Beef Stew with Buttered Egg Noodles

This is one of my all-time favorite beef stew recipes. It takes some time to put together though!

2 1/2 to 3 pounds beef chuck, trimmed and cut into 1-inch cubes
Salt & freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
5 tbsp. olive oil
5 tbsp. butter
1 yellow onion, coarsely chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1/2 tsp. dried thyme
2 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp. brown sugar
1 tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp. paprika
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 fresh or dried bay leaf
2 cups beef broth
8 oz. egg noodles

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Place the meat in a large bowl and season with salt and pepper. Add the flour and toss to coat. Ina large Dutch oven or ovenproof pot, heat 2 tbsp. olive oil and 1 tbsp. butter over medium-high heat until the butter stops foaming. Add a quarter of the meat to the Dutch oven and brown, about 6 minutes; transfer with a slotted spoon to a platter. Cook the remaining meat in 3 batches, adding 1 more tbsp. olive oil and 1/2 tbsp. butter to the Dutch oven for each batch.

Add the onion, garlic and thyme to the Dutch oven and cook until the onion has softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the browned beef, Worcestershire sauce, balsamic vinegar, brown sugar, cocoa powder, paprika, cinnamon, bay leaf and beef broth and bring to a simmer. Cover, transfer to the oven and cook until the beef is tender, about 1 1/2 hours.

About 20 minutes before the stew is done, bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook the egg noodles until al dente, about 7 minutes. Drain and toss with the remaining 2 1/2 tbsp. butter. Serve the stew over the noodles.

Chicken with Cider and Bacon Sauce

This is a recipe from Cooking Light magazine:

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
2 bacon slices, chopped
1/4 cup minced fresh onion
3/4 cup unsweetened apple cider
1/2 cup fat-free, less-sodium chicken broth

Place each chicken breast half between 2 sheets of heavy-duty plastic wrap; pound to 1/2-inch thickness using a meat mallet or rolling pin. Sprinkle chicken evenly with salt and pepper.

Cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from pan. Add chicken to drippings in pan; cook 6 minutes on each side or until done. Remove chicken from pan; keep warm.

Add onion to pan; cook 2 minutes or until tender, stirring constantly. Add cider and broth; bring to a boil; scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Cook until broth mixture is reduced to 1/2 cup (about 5 minutes). Stir in cooked bacon; serve sauce over chicken.

Bacon & Tomato Puffs

I made these for New Year's Eve and they're very yummy!

8 slices bacon
1 tomato, chopped
3 green onions, sliced
3 oz. shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tsp. dried basil
1 (16 oz.) can refrigerated buttermilk biscuit dough

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease a baking sheet.

In a skillet over medium heat, cook bacon until evenly brown. Drain on paper towels. Crumble bacon into a medium mixing bowl and mix with tomato, onion, swiss cheese, mayonnaise and basil.

Separate biscuits and cut into quarters. Roll each quarter into a ball and pinch with thumb into the shape of a small bowl. Place each piece on the baking sheet. Fill each piece with some of the bacon mixture.

Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until browned.

Southwest Shredded Beef

Here is the recipe you asked for, Missy. I've never added the cilantro or extra chiles and usually go lighter on the spices.

Southwest Shredded Beef
Serves 8 to 10
25 minutes under High Pressure

2 TBS olive oil
3 to 3-1/2 pound boneless chuck roast, cut into 1-1/2 inch chunks
2 cups minced yellow onion
6 or 7 cloves of fresh garlic, chopped
1 c. broth, water or beer
2 (14-1/2 oz) cans diced tomatoes
1 (10 oz) Ro-tel
1 (7 oz) can diced green chilies
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
4 TBS cumin powder
2 TBS chili powder
1 teaspoon salt

Heat olive oil over medium high heat in cooker. Add just enough beef to cover the bottom of the pot, don’t crowd it or the meat will not brown properly. Brown the meat thoroughly on all sides. Remove with a slotted spoon and add another batch of beef, continuing to brown until all of the meat has been browned.

Add the onion and garlic and cook over medium heat until softened and golden, about 3 minutes.

Deglaze the pan with the broth, stirring up all of the cooked-on bits of meat and caramelized juices. Add the beef, tomatoes, Ro-tel, green chilies, cilantro, cumin, chili powder.

Bring the liquid to a boil, then lock the lid in place and over high heat bring to high pressure. Adjust the heat to maintain high pressure and cook for 25 minutes. Reduce pressure with a quick-release method, or by natural method.

Using two forks, stir through the meat mixture, shredding/pulling at the chunks of beef to loosen up the pieces and create a sort of chunky-shredded mixture. If necessary, return to heat and simmer off some of the liquid.

Leftovers freeze well in a bag if covered with juice.

Orange Fluff

1 sm. pkg sugar free orange jello
1 sm. pkg fat free vanilla instant pudding
1 8oz fat free cool whip
1 can Mandarine oranges

1. Prepare jello according to 'speed set' method
2. add pudding mix to jello and beat w/ elec. mixer for 2 min
3. set for 5 min in fridge
4. fold in thawed cool whip and drained oranges
5. refridgerate for several hours in a covered container

compliments of Cindy P