The Ultimate Beef Stew (Tyler Florence)

 

 

We love this recipe. It is so good! Great fall/winter recipe. :)

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, for frying, plus more to drizzle
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 2 to 3 pounds beef chuck shoulder roast, cut into 2-inch pieces (this cut is also called chuck shoulder pot roast and chuck roast boneless)
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 bottle good quality dry red wine (recommended: Burgundy)
• 8 fresh thyme sprigs
• 6 garlic cloves, smashed
• 1 orange, zest removed in 3 (1-inch) strips
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 1/2 cups beef stock
• 9 small new potatoes, scrubbed clean and cut in 1/2
• 1/2 pound carrots, peeled and sliced
• 2 cups frozen pearl onions, a large handful
• 1 pound white mushrooms, cut in 1/2
• 1/2 pound garden peas frozen or fresh
• Fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped, for garnish
• Horseradish Sour Cream, recipe follows, for garnish
• Toasted Peasant Bread, recipe follows, for serving

Directions

Preheat a large heavy-bottomed saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-high heat with the oil and butter.

While the pan is heating, arrange the flour on a large dish. Season the cubed beef with some salt and freshly ground black pepper and then toss in the flour to coat. Shake off the excess flour and add the beef chunks in a single layer to the hot pan, being careful not to over crowd the pan, you might have to work in batches. Thoroughly brown all of the cubes on all sides. Once all the meat has been browned remove it to a plate and reserve.
Add the wine to the pan and bring up to a simmer while you scrape the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon being sure to loosen up all those tasty bits. Once the wine has gotten hot add the browned meat, thyme, smashed garlic, orange zest strip, ground cloves, freshly ground black pepper and salt, to taste, bay leaves and beef stock. Bring the mixture up to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook uncovered until the liquids start to thicken, about 15 to 20 minutes. Cover and cook on low heat for 2 1/2 hours.
After 2 hours add halved potatoes, sliced carrots, pearl onions and mushrooms, along with a pinch of sugar to balance out the acid from the red wine. Turn the heat up slightly and simmer, uncovered, for 30 minutes more, until the vegetables and meat are tender. Add the frozen peas during the last minute of cooking. Season with salt and pepper and remove the thyme sprigs.
To serve, place the stew in a soup bowl, garnish with parsley, drizzle with olive oil and add a dollop of Horseradish Sour Cream. Right before serving add a slice of Toasted Peasant Bread, half way submerged in the stew.

Horseradish Sour Cream:

• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 tablespoon prepared horseradish
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper
• Chives, finely chopped, as garnish

Combine sour cream, prepared horseradish and a drizzle of olive oil in a small bowl and mix until thoroughly combined. Season with salt and pepper. Add a dollop of the mixture on top of the stew and garnish with chopped chives.

Toasted Peasant Bread:

• 1 loaf peasant bread, sliced into 1/2-inch pieces
• Extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves, halved
• Chopped parsley leaves

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F.

Put a sheet pan in the oven so that it gets good and hot.

Place the bread slices on the hot sheet pan. Drizzle the bread with the extra-virgin olive oil bake for 5 minutes, until the bread is nicely toasted. Rub the bread slices with the garlic cloves, and discard garlic. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.

Yield: 4 to 6 servings

Big-Batch Chili (Southern Living)

Ingredients

• 4 pounds ground chuck
• 2 medium onions, chopped
• 1 green pepper, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 3 (14 1/2-ounce) cans diced tomatoes, undrained
• 4 (8-ounce) cans tomato sauce
• 1 (6-ounce) can tomato paste
• 1/4 cup chili powder
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon ground red pepper
• 1 bay leaf
• 2 (16-ounce) cans light red kidney beans, rinsed and drained (optional)
• Toppings: sour cream, shredded Cheddar cheese, chopped green onions, sliced ripe black olives

Preparation

• Cook ground chuck, in batches, in a large skillet over medium-high heat about 5 minutes, stirring until meat crumbles and is no longer pink; drain. Place meat in a 6-quart slow cooker; stir in onions, next 12 ingredients, and, if desired, beans. Cook, covered, at HIGH 5 to 6 hours or at LOW 6 to 8 hours. Remove and discard bay leaf. Serve with desired toppings.
• Cooktop preparation: Cook ground chuck, in batches, in a large Dutch oven. Drain beef and return to Dutch oven. Add onions, next 12 ingredients, and, if desired, beans. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; reduce heat, cover, and simmer 4 to 6 hours. Remove and discard bay leaf.
• To freeze: Let chili stand 30 minutes. Evenly divide chili mixture into 3 (1-gallon) zip-top plastic freezer bags; seal and lay each bag flat. Stack bags of chili in freezer. Freeze up to 1 month. Thaw frozen chili overnight in refrigerator or defrost in microwave. Pour thawed chili into a 9-inch square baking dish. Cover tightly with heavy-duty plastic wrap, and fold back a corner to allow steam to escape. Microwave at HIGH 6 to 7 minutes or until bubbly, stirring after 3 1/2 minutes.

Chili-Corn Stack-Up Salad (Southern Living)

This is great for company. 

Cook Time: 15 Minutes
Prep Time: 15 Minutes

Ingredients

• 1 (3.5-ounce) package boil-in-bag rice
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro (optional)
• 1 (15-ounce) bag corn chips
• 5 to 6 cups Big-Batch Chili, thawedhttp://lovetocookagain.blogspot.com/2011/10/big-batch-chili-southern-living.html
• 1/2 head iceberg lettuce, shredded, or 1 (10-ounce) package shredded iceberg lettuce
• 1 (8-ounce) package shredded Cheddar-Jack cheese
• 3 plum tomatoes, chopped
• 4 green onions, chopped
• Sour cream
• 1 (2.25-ounce) can sliced ripe black olives, drained (optional)
• 1 (12-ounce) jar pickled jalapeño peppers (optional)

Preparation

• Prepare rice according to package directions. Stir in cilantro, if desired.
• Layer rice mixture, chips, chili, next 5 ingredients, and if desired, black olives and jalapeño peppers in individual serving bowls.

Crock Pot Chicken (5 Ingredients)

Ingredients:

2-4 frozen boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 pkg. (8 oz.) cream cheese (let sit out to soften)

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 pkg. italian dressing seasoning (the dried kind in the packet)

Stir the cream cheese, cream of chicken, and seasoning together in the crockpot. Start it on low and let it sit in there for about 30 min so the cream cheese is softer to stir. Put the frozen chicken in and cover with the mix. cook on high 4-6 hours or until the chicken is cooked and fall-apart-tender. After the first two hours when the chicken is softer cut it up into strips for easier eating.

Serve with rice.

Crockpot Mac and Cheese (A Whisk and A Prayer)

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups milk

One 12 oz can evaporated milk (I used skim, evaporated milk keeps the egg and milk from curdling)

1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted, cooled to room temp

3 large eggs

1/2 tsp salt

3 cups (12 oz) shredded cheese (I used an Italian blend, recipe calls for Italian fontina cheese)

1/2 pound elbow macaroni or mini penne tubes, par cooked and drained (this means cook them for about five minutes until tender but not completely cooked)

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Spray the inside of your slow-cooker with cooking spray or grease it with olive oil. Combine milk, evaporated milk, eggs, butter, and salt in slow-cooker and whisk until until smooth (or you can use an immersion blender to do the whisking for you).

Add the shredded cheese (not the Parmesan) and macaroni, sprinkle with black pepper (and whatever other spices you want to use). Stir gently with a spatula to coat evenly.

Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese on top. Cover and cook on HIGH for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, reduce the temperature to LOW and cook for 2 to 2 1/2 hours, until custard is set in the center and the pasta is tender. The macaroni and cheese may sit in the cooker on the KEEP WARM setting for 30 minutes before serving. Before dishing it up, I sautéed some bread crumbs with olive oil and sprinkled them over the top to make it a little fancier.

Penne with Two-Tomato Sauce (Rachel Ray)

10 20 30

Thanks for sharing Brenna! I can't wait to try this. :)

Ingredients

• Salt
• 1 pound penne
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO), 2 turns of the pan
• 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
• 1 small onion, finely chopped
• ½ cup soft sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
• ½ to ¾ cup dry red wine
• One 28-ounce can crushed tomatoes
• ½ cup heavy cream (eyeball it)
• Freshly ground pepper
• 1 cup arugula, coarsely chopped
• 1 cup fresh basil, torn or shredded (about 20 leaves)
• Grated Asiago cheese, to pass around the table

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Salt the water, add the pasta and cook until al dente.
2. While the pasta is working, heat the EVOO, 2 turns of the pan, in a large, deep skillet over medium heat; add the garlic, onion and sun-dried tomatoes and cook for 7 to 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the wine and reduce for 1 minute, then stir in the crushed tomatoes. When the tomatoes are heated through, reduce the heat to a simmer and stir in the cream. Season the sauce with salt and pepper.
3. Drain the pasta and toss with the tomato sauce until coated. Transfer the pasta to a platter or to individual shallow bowls and top with mounds of the arugula and basil. Pass around the cheese at the table.

Homemade Samoas Cookies (Girl Scout Cookie Clone) - Once Upon a Plate

These cookies are AMAZING but are very tedious to make. It is my husbands new favorite cookie. :)

Makes about 3 1/2 to 4 dozen

The cookies involve four steps: 

1. Make the cookie Base

2. Top with Caramel-Coconut mixture

3. Dip bottom of cookies in melted chocolate

4. Drizzle tops with melted chocolate

The Cookie (base):

1 cup butter, softened

1/2 cup sugar

2 cups all purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

up to 2 tablespoons milk

Preheat oven to 350F.

Cream together butter and sugar in a large bowl. Mix in flour, baking powder and salt at a low speed, next, the vanilla and milk, adding in the milk only as needed to make the dough come together without being sticky (you may not need any at all). The dough should come together into a soft, pliable ball. Add in a bit of extra flour if your dough seems sticky.

It's easiest to roll the dough out in 2 or 3 batches (between pieces of wax (or parchment) paper to about 1/4-inch thickness (or a little thinner) using a 1 1/2-inch cookie cutter to make rounds. Place on a parchment lined (or on silicone mat) baking sheet and make a hole in the center. I used the small end of a large round piping tip. Nicole comments that you can use a knife, or the end of a wide straw, to cut a smaller center hole. Repeat until the dough is used up (it's okay to re-roll, this dough is shortbread-like and very forgiving.)

Bake cookies for 10-12 minutes, until bottoms are very lightly golden brown around the edges.

Cool for a few minutes on the baking sheet, to allow them to firm up slightly, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.

Topping:

3 cups shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)

12-ounces good-quality chewy caramels

1/4 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons milk

8 ounces dark or semisweet chocolate (chocolate chips will do)

(If you prefer milk chocolate, by all means use that.)

My notes: The caramel-coconut mixture is quite sweet, so I used Bittersweet chocolate to balance the sweetness bit.

Preheat oven to 300 degrees (F)

Spread coconut evenly on a rimmed baking sheet and toast 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes, until coconut is golden. Watch carefully, especially near the end of toasting time; the coconut toasts very quickly once it begins to become golden.

Cool on baking sheet, stirring occasionally. Set aside.

Unwrap the caramels and place in a large microwave-safe bowl with milk and salt. Cook on high for 3-4 minutes, stopping to stir a few times to help the caramel melt. When smooth, fold in toasted coconut with a spatula.

Using the spatula or a small offset spatula, spread topping on cooled cookies, using about 2-3 teaspoons per cookie. Reheat caramel for a few seconds in the microwave if it begins to firm up, to make it soft and spreadable once again.

While topping sets up, melt chocolate in a small bowl. Heat on high in the microwave in 45 second intervals, stirring thoroughly to prevent scorching. (I melted mine stovetop using double boiler method.) Dip the base of each cookie into the chocolate and place on a clean piece of parchment paper (I used silicone baking mats instead). Transfer all remaining chocolate into a piping bag or a ziplock bag with the corner snipped off and drizzle finished cookies with chocolate. (Melt a bit of additional chocolate, if there is not quite enough for each cookie.)

Let chocolate set completely before storing in an airtight container.