Slow-Cooker Corned Beef and Cabbage

No more embarrassing, dirty house pictures!  Did you by chance check out the after pictures?  You should!  Everything has been put back to normal and life as we know it is moving on in the right direction.

Now for a recipe.

Slow-Cooker Corned Beef and Cabbage

Yield: 6 servings

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Ingredients:

• 1 small yellow onion, coarsely chopped
• 2 celery stalks, cut into 3-inch pieces
• 3 carrots, cut into 3-inch pieces
• 1/2 pound small red potatoes, halved if large - I didn't have any and I wished I did
• 6 sprigs thyme
• 3 - 4 pound corned beef brisket, plus pickling spices
• 1/4 cup cider vinegar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 -2 tablespoon Dijon mustard
• 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
• 12 ounces dark beer - Guinness should do the trick
• 1/2 head of cabbage, cut into 1 1/2-inch wedges
• 1 apple, sliced
• grainy mustard, for serving

Instructions:

1. In a 5 - 6 quart slow-cooker, place celery, carrots, onion, potatoes, and thyme.  Place corned beef, fat side up on top of vegetables.
2. In a small bowl, mix together your pickling spices, 1/4 cup cider vinegar, 1/4 cup brown sugar , 1 - 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard, 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves.  Pour over the corned beef.
3. Pour in the beer.  Cover and cook on high until corned beef is tender, 4 1/2 hours (or 8 1/2 hours on low).  Arrange cabbage and apple over corned beef, cover and continue to cook until cabbage is tender, 45 minutes (or 1 1/2 hours on low).  Thinly slice corned beef against the grain and serve with vegetables, cooking liquid and grainy mustard.

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Servings: 1

Calories:  845

Total Fat: 52.4

Carbohydrates: 34.9 mg.

Sodium:  3177 mg.

Protein:  52.6 g.

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Are you as shocked as I am by the amount of calories in this dish?  Corned beef alone has around 680 calories.  Yikes!  It's a good thing I'm not really a fan of corned beef and if you are a fan, it's a good thing St. Patrick's Day is only once a year!

Do you celebrate St. Patrick's Day?  Is there a special dish you make to celebrate?

Classic Pot Roast

Do you ever take a break from technology?  When you come back, do you avoid your Google Reader like the plague because you know it's going to 1000+?  Yeah, that's the position I have been in for the past few days.  

Oh how I have missed you all!  I feel like you are old friends and we haven't seen each other in a while and we need to get together and catch up.  How about I have you over for dinner?  I'll make a Classic Pot Roast and you bring dessert!

Classic Pot Roast
Yield: 6 servings

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Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 1 (3 - 4 pound) boneless chuck roast, trimmed, seasoned with salt and pepper
• 1/4 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoon tomato paste
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1 1/2 cup low-sodium beef broth
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 2 cups pearl onions
• 6 medium carrots, peeled and cut into 2 - 3-inch pieces
• 6 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
• 3 - 4 sprigs fresh oregano
• 2 bay leaves

Instructions:

1. Heat oil in a saute pan over medium-high heat. Sear roast on all sides, 10 minutes total. Transfer roast to 4- to 6 qt. slow cooker.
2. Stir flour into saute pan with wine, cooking until liquid evaporates. Stir in broth and Worcestershire; bring mixture to a simmer, scraping up any brown bits.
3. Transfer broth mixture to the slow cooker; add onions, carrots, celery, garlic, oregano, and bay leaves. Cover and cook on high-heat setting for 4 to 5 hours or on low-heat setting 8 to 9 hours. Add mushrooms an hour before done. Discard oregano sprigs and bay leaves before serving.

Adapted from Cuisine at Home

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Servings: 1 

Calories: 794

Total Fat:  29.1 g

Cholesterol:  305 mg.

Sodium:  327 mg.

Protein:  103.2 g.

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Slow-Cooker Spicy Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches

I absolutely love my slow-cooker.  I love how on a busy day that I can whip up something quickly in the morning, stick it in the slow-cooker and let it do it's thing.  That's not all I love about it.  I love the aroma it puts throughout my house.  I love coming home from a long day out and I know that dinner is ready without much preparation.  

What I don't like is I don't very often come across a recipe that I would want to make again.  For example, last summer my family and I went to Tennessee with my brother and his family.  I had found a slow-cooker recipe for buffalo chicken sandwiches.  I thought, how perfect, we can go boating all day and come home with dinner ready.  The recipe was just okay though, I wasn't much impressed.  So, my search continued for a yummy slow-cooker spicy buffalo chicken sandwich recipe.  

Now my search has ended!

Slow-Cooker Spicy Buffalo Chicken Sandwiches
Yield: 8 servings

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Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
• coarse salt and ground pepper
• 1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces
• 1 package frozen seasoning blend - onion, celery, peppers, etc.
•  3 garlic cloves
• 1 can (28-ounce) diced tomatoes
• 1/4 cup Franks hot wing sauce
• 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 2 tablespoons yellow mustard
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 8 hamburger buns

Instructions:

1. In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high. Add chicken thighs, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring once, until meat is golden brown, 5 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer to a slow cooker, leaving as much oil behind as possible. Repeat with chicken breasts.
2. To skillet, seasoning blend and garlic and cook over medium, stirring constantly, until onion is translucent, 6 minutes. Add 1/4 cup water and cook, stirring and scraping up browned bits from skillet, 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and transfer to slow cooker.
3. To slow cooker, add diced tomatoes, hot-wing sauce, Worcestershire, mustard, and honey; stir to combine. Cover and cook on high until chicken is very tender, 4 hours.
4. Shred chicken and season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve on buns.

Cooks Note:  I added a little bit of Ranch dressing to my sandwich.   Blue cheese would be awesome!

Adapted from: Everyday Food but changed quite a bit to suit what I had on hand

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Servings: 1 Sandwich

Calories:  358

Total Fat:  10 g

Cholesterol:   101 mg.

Sodium:  35 mg.

Protein:  35 g.

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I served this alongside coleslaw.  To keep with the quick preparation theme I had going here, I purchased a bag of coleslaw in the produce section and added Marie's Coleslaw Dressing  and cracked black pepper.  Super yummy, super quick!

Now, I think I need a Big, Fat, Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookie :)

~ Enjoy!