Spicy South Western Beef Chili

Its in the crockpot!!!  This one is incredably simple and has a really quick prep time if you buy your meat already chopped :)

2lbs stew meat (or you can buy chuck roast and cube it yourself)
24oz of diced stewed tomatoes (I used stewed tomatoes I canned this past summer)
1 Medium onion diced
1 can sweet kernel corn, drained
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons chili seasoning
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon cumin

Throw it in the stone, stir it up, cook on low 8-9 hours or on high 5-6....

Here is what it looked like when I put it all together.

Wow, Sorry...

The days have just gotten away from me lately...I realized this morning that I had not posted in awhile...my goal is to post daily...ugh...I hate that its been as long as it has....


I will be updated on what we made over the past week as soon as I get a chance...we have done some great things...banana bread, chile verde, chicken nachos.....I have been bad about getting pictures of everything too...I promise to do better!

Death To My Favorite Crockpot :(

Tonight after enjoying the beef and barley stew-which was great-(My MIL was visiting and she enjoyed it as well (I sent my leftovers home with her too haha))  I pulled the stoneware out of the heating element and noticed some leakage....upon closer inspection I discovered that my favorite red Crockpot (My only red Crockpot) had a hairline crack in it...I am bummed, I love that thing!  We have made some great meals together, but i guess it is time to let her go....

Beef and Barley Soup Recipe!

1 lg onion, halved and sliced thinly
2-3 large potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch chunks-I leave the skin on
2 medium carrots, peeled and sliced
1 small parsnip, peeled and sliced
1 cup  fresh green beans, cut into bite size pieces
1lb beef stew meat chunks
1/2 cup of barley, rinsed and drained
1 bay leaf
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1 clove garlic, crushed
4 cups beef stock
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
pepper to taste
3 Tablespoons AP flour
2 Teaspoons Tomato paste

Combine everything exept for the flour and tomato paste in a large 5-6 qt slow cooker.

Cover and cook on low for 8-9 hours or on high for 4-5, until beef is tender and potatoes are fork tender.

Stir the stew once or twice if possible.

About 20 minutes prior to serving, mix flour and tomato paste and stir into soup...allow it to cook the remaining 20 minutes or until boiling and thickened.

Beef And Barley Soup....

So this morning before 8am I was in the kitchen in my pjs chopping up veggies for our dinner tonight...I am secretly loving that I get ahead the minute my feet hit the kitchen floor, having a meal already prepared and cooking makes the rest of the day run just a little smoother! :D

Beef and barley soup was on the menu for the day.  There are quite a few ingredients, so the prep work was a bit time consuming, but considering what we are going to get out of it, the time was so well spent...especially because I didn't have to stand tending a pot for 3-4 hours on the stove!  That alone makes for a happy mommy!

I have tried it already, and it is tasting yummy!

Pancakes were amazing!

So we had the pancakes for brunch yesterday, everyone loved them!  Whats better than mom handing you a big slice of 'cake' smothered in locally harvested maple syrup and telling you to eat up???  Um, not much I can think of!  There were no remains of this at all!  In fact, we would have gone for seconds had there been any :(  will defiantly double the batch next time...

Recipe is simple:

Make your pancake batter-how you would normally make it to cook them on the stove.

Grease the sides of a 4 qt Crockpot, pour in the batter and cook it on high for 2 hours (it will brown some, and pull away from the sides when it is done...)

Cut into wedges and serve! :)  OH SO YUMMY!!!