Crockpot Recipe of the Week: Cheater Beef Stew

Sooo...I'm in Dallas where we're currently experiencing an historical weather event.  Not only did we get hit with a bad ice storm on Tuesday of this week, we now have close to 5 inches of snow on the ground from last night.  The kids have been out of school for four days and I've been forced to work from home.  Unheard of in Dallas.

Needless to say, I've been playing games, wiping runny noses, making snacks, doing kids crafts, watching movies and cleaning up after people for four straight days.  Last night I went to the grocery store for fun.  It's bad down here in Big D.

So I'm whipping up winter food today.  Comfort food without the work.  Cheater food.  Which means I have a little outside help.  Fire up the crockpot today.  We're making Cheater Beef Stew!

Cheater Beef Stew

2 lbs. beef stew meat
8 oz. baby carrots
1 white potato, cut into chunks
6 white button mushrooms, halved
1 celery stalk, cut into medium pieces
1/2 medium yellow onion, cut into large chunky dice
1 packet McCormick's Slow Cooker Beef Stew seasoning (the cheater part!)
1 1/3 c water
1/4 cup red wine
2 beef bouillon cubes
1 t garlic powder
1 t kosher salt
cracked black pepper

Mix veggies and beef in crockpot.  Remember, you don't want your veggies cut into pieces too small since we'll be cooking them low and slow.  Dissolve packet of beef stew seasoning in water.  Add to crockpot.  Add wine, bouillon, garlic, salt and pepper.  Give it a stir. 

Cook on Low for 8 hours.  DO NOT LIFT THE LID UNTIL IT'S DONE PEOPLE!!! 

Inform your family that you will be spending the rest of the day on the couch watching movies such as Bridget Jones' Diary, What a Girl Wants and Overboard.  You will not be available for nose-wiping or snack-making.  If the chance should arise, you might be able to clear your schedule for snowman-building detail or snowball fight protection.  Roll your eyes and huff (notice I say "huff" and not "sigh") when they laugh and say "Yeah, right."

Serve with egg noodles or mashed potatoes or crusty bread.  Or noodles and crusty bread.  Or mashed potatoes and crusty bread.  Or plain.  Whatever floats yer boat!

Stay warm and Enjoy!

Art Show

"Monet Garden with Bridge"

This is a work of art from a FIRST GRADER.  Never mind that I never worked with chalks and paint and oil pastels in elementary school art class.  Never mind that I never studied the works of classical impressionist painters when I was seven.  Never mind that this piece was selected out of over 500 student works to be displayed at a local gallery.

The only thing that really matters is that I am the mother of this first grader.  And even if "Monet Garden with Bridge" was instead a macaroni necklace stuffed in the bottom of her backpack for three weeks, I'd still think it, along with the artist, was a masterpiece.

Reinventing the Peanut Butter Sandwich

I LOVE peanut butter sandwiches.  They're one of those foods I will phase in and out of my life on a regular basis.  I usually rediscover them when my pantry is a bit bare and almost always put jelly on them.  I prefer grape jam, actually.  Jam spreads more evenly across the peanut butter.  I used to be a smooth PB gal but have recently made peace with the chunky stuff.  Jif and Skippy are good...Peter Pan is too sweet for me.  Not real keen on the natural stuff...it's that stirring-of-the-oil thing.

Bread is important in the construction of the PB sandwich.  I like them kid-style on Wonder Bread, what I refer to in my house as "cake bread" because it's pretty much the dietary equivalent of a piece of yellow cake sans frosting.  But I'm not a kid so that's a treat for me.  Usually I have it on 100% whole wheat.  Orowheat is our favorite...it's a nice, dense wheat bread and doesn't have all that unhealthy garbage thrown in.  It's also $4.68 a loaf at Kroger which sucks but I still buy it.  This is one area I've learned not to skimp.  Ketchup falls into this category.  But I digress.

Right now, the PB sandwich is definitely phased IN.  I'm enjoying them so much that I'm trying to find new ways to enjoy them so as to avoid the phase OUT.  In the past week, I've tried the following:

PB and grape jelly
PB and butter and grape jelly
PB and butter

In the past I've also tried these concoctions:

PB and banana:  To be honest, I'm just not a fan of banana and PB together.  Sorry nanner.
PB and Mayo:  My dad used to make us this.  It's interesting but not awful...really.
PB and sprinkles:  Want your kid to love you?  Try this.  Sydney loves it!
PB and chocolate chips:  See PB and sprinkles.  Put it on wheat or crackers and call it dessert.
PB and apple:  This is a great combo.  Macintosh apples work well...nicely tart!
PB and pretzels:  A nice, salty addition.
PB and Ruffles:  Okay...now I'm getting out of hand but again...a nice salty sensation.

Anyway....my newest obsession:  PB and sliced almonds!

I don't know what possessed me to try it but I had sliced almonds out for my oatmeal one morning and thought...hmmm...this might be good on a peanut butter sandwich.  I PB'd up a piece of wheat for my lunch today (just one slice) and put 1 heaping T of almonds on it, folded it in half and packed it up.  Had it with a salad, if you're wondering.  IT WAS AWESOME!  The almonds added just the perfect amount of crunch!  And...almonds are way good for you.  They're loaded with calcium, vitamin E, the good fats and are a great protein source.  Couple that with some PB and some whole wheat?  Psshaw!  You've got a great healthy snack that rocks.

I made one for lunch tomorrow.  Hope it makes it that long.
:)

Recipe of the Week: King Ranch Chicken

Okay, so....no crockpot recipe this week but man-oh-man is this one a killer!  There are many, many, many, many variations of King Ranch Chicken.  My friend Julianne introduced me to her version eleven years ago when we lived in Houston.  Let me just say....WHOA...my tastebuds are still seeking and destroying after this one!  Let's just say it's hot.  Absolutely the best I've had but SO SO HOT!

This one is much milder and I'm guessing is closer to a cheater version.  Which means it's super-easy and FAST.  I use the store-bought rotisserie chicken when it's on sale.  You could easily substitute any chicken you have in the freezer but then you're adding a step:  Defrost and cook chicken.  Bleh...we don't like extra steps. 

King Ranch Chicken

1 whole rotisserie chicken, cooked
1/2 medium onion, diced
2 T butter
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can Rotel (or 1 can diced tomatoes and 1 small can diced green chilis if you don't have access to Rotel)
1 T or 1 cube chicken boullion dissolved in 1/2 c HOT water
1/4 cup milk (whole milk is best, heavy cream is decadent!  I only had skim and it was A-OK!)
6 burrito size flour tortillas (or any old size, I just know that 6 burrito size is enough)
2 c shredded jack cheese

Preheat oven to 350.  Butter a 9 x 13 baking dish.

Remove chicken from bones.  Chop into bite-size pieces.  Set aside.  In large skillet, melt butter.  Add onions and cook until translucent, about 4 minutes.  Add soup, rotel (don't drain!) and stir to combine.  Add boullion water and milk.  Bring to boil and reduce heat.  Add chicken and combine.  Let simmer 5 minutes.

Cut or tear tortillas into bite size pieces.  Layer 1/3 of the tortillas in baking dish.  Spoon half the chicken mixture over tortillas.  Sprinkle 1/3 of cheese on top.  Repeat another layer.  Add remainder of tortillas and cheese to top of casserole.

Bake uncovered for 20-30 minutes until bubbly and browned.  Serve with sour cream and a salad on the side!  And maybe a margarita...yum!

Enjoy!

Tips for Kid-Friendly Cooking

Picture a beautiful meadow.  Picture a beautiful meadow that is home to chicken nuggets, spaghetti and meatballs and mac and cheese (I know, it's weird but just picture it!).  Now put a prison-height, high-voltage electric fence around the beautiful meadow.  Add barbed wire to the top of the fence.

I've just described my daughter's palate.

My daughter isn't so much a picky eater...she just has some very clear boundaries around what she will and will not eat.  I am working to infiltrate those boundaries without destroying the beautiful meadow that lies beyond.  Consider me a bunny hopping around the fence looking for a hole to wiggle through. 

Or a loving family member trying to smuggle a weapon into the prison in order to assist an escape.

Anyway, here are a few tips for infiltrating the boundaries:

1.  Lie.  When she asks if I put such-and-such into the dish, I am A-OK with telling a white lie if I'm certain she won't find out.  Good for covering up ingredients like mustard and sour cream.  Incidentally, this also works on my brother-in-law who will not knowingly eat anything with mayo or sour cream in it.  And now that I've put it out there, he will most likely never eat anything I make again.

2.  Grate the onion in.  Pull out your cheese grater and grate it right in.  I do this for meatloaf, meatballs and any ground beef/turkey recipe.  The onion pieces are unnoticeable, she'll never get a big chunk of it and the juice of the onion actually seems to flavor the dish better than a dice.  This also works for carrots, celery, zucchini and squash.

3.  Remind her that she loved the dish when I made it last time...see tip #1 if necessary:

Me (very enthusiastically):  "Oh, I've made this before and you loved it!  Remember?  You asked for seconds!  I served it with biscuits!"

Her (with thoughtful expression):  "I did?  Oh, yeah."

4.  Serve with ranch dressing as a dip.  My daughter will pretty much eat anything if it comes with ranch.  It's how she eats grapes for God's sake. 

5.  Serve it in a taco shell.  I have iCarly to thank for this.  And while she won't actually eat tacos, she will eat leftovers (especially spaghetti) in a taco shell.  Or shredded cheese with ranch (see tip #4) and iceburg.

6.  Tell her she can't eat what Mommy and Daddy are eating because only adults like it.  "Oh, honey, I'm sorry.  I made a grownup dish.  You're just a kid and will hate it.  I thought you could have cereal."  Reverse psychology at it's finest.

7.  Bribery:  I am not opposed to offering the occasional bribe for finishing vegetables.  An extra bedtime story or a popsicle.  I've only paid hard cash once.

8.  Respect her tastes.  If she tries something (that's the rule in our house...you have to at least try everything I put in front of you) and truly doesn't like it, she doesn't have to eat it.  At this point, I allow her to fix an alternative for herself but it can't be junk food.  The key is to make THEM do the extra work in this situation.

Please share your tips!  I can use all the help I can get!
AW

Crockpot Recipe of the Week: Chicken Marengo

Let me share a few of my dislikes:

• People getting on the elevator who don't wait for people to get off the elevator first
• Coming downstairs to my kitchen in the morning only to find crumbs on the counter.  The counter which was clean when I went to bed.
• Eggplant.  I've tried and tried...I just can't like it.  Sorry eggplant.

And right now, today, I am disliking crockpot recipes that require cooking the ingredients before putting them in the crockpot.  Someone please tell me...what the heck is the point???

When my dad came to visit in December, he made a delicious chicken dish called Chicken Marengo.  Knowing my dad (a retired history teacher), you can appreciate that while he was cooking the dish, I was given the short explanation that this dish was supposedly served to Napoleon after the Battle of Marengo in Italy.  Not going to bore you but more info here.  I decided to find a crockpot recipe for Chicken Marengo.  And every one of them (that I could find) required the chicken to be browned first and the vegetables sauteed before putting them in the crockpot.

I love my crockpot for one main reason:  It's easy.  I can toss ingredients in there in the morning and come back at night and have a delicious meal for my family.  So browning meat and sauteeing vegetables before crockpotting doesn't sit well with me.  If I'm going to do that, I might as well just cook the whole damn thing on the stove and hover over it until it's done.  Yeah, I know.  Supposedly you get more flavor and it looks prettier if the meat is browned.  I agree to some extent.  That's why I brown the chicken in my Chicken Cacciatore.  But please note:  my Chicken Cacciatore is not a Crockpot Recipe of the Week.  It's a One Pot Wonder.  he he he

So here's my take on Crockpot Chicken Marengo.  I hope you like it!

6-8 Chicken pieces, bone-in, skin-on (I used legs and thighs)
1 large onion, large dice
14 oz. whole white mushrooms, quartered
1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes
1c boiling water
1T chicken boullion
2T flour
1c dry white wine (I used Chardonnay)
1 jar turkey or chicken gravy
1 heaping T minced garlic
1T dried basil
1T poultry seasoning
1/2 T dried sage
1t dried thyme
1t celery salt
salt and pepper

Put half of the onions in the bottom of the crockpot.  Layer chicken on top.  Add remaining onions, mushrooms and tomatoes.

In small bowl, dissolve boullion in boiling water.  Whisk in flour until smooth.  Pour over chicken and vegetables in crockpot.  Add wine and gravy.  Add garlic, basil, poultry seasoning, sage, thyme and celery salt.  Give it all a quick stir but keep the chicken on the bottom with the bottom layer of onions.  In other words, kind of move the top layers around until the herbs are distributed.  Not exactly recipe talk but there you go.

Cook on high setting for 4-6 hours or low setting for 8-10 hours.  Season to taste.  Serve over rice.  Or with potatoes.  Or with whatever you feel like.  Couscous would be nice...it would absorb all the wonderful sauce.  But really, whatever floats your boat.

Enjoy!

Babysitting for 7-Year Olds

Sydney:  Mama, can I babysit Jack while you scrapbook?
Me:  Sure!
Sydney:  Yay! 
5 minutes pass...Sydney:  Mama, Jack needs his diaper changed!
Me:  Well, you're the babysitter, change him!
Sydney:  Can you lift him up on the changing table?
Me:  Sure!
Sydney:  Mama, he stinks.  Can you take the diaper off and wipe him?
Me:  Sure! (proceeds to change diaper)
Sydney:  Thanks.  (in sing-song voice to Jack) Okay Big Boy, let's go over to  your bouncy chair.
10 minutes pass...
Sydney (now in my scrap room):  Whatcha doin' Mama?
Me:  Writing a blog post.  Where's Jack?
Sydney:  He's asleep.  He's chillin' like a villain.

Figures...she gets $5 and a sleeping baby.