Italian Beef Sandwiches

Hot and messy, spicy, flavorful, yummy... There are so many words to describe this delicious sandwich!  It's so easy to prepare, as its another crock pot recipe, and it turns out really well no matter what type of roast you use. 

Best Ever Stew

No, really, it is the best ever!  I don't typically like stew, but I'm in love with this version.  It's not quick or easy, but it is definitely affordable (especially if you can buy the stew meat on sale and freeze it), and tastes so good!  It would be hard to stop eating if it wasn't so filling.  I've made it with a variety of meats - from pork to beef to venison - and it works well with all of them.  Although it is rather time-consuming, it sure is worth the wait!

One Potato, Two Potato...

... and fifty pounds more!  Yep, that's right.  This week I came into fifty pounds of russet potatoes, thanks to a surplus after the church's food bank distribution day.  Today, we were finally able to deal with all of them.  

I'm not a fan of canned potatoes, so although a friend of mine processed and canned around a dozen quarts, that just doesn't appeal to me.  Besides, I'm running out of space for jars (we've got to get some shelves built in the garage...)!  I decided to pull out my favorite potato recipes, go ahead and slice the potatoes as required for the recipes, then simply freeze them. 

Simple Decadance

Ever have one of those days?  You know what I mean - you wake up feeling tired, nothing goes right and half-a-dozen things go wrong.  And that's before you've even left the house!  Sometimes, after a day like that, the only thing to do is take a break, unwind a little, and indulge yourself.  For me, that typically involves chocolate.

Now there are lots of different ways to get your chocolate - cakes, cookies, cheesecakes, chocolate-covered fruit, ice cream... the list could go on forever.  Most of those options, however, require quite a bit of time in the kitchen, or a trip to the grocery store, or both.  So what do you do when you (or if you're feeling benevolent, your family) need a treat? 

Tortellini Soup

I know, I'm on a soup kick with my recipes!  I promise, it's not going to be soup every day, that's just what I'm fixing a lot of lately.  Funny how cooler weather makes me want soups, stews, and chili...

I am always amazed when I fix this soup.  It is incredibly simple, but tastes so good!  My husband raves over it, and always says that each batch is the best I've ever made, even though I don't change a thing.  This soup is great for company, but is also a wonderful "comfort food" after a long day.

Slow-Cooked Pepper Steak

I really enjoy having something simmering on the stove for awhile.   It makes the whole house smell so good, and I like to have the time to clean up the kitchen and relax before dinner is served.  For some reason, I enjoy dinner so much more if I'm not rushing around timing the dishes, cleaning up after myself, and trying to get everyone to the table at the same time.  While this recipe requires quite a bit of cook time, prep is at a minimum and it doesn't use a lot of pots and pans.  For me, that makes it an excellent weeknight option.

Another bonus about this particular recipe is that it makes so much food!

Chunky Eight-Can Chili

I love chili!  The heartier, the better, in my opinion.  I don't usually rely so heavily on canned goods, but this chili is such a wonderful quick-and-easy recipe that I couldn't help but share it.  It tastes like you slaved over it all day long. This is a recipe that I developed, so I made it just the way we like it.  Feel free to tweak it however you want for your family's preferences.

Sourdough, or Sour Grapes?

My husband and I love sourdough bread.  I lived in San Francisco for a few years, so to me there is nothing better than a fresh loaf of San Francisco sourdough.  It's the gold standard to which few other sourdoughs compare.  I've never tried to make sourdough, although I'm a pretty good bread maker.  I use my KitchenAid stand mixer for the kneading, and a heating pad to help the dough rise in the wintertime.  But now, my husband has been begging me to try my hand at homemade sourdough.

At first, I told him it just couldn't be done here.  We keep the house too cool in the wintertime to even attempt it, I said.  My mom had some starter on hand sometimes when I was growing up, but she had to keep it in the small closet with the hot water heater to nurse it through the cold spells.  Our hot water heater is in the garage - the coldest part of the house in the winter.  I just could not foresee any way of keeping the starter happy, if it even started at all.

What I didn't tell Nick was that I would look into it.  I didn't want to get his hopes up.  Or mine.  After doing some research, it actually didn't look like it would be as hard as I thought it was. 

Crock Pot Potato Chowder

I love using my crock pot!  It is such a tremendous time-saver and spares me from so much of the "it's 5:30 and I have no idea what's for dinner" stress.  I was browsing through RecipeZaar (now Food.com)'s crock pot recipe collection one day earlier this year when I stumbled across this recipe.  I happened to have everything on hand, so I added it to my menu for the next week.  When we suddenly got hit with a winter storm, I decided that it would be the perfect thing to fix for a cold, snowy evening.  It smelled so good while cooking that I had to threaten Nick with bodily harm if he continued lifting the lid off the crockpot!!  He later raved that it was the best thing he'd ever eaten.  Granted, he says that a lot, but there must have been a grain of truth in there somewhere, right?  I have made it many times since then and it has become a definite favorite of ours.  It also reheats really well, both on the stove (but don't let it boil!) and in the microwave.

I modified the recipe slightly,