Slow Cooker Hearty Beef Stew

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pounds beef for stew, cut into 1-inch pieces
Ground black pepper
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 pounds medium potatoes, cut into cubes (about 3 cups)
4 medium carrots, sliced (about 2 cups)
2 medium onions, cut into wedges
4 cloves garlic, minced
3 1/4 cups Swanson® Beef Stock
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves, crushed
1 bay leaf
1 cup thawed frozen peas


Directions:
Season the beef with black pepper. Coat the beef with 2 tablespoons of the flour. Heat the oil in a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the beef in 2 batches and cook until it's well browned, stirring often.
Place the potatoes, carrots, onions and garlic into a 5-quart slow cooker. Top with the beef. Add 3 cups of the stock, Worcestershire, thyme and bay leaf.
Cover and cook on *LOW for 10 to 11 hours* or until the beef is fork-tender. Remove and discard the bay leaf.
Stir the remaining flour and stock in a small bowl until the mixture is smooth. Stir the flour mixture and peas in the cooker. Increase the heat to HIGH. Cover and cook for 15 minutes or until the mixture boils and thickens.
*Or on HIGH 5 to 6 hours*
Serving suggestion: Serve with buttermilk biscuits and tossed salad topped with Ranch dressing.

CHUCK'S FAVORITE MAC & CHEESE

INGREDIENTS

1 (8 ounce) package elbow macaroni 1 (8 ounce) package shredded sharp Cheddar cheese 1 (12 ounce) container small curd cottage cheese 1 (8 ounce) container sour cream 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese salt and pepper to taste 1 cup dry bread crumbs 1/4 cup butter, melted DIRECTIONS Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil, add pasta, and cook until done; drain. In 9x13 inch baking dish, stir together macaroni, shredded Cheddar cheese, cottage cheese, sour cream, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. In a small bowl, mix together bread crumbs and melted butter. Sprinkle topping over macaroni mixture. Bake 30 to 35 minutes, or until top is golden.

A Summer Favorite

Farmer's Market Vegetarian Quesadillas "Making the most of simple, fresh ingredients found at your local Farmer's Market, these quesadillas make great appetizers or a quick and healthy meal. Serve while hot with your favorite salsa, sour cream, and guacamole. "

INGREDIENTS 1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper 1/2 cup chopped zucchini 1/2 cup chopped yellow squash 1/2 cup chopped red onion 1/2 cup chopped mushrooms 1 tablespoon olive oil cooking spray 6 (9 inch) whole wheat tortillas 1 1/4 cups shredded reduced-fat sharp Cheddar cheese

DIRECTIONS In a large nonstick pan, cook red pepper, zucchini, yellow squash, onion, and mushrooms in olive oil over medium to medium-high heat for about 7 minutes, or until just tender. Remove vegetables from pan. Coat the same pan with cooking spray, and place one tortilla in pan. Sprinkle 1/4 cup of cheese evenly over tortilla, and layer 3/4 cup of the vegetable mixture over the cheese. Sprinkle another 1/8 cup of cheese on the vegetables, and top with a second tortilla. Cook until golden on both sides, for approximately 2 to 3 minutes per side. Remove quesadilla from pan, and repeat with remaining ingredients. Cut each quesadilla into 8 triangles with a pizza cutter. Serve hot

These are so delicious, and so easy too, good balanced meal for summer

Chicken and New Potatoes Skillet Dinner

It’s hard to go wrong with chicken, new potatoes, and sour cream. This recipe mixes the three in a stovetop, skillet dinner that is easy and almost foolproof. It only has a few ingredients and you don’t have to slave over a five course meal. Best of all, your family will love this dinner.

Ingredients a cut-up fryer or thighs or drumstickssalt and pepper to tastenew potatoes—as many as you choose to fill out the pan

4-6 green onions

1 1/2 cups sour cream

1/2 to 3/4 cup water

1 pound frozen or fresh green peas

1 tsp crushed thyme

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions 1. Place the chicken in a 12 inch skillet. Salt and pepper the pieces. Brown the chicken over medium heat.

2. Partially peel the new potatoes. (They just look better with some of the red skins remaining.) Add the potatoes to the skillet. Cook the chicken and the potatoes until both are tender.

3. Remove the chicken and potatoes to a platter. Skim off the excess fat remaining in the pan.

4. Snip the green onions into the pan. Add the sour cream and water and heat the mixture until it starts to bubble, stirring frequently with a spatula.

5. Add the peas, thyme, salt, and pepper. Stir.

Add the chicken and potatoes, cover and heat for five minutes to reheat the chicken and potatoes. Serve hot. Oh my word it is so good, and will tickle your taste buds.

Supper For Tonight

Chicken And Dumplings Chicken and Broth 7 cups water 2 Chicken Breasts 1 teaspoons salt 1 small onion sliced 2 pieces celery, chopped 1 teaspoon coarsely ground black pepper sprinkle a little parsely for looks Dumplings 2 cups all purpose flour 1 tablespoon baking powder 1 1/4 teaspoons of salt 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons milk 1. Bring the water to a boil in a large pot. Add the chicken, 1 teaspoon of salt, onion, celery, and parsley to the pot. Reduce the heat to simmer and cook the chicken, uncovered, for 2 hours. The liquid will reduce by about one third. 2. When the chicken has cooked, remove it from the pot and set it aside. Strain the stock to remove all the vegetables and floating scum. You only want the stock and the chicken, so toss everything else out. 3. Pour 1 1/2 quarts (6 cups) of the stock back into the pot (keep the leftover stock, if any, for another recipe-it can be frozen). You may also want to use a smaller pot or a large saucepan for this. Add coarsely ground pepper, the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of salt, then reheat the stock over medium heat while preparing the dumplings. 4. For dumplings, combine the flour, baking powder, 1 1/4 teaspoons salt, and milk in a medium bowl. Stir well until smooth, then let the dough rest for 5-10 minutes. Roll the dough out onto a floured surface to about a 1/2 inch thickness. 5. Cut the dough into 1/2 inch squares and drop each square into the simmering stock. Use all of the dough. The dumplings will first swell and then slowly shrink as they partially dissolve to thicken the stock into a white gravy. Simmer for 20-30 minutes until thick. Stir often. 6. While the stock is thickening, the chicken will have become cool enough to handle. Tear all the meat from the bones and remove the skin. Cut the chicken meat into bite-size or a little bigger than bite-size pieces and drop them into the pot. Discard the skin and bones. Continue to simmer the chicken and dumplings for another 5-10 minutes, but don't stir too vigorously or the chicken will shred and fall apart. You want big chunks of chicken in the end. 7. When the gravy has reached the desired consistencyserve, and eat, yum yum, this is kinda like the ones Cracker Barrel uses, smaller portions for the two of us, and omitting some things we do not like. This makes an excellent meal, and I take one of the Chicken breasts and put up for tomorrow, I will make a large Chicken Chef Salad with it. So really preparing two meals at once, just thought you can set aside some of your chicken for other things if you like.

We Had The best Supper Last Night...

I fixed good center cut smoked pork, and my version of hurry up scalloped potatoes. Fresh tomatoes from our plants, and some wonderful squash. It was a great meal.

Okay I browned the smoked pork chops, very slowly to make sure they heated all the way through.

Ingredients:

4 large potatoes

2 cups of milk

2 Tablespoons of Corn Starch

1/2 stick butter

1/2 of good size Vidalia onion

add a pinch of parsely for looks

Directions:

Peel and Slice potatoes, I put the stick of butter in the pan and melted it, then added the potatoes and onion, salted and peppered, put a lid on them and cooked it for about 15 minutes, til taters were tender, then I took one cup of milk an added the corn starch to it, stirred and then added the rest of the milk, cooked it down so it got real creamy and thick, it is delicious too, an in the summer not heating the kitchen up with the oven.

Grilled Marinated Chicken Take Chicken Breasts cover with Italian dressing, set in fridge for about 2 hours, put on grill and cook over medium heat about 15 minutes each side, this makes a great moist and delicious meat with your potato salad and corn on the cob, we cooked the corn right in the husk for about 20 minutes, just perfect. Yummy Potato Salad Directions Cook the potatoes; then cool, peel, and dice. Hard boil the eggs; then cool, peel, and chop. Peel the onions and grate or chop fine. Dice the celery, broccoli and olives. Add the chopped potatoes, eggs, onions, broccoli and celery to a serving bowl, cover, and refrigerate while preparing the rest of the ingredients for the dressing. Blend together the salad dressing, mustard, then pour this sauce over the potato mixture and toss. Cover the salad and refrigerate it for at least 1-2 hours for the flavors to blend properly. You may garnish the potato salad with olives and fresh sprigs of parsley for added flavor and color. We had a great time in the pool, did some really good pool exercises and then came in and I fixed the meal, he did the cooking on the grill, this is a wonderful way to spend a lazy summer day, and not to heat up your house by cooking inside too, so enjoy your meal, and let it be know, we are Country, and I cook County, and there is not other way. Be blessed, and enjoy your evening service tonight, was a wonderful way to end a perfect day, in the house of God with his people.

Fast Wednesday Meal

Tortellini, Steak, and Caesar

"A well-balanced meal in a bowl! Goes well with a nice slice of Italian or French bread. If you want to make it in advance or have leftovers, don't add the dressing and croutons beforehand. Mix croutons right before serving. INGREDIENTS 1 (9 ounce) package cheese tortellini 1 pound flank steak garlic powder to taste salt and pepper to taste 1 tablespoon olive oil 2 heads romaine lettuce, torn into bite-size pieces 2 (2.25 ounce) cans small pitted black olives, drained 1 cup Caesar-style croutons 2 small fresh tomatoes, chopped 1 (8 ounce) bottle Caesar salad dressing Directions Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Place pasta in the pot, cook for 7 to 9 minutes, until al dente, and drain. Preheat the oven broiler. Season steak with garlic powder, salt, and pepper; rub with olive oil. Place steak in a baking dish, and broil 5 minutes on each side, or to desired doneness. Slice diagonally into thin strips. In a bowl, toss the cooked tortellini, lettuce, olives, croutons, tomatoes, and dressing. Top with steak strips to serve.

This is a wonderful quick meal for a person on the go, complete nutrition too.

My Husband's Favorite Dish

Stuffed Cabbage Rolls Recipe

1 lb. hamburger

1 lb. pork sausage

1/3 c. uncooked instant rice

1 med. onion, chopped

Salt & pepper to taste

1/8 tsp. garlic salt

1 can tomato sauce (15 oz.)

12 cabbage leaves

DIRECTIONS:

Cover cabbage rolls with boiling water. Cover and let stand until leaves are limp, about 10 minutes. Remove leaves; drain.

Mix hamburger, pork sausage, rice, onion, salt, pepper, garlic salt and 1/2 of tomato sauce.

Place hamburger mixture in each cabbage leaf, roll up, tucking all sides under.

Place cabbage rolls seam side down in ungreased large skillet, 9x11 baking dish. Pour tomatoe sauce over cabbage rolls. Cover and bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. I like to keep basting them with the sauce, makes them moister.

Fried Cabbage Recipe

1/2 lb. bacon, fried and crumbled

1 small head cabbage, shredded

1 pkg. Lipton creamy garlic pasta, cooked by pkg. directions

Fry cabbage to desired doneness. Add pasta and bacon. Serve hot.

Thursday's Supper

My Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

Sauce 1 pound of Ground Chuck 1 small Valdilla onion 6 fresh mushrooms chopped up 1 12 oz can of Tomato Sauce 1/2 can of diced tomatoes 1 teaspoon chopped Garlic 1 teaspoon of Italian spices pinch of salt and pepper Directions Brown ground chuck, onion, mushrooms, there is no fat left so no need to drain, add 1 can of tomato sauce, 1/2 can of diced tomatoes,add garlic, Italian spices and salt and pepper to taste. 1/4 box of 16 oz Ronzoni Spaghetti, I like it because it has substance, not just a flimsy noodle, lol, cook until it becomes sticky, do not over cook spaghetti, it only takes about 8 minutes if that to cook, then drain well, do not rinse, your sauce will not stick good if you rinse it. we like ours mixed together, but you can serve your spaghetti and top it with the sauce. I add a a sprinkle of either Parmesan or Mozzarella cheese.

Creamy Wild Mushroom Pasta

Creamy Wild Mushroom Pasta The "cream" in this recipe comes from blending some of the mushrooms and broth together. This creates a thick, rich texture for the mushroom sauce without the saturated fat and calories of real cream. Serves four as a main dish. Ingredients · 1 tablespoon olive oil · 2 cloves garlic, minced · 10 ounces wild mushrooms; use as many different types of mushrooms as you like, such as shiitake, maitake, portobello, straw, enoki, oyster, chanterelles, cremini, morel, porcini, matsutake, etc. · 1½ cups low-sodium vegetable broth · 1 tablespoon fresh chopped rosemary or 1 teaspoon dried ground rosemary (dried herb) · 1 teaspoon dried ground thyme (dried herb) · Fresh ground black pepper, to taste · ¼ cup grated fresh parmesan cheese · 12 ounces (dry weight) whole-grain pasta; any whole-grain pasta, such as wheat, spelt, buckwheat, kamut, or rye, will work well for this recipe Instructions · Bring a large pot of water to boil while preparing the other ingredients. · Clean and coarsely chop the mushrooms. · Mince the garlic and grate the fresh parmesan cheese. · In a deep skillet or stove-top pan, heat olive oil and garlic over medium heat until the garlic just turns golden. · Add low-sodium vegetable broth and mushrooms; return mixture to a simmer (low boil). · Add rosemary, thyme, black pepper, and half of the parmesan cheese and stir. · Add pasta to boiling water and cook according to instructions (usually 8 to 10 minutes). · While pasta is cooking, stir mushroom mixture at a simmer for 5 to 7 minutes. · Very carefully (it's very hot!) remove approximately 1 cup of mushrooms and broth and place in a blender. · Very carefully (it's very hot!) blend the mushrooms and broth. Use a lid on the blender; place the lid lightly and lift several times to vent the steam as you blend. This will prevent the lid from blowing off the blender due to steam buildup. · Return blended mushrooms and broth to pan; stir to combine with mushroom mixture. Reduce heat until pasta is ready. · Drain pasta and mix pasta and mushroom sauce together. Stir to combine ingredients and coat pasta. · Dish onto plates and sprinkle each serving with a bit of the remaining parmesan cheese. · Serve and enjoy! Serving suggestion: For a nice meal, serve with salad or cooked greens.

SHEPHERDS PIE ½ lb. ground beef ½ can peas ½ can sweet corn ½ can diced tomatoes ½ medium onion, diced 4 medium potatoes 1 c. shredded sharp cheddar cheese Boil potatoes, mash and season to taste with milk and butter. Brown ground beef and onion with salt and pepper. When cooked, add peas, corn, diced tomatoes. Let simmer until heated through. In 9½ round pan place meat and vegetable mixture in bottom of pan. Cover with mashed potatoes and sprinkle cheese on top. Place in oven on BROIL until cheese is bubbly or light brown. This is really good, and my husband loves it, you may double the recipe for a larger group, a 13X9 works well for the double amount.

♥ Terrifc Tuesday ♥

Hi on this Beautiful Tuesday Morning, I hope and pray that your day will be blessed and all you endeavor to do will go smooth and be blessing to some one else. Let us take a deep breath, and think for a minute who can we bless today. Got some one in mind, go call them, and let them know you are thinking about them, life is short, and we are not promised tomorrow. We had a wonderful Southern meal for dinner, and I am going to share it with you. (Lima Beans and Cornbread) CORNBREAD INGREDIENTS 2/3 cup butter or margarine, softened 3 eggs 1 2/3 cups milk 2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour 1 cup cornmeal 4 1/2 teaspoons baking powder 1 teaspoon salt DIRECTIONSIn a mixing bowl, cream butter, Combine the eggs and milk. Combine flour, cornmeal, baking powder and salt; add to creamed mixture alternately with egg mixture. I like adding some cracklings at times too, give a wonderful taste. Pour into a greased 13-in. x 9-in. x 2-in. baking pan. Bake at 400 degrees F for 22-27 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cut into squares; serve warm. DRIED LIMA BEANS INGREDIENTS 1 pound lima beans, rinsed and soaked for at least one hour 1 large diced onion 4 cups water 1-2 tablespoon Bacon grease salt, pepper DIRECTIONS: In a large soup pot, heat the bacon grease hot; Add the onions, Add the Lima beans and water/add salt and pepper to taste. Bring to a rolling boil, then add some bacon, or ham bits, Cook until Lima beans are tender, and the water cooks down, and serve on top of rice. Cook rice as on package, I always use good old long grain white rice, and add salt and about a tablespoon of butter while cooking, Reheats well and almost tastes better the next day.