MPM: Week of October 26

Monday:  Eating at a friend’s tonight.

Tuesday:  Visiting with friends, again, yes third day in a row!

Wednesday:  Dinner at church.

Thursday:   Borscht (recipe below.)

Friday, Kids’ night:   Baked chicken, French fries with potatoes grown by Calf #2, random veggies.

Saturday:  Out and about.

Sunday:  Garlic & Ginger Moose stir fry.  Someday I should post a recipe.  Hmm.  OK, you convinced me.  Look out below.

You can look at other recipes and meal ideas over at Org Junkie’s.

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Borscht   (Makes 8 servings, about 2 cups each)

5 medium parsnips
6 large potatoes
18 medium beets
7 to 8 cups broth
1 pound ground meat
1 small onion, diced
8 small garlic cloves, minced
3 stalks celery, chopped
1 teaspoon caraway seeds
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 Tablespoons honey
2 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar

Boil the parsnips, potatoes, and beets until the peels come off easily.  Drain and let cool till you can peel them and dice them into similar sized pieces.

Meanwhile, put the rest of the ingredients in a large pot.  Bring to a boil then reduce heat to simmer, stirring occasionally to break up the meat.  Boil for 30 to 60 minutes (while you are working on the root vegetables.)

Add the root veggies to the soup and stir; simmer a few minutes.

Serve with a dash of dill and a dollop of sour cream.

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Garlic-Ginger-Beef Stir Fry   (Makes 8 large servings)

This has been a family favorite for years.  I’ve modified it from the original (Sorry, Better Homes & Gardens!) to make it slightly easier by using frozen stir fry veggies, and to make more of it because we like it a lot.  You can adapt this to your own tastes and use fresh veggies if you like.  It’s also very saucy, because we like extra sauce for our rice.

1 pound boneless beef sirloin steak or top round steak
1 cup sherry or beef bouillion
3/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup corn starch
1/4 cup grated ginger root OR 2 to 4 teaspoons ground ginger
1 and 1/3 cup water
8 cloves garlic, minced
About 3 pounds of frozen stir fry vegetables
Cooking oil, for frying
Hot cooked rice

Partially freeze beef and thinly slice across the grain into bite-sized strips.

Mix the sherry/boullion, soy sauce, corn starch, ground ginger (if using), and water and set aside.

Heat the wok or skillet over high heat; add oil.  (Add more oil as necessary.)  Add grated ginger root (if using) and garlic and stir fry for 15 seconds.  Add frozen vegetables and stir fry (or steam in the oil with the lid) until cooked through.  Remove the veggies from the wok and keep warm in a huge bowl.

Add more oil and heat.  Add beef and stir fry until done.  Remove the meat and mix it with the veggies.

Stir the sauce and pour it in the wok/skillet.  Cook and stir till bubbly and thick.  Pour the sauce over the veggie-meat mixture.

Serve with hot cooked rice.