Monday, April 28, 2014

Balsamic Pot Roast



Every time I research a recipe, I almost never find one that I love in its entirety.  It’s always missing something “I think” would make it taste just a little better.  J  I will usually get a general idea how it’s made and then just start writing away all of the additional ingredients I would like in my dish and remove what I do not like.  Although this dish is called Balsamic Pot Roast, it does not have a strong acidic taste.  It was truly very delicious and all the ingredients balanced out perfectly.  




What you need:
1.     4-5 lb Beef Chuck Roast
2.     2 Cups of Beef Broth (low sodium)
3.     ½ Cup of Light Brown Sugar
4.      ¼ Cup of Balsamic Vinegar
5.     1 tablespoon of Soy Sauce
6.     1 tablespoon of Adobo (Garlic Powder)
7.     Course Black Pepper
8.     ½ teaspoon of Dried Rosemary
9.     ½ teaspoon of Red Pepper Flakes
10.  6 cloves of minced garlic (fresh)
11.  Zest of a whole Orange
12.  10 Pearl Onions
13.  5 Sprigs of Fresh Rosemary
14.  2 Bay Leaves
15.  6 Fresh Sage Leaves
16.  ½ a Cup of Red Wine (I used Cabernet Sauvignon)
17.  3 tablespoons of Corn Starch
18.  1 Bag of Baby Carrots
19.  4 Whole Celery Sticks (rough chop)
20.  4 Tablespoons of Vegetable Oil

What you need to do:
·       Heat the oil in a skillet on high heat.
·       Season the meat with Adobo and course black pepper to taste.
·       Sear the meat on all sides
·       Place the meat in the crock pot

·       In a bowl whisk the following:
o   Beef broth
o   Brown Sugar
o   Balsamic Vinegar
o   Soy Sauce
o   Red Pepper Flakes
o   Minced Garlic (fresh)
o   Orange Zest
o   Dried Rosemary

·       Back at the Crockpot arrange the carrots, celery, bay leaves, rosemary sprigs, sage leaves and pearl onions on top and around the meat.
·       Pour the liquid that we whisked above
·       Add the red wine over it all
·       Set the Crockpot on low heat for 10 hours
·       Take 1½ - 2 cups of the liquid and add the corn starch, whisk over medium high heat until it had a gravy consistency to pour over meat and mashed potatoes.    

Serve with garlic mashed potatoes and corn.  I seasoned my corn with course black pepper and butter and the mashed potatoes, I made with buttermilk instead of regular milk.  Everything was delicious and went very well together.  Although there are a lot of ingredients, this dish was very easy to prepare.  I set the Crockpot before leaving for work and when I got home at 6, dinner was DONE!  And my house smelled AMAZING!!  Hope you guys like it!!



HAPPY COOKING!



Friday, April 25, 2014

Spicy Italian Hoagies


This has got to be the EASIEST meal I make during the week and it reminds me of ball games at Fenway Park!  Love to make these for the family…

What You Need:

·       Spicy Italian Sausage (5)
·       Sweet Italian Sausage (5)
·       2 Green Bell Peppers (Julienne)
·       2 Red Bell Peppers (Julienne)
·       2 Vidalia Onions (Julienne)
·       2 Cans of Goya Tomato Sauce
·       Hoagie Rolls (4)
·       Provolone or White American Cheese

What to Do:

·       I like to place the sausages in the freezer for about an hour or two before cooking them because they slice up easier. 
·       Slice the peppers and onions Julienne style.
·       Pre-heat a non-stick skillet on medium to medium-high heat until it smokes just a little.
·       Slice the sausages in half inch diagonal pieces.
·       Throw the sausages in until they are seared on all sides. (10 minutes)
·       Once seared, add the peppers and onions until desired tenderness. (10 minutes)
·       Add tomato sauce and toss until all is coated and cook for another 10 minutes uncovered.
·       Slice the hoagie’s open and place in the oven at 350 degrees for 2 minutes.
·       Stuff the hoagies and top with cheese.

One thing I notice that this dish requires no seasoning because the Italian Sausage is seasoned already.  However, I have added dried Rosemary to the dish at the end and give it one last toss before placing in the hoagie and it was delish.  Hope you like this quick and simple recipe.  When I know I am going to have a super busy day, I slice everything up the night before and literally have dinner on the table in less than 20 minutes. 
 
Last night I served the Hoagies alone, but they do go great with herbed potato wedges! Yum!

Enjoy & Happy Cooking!