Beef & Noodles

Source- Meijer Mealbox

Another meal from my grocery store's meal planning tool.  I love meals that get to simmer on the stove or slow cooker so you have time to anticipate the meal!  This meal definitely gives off a great scent, and has awesome flavor. 

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups baby carrots, halved crosswise
• 1 pkg. extra-wide noodles
• 1/4 tsp. pepper
• 1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
• 1 tsp. dried thyme, crushed
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 lb. boneless beef chuck roast
• 4 cups beef broth
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tbsp. vegetable oil

Preparation

• Trim fat from meat.
• Cut meat into 3/4-inch cubes. 
• In 5-quart Dutch oven, brown half of meat in hot oil. Remove.
• Brown remaining meat with onion and garlic.
• Add more oil, if necessary. Drain fat.
• Return all meat to pan.
• Stir in broth, bay leaf, thyme and pepper.
• Bring to a boil.
• Reduce heat and simmer, covered, 1 to 1 1/4 hours or until meat is tender.
• Stir in carrots and noodles.
• Bring to a boil.
• Reduce heat and cook, covered, about 10 minutes or until noodles are tender.
• Remove and discard bay leaf.

Next Time- This has good flavor.  H thought that it could use more vegetables.  I could add celery, and cut the onion into slices instead of small chunks.  I'm not really sure what other vegetables would be good in this.  But something worth exploring and experimenting with.  

Beer Braised Beef with Onions

Source-The Pioneer Woman

A sad note, I don't have a dutch oven that is oven safe.  So instead of wallowing in my inability to make this recipe, I decided to adapt things a bit and use my slow cooker.  Took about 4 hours instead of 3 for the meat to reach that fall apart doneness.

Ingredients

• 1 whole Chuck Roast, 2 1/2 To 5 Pounds
• Salt And Pepper To Taste (Be Generous!)
• 3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
• 4 whole Onions, Peeled And Sliced Thick
• 5 cloves Garlic Chopped
• 2 cans Beer
• 1 teaspoon Ground Thyme
• ½ teaspoons Rosemary Leaves

Preparation

• Preheat oven to 275 degrees.
• Heat oil in a large dutch oven over high heat.
• Season meat generously with salt and pepper. Sear meat on both sides, about 2 minutes per side. Remove meat from pan. Lower heat to medium.
• Throw in onions and garlic. Stir for 30 seconds. Pour in beer, and add thyme, rosemary, and salt to taste—about 1 teaspoon. (Do not undersalt!) Add meat to pot, put to submerge, and place lid on pot.
• Cook in oven for 2 1/2 to 3 hours, or until meat is fork tender and falling apart.
• Shred meat with two forks. Serve on dinner plates and spoon juice and onions over the top.
• Serve with very crust bread to sop up the juice.

Next Time- I wish I had had the crusty bread Ree mentions!!

Dripping Roast Beef Sandwich

Source-Campbell's Kitchen

I found this recipe while going through the coupons one weekend.  I love little gems that are hidden in uncommon places.  

Ingredients

•  1 can (10 1/2 ounces) Campbell's® Condensed French Onion Soup
• 1 tablespoon reduced sodium Worcestershire sauce
• 3/4 pound thinly sliced deli roast beef
• 4  Soft Hoagie Rolls with Sesame Seeds
• 4 slices deli provolone cheese cut in half
• 1/4 cup drained hot or mild pickled banana pepper rings (omitted)

Preparation

• Heat the oven to 400°F.
• Heat the soup and Worcestershire in a 2-quart saucepan over medium-high heat to a boil. 
• Add the beef and heat through, stirring occasionally.
• Divide the beef evenly among the rolls. 
• Top the beef with the cheese slices and place the sandwiches onto a baking sheet.
• Bake for 3 minutes or until the sandwiches are toasted and the cheese is melted.  
• Spoon the soup mixture onto the sandwiches. (Put into a bowl and dipped sandwiches)
• Top each sandwich with 1 tablespoon pepper rings.

Next Time- These are sooo easy to make, and are tasty.  Next Time I'd saute some peppers and onions up to put on top of the meat under the cheese.  I loved how the bread got crunchy. 

Beef Stew

Source: Kelly Cooks via Joelen's Culinary Adventures

I saw that beef chuckeye roast was on sale.  So I started searching my Google Reader for a recipe that used that meat.  I found this, and boy am I glad I made it.  This recipe is awesome.  The flavor from the soup amazed me.  I thought it might be "tomatoey" but it wasn't at all.  The meat was so tender, but the potatoes and carrots still had a bite to them.  I really appreciated that since I hate soggy vegetables.  This also made great leftovers.

This is an easy recipe to throw together and would be awesome on a cold day.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds beef roast, cubed
• 1/2 large onion, roughly chopped (used 1 1/2 onions)
• 4 carrots, cut into rounds
• 4 celery stalks, cut into pieces
• 4-5 Idaho (or whatever you prefer) potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes (didn't peel)
• 2 beef bullion cubes
• 2 cans of tomato soup (condensed, with no additional milk added)
• 1 can french onion soup

 Preparation

• Spray crockpot with cooking spray to make cleanup easier
• Layer ingredients as follows: beef cubes in the bottom of the crockpot, onions on top of the beef cubes, carrots, celery, and potatoes next.
• Place two bullion cubes on top of potatoes (I put one on each “side” of the crockpot)
• Next, take the two cans of tomato soup and “plop” them on top of the layers (again, I put one on each “side” of the crockpot) and then empty the can of french onion soup over the whole mess.
• Place the lid on top, and set the crockpot for 8 hours on low.
• As with the oven instructions — DO NOT STIR, TOUCH, OR REMOVE THE LID WHILE COOKING.
• Once the crockpot is done, remove the lid, stir to combine the ingredients, add salt and pepper to taste, and serve!

Next Time- This recipe is definitely getting saved so that I can make it again.  Nothing needs to be changed.  Trust me, make this!

Cube Steak w/Cream of Mushroom Gravy

MY 100th POST!!

Source: My Family!

This is nothing special. Something I grew up eating, and it is awesome comfort food. Pretty simple ingredients, comes together really easy, and it has great flavor.

Ingredients

• 4 cube steaks
• salt & pepper
• 1/2 onion diced
• 2 cans (10 1/2 oz each) cream of mushroom soup
• 1 can full of milk
• mashed potatoes

Preparation

• Season both sides of cube steaks.
• Add small amount of oil to skillet so meat doesn't stick.
• Cook on each side until browned and cooked through.
• Remove from pan.
• Add onions, and saute a couple minutes until translucent.
• Add both cans of soup and milk to onions in skillet.
• Mix well, and cook to a boil.
• Return meat to pan, and cook a couple minutes to make sure meat is hot.
• Serve with mashed potatoes, with soup mixture serving as the gravy.

Next Time- I don't need to worry about changing anything. My family has made this recipe the same way for years. Like I said, good comfort food!

Grilled Steaks with Sweet-Spicy Hoisin Sauce

Source: Mary Ellen's Cooking Creations

This recipe sounded really good, and I felt like having steak this week. Mary Ellen has come through with some of her other sauces and marinades that we've tried, so I didn't doubt that this was a good recipe.

I changed all the amounts, so if you'd like the original just go to Mary Ellen's blog.

Ingredients

• 1/4 C vegetable oil
• 2 shallots
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
• 1/3 C hoisin sauce
• 1 1/2 Tbsp soy sauce
• 1/4 C chicken stock
• 1 tbsp honey
• 1 1/2 Tbsp unsalted butter
• 2 steaks
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preparation

• In a medium saucepan, heat oil.
• Add the shallots, garlic, ginger, crushed red pepper and cook over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 7 minutes.
• Add the hoisin, soy sauce, and chicken stock.
  
• Raise the heat to moderately high and boil until thickened, about 5 minutes.
• Stir in the honey.
• Remove from heat and stir in the butter until blended; keep warm.
• Season steak with salt and pepper, cook on George Foreman to desired doneness.
  
• Serve sauce over the steak.

Next Time- This sauce was really good over the steaks. I prefer savory over sweet, so next time I may just omit the honey all together. H really enjoyed the flavor.

Crockpot Asian Beef and Noodles

Source: Lauren's Kitchen

I thought this recipe looked good. I was intrigued that it used ramen noodles, without the spice packet. Plus it could cook all day with little fuss from me.

Ooops, forgot to take a picture. But Lauren's blog has a pretty decent picture.

Ingredients

• 1 (16 ounce) package frozen stir fry vegetables
• 2 - 2 1/2 pounds beef stew meat, cut into 1" cubes
• 1 (12 ounce) bottle stir-fry sauce, any flavor
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 2 (3 ounce) packages ramen noodles, broken
• 1/4 cup green onions, chopped

Preparation

• Coat a 4 quart slow cooker with cooking spray.
  
• Place frozen vegetables in the bottom and top with stew meat.
  
• In a medium bowl, stir together stir-fry sauce, water, and red pepper.
  
• Pour over stew meat and vegetables in cooker.
• Cover and cook on low for 9-10 hours or on high for 4 1/2-5 hours (I recommend low, it will help to break the meat down more).
• At the end of cooking time, discard spice packets from ramen noodles.
  
• Stir noodles and green onions into meat mixture.
  
• Cover and let stand 10 minutes more.
  
• Stir before serving. This can be kept on warm for 1-2 hours.

Next Time- Honestly, I never tried this. I made it, and it didn't sound appetizing when it was done, so I just had it ready for when H got home from work. He says it was great, and has really liked the leftovers. Maybe when my appetite is less finicky I'll try again.