Beef Stew — Good for All Seasons

21 Tuesday May 2013

Posted by in Easy, Meat, Slow Cooker

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beef stew 4

I don’t know about you.

But beef stew is a year-round recipe in my house. It doesn’t have to be the dead of winter to enjoy beef that’s been slow cooking all day — so that it’s practically like butter when you pierce it with your fork. Why should that kind of loveliness be forbidden in the spring and summer?

Also, this recipe is made in the slow cooker. All you have to do is throw everything in the pot, put the lid on it, set it to LOW, and go about your day. No AC in the summer? No problem — it won’t heat up your house like the stove does if it’s on for several hours.

Oh, and this tastes wonderful! The beauty of the recipe is that you can adapt it to your preferences. If you hate green beans, sub in a package of peas instead. Flavor it with thyme instead of rosemary, or oregano — or a mixture of all three.

Beef stew is your stew. In all of the seasons.

Wins all around.

That’s what this blog is about, after all.
beef stew 3

Slow Cooker Beef Stew

Adapted from The Mommy Games
Serves 6 – 8
Printable Recipe

Ingredients

  • 1 1/2 lbs. beef stewing meat, cubed
  • 2 (10 oz) pkgs frozen veggies (I used carrots and green beans)
  • 3 Russet or Idaho potatoes, peeled and cubed
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 1 (15 oz) can diced tomatoes, with liquid (or stewed)
  • 1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce
  • 1 tsp dried herbs (such as thyme, rosemary, or oregano — or a mix)
  • 2 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
  • salt and pepper to taste

Directions

  1. Mix the meat, frozen vegetables, onion, and potatoes in the slow cooker.
  2. Combine the tomatoes, tomato sauce, herbs, Worcestershire sauce, and salt and pepper in a separate bowl. Pour evenly over the meat and veggies. Stir gently to combine.
  3. Cover and cook on LOW for 6 – 8 hours.
  4. Serve by itself, over noodles/rice, and/or with a slice of hearty bread.

beef stew

My Two Cents

This makes quite a bit of delicious, mouth-watering stew. Mine thickened up perfectly after a day in the slow cooker, but if for some reason yours is still fairly liquidy at the end of the day, just thicken it up with a few tablespoons of cornstarch or flour.

I’m really partial to this recipe, mainly because of its dump and go method. I see so many slow cooker beef stew recipes where you need to brown the meat and cook the onions before adding them to the slow cooker. I hate these kind of recipes. I’m not that picky. I’m not serving this to James Beard. I’m a normal, average Betty Jane who hates 5 extra steps, especially if you’re utilizing your easy, fix-it-and-forget-it slow cooker! Also, shoot me, but I can’t taste that much of a difference between meat that has been browned before putting it in a slow cooker and meat you just throw in there. We’ll blame it on my allergies, okay?

Enjoy, my friends :)

Birthday Bundt Cake

15 Wednesday May 2013

Posted by in Cake

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madmen4

So today’s my birthday.

:)

I always bake my own birthday cake.

It’s always chocolate.

I like to think of it as a special birthday gift to myself.

a.) It gives me an excuse to bake, which I love. It’s calming and utterly satisfying. And smells pretty fabulous.
b.) It gives me an excuse to throw a party. Specifically a Mad Men themed birthday party (complete with Canadian Whiskey Punch, deviled eggs, stuffed celery, bruschetta, pretty dresses, ties, and pearls.) And how can you not have a 60′s style party without a bundt cake?!?
c.) They’re really fun to frost.
d.) It tastes pretty darn good.
e.) I’m fairly certain I could make a list of reasons A-Z of why baking and eating a chocolate birthday cake is wonderful, but I’ll stop at E and give you the recipe so I can retain most of my readers.
f.) I lied. I’m stopping at F. I just had to note that I think I make too many lists.
g.) But they help me stay organized.

Anyway…

I spent last Friday night completely giddy baking this cake. I was home alone, so I cranked up the country music, put on a pretty apron, and got out my spatula, butter, and sugar. And my neighbors most likely cursed all the way ’til 11 p.m. when I was finally done with this because of a.) the blaring twang of country happening in my kitchen, b.) my singing that went along with it, and c.) the fact that they didn’t have enough courage to knock on my door and ask for a slice, which I’m positive they could smell down the hall (and yes, I would’ve shared, and then just proceeded to make another cake.)

The cake got rave reviews at the party. What homemade cake doesn’t?

I think box mixes do their job.

But you are an alien if you think box mixes win over homemade.

madmen5

Chocolate Birthday Bundt Cake

From The Unofficial Mad Men Cookbook
Serves 12
Printable Recipe

Ingredients

Cake:

  • 1 2/3 cups flour
  • 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
  • 2/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup butter, softened
  • 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • 2 eggs

Frosting:

  • 1 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 4 tbsp (1/4 cup) butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 2 tbsp light corn syrup
  • 1-1/2 cups sifted confectioners’ sugar
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions

For the cake:

  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a bundt pan and set aside. (You can also bake in two 9 inch or 8 inch round pans, cupcakes, or 13x9x2 inch pan — but baking times will vary for each.)
  2. Stir the flour, sugar, cocoa, baking soda, and salt together in a mixing bowl.
  3. Add the butter, buttermilk, and vanilla to the dry ingredients all at once. Beat for 2 minutes at medium speed using an electric mixer, or 300 strokes by hand. If you use an electric mixer, scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl often with a rubber spatula.
  4. Add eggs. Beat for an additional 2 minutes, scraping bottom and sides of bowl often.
  5. Pour into prepared pan and bake for 40 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean. Cool in pan on wire rack. Then invert onto a cake plate and let cool completely before frosting.

For the frosting:

  1. Sift together the sugar and cocoa in medium saucepan. Add butter, milk, and corn syrup. Bring to a boil. Boil for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from the heat. Set pan in a bowl of cold water.
  2. When the chocolate syrup is cool to the touch, stir in confectioners’ sugar and vanilla. If frosting is too thin, add a little more confectioners’ sugar and vanilla. If frosting is too thick, add a little more milk.
  3. Frost the cooled cake. Decorate with candles. Sing “Happy Birthday”, or whatever song you want. Blow out candles. Slice into cake. Admire. Devour. Enjoy.

madmen14

My Two Cents

Turning 26 isn’t so bad when you’re surrounded by your amazing friends, sipping Whiskey Punch, wearing pearls, and eating this decadent chocolate cake.

Also, if you ever plan on throwing a 60′s themed party, you absolutely need to purchase The Unofficial Mad Men Cookbook. It is phenomenal.

Their cocktail recipes are really fabulous, especially. I don’t have a picture of the Canadian Clubhouse Punch that I made that night because even though I doubled the recipe, it was gone very quickly ;)

Pumpkin and Spinach Quiche

09 Thursday May 2013

Posted by in Breakfast, Easy, Eggs, Vegetarian

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pumpkin quiche

I promise I have not had this recipe sitting around since October.

It’s just that, since October, there have been a few cans of pumpkin sitting in my cupboard.

Here’s the thing. A giant pet peeve of mine is having food sit unused in my cupboard for a long time. Even though I know canned and dry goods last for almost forever, it strangely unsettles me when every time I open the cupboard, I see a package of almost full basmati rice staring me in the face, or three bags of dried beans, or a can of coconut milk, or, two cans of pumpkin.

Pumpkin.

I pondered. Do I really have to wait until October to use these cans of pumpkin?

No.

No, indeed you do not. This is why they are in cans, woman. So you can use them any time you want.

So I took one out and put it on the counter and stared at it.

But what do I do with you??

I was craving a quiche. As usual. I mean, I don’t actually think a day goes by where I don’t crave quiche. I’m pretty sure I could eat quiche every single day. They’re so versatile. Therefore I wouldn’t get sick of them.

But..uh…Megan…uhmmmmm you’re thinking of pumpkin pie, right? Because that’s what usually happens with pumpkin when you put it into a pie crust.

WRONG.

I can totally make pumpkin in a pie crust savory. But fearing it would be more like weird custard or flan, I added spinach to the mix. And sriracha. And onions. And garlic powder.

And VOILA!! Pumpkin QUICHE!

pumpkin quiche 2

Pumpkin and Spinach Quiche

A CW Original
Serves 6-8
Printable Recipe

Ingredients

  • 1 refrigerated pie crust (or homemade)
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 3 eggs, beaten
  • 1/2 cup skim milk
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp dried dill weed
  • 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
  • 1 (10 oz) pkg frozen spinach, cooked and drained
  • 1 (15 oz) can pumpkin puree
  • 1 tbsp sriracha
  • 1/2 cup cheddar or mozzarella cheese (or goat or feta or whatever type you want, really)

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Roll out the pie crust onto a pie plate. Set aside.
  2. Cook the onion over medium heat until translucent and slightly browned. Place in a large bowl.
  3. Meanwhile, beat the eggs and milk together. To the egg mixture, add the garlic powder, dill weed, red pepper flakes, and ground black pepper. Add to the onions in the bowl and stir to combine.
  4. Whisk the pumpkin into the egg mixture until well combined. Then stir in the spinach. Then stir in the cheese.
  5. Pour the mixture evenly into the pie crust. Top by drizzling the sriracha and sprinkling some additional cheese over it.
  6. Bake for 1 hour or until set. Serve with extra sriracha or ketchup.

My Two Cents

I know you. You are thinking what the rest of humanity is thinking, “That CANNOT TASTE GOOD.” But Whoa, Sally! If you like pumpkin and spinach and quiche…like I do….then you will like this :) It’s true, it doesn’t taste like your traditional quiche, but it’s creamy and flavorful and monstrously delicious.

Hey, if pumpkin and spinach can go well in a Mac and Cheese, why couldn’t they pair well together in a quiche?! ;)

Also, I know it looks like there’s a lot of spiciness going on in this dish, and maybe my taste buds have become immune to spice lately (because baby carrots dipped in straight sriracha is a delicious snack), but the pumpkin and milk mellow out the heat index. So I found it to be perfect. Omit the spicy stuff all together and add a few other Italian spices like oregano or tarragon if you are sensitive to heat. (But, sad face if you are…)

:)

Spaghetti Pie

03 Friday May 2013

Posted by in Easy, Pasta

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spaghetti pie

What’s that? You’ve never heard of spaghetti pie before?

Ah! Another CW staple growing up. My mom would cook up a big batch of spaghetti and “glue” it together with eggs and a bit of cheese. Then she would pour sauce and cheese atop it and bake it. And voila! A bunch of spaghetti you can cut into and serve, pie style.

So I’ve taken my mom’s central idea of having eggs and cheese glue the spaghetti together, and I’ve amped it up — making it a bit creamier with ricotta cheese, and including a mound of veggies and beans.

The result? A deluxe spaghetti dish. A true comfort. An absolute delight.
spaghetti pie 2

Spaghetti Pie

A CW Original based on Mom’s Original!
Serves 8 – 10
Printable Recipe

Ingredients

  • 1 box whole wheat spaghetti
  • 1 (15 oz) container fat free ricotta cheese
  • 2 eggs, beaten
  • 2 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp oregano
  • 2 tbsp Parmesan cheese
  • 1 cup frozen peas, defrosted
  • 1 cup frozen corn, defrosted
  • 1 (15 oz) can red kidney beans, rinsed and drained
  • 1 (4 oz) can green chiles
  • 1 jar spaghetti sauce
  • 1 cup mozzarella cheese

Directions

  1. Cook the spaghetti according to package directions. Drain and rinse under cold water to stop the cooking. Set aside in a large pot.
  2. Meanwhile, stir together the ricotta cheese, eggs, garlic powder, oregano, and Parmesan in a small bowl.
  3. Toss together the spaghetti with the peas, corn, beans, and chiles until the veggies are evenly distributed. Then stir in the cheese mixture, evenly coating the spaghetti and veggies.
  4. Pour the spaghetti mixture in a 9 x 13 pan coated with cooking spray. Pour the spaghetti sauce in an even layer atop the spaghetti. Top with mozzarella cheese and additional sprinkles of Parmesan cheese.
  5. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees F. Uncover the foil and bake for an additional 10 minutes or until the cheese starts to brown slightly.
  6. Cut into squares and serve!

spaghetti pie 3

My Two Cents

As are most of my recipes, this is incredibly versatile and you can change it up with whatever you have on hand. Sub in different veggies such as broccoli or green beans or asparagus (yumm), or omit the veggies all together and mix in a pound of ground beef with the beans instead.

This will also work really well with different shapes of pasta — macaroni, rotini, penne — they’ll all do the trick!

Goodness, now I’m craving another slice :)

Enjoy!

Homemade Funfetti Cupcakes

29 Monday Apr 2013

Posted by in Cake, Dessert

≈ 17 Comments

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funfetti cupcake

Funfetti is just what it sounds like.

Fun. (fun fun fun fun!)

So that’s why I decided to make them for my friend’s birthday party — AND it doubled as this month’s Secret Recipe Club recipe! This month I was assigned to Erin’s blog, The Spiffy Cookie. Let me say upfront that Erin has amazing, amazing, amazing recipes. I loved the look and sound of every single one of them, and if I had time, I would make every single one of them.

And maybe I will ;)

funfetti cupcakes 3

But back to the cupcakes.

I know that it’s really easy to buy a box of Funfetti cake mix at the store. They’ll be fine. But that’s just the thing. They’re just fine. They’re just alright.

If you go with homemade? You can taste the butter when you bite into it. You get nothing but the fun fluffiness of a very sprinkley and vanilla-y cake.

In other words, nothing but joy.

Homemade Funfetti Cupcakes

Adapted from The Spiffy Cookie
Makes 30 cupcakes
Printable Recipe

Ingredients

For the Cupcakes:

  • 2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
  • 2 cups sugar
  • 4 eggs
  • 2 tbsp pure vanilla 
  • 3 cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 2/3 cup skim milk
  • 2/3 cup assorted brightly colored sprinkles 

For the Chocolate Frosting:

  • 1 stick unsalted butter 
  • 2/3 cup cocoa powder
  • 3 cups confectioners’ sugar
  • 1/3 cup skim milk 
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a cupcake tin with paper liners.
  2. For the cupcakes: Cream the butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs and vanilla and beat until combined.
  3. Combine the flour and baking powder in another bowl. Add half of the dry ingredients to the butter/sugar mixture, mixing until just combined. Add the milk. Once mixed, add remaining dry ingredients. Fold in the assorted sprinkles.
  4. Pour into cupcake tins and fill 2/3 of the way full. Bake for 18-20 minutes. Let cool completely before frosting.
  5. To make the chocolate frosting: Melt the butter in a medium bowl. Stir in the cocoa until dissolved. Alternately add confectioners’ sugar and milk, beating to spreading consistency. Add small amount additional milk, if needed. Stir in vanilla.

funfetti cupcakes

My Two Cents

Did I mention that this tastes like childhood?

This tastes like childhood.

And childhood was fun :)

Thanks, Erin, for another fabulous SRC Recipe!
Secret Recipe Club

CLICK THE LINK BELOW TO SEE ALL OF THE RECIPES FROM TODAY’S SRC REVEAL DAY!


Crockpot Chicken Tagine

23 Tuesday Apr 2013

Posted by in Poultry, Slow Cooker

≈ 5 Comments

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chicken tagine

I like taking my time with cooking.

I find that if I rush things, they turn out crappy.

i.e. You cannot rush risotto, or you end up with undercooked rice. Or if I start chopping the onion too quickly, part of my finger ends up in the diced pile. Or if I read the recipe too quickly, I’ll end up with 1 tbsp of curry instead of 1 tsp. Or mistake the baking powder for the salt. Or break the yolk.

I hate breaking the yolk.

So slow cooking and I have a special relationship. We act as one. The low and slow method means the food is relaxed. The smells of simmering veggies and meat slowly leak out of the kitchen into the living room on a Sunday afternoon and into my nostrils.

When the food is relaxed, I’m relaxed.

And relaxed food is good food. Relaxed Megan is good Megan! :)

So let’s get to this stew.

I wanted this stew when I saw it on Pinterest. I’ve never made a chicken tagine, but after looking at the ingredients, I knew it wouldn’t fail me. And fail me it did not. Besides the chicken being fall-of-the-bone tender, it was magically seasoned. Also, subtly sweet with the addition of the raisins. And when Chris says things “taste like butter” when there is no butter in the dish….well that’s a pretty darn good signal that this is good, good stuff :)

Crockpot Chicken Tagine

Adapted from Good Housekeeping
Serves 6 – 8
Printable Recipe

Ingredients

  • 2 medium (1 1/2-pounds) sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks
  • 1 pint grape tomatoes, halved
  • 1 medium onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 can (15 oz) chickpeas, rinsed and drained
  • 1 cup chicken broth
  • 1/3 cup raisins
  • 2 tsp ground coriander
  • 2 tsp ground cumin
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp pepper
  • 3 lbs bone-in skinless chicken thighs (6 -8 depending on their size)

Directions

  1. Combine the sweet potatoes, tomatoes, onion, garlic, chickpeas, broth, and raisins at the bottom of your slow cooker.
  2. Combine the coriander, cumin, cinnamon, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Rub the spice mixture evenly over the chicken thighs.
  3. Place the chicken on top of the vegetable mixture. Cover the slow cooker and cook on Low for 8 hours.
  4. Serve the chicken and vegetables with a starch such as rice, quinoa, or couscous.

chicken tagine dinner

My Two Cents

This is a tad different than typical chicken tagine because I used sweet potatoes instead of butternut squash. I did this mainly because I had sweet potatoes on hand, but also because I think sweet potatoes hold up better after a day of being in the slow cooker.

I also omitted the olives. I don’t really like olives. I find them salty and slimy and odd tasting in general. If you like them, though, add in a half cup of olives right before serving.

Also, this makes a ton. Be prepared to eat it all week, or serve to a crowd!

Enjoy! :)