Cooking

I got a new crock pot! :)
It's a smart one!
Yep. . .No more burnt meals from being gone too long with the crock pot running.
I program high (4 or 6 hours) or low (8 or 10 hours) and it switches to "warm" after that.
Click here for a product review.

I tried Hash brown Casserole in it first (OB and MaBell's reaction to me cooking breakfast at 10pm was hilarious!). . .Verdict: MBB - Liked it, but said it needs more spices. MaBell / OB - Hated it.

Yesterday, I attempted Beef Stew. This one was a bit more risky as my crew LOVES their Beef Stew. I knew it wouldn't be good if it didn't turn out well in the crock pot. . .Verdict: MBB - Said it was okay. . .it needed more spices. MaBell / OB - Liked it.
I used a different Beef Stew mix than normal. I think if I go back to the normal one, all will like the Beef Stew in the crock pot!

Since this is going to be big mission of mine (cooking with the crock pot), I'm going to post "approved" recipes here both for others to use and more importantly, for me find again if I "get lost".

So, here is my approved Beef Stew recipe:

- 2 lb beef stew cubes (floured and browned ahead of time)
- Packet of beef stew seasonings
- 6 cups of water
- 10 red potatoes (cut into eight pieces)
- half bag of baby carrots (halved)
- 2 stalks of celery (cut up into small pieces)

Put ingredients in crock pot in the order that they were listed, stir.
Cook on high for 6 hours (Mine was on warm for at least an hour before we got home).
Add some flour to thicken the broth (I used about 1/4 cup).
Cook on high for 15 minutes (while biscuits are in the oven).

Namaste.