef and veggie mixture from the heat. Give it one more good stir, then pat it down so it's mostly level in the skillet. Sprinkle your shredded cheese in an even layer all over top of it.
Give your batter a quick stir, and then pour it slowly over the top of the mixture in the skillet. Your goal is to cover the top in an even layer of batter without smothering everything or overflowing the skillet.
Once you've got an even layer of cornbread batter in the skillet, set it in the oven for about 15 minutes. If you're working with a larger than average skillet and a thin layer of cornbread batter, it's wiser to check on it after ten minutes or so to avoid over-baking it.
Your casserole is done when a toothpick inserted into the thickest part of the cornbread crust comes out clean.
We cut ours into generous slabs and flipped them into shallow bowls with a spatula. Expect the filling to fall apart a little.
Optional picky-eater-bribery step: Add a dollop of sour cream and guacamole, drizzle some warm salsa con queso over the top and serve with tortilla chips.
Whichever one of these two options you go for, we know you’re in for a treat. We hope that you’ve survived through the holiday, whether it was full of family in person or via video. If you enjoyed our recipes this week, why not head down to the comments or over to our Facebook and let us know? We’d love to hear from you. If on the other hand you ended up here because your appliances have gone on strike after the holiday, head on over to our contact page and set up an appointment for appliance repair. We’re here for all of our clients in Dallas and the surrounding areas.
