Beef Stew

Beef Stew
 The meat should fall apart if you just look at it. 
And the thicker, more flavorful the sauce, the better.
 PREP TIME: 20 minutes 
TOTAL TIME: 2 hours 50 minutes
Serves 8
3 Tbsp olive oil
2 lb cubed beef stew meat (1 1/4") 
1 med onion, diced 
3 cloves garlic, minced 
12 oz beer (pale lager)
3 1/2 c beef broth 
2 Tbsp tomato paste 
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce 
1 1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp paprika
8 new potatoes (1 1/2"-2" diameter),
quartered 4 carrots, sliced diagonally 
3 Tbsp all-purpose flour
Finely chopped fresh parsley (optional)
Crusty bread (optional)

1. Heat oil in large pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Season beef. Working in 2 batches, brown meat on all sides, 6 minutes. Remove to plate. 

2. Add onion to pot and reduce heat to low. Cook, stirring, until softened, 3 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, 1 minute. 

3. Pour in beer. Add broth, tomato paste, Worcestershire, sugar, paprika, 1/2 tsp kosher salt, and pepper to taste. 

4. Return beef to pot. Simmer until meat is tender, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. 

5. Stir in potatoes and carrots. Simmer until vegetables are tender and meat is very tender, 30 to 40 minutes longer. 

6. Remove 1 cup of liquid from pot and slowly whisk in flour. Stir back into pot and bring to a gentle boil. Reduce heat and simmer until thickened, 10 minutes. Season. Sprinkle with parsley (if using).

Berks County Potato Dumplings

6 uncooked potatoes
10 slices bread
Salt and pepper to season
1 onion, grated
1 teaspoon minced parsley
2 eggs, well beaten

Pare potatoes and grate.  Soak bread in cold water and squeeze out as much of the water as possible.  Mix together bread, salt, pepper, grated onion and parsley.  Add grated potatoes and eggs; mix well.  Form into balls, roll in flour gently; drop into boiling salted water, cover closely and cook for 15 minutes.  These dumplings are excellent with sauerkraut, stewed chicken or meat.  Serves 6.

With Hominy Grits (Farina) - Omit bread.  Prepare potatoes as above, place in a cloth and squeeze as dry as possible.  Add 2 cups hot cooked hominy grits. 

Grama Thode's Knödel & Grama Musial's Kuggelie

Grate raw potatoes fine, put into cheesecloth to drain potato water.. squeeze to get the liquid out..

mix with egg, flour, salt and pepper… form into small baseballs, and put a square of bread in the center of the ball.  

Put into gently boiling pot of water and boil until they float to the top…. 

Another one was Grama Musial’s kuggelie…

same grated and drained potatoes, mix with eggs and flour and crisped bacon crumbled and fried bits of onion.. or fried bits of smoked pork, put into loaf pan and bake for about 1.5 hours till done….. serve sliced or refry slices… yummy!!! 

Olive Garden’s Chicken Gnocchi Soup

Olive Garden’s Chicken Gnocchi Soup

Seen on Frugal Antics of A Harried Homemaker from copykat.com

Ingredients:

• 1 cup chicken breasts, diced and cooked (can use canned chicken or turkey)
• 4 Tbsp butter
• 4 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 quart half and half (can use evaporated milk)
• 1 14 ounce can chicken broth
• 1/2 cup celery, sliced
• 1/4 cup flour
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup carrots, shredded
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 1 cup fresh spinach, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 tsp dried thyme
• salt and pepper to taste
• 16 ounce package gnocchi

Preparation:

In a large stockpot, saute the onion, celery and garlic in the butter and olive oil. When the onion is clear, add the flour and form a roux. Stir and cook a minute. Add the half and half . Meanwhile in another pan, cook the gnocchi. Add the carrots and chicken to the stockpot. Stir often and when it gets thicker, add the chicken broth, gnocchi, spinach and seasonings. Cover and heat through.

I made this in a crock pot and let simmer for a while, adding the gnocchi and spinach towards the end when we were getting ready to serve it.

Now, I need to go stock up on some meat. Lots and lots of meat.

Slow Cooker Cheeseburger Soup

Slow-Cooker Cheeseburger Soup

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 medium garlic cloves, minced
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3 medium celery ribs, chopped
• 1 pound ground beef
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 3 cups canned chicken broth, divided
• 1 (12 ounce) can evaporated milk (I used low-fat)
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 1/2 tablespoons Worchestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon yellow mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
• 8 ounces cubed cheese (I used Velveeta)
• additional cheese for topping, if desired

Instructions

1. Preheat olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add garlic, onion and celery to skillet and cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Remove from skillet and place the vegetables in the bottom of your slow cooker.
2. In the same pan, brown your hamburger meat. Drain, and add meat to your slow cooker.
3. In a small cup, combine flour and 1/2 cup of broth. Whisk to combine, making sure it’s smooth and lump-free. Add the mixture to your skillet, and then slowly pour in the remaining 2 ½ cups of broth. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly, and allow to cook until just thickened. Pour over meat in slow-cooker.
4. Stir in your remaining ingredients, through the black pepper. Cook on low for 2 hours. Just before serving, add in your cheese and stir until it is melted. Top with additional shredded cheese, if desired.
   

Borrowed from http://kitchenmeetsgirl.com