Over the weekend I was discussing slow cooker recipes with a friend who asked if I had any super easy ones for beef stew and a good old pot roast. Both the stew and the roast recipe are excellent for “simmering” all day and coupled with a few simple side dishes are complete meals in themselves. The beef stew is fantastic with all the vegetables right in it. All you need is a loaf of crusty French bread.
■ Crock Pot Stew
Serving size: 6
2 pounds beef stew meat or round steak, cut in 1-inch cubes
1/4 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 1/2 cups beef broth or bouillon cubes
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 clove minced garlic
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon paprika
4 carrots, sliced
3 potatoes, diced
1 onion, chopped
1 stalk celery, sliced
Put meat in Crock Pot. Mix flour, salt and pepper and pour over meat; stir to coat meat with flour. Add remaining ingredients and stir to mix well. Cover, cook on low 10-12 hours or on high 4-6 hours. Stir stew before serving.
■ Yummy, Tender Roast Beef
3 pound roast
15-ounce can beef broth
1 package dry onion soup mix
1 can cream of celery, mushroom or chicken soup
Put roast in crockpot. Add remaining ingredients and cook on low for 10 hours.
■ Caramel Chex Mix
1 bag corn chips
17 ounces Crispix cereal
1 can mixed nuts
Sauce:
1/2 cup Karo syrup
1 cup butter
2 cups brown sugar
12 ounces M&Ms plain chocolate candies
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix corn chips, Crispix cereal and mixed nuts in a large roaster. For the sauce, combine the Karo syrup, butter and brown sugar. Boil 1 1/2 minutes. Pour over corn chip mixture. Stir and bake in oven for eight minutes. Remove from oven and stir. Bake another eight minutes. Add bag of M&Ms. Pour mixture on waxed paper to cool.
■ GARY’S TIP: To remove mold, use equal parts of hydrogen peroxide and vinegar in a spray bottle. Let sit for a few minutes and wipe with a cloth.
■ FOOD FOR THOUGHT: A smile is one thing you can’t damage by cracking.
