Pot Roast and Barley Casserole

tried these a few days ago

I did not have a can of mushroom soup, so I needed a new
recipe for chuck roast. This is what I found online


4 to 5 lb. chuck roast (serves 4 to 6)
my chuck roast was only 3.5 lbs, but I followed the rest of the
ingredient list without changing the proportions
1 cup flour (for dredging)
1 small onion (quartered)
Favorite meat seasonings (I used greek seasoning)
2 to 3 tbsp. of oil
1 cup of water or beef broth (I used about 2/3 cup broth and the rest water)
Tips
12
Season your chuck roast. Select from personal favorites but note that good-quality season makes a difference. A personal standby for a perfect pot roast recipe includes a liberal (1/3 to 1/2 tsp.) application of Greek season on one side, Nature's Seasonings on the other, a few dashes of Italian seasoning and pepper. Beef rubs and brining works well too.


Light browning is key to a great pot roast. Dredge the chuck roast in flour and brown evenly on medium heat to lock in the juices and flavors. A cast iron or heavy skillet seasoned with a light coating of oil or beef fat (to prevent sticking) is preferred.

Add chuck roast, quartered onions for flavor and about 1 cup of liquid (water or low-sodium beef broth) to a crock pot or roasting pan and cover.

Slow cook the roast on low in the crock pot 5 to 7 hours until very tender or in the stove at 325 degrees until done. Plan on 40 to 60 minutes per pound in the oven.

It was very good. I got enough broth to make gravy for leftovers.

ALTON BROWNS BAKED BARLEY
1 cup hulled barley (I used pearl barley from the Mennonite Store)
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 cups boiling water

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Place the barley into a 1 1/2-quart ceramic or glass baking dish (with a lid) and add the butter, salt and boiling water. Stir to combine. Cover the dish tightly with aluminum foil and place the lid on top of the foil. Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 1 hour.

After 1 hour, remove the cover, fluff with a fork and serve immediately.

SLOW COOKER CORNED BEEF AND CABBAGE

I did this today,
found here: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Slow-Cooker-Corned-Beef-and-Cabbage/Detail.aspx

SLOW COOKER CORNED BEEF AND CABBAGE

4 large carrots, peeled and cut into matchstick pieces
10 baby red potatoes,
quartered 1 onion, peeled and cut into bite-sized pieces
4 cups water
1 (4 pound) corned beef brisket with spice packet
6 ounces beer
1/2 head cabbage, coarsely chopped

Place the carrots, potatoes, and onion into the bottom of a slow cooker, pour in the water, and place the brisket on top of the vegetables. Pour the beer over the brisket. Sprinkle on the spices from the packet, cover, and set the cooker on High.
Cook the brisket for about 8 hours. An hour before serving, stir in the cabbage and cook for 1 more hour.

My Brisket was closer to three and a half pounds. I didn't cut the carrots into
matchstick pieces, I just peeled them and cut them into chunks. But, I followed the rest of the directions closely. I lifted the brisket out of the crockpot in order to put the cabbage under it, though.

It was delicious. I tried to slice the brisket thin (per Carol's request), but it was so tender that mostly it shredded. The meal was delicious. I served it with baked beans and rolls and butter on the side. THIS RECIPE IS A KEEPER

Saturday recipes including Asian Pork in the crockpot

I was out every day during the week, so I decided to stay home today.
One way to relieve the boredom of being home is by cooking.

BISQUICK COBBLER

2 tbsp. butter
1 c. Bisquick
1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. milk
3 c. cut up peaches or other fruit of your choice (can be fresh, frozen
(thawed) or canned)(I used a can of cherry pie filling)

Turn oven to 375°F.
Melt 2 tablespoons butter in 8 x 8 inch baking dish. Mix Bisquick, sugar, and milk. Pour over melted butter. Spoon fruit over. If using canned peaches, pour on some of the juice also.

Bake at 375°F for 30 minutes.

ABSOLUTELY DELICIOUS



Layered Salad (my own invention)

one can diced beets drained
put on bottom of clear glass bowl

one can Goya small white beans drained
spread over the beets

half bag of frozen peas, thawed
spread on top of the beans

one half red onion sliced thin
put over the peas

two small oranges peeled and sliced thin
(slice against "the grain"
put over the peas

I spooned lite Mayonnaise on top of this
sealing the edges

refrigerate for a few hours
then I put tiny pieces of raw Kale on the top

This was absolutely great........I think the oranges
are a necessity.

ideas for future salads: layer of chopped hard boiled egg
layer of hard cheese, cut into small chunks


BRAISED ASIAN PORK

1/4 cup soy sauce
one half cup brown sugar
half tsp. allspice
one inch piece of fresh ginger sliced
2.5 lb boneless pork shoulder cut into two inch pieces

stir the first four ingredients together in crockpot
brown the meat and then put in the pot
stir
about half way through cooking this I added
several whole pickled garlic cloves

seven to eight hours on low in the crockpot
SO TENDER and TASTY!

Baked Eggs

http://epicureanbliss.wordpress.com/2011/01/31/when-an-egg-met-a-cupcake-tin/

I started with that page but made lots of changes.

I used a six muffin tin (non-stick) sprayed with PAM. I used a round cookie cutter and cut a round circle out of the middle of six slices of ham. Then, I put the "round" in the bottom of the muffin tin. I cut the remainder of the ham into small pieces. I put in a bit of shredded cheese and
a small dollop of hot pepper relish, and some dried onion bits. (on top of the round ham slice).

I scrambled three eggs with a bit of milk and minced garlic and some of the ham bits and poured that into three of the "cups".
I broke the other three eggs individually into the other three cups. I put some
cilantro on top. Then into the oven at 350 degrees for ten minutes. Then I sprinkled some
shredded cheese on top (and the rest of the ham bits on top of the non scrambled eggs) and back into the oven for about five minutes.

When the white part of the eggs gets a bit fluffy and the yolks are no longer runny,
take them out. Wait one minute, and then turn the muffin tin over onto a plate and the eggs come right out.

Creamed Potatoes and Peas

I had some frozen peas thawing out and my plans were to bake some potatoes to go along with the meatloaf I took out of the freezer, but I decided to try CREAMED POTATOES AND PEAS.

This is what I did
I cut the potatoes into bit sized pieces and placed in a pot of water. I brought it to a boil and cooked the potatoes until they were a touch away from being completely cooked through. Then I added the peas and cooked a bit, but not long, since they had been thawing out for several hours.

I melted a half a stick of margarine in a large flat frying pan. Then I drained the peas and potatoes and put them in the pan. I sprinkled a couple of tablespoons of flour over them along with some sea salt and ground pepper and stired that up. Then I put about two and a half cups of milk over that and brought the mixture to a simmer. It seemed too thick, so I added some instant mashed potato flakes to thicken it up. I also added a couple of spoonfulls of horseradish sauce from Quizno's and some basil.

It was delicious! Even though it thickend up a bit too much! Next time I will cut the potatoes into smaller pieces and maybe add a can of mushrooms.

Pear Cobbler

I started with this recipe:
http://www.bigoven.com/recipe/38984/bisquick-cobbler
and made some additions

PEAR COBBLER

1 c Bisquick
1 c Milk
1 c Sugar
1 Stick Margarine
1 Large Can Pears; in Heavy Syrup

I used the lowfat bisquick and the batter seemed rather thin, so I added another
quarter cup or so. Also, I threw in about a cup of FIT AND ACTIVE VITALITY CEREAL with RED BERRIES (that I get at Aldi's and some raisins.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Melt the margarine in the (13"x9") pan. Mix the milk, sugar and Bisquick together in a bowl. Pour into the melted margarine. Pour off half the syrup from the peaches. Spread the peaches with the remaining syrup on top of the batter. I sprinkled with cinnamon. Bake 45 minutes. Serve warm.


IT IS ABSOLUTELY HEAVENLY!!!!

Paula Deen's Corn Casserole

for years, I have made a kind of corn pudding usually at a holiday. I wanted something a bit different. My friend Muriel once told me about a dish she really liked, it was kind of a polenta or very moist cornbread and she served it with maple syrup. I can't remember the name of it, and could not find anything online that I thought matched up to what I remember, but I did find this.

Paula Deens Corn Casserole

1 (15 1/4-ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
1 (14 3/4-ounce) can cream-style corn
1 (8-ounce) package corn muffin mix (recommended: Jiffy)
1 cup sour cream
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted
1 to 1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.


In a large bowl, stir together the 2 cans of corn, corn muffin mix, sour cream, and melted butter. Pour into a greased 9 by 13-inch casserole dish. Bake for 45 minutes, or until golden brown. Remove from oven and top with Cheddar. Return to oven for 5 to 10 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Let stand for at least 5 minutes and then serve warm.

I did not have cheddar so I used mozzerella cheese, and I think I lighted up on the amount of butter. I served this with LIGHT maple syrup on top and it is absolutely delicious.

Here is a picture from the internet.
I would never serve lima beans with it.......I served eggs and bacon on the side.