Keep It Simple!

Sorry, it's been awhile since I posted here...but it is a little hard to cook when you are in bed! I am now almost five weeks post-op, and feeling pretty good, though I still feel it if I am working too hard.

I know that a lot of you have mentioned in the past how hard it is to get a good, filling dinner on the table that everyone will eat. I encourage you to keep it simple! Start a card file or a note book with your family's favorite meals, and start a two week rotation. As you add to the meals you all love, you may be able to break it down by seasons, with your soups, stews and casseroles for the cooler months, and salads, grilling and lighter fare for the warmer months. Again...keep it simple - this is not rocket science ladies!

That said, I wanted to share another COTF meal with you. While I was recovering from my back surgery, a friend brought over a roast for dinner. We had lots in the fridge at the time, so I froze it, and last night pulled it out for a quick-thaw dinner.

We had a good bit left over, so this am I got inspired to play...I diced the roast into bite sized pieces and set it aside. In a large oven-proof pot (my darling, my dear husband bought me a cast iron/enamel lined dutch oven for Christmas...sigh...) I heated a few tablespoons of olive oil and I sliced one large white onion, the heart of a bunch of celery, four large carrots, one leek and four cloves of garlic. I put the lid on this so that it could steam, then added 2-3 T dried rosemary, salt and pepper. Then I dumped in the beef, and covered it with 4-5 cups of red wine. Taadaa!! That's it. Covered it and put it into a 250 degree oven. (*) Tonight, by 6 p.m., we should have a tasty melange (don't you love that word?!) of beef and slow cooked veggies.

The key to a meal like this is to use what YOU have. You could add any kinds of veggies or meats you have in the fridge. This would also have been good with potatoes and acorn squash, or mushrooms and chicken. If you have NO idea of what flavors go together, then check out this awesome book...it is chock full of food combinations, for great flavors every time! http://www.amazon.com/Flavor-Bible-Essential-Creativity-Imaginative/dp/0316118400

Have fun in your kitchen today, and make some memories with your family!

* P.S. About two hours in, I added two juice glasses of water to the pot. Then about the time I pulled it out of the oven, I did two more juice glasses with cool water and 2-3 T cornstarch per glass, mixing it together well, then added that to pot, stirring all the time. The cornstarch thickened the gravy and I have to say, this was one of the best stews I have ever made!! Served this yummy stew with home baked bread and butter - YUM!

COTF Stew

This is one of my all time fave stews/soups. I will give you a recipe, but remember, this is COTF (clean out the fridge), so use what you have if you don't have something that I list.

COTF Stew

You are going to need 8 cups of broth in a large stock pot. Bring it to a boil, then turn down to medium.

You will also need about 3-4 cups cooked wild rice (or brown jasmine rice or a combo of the two).

Warm a large skillet on the stove, add a few tablespoons of olive oil and add these ingredients to the skillet as you chop them. Keep stirring, as you add ingredients.

1 med white onion, chopped fine
4-6 cloves of garlic, minced
generous pinch of coarse ground kosher salt
1 leek, chopped fine (don't use the dark green leaves, and make sure you rinse it well, on each layer, as the dirt tends to get down in there)
2 tsp dried thyme
1 tsp ginger
1 tsp ground black pepper
Add about a half cup of water at this point, and cover with a lid, to steam the veggies
5-6 small carrots, sliced fine
celery heart, chopped (this is the four or five center stalks of celery, plus the short little ones in the middle, and all their leaves)

After these veggies have steamed a bit (about 5-7 minutes) They should be starting to get tender. Take the whole pan and carefully spoon the ingredients into the hot broth. Add the rice and more pepper and salt, as needed. Add more rice to get a thicker stew, but remember, it will thicken overnight if you have leftovers so don't get it too thick now.

Let warm through, then add in a handful of fresh chopped parsley (pull the leaves off, the stems are bitter) or 4 tablespoons of dried parsley, and a cup or two of frozen peas. Oila!

Serve in warm bowls (a trick my mom taught me to keep your soup hot longer) with a fresh baked loaf of bread or your fave loaf from the store.

If you want, add whatever chopped meat you have on hand. If you don't have any meat cooked up, you can pan sear a chicken breast, chop it and add it to the pot. Here is how you do that:

Using the same pan you used to saute the veggies, heat to medium heat. Split a chicken breast lengthwise, to make it cook more quickly. Put a few tsp of oil in the skillet. Lay the meat in and cook till it starts to get some color on the bottom. Flip with tongs and cook on the other side too. Don't worry about it being a little pink in the center...it can finish cooking in the stew. Take out of the pan, and chop it on your cutting board, and then add to the stew. Take a cup of white wine and pour into the hot skillet. Stir with a spatula, till all the browned goodness is not stuck to the bottom of the pan anymore (don't look - but you just "deglazed" your pan!!). Pour this into the stew, and stir.

One of the reasons this stew is soooo yummy, is that when you saute the veggies and spices, you add a layer of flavor that you can't get just by putting the veggies/spices straight into the soup pot. It takes a little longer, but the flavor is worth it! And boy-oh-boy, is this good the next day!!