Beef Stew

Beef stew just screams "comfort food" to me. I'm not sure why, but I haven't made it in years. I stumbled across this particular recipe on Allrecipes.com about a month ago and it was to die for! The beef literally melted in your mouth and the vegetables remained slightly crisp...far from being overcooked. When I've made beef stew in the past, I've found the meat to be rather dry and tough and the vegetables to be mushy. I read through a great number of the reviews, prior to making it, and I did take a few suggestions, in addition to tweaking it a bit on my own. The original recipe did call for 3 large potatoes, peeled and cubed, but my family prefers it served over mashed potatoes, so we omitted them in the stew. If you prefer to add them while cooking, they would be added to the pot the same time as the other veggies. As written, this recipe should easily feed 5-6 people.

1/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon onion powder
2 lbs cubed stew meat
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
32 oz beef broth (or 4 beef bouillon cubes, dissolved in 4 cups water)
2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon dried rosemary
1 teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon dried parsley
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
6 carrots, cut into 1 inch pieces (or 1 lb baby carrots)
6 stalks celery, cut into 1 inch pieces
1 large onion, chopped
4 teaspoons cornstarch
4 teaspoons cold water

Combine flour, garlic powder, pepper and onion powder in large ziploc bag or bowl. Add cubed stew meat and shake to coat.

In a large pot or dutch oven, cook beef in oil over medium heat until brown. Add beef broth to pot. Stir in Worcestershire sauce, rosemary, parsley, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, cover and simmer 1 hour.

Stir carrots, celery, and onion into the pot. Dissolve cornstarch in 4 teaspoons cold water and stir into stew. Cover and simmer 1 hour more.

Serve over mashed potatoes.

Source: Adapted from Allrecipes.com

Meat Marinade

I'm getting ready to work 4-5 shifts in a row at the hospital, so I was looking for an easy dinner idea. What could possibly be an easier option than taking my husband up on his offer to grill when he got home from work?!? It's been threatening to rain all day, but I figured I'd take my chances and go ahead and marinate my chicken so it was ready to go as soon as he arrived home...assuming we weren't the midst of a downpour! Recently I came across a blog put together by five sisters, called "The Sister's Cafe". Being one of three sisters and adoring my own mother as much as they appear to adore theirs, I immediately became somewhat partial to their blog. The only suggestion I would make is to possibly consider marinating your meat overnight.

Meat Marinade

1/2 cup oil
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup lemon juice
2 Tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 Tablespoons mustard
1 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon garlic (I used one small clove)

Directions:

Mix well. Pour over meat, then let marinate for 6-8 hours in the fridge. (I made it the night before out of convenience, and I didn't think the flavor was too powerful). Good on meat, fish or chicken.

Source: The Sister's Cafe