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Crock Pot Comfort Chowder

12 Jan

So what exactly constitutes comfort chowder?

Well, for me, it’s anything with POTATOES!

And tis the season for something to warm you up.

I could so curl up with a bowl of this chowder RIGHT now!

This recipe is based off the Crock Pot Corn Chowder from BubbleCrumb.com.

Let’s gather the goods:

1 med bag of shredded hash browns (approx 28oz)
2 1/2 cups milk
1 can creamed corn
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 small bag of frozen corn kernels (approx 16oz)
1 large onion diced
1 cup diced ham steak
3 tsp Gotta Have It Steak Rub
2 Tbs butter

This recipe is pretty close to a ‘dump’ recipe.  You pretty much dump all the ingredients in the crock pot, set it and go!  See, totally simple – even a Wookie could do it.

And here we go:

Pour the bag of shredded potatoes (ie – hash browns) into your crock pot.

Add in the cans of creamed corn, cream of chicken & cream of mushroom soups.

Next, add onion (I buy my onions in bulk once a month, chop and freeze), butter, steak rub and frozen corn.

Finally, add ham.  Set crock pot on low and let it go!

Cook on LOW heat for up to 6 hours.  Stir thoroughly and enjoy!!!

Ma’s side not….

Really, what’s not to like??  Another smash hit.  And absolutely NO left overs.  Well, maybe just enough for hubby to take to work the next day for lunch.  The consistency of the chowder was heavenly.  There was plenty of flavor to bring you back home.

 
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Posted by on January 12, 2012 in One Size Fits All, Pork-tastic, Soup's On

 

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Steak Stew & Honey Butter Cornbread

15 Sep

Have I mentioned that I live with carnivores?

If it isn’t beef or pork, it’s chicken.

Stew or chili is always a hit around here!

And cornbread…..Yum!

I started making honey butter cornbread a while ago and have never looked back!

I forgot to take picture when I finished, so I had to grab one of what was left.

I just love my cast iron skillet!

You just need to get all the good stuff left in the skillet.

I think I want more stew now.

Oh, some good cornbread!

Now, you must know, I have yet to follow a recipe for stew.  This will be the first time any recipe of my stew is actually penned, or typed.  Pa usually throws a fit when I make chili or stew and it comes out really good and I didn’t write down what I used.  I’m a ‘open the pantry and toss it in’ kind of gal.

Here’s what I used (for the stew):

1 Tri-tip steak cubed

Gotta Have It Streak Rub

Olive Oil

beef broth

Worcestershire sauce

tomato sauce (4-6 oz can)

water

potatoes, cubed (1 sm potato per person)

celery, diced (about 4-5 stalks)

carrots, diced (I used 1/2 bag of baby carrots and cut them in half)

Here’s what I did:

After getting my cast iron skillet nice and hot, I added about 1 Tbsp of olive oil.  Gave it about a minute or two then added the steak.  Then sprinkled the steak with steak rub, probably about a tsp.  As I stirred the steak around so that it would brown on all sides, I would sprinkle it with more steak rub.

Once the steak is browned on all sides, move to the slow cooker with a slotted spoon.  To the skillet add, one can (usually 10oz or so) beef broth and boil and about 2-3 Tbsp of Worcestershire sauce.  Stir frequently so that all the drippings from the steak come off of the sides of the skillet.  Pour over steak in slow cooker.

Add potatoes, celery, carrots and tomato sauce to the slow cooker.  Then add one can (use the beef broth can) of water to the slow cooker and stir everything together.  I had added another can of beef broth and water to my stew, so that is was a bit ‘soupier’ than normal.

I let the stew cook on LOW for 6 hours.  I would stir the stew maybe once an hour.

Now on to the Honey Butter Cornbread:

2 boxes Jiffy cornbread mix (make according to package directions)

2-3 Tbsp butter, softened

2-3 Tbsp honey

Here’s what you do:

Heat over according to package instructions.  And make cornbread according to package directions.

Add butter and honey to the cornbread batter and mix well.  Pour batter into a greased baking dish.

Level batter and drizzle with honey.  Bake according to package instructions

Ma & Pa’s side note:

Yummy!!!  Yummy!!!  That’s pretty much all I can get out of Pa.  Regardless, I think everyone had 2 or 3 bowls of stew.  Even our 7mo old had a bite or two of the veggies.  The steak was just melt in your mouth delicious!  You must also know, the liquid of the stew can be adjusted to the consistency you desire.  And all ingredients can be adjusted to your taste.  And II think I might make this for a bbq we are attending this weekend!!

 
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Posted by on September 15, 2011 in Beef-alicious, One Size Fits All

 

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Pork Spareribs w/Fried Red Potatoes

04 Jul

It’s just not a 4th of July celebration unless you break out the bbq!

For the last few years I have only been serving up pork riblets.

I kinda have this thing with fat & gristle, it’s just gross.

Well, Pa Belloni doesn’t think so.  Those happen to be his FAVORITE parts.

So, during my mother-in-law’s visit she picked up a couple of racks of ribs.

Of course, Pa has been chomping at the bit to grill ‘em up.

Therefore, I put my mad scientist hat on and got to work on a new bbq rub.

Why?  You see, while I love Sweet Secret BBQ Rub, I wanted something a little sweeter.

Without the spicy build up.  I like the spicy kick, but my taste buds were bored with it.

The result of my madness…….a plate of pork spareribs cleaned down to the bone!

Here’s what I did…..

Pre-heat the oven to 170* F.

Line a baking tray with foil.

Massage bbq rub into the spareribs.

(We had to cut the rack of ribs in half to fit on our tray.)

Tent the tray with more foil.

Bake in the oven for 4 hours.

During the final 30 minutes of baking the ribs, prepare your bbq.

Make sure your coals are nice and hot.

When spareribs are finished, transfer to the bbq.

Bbq for approx 15 minutes on each side.

Remove from BBQ and let rest for 10-15 minutes.

Serve up to your waiting family!

Let’s move on to the Fried Red Potatoes….

Heat 2-3 Tbls of vegetable oil over med heat in a fry pan.

Wash and dice approx 3 lbs of red potatoes.

Add the potatoes to the hot oil fry pan.

Stir potatoes only every 4-5 minutes, this will prevent the potatoes from becoming much!

Add approx 2 tsp Gotta Have It Steak Rub and 1 tsp parsley.

Cook for approx 20-30 minutes.  Or, until the potatoes have a crisp golden finish.

Ma & Pa’s side note…..

Other than YUM!  There isn’t much more to say.  I however, LOVED the potatoes!  I could have sat here eating the entire pan.  And my oldest son literally CLEANED his plate, and he normally can NOT stand potatoes.  This meal was a complete SUCCESS!

 
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Posted by on July 4, 2011 in Pork-tastic, Side Show

 

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Baked Potato Soup

15 Jun

I just LOVE baked potatoes, don’t you?

What better combination than a baked potato and soup?

I’m always on the hunt for a great home-made soup cause sometimes the canned stuff just doesn’t cut it!

And as much as Ewok #1 does NOT like potatoes, he will keep asking for second servings of this dish.

This recipe may look a little daunting and time-consuming, but really it’s not and it is so worth the effort.

Here’s what you’ll need:

3-6 strips of bacon

4 scallions, whites and greens separated and chopped

2 cloves of garlic, minced

2-3 Tbsp flour

8 cups chicken stock (low sodium is good too)

1-2 cups water

4-6 medium russet potatoes, baked

1-2 cups half and half

salt and pepper to taste

shredded cheddar jack cheese

Tabasco sauce to taste

sour cream (optional)

Let’s get cooking:

Heat your soup pot over medium heat.  Add the bacon and cook for about 5 minutes until crispy.  Remove bacon and reserve.  Discard all but a thin layer of bacon fat.

Add the scallion whites and garlic, cook for a minute or two until fragrant and scallions are translucent.  Add the flour and stir to coat ingredients.  Pour in the stock and water, don’t forget to whisk to keep flour from forming lumps.

Remove the skin from 2-3 potatoes, chop and add to a food processor.  Add 2-3 cups of stock liquid to potatoes and process until almost smooth.  If you do not have a food processor, it is okay to add chopped potatoes to the pot and mash with a potato masher.  Cube the rest of the potatoes, leaving the skin on and add to the pot.

Add half and half, season with salt and pepper (I use Gotta Have It Steak Rub) to taste as well as Tabasco sauce.  Turn the heat down to low and simmer for 5-10 minutes.

When ready, ladle into serving bowls and garnish with bacon, scallion greens, cheese and sour cream (optional).  Be prepared, this will go fast.

Ma & Pa’s take on this dish:

Well, there is no doubt I love this soup.  I could eat this every night, but then I would have to fight the rest of the household for it.  I do not season this dish heavily as Ewok #1 tends to have issues with really spicy dishes.  Therefore, Pa will add a significant amount of Tabasco to give it some more heat.  I have made this soup in the past with chopped ham rather than bacon and it still comes out very delicious.

This recipe is adapted from Cook This, Not That by David Zinczenko & Matt Goulding.  The original recipe makes servings for 4.  Since I have a household of hefty eaters (including my brother) I have increased the amount of ingredients to accommodate those appetites.  It’s okay to eyeball this recipe and adjust ingredients based off texture and consistency.

I hope you enjoy this soup as much as we have!

 
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Posted by on June 15, 2011 in Soup's On

 

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