Mexican Stew

A long time ago, a co-worker made this and brought it to share in the breakroom with all of us. She had printed out the recipe for anyone to take. It is VERY yummy, but makes a lot. I made it this weekend for a family party and it served about 10 adults with a few bowls leftover.

2 cans (15 1/2 oz) BBQ Ranch Style Beans
1 can (15 1/2 oz) Ranch Style Beans with jalapeno peppers
2 cans stewed tomatoes
1 can whole kernel corn (juice included)
1 can hominy (juice included)
1 package taco seasoning
2 pounds ground beef
1 green pepper (diced)
1 onion (diced)

Brown ground beef with green pepper and onion. Mix all ingredients together in a crock pot. Simmer for 8 hours or so. Serve with grated cheese, diced onions, crackers, cornbread or tortillas, etc.

Vegetable Barley Stew

So, I'm working on my cholesterol so that hopefully I can wean myself off my meds. I got this low cholesterol cookbook and marked a handful of recipes to try. They include lots of seasonings, so don't worry, healthy doesn't have to equal "blah". This was really good, but I'm thinking on a cool fall day or cold winter night it would be even better.

3/4 pound beef round steak
2 tbls flour
1 tsp paprika
2 tbls olive oil
2 onions, chopped
4 cups beef broth
4 carrots, thickly sliced
3 potatoes, cubed
8 oz package sliced mushrooms
3 cups water
1 tsp dried marjoram leaves
1 bay leaf
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
3/4 c barley

Beef Stew

Here are 3 things I do to "keep it simple" in the kitchen (all of which are found in this recipe)

1) make an entree that contains your meat, starch, and vegetable all in one recipe (no extra pots, pans, things to prepare...)

2) use your crockpot

3) used canned soups as the bases to your sauces

NOTE: I was skeptical on pairing a chicken based soup with beef, but when mixed with everything else, it was fine.

Beef Stew

1 pound beef stew meat
1/2 c boiling water
1 can creamy chicken mushroom soup
1 can golden mushroom soup
1 Tbl Minute Tapioca pudding
1 medium onion
4 peeled and chunked potatoes
4 peeled and chunked carrots (or I use baby carrots to save time from peeling/cutting)
whole mushrooms (optional-I'm the only one that likes these, so I leave them whole so they are easy to avoid for my other family members)
2 beef bouillon cubes (or 2 tsp granules)

Put stew meat on bottom of slow cooker. Slice onion and lay on top of meat. Mix water, soups and Tapioca in small bowl and pour mixture over meat. Turn crockpot on low. Meanwhile, peel potatoes & carrots, chunk them, and add them to the crockpot. Add beef bouillon. Stir throughout the day. The mushrooms first need to be added about an hour before serving time. Let cook in crockpot all day, about 6-8 hours. I like to serve this with warm bread or rolls.