Shall We Go To The Bistro ?

French Bistro French Dips.

2 to 3 lbs. roast beef
1/4 cup flour
salt & pepper  
2 Tbls olive oil
2 to 3 cloves of garlic chopped
2 cans Campbell’s French Onion soup
Provolone cheese, sliced
French rolls
  Coat roast with salt and pepper ,then with flour. Making sure to rub in well. Then in a roaster or deep pan heat the olive oil. On medium heat brown meat on all sides.

Place the meat and garlic and two cans of soup
in crock pot and cook on low for 8 hours. Do not try to speed this up by cooking on high it will compromise the meat. It must be cooked low and slow!
After 8 hours take out the meat and shred it with 2 forks.

Put the meat back in the broth, and turn it down on keep warm.

At this point you could just grab a fork and dig in, I wont tell! The meat is so tender and succulent!
I made my own French rolls,

I used the Artisan Bread in 5 minutes a Day  recipe http://www.motherearthnews.com/Real-Food/Artisan-Bread-In-Five-Minutes-A-Day.aspx. On a side note, make these they are worth the time ! The smell alone is worth it.
 
Make sure you have a bowl for the dipping sauce. I made fries to go with it.
Put meat on rolls, you may put mayo if you want top with cheese if desired and dip in the broth. The broth will drip down your chin don’t worry about it!  No one will notice because they too will be in heaven!
This was by far the best sandwich I have ever had! Enjoy!
                          
                       

A Happy Accident!

 

 

 

I have been craving Craisins!

You know dried cranberries. So off I went to Wal-Mart to do my shopping. I saw ocean Spray Craisins on sale, so I just reached up and grabbed a bag. After I got home I unloaded my gazillion shopping bags,I found my craisins I had been craving for so long…..Only to realize Ocean Spray saw fit to make Cherry FLAVORED craisins.

Why oh why would you do that?? Because they had dried cherries , but I wanted dried cranberries! I don’t really care for cherries.  So,what to do, what to do? I was planning on making orange and cranberry scones but I did not think orange and cherry would be that good.  So I had to figure out what to do with them now that I had them. Well of course ,cherry and vanilla cookies! So here is the recipe,in case you should find yourself in the same predicament.

 

Cherry Vanilla Cookies

 

 

3/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 cup un-salted butter (softened)

1 Tblsp  vanilla (real)

2 eggs

1 tsp salt

1 tsp baking soda

2 1/4 cup flour

1 to 2 cups cherry flavored craisins

 

 

Pre-heat oven to 350*

In mixing bowl cream together sugar and butter until light and fluffy.

Add eggs and vanilla and mix well.

Mix dry ingredients together and reserve 1 cup ,add with mixer on low,so you don’t wear the flour. Mix craisins in with the cup of reserved flour, Add  to mixture on slow until well blended.  On parchment lined cookie sheets,

spoon out Tbls sized balls 12 per pan and bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Should make 3 dozen cookies.  These are addictive!

Enjoy!

 

For the update on the floor….

After much sanding  and a LOT of vacuuming and mopping and cleaning and any other mode of cleaning you would like to add that means it was a mess! 

Look at how good it looks!!!

 

It was really messy,but WOW! It was worth it!

It is not perfect , but then again neither is the rest of the house!

It gives it character!

Well, come on back and we’ll sit a spell!

I am going to go have some milk and cookies!

What is the difference between beef stew and vegetable beef soup?

   Strangely enough I think the difference is tomatoes and the type of meat used.
   My Mom fixed beef stew just about once a week. She fixed it with leftover roast beef and the vegetables and gravy. This to me is beef stew,gravy with the meat and vegetables not a broth.
   My recipe is not really a recipe but an formula.

  Classic Beef Stew
2 cups or so left over roast beef chopped up
(you can use stew meat but the secret to this is to chop your meat in small pieces,coat with flour and brown well. This will give the meat a roasted flavor that you get from using left over roast)
1 onion chopped
2 carrots chopped
2 potatoes chopped,1 rib celery chopped

1/2 cup corn
1/2 cup peas

1 can green beans ( I always have some left over from a meal, I put them in a container in the freezer and save them for this occasion , If you have cooked your roast with onions and potatoes and carrots or if you served corn ,peas and they are left over use them and add more as needed.)
Left over gravy
1 can beef stock
Mix all things together in crock pot and cook for 8 hours on low or 4 hours on high. If it is not thick enough you may use some cornstarch to thicken. Check for salt and pepper,add to taste.
It should have gravy and not be brothy.


Lanita’s Vegetable Beef Soup
This is where your leftover vegetables come in to play. I have a gallon size zip lock bag that I keep in my freezer. Anytime I have a spoonful of vegetables leftover I put in the bag. Even chopped tomatoes from salad or anything you would put in soup.When it is full I make soup.
1 lbs hamburger
1 onion chopped
1 clove garlic chopped
2 cans chopped tomatoes
1 can beef broth
salt & pepper to taste
Vegetables of your choice here is a list I have used:
cabbage,corn,beans(any) spinach,carrots ,celery,potatoes,squash,
Just make sure all vegetables are chopped about all the same size so it cooks at the same time.

Brown hamburger with chopped onion and garlic  Drain grease and put in crock pot,then add all other ingredients add water if needed to bring liquid level up to cover vegetables.
Cook for about 8 hours on low or 4 hours on high. You may add any spices you like depending on vegetables used. The end result should be very brothy .

Now all that is needed to complete either soup is some nice crusty bread  to sop up gravy and or broth. I have chosen  European Peasant  bread.



European Peasant Bread
1 1/2 cups warm water 
2 teaspoons yeast
2 teaspoons salt (kosher)
1/4 cup rye flour
1/4 cup wheat flour
3 cups all purpose flour

In stand mixer mix yeast and water and salt and stir till blended.
With dough hook on add flour until incorporated and smooth.
Turn out dough and put in large bowl.
Cover with towel or plastic wrap and let sit for about 2 hours. You may bake on baking stone or in a bread pan . I am using a pan this time . Butter pan and shape dough so that it is smooth on top,place in pan. Put slashes on top of dough and cover for about 30 minutes while oven heats to 450* .
After oven is heated put a broiler pan in lower rack and fill with water. When oven has heated and dough has risen put bread in and shut oven door quickly to keep steam in. Bake for 35 minutes or until bread springs back when touched.

 
We Had such a good time with our family this year! Here are just a few pictures to enjoy!


I’ll be crawling soon!

I got to get me some Ryan time! He is very excited about this you can tell!

Zack opening his gifts!
Ryan with all of his!

Jessica  she liked hers!
!
Brandon liked His!

Julia liked hers!

Joe!! He like it!

Miranda! She loved it!

Mike! He looked happy about it!

Trevor!!

Zack “Reading how to put it together”

Uncle Mike and Aunt Randa playing with the boys!




The big kids playing,




A good time was had by all!
We ,well really Steve is in the process of refinishing the kitchen floor. We had parquet
down but it had the original hardwood under it and we wanted to have that all throughout the house.


It has a lot of adhesive from the parquet floor we put down  but there is a old layer of linoleum under that. So far the best way Steve has found to get the glue off is to pour boiling water on it and then scrape . I’ll post pictures when it is we polyurethane it!
So long for now see you soon!