Crock Pot Beef Stew

It’s really not all that cold outside for this time of the year, but the clouds make it feel like you just want to wrap yourself in a blanket with a nice bowl of Beef Stew & watch a Christmas special. Right? Well, today I hope to do at least half of that. I have never made stew in a crock-pot. At least I don’t remember ever making it in the crock-pot. Josh, will say that doesn’t mean I haven’t. Oh the joys of having a “Mommy Brain.” I went online to my trusty Google Search Engine & typed in “Crock Pot Beef Stew” & wouldn’t you know I found a great recipe. I probably could have just whipped up the stew with the knowledge I have of making it growing up with my mom & I’ve made it a few times for Josh before we had kids, or perhaps we had Ashlyn at the time. But I figured it would be good to have some sort of guidance.  Here is the recipe I found via Allrecipes.com:

                  2 pounds beef stew meat, cut into 1 inch cubes

                  1/4 cup all-purpose flour

                  1/2 teaspoon salt

                  1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper

                  1 clove garlic, minced

                  1 bay leaf

                  1 teaspoon paprika

                  1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

                  1 onion, chopped

                  1 1/2 cups beef broth

                  3 potatoes, diced

                  4 carrots, sliced

                  1 stalk celery, chopped

Directions

1.  Place meat in slow cooker. In a small bowl mix together the flour, salt, and pepper; pour over meat, and stir to coat meat with flour mixture. Stir in the garlic, bay leaf, paprika, Worcestershire sauce, onion, beef broth, potatoes, carrots, and celery.

2. Cover, and cook on Low setting for 10 to 12 hours, or on High setting for 4 to 6 hours.

I added a few different spices & didn’t put in the paprika. And I mixed the flour & spices into the beef right in the crock-pot. Ya, I'm lazy like that.  But mostly I followed the recipe. I don't think I ever follow a recipe exact ever. Here’s a little play by play with photos of how I whipped it up.

And of course the final product (I think it cooked on HIGH for almost 5 hours) with some good ol homemade buscuits. (Got the recipe from the handy dandy Good Housekeeping Cookbook)

Oh it was the perfect meal for today. Josh said he wanted more beef though. ;-)

So, I also have to update you on the wreath. Ya, the one I was oh so proud of. It needed a little extra tlc today. I saw it blowing in the strong wind we had yesterday & I felt it needed a little more tying down. But it's back up & looking better than ever. 

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Warming up with my hubbie & a movie now,

 

That's Pinteresting!

I have recently been addicted to what's on Pinterest. And because I now blog I decided it best to showcase a few of the things that have stood out to me. I'm very happy I found Pinterest before the holiday seasons begun. These are only a few sites I found.

One of the best recipes I've ever tried. Vegan Lentil Chili. Definitely a must for Cilantro fans!!

via

How about this...you can clean your shower head this way?? I know random, but honestly we all know our shower head gets pretty gross...right?

via

Some fun Stocking stuffer ideas right at the click of your mouse. 

via

Oh, and if you need an invite to Pinterest let me know. But you can check the site out for free. 

Fun stuff!!

Happy Pinning!!

My first post- Christmas Wreath DIY

Why hello there :-)


I thought it was appropriate to start my blog with a fun post. For the last few months I’ve been eyeing a tree in our woods that I thought would be perfect for a Christmas wreath. I had bought the metal hanger, a red bow, & the metal circular thingy to attach the branches to a few weeks ago. (YES, I did forget to buy metal wire to attach the branches to the metal circle) So today I ventured out to the fasted place (WALGREENS) & picked up some metal ornament hooks that worked well. Not the best, but I’ll say not bad for only 99 cents. So all in all the cost of the wreath was about $8. Not bad. And although it takes time, between naps & diaper changes & a girl who wanted to “help”, maybe 1 hour total, it was worth every ounce of my energy.

Isn’t she a beauty?  I feel really good about hanging it up. Although I also feel like putting up a sign that says, “I cut the branches & put it together ALL BY MYSELF, isn’t it pretty?” No, I would never put that up. Or maybe I would? Don’t we all feel that way at times? So here is my first DIY post. I hope it inspires you to go out & make something yourself to decorate for Christmas.

Oh how I love Christmas.

But lets remember why we do all this. Celebrating the birth of our Savior.

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.  Of the increase of his government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on David's throne and over his kingdom, establishing and upholding it with justice and righteousness from that time on and forever. The zeal of the LORD Almighty will accomplish this.

—Isaiah 9:6-7

Merry Christmas!

ps. anyone know how to get the box off my signature. I'm still so new at all this.