Mom's Italian Slow Roasted Beef

Do you have a dish that within one bite you are taken to another place? I love dishes that remind you of a great trip, a favorite restaurant, or a childhood memory. This beef recipe make me feel at home. It reminds me of all the amazing family dinner we had around our kitchen table that were lovingly made by my mom. 

You'll notice how flavorful it is right away. The Italian dressing packets essentially becoming like the dressing when added to the water and fats from the beef. Its the type of meat that literally melts in your mouth!

Ingredients

• 2-3lbs tri-tip beef
• 2-3 packets of Italian dressing mix
• 1 medium size white or sweet onion - roughly sliced
• 1/2 bottle pepperoncinis
• 1/2-3/4 cup water or chicken stock
• salt, pepper to taste

Directions

Set a slow cooker on low (will cook in about 6-7 hours), and bring meat to room temperature.

Prep the beef by cutting in to large chunks and seasoning with salt and pepper on both sides. 

Sear (brown) the meat on all sides in a hot skillet with a little olive oil. This should take about 5 minutes. 

Once all the pieces are browned add to crock pot with enough water/stock to come halfway up the meat. For the meat above it took 1/2 cup water. Sprinkle the seasoning packets on the top. For six pieces I used 2.5 packets. 

Cook for 4-5 hours, flipping the pieces of meat a few times to cook thoroughly. Add onion and pepperoncinis and allow to simmer for the last 1-2 hours of cooking. When the meat begins to fall apart use fork to continue helping shred, you can also remove the pieces to fully shred and return to the pot to soak up the liquid. 

Serve! 

I have been putting them on whole wheat slider buns with a thin slice on manchego cheese and peppers. The meat is also wonderful for tacos, salads, enchiladas, over rice, in soup- or just plain.

Enjoy my taste of home!

Cheap can be healthy

So the holidays are over and our pants are too tight and wallets are empty. You want to eat healthier and save some money right? Usually those two don't pair well- but with some planning and creativity you can cook simple, healthy meals that won't cost you a fortune. 

Here are a few of my cost saving-healthy food tips:

• Buy frozen: frozen fruits and veggies (especially store brand) will save you money and are frozen at their peak saving valuable vitamins. Frozen also will not go bad, so you can use whenever you need! 
• Quick frozen recipe: bag of peas, bag of corn, 1/2 spicy bulk sausage or 2 sausage links, spices. Saute meat until cooked thoroughly (if bulk break into pieces as it cooks), add the veggies and a little bit of water or chicken stock (2 Tb) and simmer until veggies are cooked. Add spice like salt, pepper, cumin, red pepper flakes. Serve over pasta, rice, lettuce or by itself. 

• Buy in bulk: don't be afraid of the big bulk bins at the store! Instead of having to pay for expensive packaging buy all your grains, nuts, pasta, spices, coffee, etc in the bulk bins. You can transfer them to labeled ziplock baggies or cheap tupperware when you get home if the plastic bags from the store dont store well for you. 
• Brown rice in bulk is healthy and cheap. Just swap brown rice in any recipe that calls for white rice. A slow cooker is an expensive must have appliance for your kitchen. Add rice, liquid (I use chicken stock usually) and let it simmer away and do the work. For easy Mexican rice- add a can of Rotel with your rice and liquid.

• Cook eggs: they are cheap, versatile and packed with flavor. Here's a few easy, healthy ideas:
• Crack an egg in skillet and cook for 1-2 min and flip. Meanwhile toast a whole wheat english muffin, add egg, top with slice of cheese and turkey sandwich meat.
• Scramble eggs, add veggies, ground turkey and put in corn tortillas for healthy tacos
• Layer whole wheat tortillas in a glass pie dish, in a separate bowl mix 5-6 eggs with 2 Tb milk, shredded cheese and put aside. Saute veggies (mushrooms, peppers, onions, asparagus, etc) and meat of your choice (ham, bacon, ground beef, etc) in a pan. Once cooked put on top of the tortillas, then pour the egg mixture on top. Top with cheese and bake for 30-45 at 350.

• Cook meat in bulk: Splurge on a large piece of meat whether its chicken, roast, pork shoulder, etc. Get out a slow cooker or dutch oven, add some veggies, bbq sauce, wine, etc and let it slow cook for hours. You'll have tons of meat to use for tacos, pasta dishes, salads, casseroles, with your eggs! 

• Plan your meals: Best tip for eating healthy on a budget is plan meals and even leftovers before ever going to the store. Organize your shopping list by areas of the store, stay on the outside aisles first. Go for the generic store brand in most cases- will taste just the same without the added price.
• Produce first- look for sales, buy in season items. 
• Meat- look for deals at meat counter, check frozen meat as well. Especially flash frozen seafood. 
• Dairy- choose non-fat or low fat options. Skip the pre-shredded cheese. You'll save money and gain flavor shredding yourself. 
• Bulk bins- grab any grains, spices, nuts, etc needed.
• Now tackle any inside aisles. By this time you will be less likely to add more to your already full cart.

Here are a few other great resources: 

Cooking on a budget

Eat well, spend less

Budget cooking

Roasted sweet potato, garlic & blue cheese mash

Has your mom ever gone on a cooking strike? Mine did and it sucked. I was probably 12 when my mom lovingly made a healthy alternative to the creamy regular mashed potatoes my Dad and I loved. She tried sneaking sweet potatoes on to our plates and after a few bites I was disgusted. At the time I did not understand how amazing sweet potatoes were. Long story short my Dad and I started secretly feeding the dogs our sweet potatoes under the table because in our house if you complained or didn't finish vegetables it was double portions. Mom caught us and picked up the bowl and began flinging spoonfuls of the orange mash at my face. The dogs were heaven! It was right then that the first ever Karen Food Strike started. It was lots of Taco Bell and soup for us. So needless to say every time I now enjoy sweet potatoes I think of that story. 

I still have a hard time with sweet potatoes when they are really sweet. I do not think I'll ever be a big fan of the traditional dish with marshmallows. But when they are paired with savory ingredients and roasted or fried I'm in heaven. This weekend I tried a few new ingredients and loved the cheesy roasted flavor. 

Ingredients

• 4-5 large sweet potatoes 
• olive oil (to rub potatoes)
• head of garlic 
• 1/4 cup blue cheese crumbles (plus some for topping)
• 1/2 stick butter
• red pepper flakes (to taste)
• 1 tsp paprika 
• 1 tsp each salt and pepper 
• Optional- fresh or dried herbs of choice- rosemary and oregano would be great
• Optional- crispy bacon crumbles for topping

Directions

1. Heat oven to 400
2. Prick potatoes all the way around with a fork and rub in olive oil (if large and cut in half to speed up cooking time)
3. Place potatoes on foil lined baking sheet 
4. Trim the top of the garlic head off to expose all cloves and rub with olive oil, salt and pepper
5. Add garlic to tray with potatoes 
6. Place tray in oven for 30 minutes, remove garlic from tray (if its looks browned enough)
7. Flip the potatoes over and put back in the oven for about 30 more minutes or until tender and skins beginning to fall off 
8. Once garlic has cooled a bit, squeeze the cloves out of the peel (should pop out easy if roasted enough) and chop all the cloves 
9. Add garlic, blue cheese, butter, spices to mixing bowl 
10. Remove potatoes from oven and cool until you can remove the skins. The skins should peel easily if roasted enough. 
11. Scoop the potato chunks on top of the cheese mixture in a mixing bowl and mix until desired consistency. For a chunkier mash, you can simply fork the mixture. For creamier mash mix well in blender or mixer. 
12. To make the mash creamier you could add about 1/4 cup sour cream, milk, cheese, mayo, etc. Lots of options!
13. Scoop your mash in to a bowl and top with blue cheese and bacon crumbles (optional). If you added herbs you can add a few for garnish as well.

Curried Butternut Squash Soup

I love the Fall and all the root veggies that come with it. I've been roasting veggies and finding new ways to mash, bake and puree them all! With a few changes to a basic recipe I created this creamy, spicy soup. By adding some Curry powder this yummy soup has an Indian kick. Serve with warm, toasted naan bread!

Adapted from Food Network's Butternut Squash Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 (2 to 3 pound) butternut squash, peeled and seeded
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 3 tablespoons cream cheese 
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 1-2 carrots, peeled and diced
• 1-2 stems celery, diced
• 1 serrano pepper diced
• 2 cloves garlic diced
• 4-5 cups chicken stock
• 1/2 tsp Nutmeg
• 1 tsp Curry powder
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions
Cut squash into 1-inch chunks. In large pot melt butter. Add onion, carrots, celery and cook until onions are translucent, about 8 minutes. Add squash, garlic, pepper and stock until it just cover veggies. Bring to a simmer and cook until squash is tender, about 40 minutes. Add the cream cheese. Use an immersion blender in the pot to puree, or pour mixture in a blender and puree. Return blended squash to pot. Stir in seasonings (last 4 ingredients). Top with Sriracha drizzle if desired. Serve.

Chipotle Lime Shrimp

My friends Chris and Natalie recently got engaged I had the pleasure of throwing them an engagement party. When I have large groups of people (8+) over for dinner I love to do a Mexican theme taco bar. Its easy to have chips, salsa, guacamole and queso out when people arrive. You can also have all your taco fixings ready in bowls in the fridge. This allows you more time to enjoy your guests and less time spent in the kitchen.

Shortly before the crew arrived for the party I worried that only having shredded chicken was not enough so I whipped up these spicy shrimp as a second option. They were the first item gone that night- and left everyone asking for the recipe. I often just cook "free-style" and don't use recipes so I had to re-create the shrimp a few more times and take note at what I was using to share with others.

Ingredients

Tacos with rice & veggies topped with Chipotle Lime Sauce

• 1 lb medium size shrimp (about 25)- peeled and deveined, tails off
• 3-4 garlic cloves- finely chopped
• 2 limes (1 teaspoon zest, juice from both)
• 2 teaspoons cumin
• 1 teaspoon chipotle powder
• 1 teaspoon (or more) of red pepper flakes
• 1-2 tablespoons Chipotle Tabasco 
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 serrano or jalapeno pepper finely chopped (optional- only if you want pretty spicy)
• 2 tablespoons white wine (if you want to make pan sauce) 

Directions

- Mix all the ingredients together in a plastic bag and shake to mix all together evenly

- Let the shrimp marinate in the fridge for 30+ minutes

- Take out of fridge and bring to room temp (about 10 minutes)

- Heat a saute pan with 1 Tb butter and olive oil (the mix will help shrimp crisp nicely)

- Saute the shrimp for 3 minutes stirring frequently (save the marinate if you want to make pan sauce)

- Remove the shrimp when they are pink

- Add the remaining marinate in the pan- add a bit of white wine and more butter and/or olive oil stirring up all the bits in the pan to create a light pan sauce. Simmer for about 4 minutes to thicken.

- Use the shrimp in tacos, burritos, on top of salads, rice, etc!

Almond Banana Bread

One of my favorite breakfast treats has to be warm bread with melted butter. Whenever I see bananas start to get a tad bit soft I think of banana bread. This week I tried a great new recipe and make a few changes to it that I really liked. By using whole wheat flour and almonds it adds more nutritional value than regular banana bread.  Its adapted from this recipe.

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour (I did half whole wheat flour)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 cup butter (I use unsalted)
• 3/4 cup brown sugar, plus 2 tablespoons
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 2 1/3 cups mashed overripe bananas
• 1/3 sup slivered almonds
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg and cinnamon

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan.
2. In a large bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt. In a separate bowl, cream together butter and brown sugar. Stir in eggs and mashed bananas until well blended. Add the almonds, nutmeg, cinnamon and vanilla and stir. Stir banana mixture into flour mixture; stir just to moisten. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan. 
3. Mix 2 tablespoons brown sugar with about 1 tablespoon water. Using a pastry brush paint the loaf with the mixture. (Will create a crispy top)
4. Bake in preheated oven for 60 to 65 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into center of the loaf comes out clean. Let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn out onto a wire rack.

Summer is Hatched and Over....

My summer blogging hiatus is finally over. Its been an amazing few months of travel, work, eating and being with family and friends. I've been in Salt Lake City, Atlanta, New York, Maui, Oklahoma City, San Francisco, Austin and all around Seattle. Needless to say I've had tons of great meals, tried amazing new restaurants and got cooking tips from around the country. I even end up with a fiance and started planning our wedding!

I've been beating the heat by migrating west to cooler temps in Seattle and have only spent a handful of days in Austin this summer. However, I did make it back for one of the most important weeks of the year- the Hatch Chile Festival at Central Market. My fridge and freezer are now full of hatch goodness including- burgers, marinated chicken, tortillas, bread, salsa, lasagna, twice baked potatoes and cornbread. Every aisle of Central Market was filled with creative items all stuffed with Hatch chile peppers. These amazing peppers are grown in Hatch, New Mexico and are only widely available once a year so you gotta stock up when you can!

In order to use them year long I roast them, peel em up and put them in the freezer. Then whenever I get a craving I can thaw them, slice and add to dishes like chili, eggs, salsa and meat dishes. 

Here's what I've made with them so far this year: 

• Salsa: verde style with roasted Hatch peppers, garlic, onions, tomatillos
• Chili Rellenos: roasted peppers stuffed with cheese mixture, dipped in batter, fried and topped with creamy salsa verde (from above)
• Egg Scramble: added chopped roasted pieces to scramble eggs with cheese
• Israeli couscous pilaf: toasted couscous with onions, mushrooms, pine nuts, roasted Hatch peppers

Veggies ready for roasting