Cider Braised Roast Beef in the Crock Pot (4 Star)

Most Sundays growing up my mom made roast beef with potatoes, carrots, and gravy for dinner. It was always one of my favorite dinners. I've struggled to learn to make my own because it often turned out dry and tough--the dual curse of inept roast cooking. I've finally figured out how to make a fall-apart tender, juicy, savory roast beef and the crock pot is the key. My mom used to always use the oven but that method has only caused me ruin and despair. If you, too, have struggled in your roast-cooking efforts, try this recipe.





Cider Braised Roast Beef

1-2 large onions, peeled and sliced
4-5 lb beef roast (cheap cuts work great in this recipe)
salt and pepper
4-5 carrots, peeled and cut into halves or thirds
6-8 potatoes, peeled and cut into halves
3-4 (or more) cups beef broth
1 cup apple juice concentrate
1 bay leaf
4 cloves garlic, chopped, smashed, pressed--whatever you prefer

This recipe is the kind that is very tweak-able. Use more or less of anything to suit your tastes.

Place the onion in the bottom of a large crock pot. Heavily salt and pepper the roast, rubbing it into the meat. Place the roast on top of the onion. Put the carrots and potatoes around the roast. In a large measuring cup combine the beef broth, apple juice concentrate, and garlic. Pour around the roast. The liquid should cover the roast at least half-way. Add more beef broth, if necessary. Add the bay leaf.

Put the cover on the crock pot and either cook on low for around ten hours, or high for 6-8. Crock pots can vary in temperature quite a bit so it could take more or less time. I like to start mine on high for a couple of hours and then turn it to low for the rest. The roast is done when it falls apart when pulled with a fork and the vegetables are tender.

Gravy

2/3 cup flour
2/3 cup water
1 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
1 teaspoon beef base (or to taste)

Remove all meat and vegetables from the pot and place on a platter or serving dishes. Cover while you make the gravy. You can either skim the fat from the top or make the roast a day ahead and then remove the hardened fat and reheat the roast in the crock pot for several hours. Pour all the liquid into a sauce pan and turn heat to high or medium-high. In a small bowl combine 2/3 cup flour and 2/3 cup water. Whisk until smooth and pour into the liquid as soon as it is boiling. Boil and whisk until thickened. Add 1 teaspoon salt and 1 teaspoon beef base to season, or to taste.

I like cooking the potatoes with the roast because they absorb the juices and become very flavorful, but sometimes I don't put them in and make mashed potatoes separately instead. Either way, it's very good!

Enjoy!

Honey-Lime Chicken (3 Star)

This is one of my absolute favorite chicken recipes. It is slightly sweet and tangy, fresh and smokey. Last night we ate it with buttered baked potatoes and a huge green salad drizzled with left over Cafe Rio dressing. (Try making your own dressing! Click here for Prudy's recipe.)





Click here for the chicken recipe and here for the dressing recipe, courtesy of Prudence Pennywise.

Cucumber Peanut Salad (0 Star)

The other day I bought a bunch of cucumbers because they had an amazing sale price. Then they just sat in my fridge for a while because I didn't know what to do with them. I do that sometimes--buy something that's on a great sale and then let it rot in my fridge because I didn't know what to do with it.

Luckily, I found a delicious recipe this time and my cukes were saved from a rotten fate. I liked the fresh, clean taste of cucumbers in this salad paired with the peanuts, cilantro, and coconut. However, I used only one Serrano pepper (the recipe calls for 1-2) and (woowee!) it must have been a spicy one because it made the salad way too spicy for Brandon and I. Next time I will start with half and go from there. Aside from that, I really enjoyed this, and paired with grilled chicken strips, it made a healthy, light meal, loaded with crunch and flavor.



Click here for the recipe and beautiful photos, courtesy of 101 Cookbooks.

Spicy Chili Chicken (3 Star)

For Christmas, one of Brandon's sisters gave him a Korean cookbook. We've had fun trying recipes from it and this recipe is now one of our favorites. I doubled it and made some changes to suit our tastes, but the original recipe is from "Quick & Easy Korean Cooking" by Cecilia Hae-Jin-Lee. This is spicy, (but easily toned down to suit your spice-level) full of vegetables, and cooks up like a stir fry.



Spicy Chili Chicken
doubled and adapted from "Quick & Easy Korean Cooking" by Cecilia Hae-Jin-Lee

3 Tablespoons olive or grape seed oil
2 to 2 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 2-inch slices
1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into thin strips about 2 inches long
1 large onion, cut in half, then cut into 1/2-inch wedges
2 zucchini, cut into 1-inch cubes
1/3 cabbage, cut into 1-inch cubes
4 cloves garlic, peeled and finely diced
1/2 bunch green onion, cut into 1-inch lengths
3 Tablespoons Korean chili paste called Gochujang, which can be purchased at Asian markets (this is half of what the original recipe called for)
2 Tablespoons soy sauce (this is a lot more than the original recipe called for)
1 Tablespoon sugar (this is more than the original recipe called for)

Heat two tablespoons of the oil in a large skillet or wok over medium-high to high heat. Add the chicken, sweet potato, and onion and stir-fry until the chicken is cooked through and the vegetables begin to brown, about 10-15 minutes. Add one more tablespoon of oil (if necessary) to the pan and add the zucchini, cabbage, and garlic and stir-fry another 3 minutes, until tender-crisp. Add the green onion, chili paste, soy sauce, and sugar and cook stirring, until combined.

Serve immediately with hot rice.

Chap Chae (4 Star)

Yay, a four star dinner recipe! My boys love this meal, although some of them pick out the veggies and only eat the noodles. Does that count? I guess I'm counting it as liking the "meal".

Amazingly, my eldest son ate all of the veggies in his chap chae last night. This was a big deal because he rarely eats veggies. His comment was they didn't taste too different, they mostly added crunch.

These noodles are very fun for kids. They are sweet potato starch noodles (but taste nothing like sweet potatoes--they actually have very little flavor, absorbing whatever flavor is added to them), sometimes called Korean glass noodles. I purchase them at our local Asian market. I've never looked for them at the regular grocery store, so I don't know if they are sold there. But the Asian market is fun! Try it out. (By the way, I have recently discovered that the Asian market is the best place to buy sweet potatoes around here! They have the best kind and they are fresher than the ones at the grocery store.) Nutritionally speaking, I'm not sure how great these noodles are. I think they are a step up from Ramen (what isn't?) and they are gluten free, if that's a concern for you.

Chap Chae is a Korean dish. I used the recipe from Steamy Kitchen. She lists certain vegetables, but really, you can use whatever veggies sound good to you. I used carrots, onions, yellow pepper, green cabbage, spinach, and zucchini this time and it was excellent. The cabbage actually turned out great because I shredded it fairly small and it became a bit translucent and blended with the noodles so the boys who picked out their veggies ended up eating the cabbage, not even noticing. Whatever veggies you use, just stir-fry them to tender crisp and you're good to go. I've also used bits of scrambled eggs in this, with success.

This recipe does have a lot of sugar in it, so I decreased it by half, and we were all thrilled with the flavor.

You can also change the noodle to veggie ratio to fit your liking. I made ours with lots of noodles to compensate for the veggie picker-outers.



Click here for the recipe.

Pork or Chicken Tacos with Cilantro Slaw (3 Star)

This taco meat is cooked in the crock pot to tender, juicy, and savory perfection. Either chicken or pork works well here. The top picture is pork and the bottom is chicken (made on separate occasions).



Shredded Pork or Chicken Taco Meat

1 onion, chopped
2 teaspoons sea salt
2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon smoked paprika (or regular if you don't have smoked)
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon coriander
1 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
1/3 cup brown sugar
4 lbs boneless, skinless chicken or pork
1 cup chicken or beef broth
2/3 cup frozen apple juice concentrate
2/3 cup water
1 cup Salsa Verde (tomatillo salsa)

Garnish

sour cream
cheese
Salsa Verde

Put the chopped onion in the bottom of a crock pot.

In a small bowl combine all of the seasonings and sugar. Rub this mixture onto the meat and place in the crock pot. Pour the broth, juice, and water into the crock pot. Cook on LOW for six to eight hours or until meat is so tender that it just falls apart when shredded.

Remove the meat from the pot and shred with two forks. Place shredded meat into a bowl or serving dish. Add some spoonfuls of broth back into the meat so that it is moist but not soggy. (The remaining broth can be reserved in the fridge or freezer for use in a soup later.) Stir 1 cup of salsa into the meat and serve with garnish(es) of choice. This meat is actually better the second day, so make it a day ahead or make enough so that you have left-overs.



I like to serve this with homemade tortillas (click here) and cilantro lime slaw (click here). The spice blend in this recipe is inspired by a recipe from Prudence Pennywise (click here).

Asian Noodle Salad (0 Star)

This salad, courtesy of Pioneer Woman, is chock full of colorful, crisp, sweet, and nutritious vegetables. The dressing is salty sweet spiked with lime, hot pepper, and cilantro. This is the kind of thing that Brandon and I love, but the boys don't consider edible.



Pioneer Woman's recipe makes a ton--she says it makes six servings, but the veggies alone filled my bowl to the twenty cup mark. Also, if you don't plan to eat this right away, my recommendation is to keep everything separate. Keep the salad in it's own bowl, dressing separate, and pasta separate, or the salad will wilt and the pasta will absorb the dressing and get mushy and gross. (Yes, I know this from experience.)

I used whole wheat pasta and I think this might also be good with quinoa in place of the pasta--I plan to try it next time.

Click here for the recipe.

Potatoes Ogg Rotten (3 Star)

Have you ever heard of "Potatoes Ogg Rotten" before? Aka, "Potatoes Au Gratin". Around here "Potatoes Ogg Rotten" is our little joke. My boys love this meal (except my second-born, of course). I add in a pound of browned homemade sausage and they love it even more. This time I also added in a couple of sweet potatoes and some carrots (it was worth a shot), but those got picked out so I'll probably skip them next time.



I use Pioneer Woman's recipe, and while it tastes great, I am irritated about the fact that the milk always curdles. I think it's because I use 2% milk with no cream. I read that milk with lower fat content curdles more easily. Bummer. I was trying to lessen the calories but maybe I should just go with the cream next time. (Any suggestions?) Or maybe just not worry about it since I'm the only one aware--the boys love it how it is. But it's not too pretty. Or creamy. Oh well!



Click here for the recipe.

Roasted Veggie Enchilada Casserol (1 Star)

Holy enchiladas, Batman! This was one of the best dishes I have ever made, as pronounced by me while Brandon and I devoured. The roasted vegetables were savory and earthy, and with the cheese, tortillas, salsa, and meat (not in the recipe but I chose to add) was an amazing combination. I did not expect it to taste as good as it did. I also did not expect any of our boys to manage to take any more than the required taste, but my third-born devoured several helpings and kept exclaiming, "Mom! Please make this again!" I will.



I hope my photo doesn't detract from my written praise. I took it after it had been in the fridge for two days (it was still heavenly to the taste buds, though) and the tortillas had disintegrated a bit and everything had kind of mashed together. If you want to see gorgeous photos of this dish, go to Perry's Plate from whom I got the recipe.

Click here for the recipe.

Texas Sheet Cake (4 Star)

I've shared my favorite homemade vanilla cake (here). Now it's time to share my favorite homemade chocolate cake. It is moist, tender, rich, and reminds me of my grandmother. My second-born enjoyed this for his birthday cake, recently.



It is (as the name implies) a sheet cake and so I didn't know if it would work as a different shape but it did. I used a 10 by 2 inch round pan and I baked it 25-30 minutes instead of 20.



This is a recipe that I got from my grandmother's file, but Pioneer Woman has the exact same recipe on her site so I will just link hers so I don't have to type the whole thing. And, of course, her step-by-step format is way nicer than anything I post here.

Click here for the recipe.

Mississippi Mud Brownies (4 Star)

I can't stop thinking about these brownies. I want to make them every day and eat them all myself. They are fudgy, dense, chewy, and my favorite part is the salty peanut butter on top. Another thing that I like about them is that they are made with cocoa powder, not unsweetened baking squares. It's cheaper that way, easier, and no sacrifice at all in flavor or texture.

I didn't even make them to the full extent of their wickedness because I didn't have marshmallows, pecans, or powdered sugar, but I'm excited for the day that I do. However, they were extremely good with just the chocolate chips and peanut butter.

I was a little unsure about this recipe at first, because it only calls for two tablespoons of cocoa powder in the brownies. I thought that there was no way that was enough but they turned out really good, though they were on the light side of chocolaty. The semi sweet chips added a lot more chocolate. However, if you do want them to have more intense chocolate flavor, then increase the cocoa powder and decrease the flour. I made them once as written in the original recipe and once with more chocolate. Pictured are the more chocolaty ones. I am posting the recipe with my changes.

Mississippi Mud Brownies
adapted from Tasty Kitchen

•1/2 cups All-purpose Flour
•1/3 Cup Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
•1/4 teaspoons Salt
•1/2 cups Unsalted Butter, At Room Temperature
•1 cup White Sugar
•1 teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
•2 whole Large Eggs
•3/4 cups Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips
•1/2 cups Crunchy Peanut Butter (Smooth works fine, too. My favorite is Kirkland Signature's organic peanut butter.)
•2 cups Mini Marshmallows
•1/2 cups Chopped And Toasted Pecans
•2 cups Confectioner's Sugar
•1/8 teaspoons Salt
•4 Tablespoons Unsalted Butter
•2 Tablespoons Unsweetened Cocoa Powder
•1/4 cups Plus 2 Tablespoons Of Milk
•1/4 teaspoons Pure Vanilla Extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line an 8×8″ square baking pan with parchment paper or foil. If using foil, spray it with cooking spray.

In medium bowl, combine flour, 1/3 cup cocoa powder, and salt. Set aside.

In large mixing bowl, beat together butter, sugar, and 1 teaspoon vanilla until creamy. Add the eggs one at a time. Stir dry ingredients into batter. Pour batter into prepared pan and spread evenly. Sprinkle with chocolate chips. Bake in preheated oven for 22-25 minutes.

When brownie layer is done baking, gently spread peanut butter over hot brownie. If you use a peanut butter that is thick, you can add a little oil and microwave until it's a little more runny. With mine, I didn't need to do this. Sprinkle the peanut butter covered brownies with marshmallows. Return to oven to bake for 3 more minutes, or until the marshmallows puff. Remove from oven and sprinkle puffed marshmallows with toasted pecans.

To make frosting, combine confectioners sugar and salt. In small saucepan, melt 4 Tablespoons butter over medium heat. When butter is melted, add the 2 Tablespoons of cocoa powder and 1/4 cup of the milk and heat until the mixture begins to boil. Pour this mixture into confectioners sugar/salt mixture and beat on high speed with an electric mixer until smooth and glossy. If frosting is not pourable at this point, add remaining 2 Tablespoons of milk (I didn’t have to do this). Lastly, beat in 1/4 teaspoon vanilla, then pour evenly over puffed marshmallows and pecans.

Let cool completely in refrigerator for 1-2 hours. Cut into squares and enjoy!



Click here for the original recipe.

Salsa Bean Dip (0 Star)

This is a recipe I came up with myself, and maybe I am a little strange, I don't know. But I like it and it is another healthy way to make veggies more enticing. All it is, is refried beans mixed with salsa. I use my homemade refried beans from this post. If I were to make it with canned refried beans (which I'm not sure I ever would because they just don't taste nearly as good) I would season them with stuff like liquid smoke, garlic powder, onion powder, chipotle powder, maybe some taco seasoning, etc. As far as amounts, I haven't measured, but I'm guessing it's somewhere between a one to one, or three to two ratio, the beans being the greater amount.

Queso Chicken Soup (3 Star)

This soup is one of Brandon's favorites. Most of the rest of us like it, too. It is creamy, cheesy, and chunky, full of vegetables, potatoes, chicken, and black beans.



Queso Chicken Soup
adapted from Picky Palate

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, diced
3 stalks celery, diced
2 large carrots, peeled and diced
3 cloves fresh garlic, minced
2 cans of chunk chicken from Costco, undrained (or use 2 cups cooked, shredded chicken breast)
1 Tablespoon ground cumin
1-2 teaspoons salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
1/3 cup flour
4 cups chicken broth
15 oz can black beans, drained
15 oz can diced tomatoes (I always puree mine to appease the picky eaters)
4 Cups diced baking potato
¼ Cup fresh cilantro leaves, chopped
half a jar of Ragu cheese sauce or two cups of shredded cheddar or Monterrey jack

Garnish
Frito's or tortilla chips
cilantro leaves

Heat oil in a 5 qt dutch oven or large pot over medium heat. Saute onion, celery and carrots until softened, about 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir in garlic and chicken. Cook and stir for 1 minute. Add cumin, salt, pepper, and flour and stir for another minute. Add chicken broth, tomatoes, and potatoes. Cook over medium heat until potatoes are fork tender. Reduce heat to low and stir in cilantro leaves and Ragu cheese sauce or grated cheese. Stir until cheese is melted. Garnish with chips and cilantro leaves, if desired.




Click here for original recipe.

Baked Sweet Potato (0 Star)

I have expressed my love for sweet potatoes on this blog before (and my mock snobbery--it's obvious when I'm joking, right? Right?). This sweet potato love matured and deepened when I lived in Hawaii. It was there that I tried my first baked sweet potato. It was served to me by a family with about ten scrawny kids living in a tiny, humble home. It was a very small half of a sweet potato that had been grown in the family garden. I was blown away by the creamy, bright orange, buttery, sweetness. I devoured it and looked around hoping for more, but it was obvious that my small half was a generous offering.

Another family in Hawaii served me a sweet potato, the likes of which I had never known existed. It was a small, skinny tuber, about the diameter of a medium sized carrot. It had been peeled, boiled, sliced into discs and served with butter. The most amazing thing about it was the gorgeous purple color. The color reminded me of purple gumdrops. Again I was blown away by the buttery sweetness--and the color!



I dream about those Hawaiian sweet potatoes. I have even grown my own sweet potatoes, hoping to replicate them, but the results were worse than yams. (Were they yams? The catalog said "Georgia Jets" and called them sweet potatoes.) If you read this post, you know how I feel about yams.

Then, this week when I went shopping I noticed that the sweet potatoes looked a little different than the typical sweet potatoes that I've seen around here. The skin was a deep purple. Normally the sweet potato skin color is closer to the color of regular baking potatoes. With visions of my Hawaiian sweet potatoes, I immediately snatched up a half dozen or so. Eagerly, I went home and baked one up and took a bite. Ahhh, lovely, lovely sweet potato! It was obviously not the same kind as the ones that I had in Hawaii--the flesh was not purple or bright orange--but it's flavor did come closer than any other sweet potato I've had. (Or at least closer to my memory of them...that was kind of a long time ago, sad to say.) What a creamy, buttery, sweet dream.







If you want to try especially good sweet potatoes, go to Buy Low and get some right now! If you are not familiar with it, Buy Low is right next to Cafe Rio, and close to Olive Garden and Movies 8. And be sure the sign says "sweet potatoes" not "yams"!

To prepare a baked sweet potato, bake the same as you would a regular baked potato and slather with plenty of butter.

Peanut Butter Butterscotch Cookies (4 Star)

Another one of my goals this year is to eat more cookies. Just kidding! But when I do eat cookies, I want them to be really good cookies. These are really good.

I have been on a peanut butter kick, lately. I don't know why, because I've never cared that much about peanut butter before, but now I just love to eat it, straight out of the jar, even. Or with raisins, (now you might get a little worried about me, but it's good!) or a spoonful of peanut butter with a spoonful of jam, or (this is where I can get out of control) with chocolate chips. I have been trying out many different things, lately, because I just can't seem to get enough of the stuff. One thing that I tried is butterscotch chips with peanut butter. Wow! It sort of reminds me of Reese's Pieces, only way, way better. Anyway, this whole long paragraph is just to explain that when I saw this recipe, I knew I was going to love these cookies. I was right!





Click here for the recipe from Picky Palate.

Rosemary Hummus (0 Star)

One of my goals for this year is to eat more veggies, especially fresh ones. I normally am not too excited about eating them plain, though--a dip is essential for me. However, since many dips are so high calorie and not so great on the "healthy" scale, I've been interested in finding some dips that I love that are more healthy and lower calorie. This hummus was a good fit.

I'm not a big hummus fan and my previous attempts at making it have been bad enough that I threw them away. But I thought I would make another attempt and this one I liked.

This was a very easy recipe and one thing that I liked about it was the absence of sesame tahini--a common hummus ingredient. I didn't have any on hand and it can be pricey, so I was glad to not have to deal with it. I also didn't have fresh rosemary so I just used about a half teaspoon of dried rosemary.



Rosemary Hummus
adapted from Tasty Kitchen

•2-½ Tablespoons olive oil
•½ teaspoon dried rosemary
•30 ounces canned garbanzo beans, drained
•⅓ cups plain Greek (or regular) yogurt
•1 teaspoon lemon juice
•1 whole garlic clove, peeled
•1 teaspoon salt
•¼ teaspoons pepper

Place the oil in a small skillet over high heat. Once smoking, sprinkle the dried rosemary into the oil and flash-fry for maybe a couple of seconds. Remove from the heat, and immediately pour the hot oil and rosemary into a small heatproof cup or bowl. Allow to cool a bit before adding this to the other ingredients.

Place the garbanzo beans in the food processor with the yogurt, rosemary-infused oil (cooled), lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper. Puree to desired consistency.

Click here for the original recipe.

Mud Balls (4 Star)

This is a treat that all of my kids love. I used to make peanut butter balls when I was a kid (the ones with peanut butter, butter, and powdered sugar) and loved them. This is what I came up with to fulfill my desire for a more healthy (and chocolaty!) peanut butter ball. I usually just wing it on the amounts but this is probably close to what I put in.

Mud Balls

1/2 cup peanut butter (crunchy or creamy--you choose)
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

Combine the above ingredients--alter amounts, if necessary, to adjust for personal taste and consistency--and roll into balls. If you wanted to get fancy, you could roll them in crushed, roasted peanuts, but my boys don't like fancy.



And, by the way, isn't this the cutest cake plate? My creative sister-in-law, Holli, made it by attaching a pretty cup to the bottom of a pretty plate. I love it.

Roasted Cauliflower Soup (0 Star)

I like soup. Soup is good. This Roasted Cauliflower Soup is good.



The only change I made was the salt. The recipe calls for a tablespoon of coarse salt. I only had sea salt and I used 2 teaspoons. Coarse salt must be less salty because 2 teaspoons of sea salt was too salty for me. Next time I will use one.

Click here for the tutorial and here for the recipe.

Turkey Gravy (4 Star)

This post is a little late for Thanksgiving, but I think turkey is great now, too. What's better than a little turkey dinner to warm and cheer up January?

I had some left-over cranberry sauce from the cranberry spread that I made for New Year's and since I had an extra turkey in the freezer that I had bought when they were on sale, I decided it was a great time to make a turkey dinner this week.



This is the recipe I have been using for turkey gravy lately and I adapted it from Prudence Pennywise's recipe. Consider it a simplified version. We love this gravy. It has a hint of apple-y sweetness that is so delicious with the savory herbs and drippings.

Turkey Gravy
adapted from Prudence Pennywise's Apple Cider Gravy

drippings of one 12-16 pound turkey
2/3 cup frozen apple juice concentrate
2 1/2 cups water
4-6 teaspoons chicken base (I use Better than Bouillon Organic Chicken Base from Costco)
1 teaspoon dried parsley
1 teaspoon dried sage
1/8 teaspoon nutmeg
additional 1/2 cup water
1/3 cup flour
1-2 teaspoons sea salt (to taste)

Pour turkey drippings into a medium to large saucepan. Add the apple juice concentrate, water, chicken base, and herbs and whisk together. Turn heat up to medium-high. While gravy heats up, put 1/2 cup water and flour into a jar or container with a lid that seals tightly and shake until smooth. When gravy is boiling, pour flour and water mixture in and whisk until thickened. Add salt to taste.

Click here for Prudy's original recipe.

Fire Roasted Tomato Soup (0 Star)

I almost didn't post this recipe because my picture is kind of lame--more of an afterthought to our consumption. But then I decided to post it because this soup is so awesome and I didn't want to wait until the next time I make it to try to get a good picture.

This is the best tomato soup I have ever tasted. It is creamy and flavorful with a slight kick. And it is full of vegetables, so it's a great way to get more good wholesomeness into yourself.

It is Picky Palate's creation and is excellent as written. However, I am posting it below with changes that I made due to ingredients that I had on hand and also because I took the easy road and made it a little differently (easier). A little flavor may have been sacrificed my way, but only the very keen palate would notice, I think!



Creamy Fire Roasted Tomato and Bacon Soup

28 oz can Muir Glen Fire Roasted Diced Tomatoes or 28 oz fresh tomatoes and a couple of dashes of liquid smoke
1 medium or large onion, peeled and cut into fourths
3 medium carrots, peeled and cut into fourths
2 stalks celery, trimmed and cut into fourths
1 Serrano pepper, stem trimmed off
4 cloves fresh garlic, peeled, or 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
¼ cup flour
1 teaspoon dried basil
1/3 cup bacon bits (I buy the bags from Costco) or you can cook 12 strips of bacon and then crumble (save half for garnish)

42 oz chicken broth

Few pinches of salt to taste
¼ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
1 Cup half and half or heavy cream

Additional bacon bits to garnish

1. Place the first 8 ingredients into a blender in the order listed above. Puree until smooth.

2. Put the vegetable puree into a large pot and add the chicken broth. Heat to a boil and then simmer on low, uncovered, stirring occasionally for 15-20 minutes.

3. Add salt to taste, pepper, and cream, and stir until heated through. Allow flavors to combine on a medium-low heat for about 5 minutes and then serve with bacon bits sprinkled on top.

Click here for the original recipe.

Crock Pots, Twizzlers, and Conductivity

Did you know that if you have a gallon-size Ziploc bag full of red Twizzlers sitting in between the base of your crock pot and the ceramic pot, it will still cook a pot of beans?

It will.



But the Twizzlers won't be very edible afterward. They'll be downright crunchy. But they won't melt, they will retain their shape and just get crisp and brown.



And you may have Ziploc plastic stuck to the inside of your crock pot base and it won't be easy to get off.



And it may take your beans longer than normal to cook. But if you're busy like me, and don't even get around to checking on the beans until they've been cooking for ten hours, then you won't even notice anything unusual until you try to take out the ceramic pot to wash it and for some reason, it's stuck. And then you get your strong hubby to pull on the pot while you hold the base, wondering what is going on because you didn't see anything spill in between. And then you see, with utter amazement, that there is a bag of Twizzlers gluing the appliance and pot together, and you put two and two together--oh, the Twizzlers were on the shelf above the crock pot and the last time you used the crock pot the base was put away on the shelf while the pot was in the dishwasher and one of the kids made chocolate chip cookies and the chocolate chips were under the Twizzlers and when you got down the chocolate chips you didn't notice that the Twizzlers fell into the crock pot and when you put the pot away, you didn't notice that there was something else underneath it, and you still didn't notice that morning when you threw in the beans and water and plugged it in, and yes, something had smelled a little sweeter than usual when they were cooking, come to think of it, but how did you not smell melted burning plastic, and WOW, you can't believe they still cooked!

Too bad you forgot to take a picture of the bag of crispy Twizzlers so everyone else could know what slow-cooked Twizzlers look like. And you might want to be a little more aware of things, ya know? The boogeyman could come boogeying into your kitchen and you wouldn't even notice.

Breads and Spreads (4 Star)

For the New Year's party that we went to at Brandon's sister's house (which was so very fun, but I forgot my camera--bummer) I made a bread and spread bar. It turned out pretty good, so I thought I'd share.

This almond bread was one I had never made before, out of a book that I recently purchased called "100 Great Breads" by Paul Hollywood. The recipes in it sound really good and the pictures are beautiful, however, so far the ones that I have tried all have something a little questionable about them, such as a lot of salt. This recipe has a lot of salt and next time I make it I will use less because I thought it was too salty. I'm posting this recipe with my changes because I also used a little less flour. I used my bread maker on the dough setting instead of his instructions, so this is how I made it.

Almond Bread
adapted from "100 Great Breads" by Paul Hollywood

3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup water
scant 1/4 cup butter
generous 1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup ground almonds
3 1/2 to 3 3/4 cups white bread flour
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
4 oz slivered almonds

Put all ingredients into the bread maker pan in the order listed, except for the slivered almonds. Let the bread maker run the "dough" cycle. Add enough flour to make a smooth dough, but not dry.

After the bread maker "dough" cycle finishes, (it basically mixes briefly, rests, kneads, and rises the dough) add half of the slivered almonds and knead them into the dough. Then cut the dough in half and shape into two loaves. Place on a buttered baking sheet and press the remaining slivered almonds into the tops of the loaves. Let rise for 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 425 and bake the bread for 20 minutes. Allow to cool on a wire rack.

I loved the almonds in this--they toasted up very nicely. However, they didn't stay on the top of the loaves very well, even though I tried to press them in very firmly. I wonder if they would stay on better with an egg wash, or something.



The spread pictured below is a banana coconut cream spread. I got the recipe from my old American Harvest bread maker recipe book that came with the first bread maker I ever owned (it is now obsolete). This recipe book has some of the most awesome recipes. I am going to post the recipes from this book with slight changes to comply with copyright laws, but I'm pretty sure this book isn't printed anymore, so it would be hard to find. If you ever find one, though, I recommend getting it.

Banana Coconut Cream Spread
adapted from American Harvest bread maker recipe book

8 oz cream cheese
1/4 cup honey
2 Tablespoons mashed banana
2 Tablespoons unsweetened, toasted coconut flakes
1 Tablespoon orange juice concentrate

Beat the above ingredients until light and fluffy. Cover and refrigerate.



The bread pictured below is called Lemon and Orange Bread from "100 Great Breads". This bread also called for a lot of salt which I decreased, and it called for a little rye flour which I didn't have so I subbed whole wheat flour. This recipe also called for a ton of zest. I thought it was too much, but if anyone who tried this bread and reads this blog wants to let me know what you thought, I would love to know. I will post the full amount of zest in the recipe below. Again, I used my bread maker and am posting the instructions for that.

Lemon and Orange Bread
adapted from "100 Great Breads" by Paul Hollywood

1 1/4 cup water
generous 1/4 cup sugar
generous 1/4 cup butter
2 teaspoons salt
2 2/3+ cups white bread flour
scant 1/3 cup whole wheat or rye flour
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
zest of 5 lemons
zest of 6 oranges

Put all ingredients into the bread maker pan except the zest. Begin the "dough" cycle and while the machine does the initial mix, zest the lemons and oranges and then add to the pan. At this point, add a little more flour if the dough gets too sticky.

After the "dough" cycle is complete, divide the dough in half, equally. Butter a baking sheet or two small bread pans. Shape dough into loaves and put in pans. Let rise for 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees and bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.



The spread pictured with this bread is cranberry orange spread. It is also from the American Harvest bread maker recipe book. In fact, the rest of the recipes I will post here are from that book.

Cranberry Orange Spread
adapted from American Harvest bread maker recipe book

8 oz cream cheese
1/4 cup whole berry cranberry sauce
1 teaspoon orange juice concentrate
1 teaspoon fresh grated orange peel
2 Tablespoons honey

Combine all ingredients until smooth and creamy. Cover and refrigerate.



Savory Garlic Herb Bread
adapted from American Harvest bread maker recipe book

1 cup water
1/4 cup olive oil
1 Tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 Tablespoon dried minced onions
1 teaspoon garlic powder
3 cups white bread flour
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons active dry yeast

Put all ingredients into the bread maker pan and run the "dough" cycle. When cycle is finished, remove dough from pan and divide into two equal halves. Shape into loaves and place in two small, greased bread pans. Allow to rise for 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake for 25-30 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.



Dilled Mustard Butter
adapted from American Harvest bread maker recipe book

1/2 cup butter, softened
2-3 teaspoons prepared mustard
1/2 teaspoon dried dill weed

Beat together until light and fluffy. Is best for spreading at room temperature, but if you need to store it for a while, then cover and refrigerate.



Rosemary Cheese Spread
adapted from American Harvest bread maker recipe book

3 oz cream cheese
1/2 cup softened butter
1/2 to 1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 Tablespoons finely chopped green onion

Cream the cream cheese and butter together. Add the remaining ingredients and beat until well mixed. Is best for spreading at room temperature, but if you need to store it for a while, then cover and refrigerate.



Cinnamon Raisin Bread
adapted from American Harvest bread maker recipe book

1 1/4 cups water
2 Tablespoons powdered milk
2 Tablespoons butter
2 Tablespoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
3 cups white bread flour
3 teaspoons active dry yeast
1/2 cup raisins

Put all ingredients into the bread maker pan except the raisins. Run the "dough" cycle. When complete, add the raisins and knead into the dough. Divide the dough into two equal halves. Shape into loaves and place into two small, greased bread pans. Allow to rise for 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake for 25-30 minutes. Cool on a wire rack.



Cinnamon Honey Butter
adapted from American Harvest bread maker recipe book

1/2 cup softened butter
1/4 cup honey
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Beat all ingredients together until fluffy. Is best for spreading at room temperature, but if you need to store it for a while, then cover and refrigerate.



I also made French bread which is not pictured, but I have already posted a recipe here.

I made all of the loaves small so that they would be an ideal portion size for party trays and I think I could have even gone smaller. It was fun to try different combinations of the breads and spreads. In spite of concerns I had with some of the breads, they were all moist, chewy, and delicious.