Tasty Tuesday

Hello Friends! And welcome back to Tasty Tuesday!

You will learn pretty quickly that I love love love simple (and delicious) meals. LOVE THEM. Because of this, I simply cannot live without my slow cooker.

I'm not even kidding. If I had to be stranded on a desert island with only 3 items from my former life, my slow cooker would absolutely be in my top 3. Even if it didn't work because there was no electricity on the island.

I love my slow cooker. Passionately.

And so should you! Whether you are a working parent, getting home at 5:00pm while still holding the household together, or a stay-at-home mom who spends her day jumping from errand to errand and has dinner ready on time (quite a feat!), slow cookers are an essentialkitchen item. The simplicity of prepping your dinner quickly in the morning, throwing it into the enamel pot, and letting it simmer all day long just cannot be beat.

And you come home to a house that smells AMAZING. Double Score.

One of the best accompanying cookbooks to a slow cooker is "Fix It and Forget It" by Dawn J. Ranck. I have so many recipes cataloged from this book, it's ridiculous. But they are SO good! One of my favorite recipes is the roast that I will share with you today.

I have a lot of slow cooker roast recipes, most of which end up tasting awseome, but somewhat the same. They usually involve a packet of Onion Soup mix (another pantry staple), and I always enjoy every bite. This recipe caught my eye because the combination of ingredients was intriguing. It does a great job of balancing savory and sweet, thus it's name....

Savory and Sweet Pot Roast

(from Fix It and Forget It Cookbook by Dawn J Ranck)

• 3-4 lb chuck roast (note from Steph: feel free to use rump roast, blade, eye round or whatever good beef roast is on sale. I've tried them all and they all turn out great!)
• Oil
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 can (10 3/4 oz) of cream of mushroom soup
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1/4 cup white vinegar
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp prepared mustard
• 1 tsp worcestershire sauce

1) Brown meat in oil on both sides in a saucepan. Place in slowcooker (note from Steph: if you are realllly strapped for time, you could forgo this step, and still have a tasty meal. Browning meat just enhances the flavor)

2) Blend together remaining ingredients. Pour over meat.

3) Cover. Cook on low 12-16 hours (note from Steph: in my slowcooker, it was fine to eat around 6-8 hours. 12-16 would have been far too long).

~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~ ~~~~~

I serve this roast alongside mashed potatoes and corn. Make sure to have a loaf of crusty bread on hand to sop up the gravy. It is delectable! The leftovers make great shredded beef sandwiches (shred with a fork) or as the base for a Shepherds Pie (substitute the beef for lamb).

Nothing smells better as it cooks all day long! I literally salivate for the 8 hours it is cooking. In these winter months, when the weather is cold (and snowy - let's hope the worst of it is over!), this meal is hot and filling.

Check back next week for more recipes!

You can read more about Steph and her recipes at her other blog, Confessions of a Stay-At-Home Mom.