A New Face on Mondays!

I'm so excited to tell you about a change on Mondays! Jan Drexler is going to join us on the Cafe blog, bringing us food from mid-America! I'm sure most of you know Jan from hanging out here, but I wanted to include a little about her. Then I'll let Jan take it away...

Jan’s husband of thirty years often says she’s never happier than when she’s in the kitchen cooking for someone, and he’s right. With her Amish and Mennonite ancestry, mid-American roots and unending quest to be a stay-at-home wife and mother, Jan has always enjoyed cooking from scratch and sharing the subsequent goodies with friends and family.

Jan and her family have lived all through the mid-west, from Indiana to Texas to Kentucky to South Dakota, with a few others in between. Born in Michigan, Jan still proudly carries her pocket map of Michigan on the end of her arm, like all true Michiganders, and will gladly give you a tour of her home state. But her current love is the Black Hills of South Dakota, where she can be found hiking the Hills in all kinds of weather and regularly visiting the “boys” at Mt. Rushmore.

Having recently graduated from Homeschool Mom-hood (Summa cum Laude!), Jan now devotes her time to the voices in her head who have been clamoring for attention during the last few decades. Instead of declining Latin nouns and reviewing rhetorical devices, her days are now spent at the computer where she gives her characters free rein.

Jan’s debut novel, “Love Bears All Things,” will be published by Love Inspired in 2013.

She can be found on Facebook as Jan Drexler (author), on Twitter @JanDrexler, on her blog (www.lovespromisekept.blogspot.com) and at her website, www.JanDrexler.com.

And now...Jan's first recipe to share!

 Crock Chili Dogs

This is, without a doubt, the easiest and tastiest way to do chili dogs – short of the County Fair! Most ingredients may be in your pantry.

This is even easier if your ground beef is browned ahead of time. I buy ground beef in bulk and brown 10 pounds at once, and then freeze the browned meat in 1 pound packages. BIG, big timesaver!

Here’s the scoop:

1 lb ground beef, browned

1 can (15 oz) tomato sauce

½ cup water

2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

1 Tablespoon dried minced onion

½ teaspoon garlic powder

½ teaspoon ground mustard

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon cumin

½ teaspoon oregano

¼ teaspoon (more or less) cayenne pepper

Mix the ingredients together in a crock pot, and then add your hot dogs and spoon the sauce over to cover them. Cook on high for 2-4 hours, or low for 4-5 hours. Serve on buns with shredded cheese, chopped onion, relish, mustard…your toppings to taste.