Cooking With Love

When my friend Sarah posted about a Blog Event: Cooking With Love , I knew exactly what story I wanted to share....

One night in college at a party Matt told one of his friends: "She had me at ......



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I kid you not, those are the exact words Matt said to one of his friends. "She had me at Hamburger Helper." Um ok, or maybe not those exact words, but you could interpret the story that way if you want.

The first meal I ever made for Matt consisted of Lasagna Hamburger Helper, Cream Corn, Salad, and Cheesy Garlic Bread. In college that was "our" meal. We had it a couple times a month. One night out at a party one of his friends came up to me and told me how Matt was braggin on me because of this AWESOME meal I made and how I was the best girlfriend ever. It makes me giggle just thinking about it. The night we got engaged we even had "our meal".

Before we got married someone gave me a recipe for a sort of "homemade" hamburger helper. Matt loves the recipe as is. To see the original recipe click here. I have to spice it up if I make it. I know I'm not a gourmet chef, but I've come a long way from Lasagna Hamburger Helper in the past 6 and a half years. My wonderful husband loves almost everything I make, but I know he'd be a happy man if I made Hamburger Helper every night of the week.

Corn and Blackbean Skillet

1lb ground turkey
1 can black beans
Minute Rice - I usually make 2 servings
1 can Rotel
1 cup Salsa
1 chopped Red Pepper
1 chopped Green Pepper
3/4 bag frozen corn
1/2 cup chopped green chilis
Fresh Cilantro to taste
Cumin to taste
Paprika to taste
Cheese, tortilla chips, sour cream, other toppings

Cook turkey- drain. Combine rice, beans, rotel, salsa, corn, peppers, and 2.5 cups of water. (you may have to increase this depending on how much rice you make) Bring to boil; reduce heat, cover and simmer for 20 min or until water has been absorbed. Add cilantro, cumin, and paprika.

I like to make mine as a burrito and Matt likes to eat his with chips.