Sharing Some Successful Recipes

Don't Shop When You're Hungry

You know what they say - shopping when you're hungry only increases the likelihood that you'll buy more than you need. Well, I have discovered that when I go online when I'm hungry, I check out recipes more often and even consider writing about food a lot more often. Whether or not that's beneficial to anyone remains to be seen.

I've decided that I would share with you some recipes I found during my online "shopping" that turned out pretty well and that didn't take a lot of time to put together (although some may have taken a while to cook). I hope you enjoy them.

German Beer Braised Pot Roast   

The photo for this one got my attention. The ease of making it convinced me to try it. The only problem I had with it was that it was sweeter than I really wanted it to be. Next time, I'll leave out the molasses since the carrots and onions already added their own levels of sweetness. Otherwise, it turned out terrific and tender.

• 1 1/2 -2 lb. beef rump roast (I used a bottom round about the same size)
• 1 T. oil
• 2 pieces of bacon
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2 carrots, cubed
• 1 bay leaf
• 3 whole cloves
• 1 tsp. black peppercorns, crushed
• 12 oz. beer or brown ale
• 1 c. beef broth or bouillon to make 1 cup
• 2 tsp. molasses or dark beet syrup (Ruebensirup in Germany) [I'm leaving this out next time]
• 1 T. vinegar
• 1 T. flour
• 1 T. butter (I left this out - enough fat in the liquid from the meat & bacon)

Heat oil in Dutch oven. Brown roast sharply on all sides and remove. Lay the bacon on the bottom of the Dutch oven, place the browned roast on it and sprinkle with salt.

Place onions, carrots and spices around the sides of the roast. Pour the beer and the broth over the roast, then mix the vinegar with the molasses and add to the liquids. Liquids should be 1 to 2 inches deep. Place lid on pan and simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until meat is tender.

Remove roast and cover with foil to keep warm. Strain and reserve the broth. Melt the butter in the pan, add the flour and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add 2 cups of reserved broth, a little at a time and stirring the sauce smooth after each addition. Add pepper, salt, vinegar or sugar to taste.

Serve sauce (gravy) over roast. This roast is good with braised cabbage or mixed vegetables and potatoes to soak up the gravy.

One Pot Kielbasa And Cabbage Meal   

I had a small head of cabbage I'd been given and a pound of kielbasa, so I decided to try something I've never done before. I looked online for some ideas and ended up with what I'm about to describe. You can use ham or slab bacon or any smoked meat in this, I'm sure. I don't think I'll use kielbasa again since it's not a favorite of mine. But, the end result tasted terrific.

• 1 lb kielbasa, cut into coins
• 4 med. potatoes, peeled and cut up into chunks
• 1 small cabbage, rough cut into large chunks
• 2 or more carrots, peeled and cut up
• 1/2 large onion, large diced
• 1 cup of frozen kernel corn
• 1 1/2 cups frozen string beans
• 1 15 oz can of diced tomatoes (I used Italian seasoned)
• 2 cups beef broth
• 2 cups chicken broth
• Salt and pepper to taste

Core and peel off the unusable leaves from the cabbage and cut up into large chunks. Do the same to the onion (it was about 3" in diameter). Put both in the pot. Peel and chunk the carrot, too. Add that to the pot with the two cups of beef broth.

Let this cook until the cabbage is reduced and the broth is as well. Then add the cut up kielbasa, string beans, corn kernels, the tomatoes and the 2 cups of chicken broth. Add pepper (I used fresh ground). I didn't measure it, but figure I added about 1/2 tsp or so. I didn't add salt because there would be salt in the broths as well as the can of tomatoes.

I lowered the burner flame as low as I could and let the pot just simmer after stirring to mix thoroughly. Periodically, I went back and stirred again to make sure everything in the pot got hot throughout and the flavors melded.

After just over 3 hours, I checked the carrots and the cabbage (two things I find that take longer to cook through than other things) and found them to be tender.

This turned out really quite good. I've never actually made anything like this before, so I am quite happy with it. I hope you enjoy it as well.

Faux Chicken Alfredo With Egg Noodles   

I had made pepper steak the night before and had about a quart of egg noodles left over. I also had some sour cream, so decided to look to see what I could make with those two items. I found this recipe and it was perfect for what I had on hand.

It was also delicious, easy and quick to put together. My kind of meal! Although the original recipe says this makes two servings, we had three people for dinner and still had enough left to put aside for tomorrow's lunch for my daughter. But, it's very easy to increase. I forgot to take the picture before I packed the last of it up, so it's not quite as appetizing as it did on the plate.

• 2 c cooked chicken, cut into bite-size pieces (I used pre-cooked frozen turkey medallions)
• 1 1/2 c strong chicken broth (or use water + chicken bouillon)
• 2 T chopped onions (I used frozen diced onions)
• 1 c milk
• 1/3 c flour
• 1/2 t garlic salt (I used Adobo seasoning because I had salted the onions and turkey)
• 1/8 t black pepper (I added this to the pan)
• 1/8 t parsley flakes (I added this to the pan)
• 2 T sour cream
• 2 c (dry) egg noodles

Cook egg noodles according to package instructions. While preparing noodles, start making the gravy. Put the chicken, onions, and chicken broth into a pan and bring to a boil, cooking until onions are tender. In a separate bowl, whisk together the milk, flour, salt, pepper, and parsley. Add to boiling mixture and boil until thickened, stirring continuously. (see my notes in the ingredients) Remove from heat and stir in sour cream until melted. Drain egg noodles. Serve gravy over noodles.

We served this with broccoli and corn on the cob. We had plenty to eat!

Super Easy Pepper Steak

This is the recipe I made the night before the Alfredo. I based what I made on the recipe below. I've noted the changes I made, but it turned out so good! If you like uncomplicated, quick meals, I'm sure you'll like this one.

• 1 1/2 lbs. round steak, 1/4 inch thick (I cut up three 6-oz strip steaks)
• 2 tbsp. soy sauce
• 1/4 c. flour (I mixed this with the extra broth I added)
• 3 tbsp. Wesson oil (I used olive oil)
• 1 c. diced green pepper (I used about 1 1/2 cups of large diced)
• 1 c. water (I used chicken broth and increased the amount of liquid)
• 1 c. onions, chopped large-ish

Cut steak into strips about 2 inches long and 1 inch wide. (Don't worry about precision - however the steak cuts up for you work with.) Pound the strips to help make them tender. (I didn't do this.) Brush soy sauce on each side of meat strips, then sprinkle with flour. (I added the soy sauce after sautéing the steak and veggies.) Brown steak strips in Wesson oil over medium heat. Add green pepper and saute a few minutes, then add water (broth). Cover and simmer 35 to 45 minutes until tender (Honestly, I didn't have to cook it this long - it was all done in about 30 minutes. I added the extra broth with flour mixed near the end to thicken mixture). Makes 6 servings.

Hot fluffy rice belongs with this dish, but we had egg noodles because my daughter doesn't care much for rice.