Bree's meatballs

**  You can ask your butcher or usually find a "meatloaf" or "meatball" mix at your local grocery store **

1/2 lb. ground veal
1/2 lb. ground pork
1/2 lb. lean ground beef
1 egg - lightly beaten
1 small-medium sized sweet onion, finely diced
1/2 cup shredded cheese (I try and get a blend of asiago, pecorino romano, and parmesan)
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/4 tsp ground black pepper
1 and 1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 and 1/2 tsp dried parsley
1 and 1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp ground thyme
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes (or more if you like it hot-hot-hot!)  :)
Favorite jar of marinara or my favorite Trader Joe's Organic Vodka Sauce!  :)

1. Turn crockpot on medium heat (depending on how much time you want meatballs to simmer - low heat if you want them to simmer all day!)  :)
2. Pour favorite sauce in crockpot - set aside
3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees & spray a jelly roll cookie sheet with an Olive Oil spray (my fav is from Trader Joe's) - set aside
4. Beat your egg (I do this by hand with a fork) with all your herbs, finely diced onion, S&P, and cheese until well combined
5. Using your hands, thoroughly combine the meat with the egg mixture being careful to NOT over mix (this will result in a tough meatball) - set aside
6. Using a cookie dough or small ice cream scoop (I use the 2Tbsp. Pamper Chef scoop) scoop out meatballs & roll them with your hands to make them round & place them on your prepared cookie sheet (You should make between 48 and 56 meatballs depending on how much meat your started with)
7. Bake meatballs in your preheated oven for 20 minutes
8. Place your meatballs in your sauce that is in your crockpot.  Let simmer at least 2 hours before serving!
9. Serve with pasta or make meatball sandwiches with provolone cheese & hoagie rolls!  YUMMO! :)

Hearty Beef and Potato Stew

I got a Le Creuset dutch oven for our wedding (3 years ago) and haven't made very many things with it. So this winter I've been on the hunt for good dutch oven recipes! As I've experimented I have to say I love cooking with it! I highly recommend getting a dutch oven, I know Le Creuset's are expensive but I think they are worth every penny! Ben requested a "beef stew" recipe and I had this one among my collection. We were very pleased with it.

Ingredients:

Serve 6 (or 4 with left overs for lunch the next day!)

• 8 cloves of garlic
• 1 onion chopped
• 1.5 lbs chuck roast, cubed (a lot of the time you can find beef specifically for stew already pre-cubed in the meat section)
• 1/2 cup red wine (if you prefer not cooking with wine you can substitute for more beef broth/stock)
• 3 carrots chopped
• 2 tsp rosemary
• S&P
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 cup water, divided
• 1 cup beef broth
• 2 cans (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes undrained
• 1 1/2 lbs baking potatoes cut into bite size pieces
• 1/2 tbsp flour (or cornstarch to make this recipe gluten-free, just be sure to dissolve the cornstarch in water before adding it to the pot)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees
2. Heat a medium-large dutch oven or medium-high heat. Coat pan with EVOO or cooking spray. Add garlic, saute 1 minute remove garlic with a slotted spoon and place in a large bowl. Coat pan with EVOO; add onion, saute for 3 minutes. Add onion to garlic. Coat pan with EVOO add beef to pan; saute for 5 minutes or until lightly browned on all sides. Add beef and accumulated juices to onion and garlic mixture.
3. Add wine (or 1/2 cup beef broth) to pan and and loosen browned bits. Add beef mixture. Stir in carrot, rosemary, salt, pepper, and bay leaves. Add 1/2 cup water, broth, and tomatoes; stir to combine. Bring to a boil; cook 1 minute. Remove from heat; cover and bake at 300 for 90 minutes. Remove from oven; uncover and stir in potatoes.
4. Combine remaining 1/2 cup water and flour; stir with a whisk until smooth. Stir flour mixture into the stew. Cover and bake an additional 90 minutes until beef is tender. Discard bay leaves.
5. Serve with bread and a salad!

Boeuf Bourguignon with Roasted Vegetables and Mashed Potatoes

When will my Julie and Julia references stop?!?!?!?  Here is another plug for the movie!  Ben has been asking about Boeuf Bourguignon since Julie Powell (Amy Adams) made it in the movie.  I did a little researching online and found Julia Child's recipe, it was far too complex for me.  Something about using wine to deglaze my pan... I don't know what deglazing is let alone why I would use wine to do it.  So I searched some more and found an easier version on my trusty Everyday Food website/magazine!

I made it on Halloween for Ben and our friends Tyler and Stacy.  I'm not sure how it differs from Julia Child's recipe but it got RAVE reviews!  Ben and still talking about it.  I will definitely be making this recipe again, it was delicious and fairly inexpensive to make!

Ingredients

Serves 8

• 4 slices bacon (1/4 pound), cut crosswise into 1-inch pieces
  
• 3 1/2 pounds boneless beef chuck roast, large pieces of fat trimmed, cut into 2-inch chunks, patted dry  I used the "stew meat" that is already precut into chunks.  I was able to get 2lbs. for $4.00!
  
• Coarse salt and ground pepper
  
• 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
  
• 1 large onion, chopped
  
• 3 large cloves garlic, finely chopped
  
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
  
• 6 medium carrots, cut diagonally into 3/4-inch slices
  
• 1 bottle dry red wine (3 cups) The cheapest bottle you can find, I found a bottle for $3.99!
  
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
  

Directions:

1. In a 6-to-8-quart saucepan with a tight-fitting lid, cook bacon uncovered over medium-low heat until browned, 10 to 15 minutes. With a slotted spoon, transfer bacon to a paper-towel-lined plate; set aside. Reserve bacon fat.
   
2. Season beef generously with salt and pepper. In a large bowl, dredge beef in flour, shaking off excess. Raise heat to medium. Working in two batches, brown beef in bacon fat on all sides, without crowding, about 10 minutes per batch. Transfer each batch to a bowl.
   
3. Pour 1/2 cup water into pan; bring to a boil. Cook, stirring, to loosen browned bits, until liquid has reduced to a few tablespoons, 2 to 3 minutes.
   
4. Add onion and garlic; cook, stirring, until slightly softened, 3 minutes. Add tomato paste; cook 1 minute.
   
5. Add carrots, meat (with juices), wine, thyme, and reserved bacon. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, cover, and simmer over low, stirring occasionally, until meat is tender, but not falling apart, 3 to 3 1/2 hours.
   
6. Skim fat off surface of stew; discard. Stir Roasted Mushrooms and Pearl Onions into beef; season with salt and pepper. Serve, or refrigerate, covered, up to overnight.
   

I served this meal with roasted mushrooms, zucchini, and pearl onions.  Here is how I roasted them:

1. Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.
2. Place whole mushrooms, (stems trimmed) zucchini, (sliced in thick strips) and thawed pearl onions on a rimmed cookie sheet.  Pour 2 tablespoons of olive oil over the vegetables, mix the vegetables to coat.  Season with S&P.
3. Roast for about 25-30 minutes in the oven.

I also made mashed potatoes and our friends brought bread.  I know carb overload, but a small french baguette was nice to have with this meal because it helped soak up the yummy sauce from the meat.