Monday, September 14, 2009

Beef, its whats for dinner & lunch....easily

I adore my slow cooker (aka crock pot). It has a way of making comforting food easy & no stress.

This weekend I got some craving for a favorite meal & it was perfect since it was just too hot to cook since the AC went out (AGAIN!).

So I got the ingredients & when I woke up Sunday I started the dish.

You will need a pound (or more if you want more, this one is easy to play around with servings) of cubes of beef. Not CUBED BEEF but actual chunks of beef around 1 to 2 inches.

Also you need a packet of onion soup mix and a can of cream of something soup (take your pick I have tried them all & all are good).

Finally you need red wine. This is a good way to get rid of any cheap stuff you have been given as a gift or leftovers from the night before (do people have those?).

Plop the beef into the slow cooker, add the soup & soup mixes & pour on the wine. I used to think I needed to add a can full of wine, but I just add as much as covers the meat. This is the liquid it will be cooking in. YES this is going to make it taste LOVELY! Stir it all up well. Then turn the cooker on.

This will take around 6 hours depending on the size of the beef cubes & if you put it on high or low. Typically I will start on high then turn it down to low for the last few hours. If I make this on a workday, I just turn it to low & then 8 hours later I am greeted at the door by the smell of it beckoning me inside letting me know it is ready to eat. You will know its ready when the beef is easily smashed. It will basically fall apart.

NOW here is where I made my mistake. I forgot to check to see that I had rice in the house!

Typically I serve this over rice & the juice is a gravy to go along with the beef. I sprinkle a dash of fresh grounded pepper on mine, but its your bowl, your choice!

This time I tried it with spaghetti pasta since it was the only pasta in the house (& I was having a lazy, not about to get dressed & go to the store for rice kind of day!).

I had my doubts, but it was great!


So good I packed some for my lunch today! Even great reheated the day after.

Thursday, September 3, 2009

Oh fall, I love thee & your Pumpkin Spice Lattes

I have returned to serenity.

By this I mean I can now get a Pumpkin Spice Latte with no problems. This makes me one happy girl! (& that is an understatement!)

I also have discovered that I can make them at home, perhaps.

Thanks to fellow blogger at a Year of Slow Cooking, for providing a recipe for this deliciously decadent divine piece of fall!

I plan on trying these this weekend with my parents!


THE recipe:
2 cups milk (I used 1%)
2 T canned pumpkin
2 T white sugar
2 T vanilla (not a typo. it asks for tablespoons)
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice OR 1/4 tsp cinnamon, 1/8 tsp cloves, 1/8 tsp nutmeg, and a teeny tiny pinch of ground ginger
1/2 cup brewed espresso or 3/4 cup strong brewed coffee


garnish with whipped cream (optional) (SHE SAYS OPTIONAL, I say go for it!!!)

This will make enough for 2 people to have a big mug with a bit leftover. If you are having friends over, adjust the recipe accordingly. I used a 4-quart crockpot, but as small as a 1.5 quart will work with these amounts.

Add the coffee/espresso and milk to the crockpot. Whisk in the pumpkin, spices, sugar, and vanilla.

Cover and cook on high for 2 hours if everything is cold. Whisk again.

Ladle into mugs, and garnish with whipped cream and additional cinnamon. I added a cinnamon stick to be fancy.