Crockpot Beef Stew

Crockpot Beef Stew
-Kate W.

2 lbs. Beef chuck, cubed
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/4 - 1/2 cup flour
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1 tsp. paprika
1 1/2 cups beef broth
1/2 garlic clove, minced
1 bay leaf
4 carrots, sliced
2 onions, chopped
1 rib celery, sliced
3 potatoes, diced

Place meat in slow cooker. Combine flour, salt, pepper, and paprika. Stir into meat until coated thoroughly. Add remaining ingredients. Mix well. Cover. Cook on low 10-12 hours, or on high 4-6 hours. Stir before serving.

Fresh-Squeezed Lemonade

Fresh Squeezed Lemonade
-Kate W.

6 cups Water
3/4 cup Sugar
3-4 Medium Lemons

Place water and sugar in a pitcher. Mix well until sugar is dissolved. Zest lemons to measure 1 tablespoon zest. Juice lemons to measure 1/2 cup juice. Add zest and juice to pitcher. Mix well. Refrigerate until ready to serve. Serve over ice and garnish with fresh mint and a slice of lemon.

(You don't have to put the lemon zest in to make yummy lemonade...just the juice will do)

Yields: 7 (1 cup) servings

From Pampered Chef.

Chicken Stir Fry

Chicken Stir Fry
- Kate W.

Ingredients:
2 TBSP canola/veggie oil
1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs, chopped into bite sizes (thighs are key!)
salt and ground black pepper
1 red bell pepper, seeded and thinly sliced
1 onion, chopped
1 TBSP Hot Sauce
2 TBSP Tamari
1/4 cup Hoisin Sauce
1/4 cup orange marmalade
1/2 cup chicken stock
1/2 cup regular or honey roasted cashews
3 scallions, thinly sliced on a bias
Egg Noodles, cooked
Place a large skillet over med-high heat with 2 turns of the pan of oil, about 2 TBSP. Season the chicken with salt and pepper. When the pan is very hot, add in the meat and stir-fry until golden brown, about 5 minutes. Remove the meat from the pan and reserve on a plate.

Add the bell pepper and onion to the skillet and stir-fry until tender, 3-4 minutes. While that's cooking, stir together the hot sauce, tamari, hoisin sauce, orange marmalade and stock in a small bowl.

When the veggies are tender, return the chicken to the skillet and pour the sauce over everything. Add the cashews to the skillet, toss to coat and continue cooking until the sauce thickens up, about 1 minute. Serve over egg noodles, garnished with scallions.

From a Rachel Ray recipe, I think...

Lentil Soup

Lentil Soup
-Kate W.

Heat in a large soup pot over medium-low heat:
3 TBSP olive oil
Add and cook, stirring, until the vegetables are tender but not browned, 5 to 10 minutes:
3 medium carrots, peeled and diced
3 medium celery ribs, diced
1 large onion, diced (I use way less...a little goes a long way...like 1/4 of an onion)
Optional Ingredients: 3 garlic cloves, minced, and 4 slices of bacon, diced

Stir in:
2 cups dried lentils, rinsed and picked over (I usually just put the whole bag of lentils in...a little more than 2 cups total)
1/8 tsp or 1/4 tsp dried thyme (based on preference...I like 1/8 tsp)
8 cups water

Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, and simmer until the lentils are tender, 30 to 45 minutes.

Serve with shredded cheese on top (I prefer mozzarella)

Makes about 10 cups.

Altered from Joy of Cooking