Call It What You Will

Good day, Kitschies!  Other than a big parenting FAIL (we thought Nate went back to school today but it's really not til tomorrow), it's been a pretty good day.  I went to my first derby practice last night in what feels like at least a month and I'm a little sore but nowhere near how I thought I would be.  Work was super busy this morning which was also a nice change.  And now I'm home with Nate. 

I have a really, really good recipe to share with you today.  I've made this before but it got pushed to the bottom of my recipe rotation and hadn't made it for quite a while.  I made this the day I was waiting for my new stove to be delivered/installed since I didn't know exactly what time they'd get here.  I got this from good 'ol allrecipes.com and you can argue whether it's a chili or a soup, but whatever it is, call it delish!

Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Soup
1 onion, chopped
1 (16 ounce) can chili beans
1 (15 ounce) can black beans
1 (15 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (12 fluid ounce) can or bottle beer
2 (10 ounce) cans diced tomatoes with green chilies, undrained
1 (1.25 ounce) package taco seasoning
3 whole skinless, boneless chicken breasts
shredded Cheddar cheese (optional)
sour cream (optional)
crushed tortilla chips (optional)
  
Place the onion, chili beans, black beans, corn, tomato sauce, beer, and diced tomatoes in a slow cooker. Add taco seasoning, and stir to blend. Lay chicken breasts on top of the mixture, pressing down slightly until just covered by the other ingredients. Set slow cooker for low heat, cover, and cook for 5 hours. 

Remove chicken breasts from the soup, and allow to cool long enough to be handled. Stir the shredded chicken back into the soup, and continue cooking for 2 hours. Serve topped with shredded Cheddar cheese, a dollop of sour cream, and crushed tortilla chips, if desired. 

NOTES:  I used Heineken because I know that's a beer the hubs will drink.  I don't touch the stuff.  They sell small bottles of "cooking" wine, why not cooking beer?  I'm just sayin'.

I don't usually say this, but I can't wait til my next office potluck because I know what I'll be bringing.

And like most soups, this is even better the next day.  It makes plenty for a night's dinner, but there's plenty leftover, too.  Don't let the idea of the beer in this recipe scare you - I don't like beer and I can't taste it at all in this soup.

If you've got some cold weather in the forecast, I definitely recommend picking up the ingredients for this soup.  You won't be sorry!

Classic Beef Stew

Happy Tuesday, Kitschies!  It was a busy day yesterday - finished the majority of my Christmas shopping (it's amazing what a difference shopping alone on a Monday morning can make), made a slow cooker dinner (not this one), got my new stove and finished all the laundry!  Now the fun of wrapping can begin.  Blech.

The weather is cooling down quite a bit (a damned lot) and that means it's time to drag out the slow cooker.  I try to use the slow cooker at least once a week during the winter.  I come home to a cooked meal and, more often than not, we have leftovers for the next day.  I was looking for something new to try and I found this recipe at Real Simple during one of my hunts.

Slow Cooker Beef Stew
4 lbs bottom round, well trimmed and cut to 2-inch pieces
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup olive oil
2 large onions, chopped (about 2 cups)
1 6-oz can tomato paste
1 cup dry red wine
1 lb potatoes, cut into 2-inch pieces
1/2 lb peeled baby carrots
2 cups beef broth
1 Tbsp Kosher salt
1 tsp dried thyme leaves
1 bay leaf
1 cup frozen peas, thawed

Coat the beef in the flour. Heat a few tablespoons of the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Brown the meat, a few pieces at a time, adding more oil as necessary. Transfer to a 4- to 6-quart slow cooker.

Add the onions to the skillet and cook over medium heat until tender, about 10 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste and coat the onions; transfer to the cooker. 

Pour the wine into the skillet and scrape up any browned bits; add to the cooker. Stir in the potatoes, carrots, broth, salt, thyme, and bay leaf.

Cover and cook on low heat for 7 1/2 hours, or on high for 4 hours. Add the peas and heat through.

NOTES:  I reduced this recipe, basically, by half and still had PLENTY.   I didn't measure out the carrots or the peas - just added what looked like enough.  And I didn't thaw the peas - I just adjusted the heat to high and cooked for about 30 minutes.

As with most stews, this was better the second time around.  I may or may not have added a little more wine than the recipe called for.  I remember Nate ate this, but I don't remember if Mason did (he's been *super* picky about eating lately). 

Do you have a favorite go-to slow cooker recipe for when the weather turns chilly?

A Bowl of Yum

So Happy It's Thursday!  It's been a crazy drama-filled week so far here at the clinic.  But, I made another Thin Mint cake for one of the docs today, so today is already a better day.  It's definitely quieter here today!  I am sooo far behind in prepping pics for the blog, so I had to go waaaay back to find something to post today.  But just because I had to scrape the bottom doesn't mean the recipe isn't good!

This is one of my all-time favorite slow cooker recipes.  It's super easy to put together, we usually have all the ingredients on hand and it reheats really well.  Oh, and the boys eat it, so that's an added bonus.

Vegetable Beef Soup
1 lb ground beef
1 14 oz can beef broth
1 1/2 cup water
1 10 oz package frozen mixed vegetables
1 14.5 oz can tomatoes
1 10.75 oz can condensed tomato soup
1 Tbsp dried onion
1 tsp dried Italian seasoning
1/4 tsp garlic powder

Brown the meat and drain the fat.  Add all ingredients in slow cooker.  Cover and cook on low 7-8 hours.

So yum!!  I think I'm going to stop by the store during lunch to pick up the ingredients so I can have this tomorrow night. 

Well, I'm off to lunch.  I hope the doc gets here soon because I'm going to dive in to that cake if he doesn't hurry!  And I know other people in the office wouldn't be far behind!  Sorry this post is so short - getting behind on the pic prepping is not a good thing.

Slow Cooker = Comfort Food

Happy Tuesday!  I have an unexpected day at home and I'm going to do what I can to keep myself busy but not do any real work around the house.  HA!  Most of the US is being blasted by a very cold front, and central NM is so not used to being this cold (with wind chill, weather.com says it's -4*).  The roads are an icy mess.  I live west of the Rio Grande and because of that, I really only have 3 major routes over the river in to Albuquerque.  Most of us here in the great Southwest don't know the first thing about driving at all in snow or ice, so those 3 routes were basically closed this morning (multiple wrecks, general idiots and the like).  I was on my way in and contemplating how I was going to make it to work when my cell rang.  It was my co-worker telling me that the doc said I should just stay home because it's too dangerous.  You don't have to tell me twice!  The only bummer is that it's my co-worker's birthday and I made her a red velvet cake.  I promised her I wouldn't eat it, but I see it staring at me behind me on the table.  I think I'm going to have to find a hiding place for the cake...

Since it's so frackin cold out today, I thought I'd share a great slow cooker comfort food recipe with you.  It may not be *the* healthiest recipe in all the world, but when it's cold outside, who wants food that's *good* for you?  *shudder*  This recipe comes from my slow cooker bible: Fix It and Forget It (if I can find it).  Bring on the meat and potatoes!!

Ground Beef Casserole 
1 1/2 lbs ground beef
6-8 potatoes, sliced
1 medium onion, sliced
14.5 oz can cut green beans with juice
1/2 tsp salt
dash of pepper
10 3/4 oz can cream of mushroom soup

Crumble uncooked ground beef in bottom of slow cooker.  Add potatoes, onion, salt and pepper.  Pour beans over all.  Spread can of mushroom soup over bans.

Cover.  Cook on low 6-8 hours.

Variation: Brown the beef before putting in the slow cooker.  Mix half a soup can of water with the mushroom soup before placing over beans.

NOTES:  I used the variation.  I just couldn't bring myself to put raw hamburger in the bottom of the slow cooker. 

It's not much to look at, but I liked this, and so did the hubs.  I think next time, though, I'll spice up the beef a bit when I cook it and maybe use a roasted garlic cream of mushroom soup. 

Well...I'm off to do...something.  LOL  I have lots of pics to prep for the blog, and I have a giveaway to put together and photograph, too.  Maybe, if you're lucky, you'll get a bonus post from me later today.  Where ever you are, stay warm!  How's the weather in your area today?

Just Desserts

Good evening, Kitschies!  It's Wednesday - and the afternoon lasted forever.  It was staff meeting day at the clinic and this one went a little better than usual (I have an opinion as to why, but I'll keep that to myself).  I'm just not feeling it much tonight, so this post probably won't be very wordy.

A couple weeks ago, we had a cold snap.  And during one of those cold days, I was home with the boys.  What do I do when it's cold out and the boys are asleep?  I make a yummy dessert.  I got this recipe years ago, but I have no idea where it's from.  I'm sure it's not the most original recipe out there, but I like it!  I prefer baked apple crisp, but this is good for a fix it and forget it recipe.

Apple (Not So) Crisp

6 medium apples, peeled, cored and sliced

1 1/2 cups flour

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 Tbsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/4 tsp ground ginger

3/4 cup butter, softened

Grease slow cooker.  Place apples in the bottom of the slow cooker.  In a separate bowl, mix together flour, sugar, spices and butter.  Cover the apples with the mixture, pressing down.  Cook on high 3-4 hours.

NOTES:  I don't usually grease the slow cooker, but there's so little liquid in this recipe that it really is a necessity.  Love this recipe.

I used Golden Delicious apples this time, but have used others in the past.  I think Golden Delicious apples are great for cooking - they're sweet and a little soft.

 This is a horrible picture of the end result.  I guess you're going to have to trust me that it tastes delish!  It's especially good over cinnamon ice cream.  Mmmmm!

On a side note...my hubs had me look this video up on You Tube.  This should give you some insight of how the mind of my hubs works.

I asked him why he had me watch this video.  He said "because it's cool".  Yeah.  Apparently we have a difference of opinion on the definition of cool.  Well, there's two and a half minutes of my life I'll never get back.  LOL  Seriously, though.  I do love my hubs and I find it interesting to see/hear/read what he thinks is cool.

Good night my readers.  I hope you have pleasant dreams.  OH!  I had somebody ask if I'd do a water marbling tutorial.  I think I might just try it.  I haven't had 100% success with water marbling, but the two that did turn out were awesome.

Do the Funky Chicken!

TGIF!! I have been feeling rather uninspired the last couple days, and today is no different, really. It IS Friday and that's about as good I get today. Let's hope it gets better because it's only 9:00 and if it's like this all day, I'm gonna have a sad.



Anyway...I told the hubs that I need to make something from a new recipe some time this weekend. I'm about out of recipes and nails to show you. Can you believe it? I really need to get out of this funk and get to it already! So, here's my question. What do you want to see? Recipes? What kind? Dessert? Main dish? Any specific type of food? More nails? What colors? Art? More kid pics? Etc, etc, etc. What do YOU want to see? Drop me a line in the comments or shoot me an email to megharmeyer@gmail.com. Help me get out of this funk!!!

Now. For the matter at hand. Last week I tried a new slow cooker recipe. I love hot wings, but I *hate* to eat food with my hands. I really don't like my hands to get dirty and I think that's from the years and years of working in a medical office - do you know how many times I wash my hands throughout the day? Crazy. So, when I found this recipe, I jumped on it. It didn't photograph very well...it's only chicken and sauce, after all, so you only get one pic. Funny story with this one. This is the dinner that almost wasn't. My coworker asked me what we were having for dinner and the thought of OMG did I turn the crockpot on?! hit me like a slap in the face. I *hate* that feeling. I was either going home to a house full of yummy smells or a pot full of spoiled chicken. Usually I turn the crockpot on with a light timer, and I remember turning on the timer, but I didn't remember setting the time (I was in a hurry that morning). Luckily, in my haste, I bypassed the timer altogether and plugged the crockpot into the wall. So, it had been cooking for a LONG time by the time we got home (like, 12 hours). It wasn't horrible, but the chicken was a little dry. Here's recipe that almost wasn't.

Buffalo Chicken Breasts

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
1/4 cup hot sauce
2 Tbsp vinegar
2 Tbsp melted butter
Paprika

Place chicken in crockpot. Mix together remaining ingredients and pour over chicken. Sprinkle with paprika. Cook on Low for 6 to 8 hours.

NOTES: I did a few things different for this recipe, based on the suggestions of others who had tried it. I used Frank's Wing Sauce for the hot sauce, but you can use whatever you want...as long as it's hot! 1/4 cup? That's not even enough to cover 1 chicken breast. I don't know where they got that. I used however much it took to cover all the pieces. I think it ended up being at least a cup. And with the increase of sauce, I increased the other ingredients accordingly. Instead of vinegar, I used Worcestershire sauce. I didn't use Paprika - it's already that wonderful orangey-red color - why add more? Before I took it out of the slow cooker, I shredded the breasts with a fork. Served on burger buns with bleu cheese dressing.


I really liked this. The hubs had cheese on his because he doesn't like bleu cheese anything - I shoulda put some on his and not told him because he kept saying that it was missing *something* but he couldn't tell me what that *something* was. Thanks, hubs. Thanks. LOL I wasn't shy on adding meat to the buns and we still had a bunch leftover. I think it would easily make 6 sandwiches.

Enjoy your Friday, dear readers. I'm off to get some work done (I think my boss would appreciate that).

Listening to: What About Love by Heart (chick rockers ROCK)
Mood: Uninspired

Slow Cooker + Beef = YUM!

Happy Sunday, Kitschies! I hope you had a better weekend than I did. My (almost) 4-year-old is being a holy terror and at this rate, he'll be lucky to see his 4th birthday. *sigh* People tell me it gets better, but the only light I see at the end of the tunnel is an oncoming train. This is a recurring theme in my house lately and it's getting rather old.

It's been pretty hot here the last couple weeks - Summer has arrived! On hot days like this, I like to use the slow cooker because it goes all day and dinner is ready when I get home. No, or very little, use of the stove/oven required. Plus, I'm greeted with a great smelling house when I finally make it home. This is the first time we've tried this recipe, and it'll definitely be a regular repeat in the future.

Slow Cooker Beef & Mushroom Stew

1 1/2 lb beef bottom round roast or chuck pot roast, cut into 1-inch pieces
ground black pepper
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 (10.5 oz) can condensed French Onion soup
1 cup dry red wine
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp Italian seasoning, crushed
10 oz mushrooms, cut in half
3 medium carrots, cut into 2-inch pieces
1 cup frozen whole small white onions
1/4 cup water

Season the beef with the black pepper. Coat the beef with 2 tablespoons flour. Heat the oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the beef and cook until well browned, stirring often.

Stir the beef, soup, wine, garlic, Italian seasoning, mushrooms, carrots and onions in a 3 1/2-quart slow cooker.

Cover and cook on LOW for 10 to 11 hours* or until the beef is fork-tender.

Stir the remaining flour and water in a small bowl until the mixture is smooth. Stir the flour mixture in the cooker. Increase the heat to HIGH. Cover and cook for 15 minutes or until the mixture boils and thickens.

NOTES: I used cubed stew meat instead of cutting up a roast. I didn't realize the recipe called for whole mushrooms, so I just used pre-sliced - I don't know there would've been much difference. I guess it all depends on how you like your mushrooms. I couldn't find frozen whole small white onions, but I did find cocktail onions. I measured them out and put them in the freezer overnight. The one thing I liked about the cocktail onions is they have a little tang to them because they're marinated.

Coming attractions: Banana muffins, apple crisp, a couple manis and some goodies in the mail! Stay tuned!!

Listening to: The Cleveland Show (meh)
Mood: sore

The Power of Pork Compells You!

You know it does! LOL My husband's work brokers for Hormel. And this is a good thing because...? Because I haven't had to buy pork loin, bacon or sausage for a very long time. Definitely a good thing! A good thing for the wallet, but not so much for the waste line. Either way, we love pork here in the Harmeyer house. Today I bring you a pork slow cooker recipe we tried a couple weeks ago. The title of the recipe is kinda boring, but the end result definitely is not. The version I am posting is altered from the original version that is available through the link.

Pork Chops for the Slow Cooker

6 boneless pork chops
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup ketchup
1/4 cup honey
2 cloves garlic, crushed
salt & pepper to taste


Place pork chops in slow cooker. Combine remaining ingredients and pour over pork chops.

Cook on Low setting for 6 hours, until internal temperature of pork has reached 160 degrees F (70 degrees C).


I used a whole pork tenderloin instead of pork loin chops. It ends up so tender I don't think it really matters what form you start with. I also didn't use salt or pepper in preparation - it's plenty salty with the soy sauce and you can always add pepper to your taste later. This was very good the day after. A coworker of my hubs told him the smell reminded him of one of his favorite Cuban pork dishes. I give this recipe 5 full bellies!

Oh, and excuse the Worcersthire sauce in the first picture. It was early when I took that picture and that was near all the other ingredients so I included it. LOL

And a little side note before I send you on your way. My dear hubs called me in to the bedroom because he was in the process of cleaning the bathroom and told me he wanted to talk with me. I went in and he says "I found a new cigar for Groucho!" *sigh* He thinks he's funny.

It was kinda funny, actually. So, there. Now you know what I deal with on a daily basis. How lucky am I?!? *rolls eyes*

Listening to: The Boys of Summer by Don Henley
Mood: parental

Bright Beginnings

If people were meant to pop out of bed, we'd all sleep in toasters. ~Author unknown, attributed to Jim Davis

Good evening, Kitschies! I hope this evening finds you well. It was another great day in the neighborhood and the house is finally starting to quiet down a bit (read: kidlets are in bed). Technology is cooperating with me - so far - so I bring you the post I was meaning to do last night. Ahhhh...what did we *ever* do without computers? Or cell phones? Or caller IDs? Or voice mail? Or DVRs? We actually had *gasp* conversations with real people!! Wow - those were the good 'ol days. HEY! I'm not THAT old...but I do remember rotary phones. And the milk man. Really. Enough for the trip down memory lane. This post has two parts: food and polish. What could be better? First things first: food!!

When my parents and sister were visiting last week, my mom clued me in to this wonderful recipe she found on Allrecipes. I love this site! If there's anything I'm craving, I hop on Allrecipes and find whatever it is that will satisfy my need for new recipes. Now...I'm not much of an egg person, so I didn't scarf this one down, but everybody else liked it, so it can't be all bad. The hubs even had it for leftovers yesterday morning! I made a few alterations to the recipe which I will mention at the end of the recipe. This is a great recipe when you have a crowd of people to feed. I have a 4-quart slow cooker and it was filled to the TOP!! It was so nice to get up in the morning and have breakfast already finished (who doesn't love THAT?).

Slow Cooker Western Omelet

1 (2 lb) package frozen shredded hash brown potatoes
1 lb diced cooked ham
1 onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, seeded and diced
1 1/2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese
12 eggs
1 cup milk
salt and pepper to taste




Lightly grease a 4 quart or larger slow cooker. Place 1/3 of the hash brown potatoes in a layer on the bottom. Layer 1/3 of the ham, onion, green pepper, and Cheddar cheese. Repeat layers two more times. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs and milk, and season with salt and pepper. Pour over the contents of the slow cooker.

Cover, and cook on Low for 10 to 12 hours.



NOTES: I basically used what I had on hand. I traded out the ham for sausage patties (just cut them up in chunks), and yellow bell pepper. The recipe says this will fit in a 4-quart slow cooker - mine was filled to the absolute top and I really don't think the entire recipe would've fit - unless it was smashed down and then I don't think it would've cooked properly. I decreased the recipe by 1/3 (it still used 8 eggs!) and cooked for 9 hours.

Now for part 2!

I had an apple with my lunch today and it was blech! I had quite a bit of time left at that point, so I decided to go to the grocery store to get a new, hopefully better, apple. I found an apple, still not that perfect apple I was in search of, but I found something better! Of course I wandered over to the cosmetics section and found they had a big table full of clearance/last chance stuff. I searched through every one of those boxes and found one lonely polish. At the discount price of $1.44, I don't think it would've mattered what the brand or color was. I grabbed it (Oh! A piece of candy!) and trotted my happy butt up to the register. Apparently, it's from a Summer 2008 collection, but the formula still looks good. It might end up being a toe pedi color because it looks pretty sheer - and if looks sheer in the bottle, that means it's going to be *super* sheer on! Here's what I found...

Revlon Glimmer Gloss in Apricot Freeze

A close-up, blurry pic to show the pretties

I don't think I'd call this apricot, but it's a pretty, sheer orange base with pink and gold glitter(?) shimmer(?). If it were a current color, it would be a jelly, but this is much too thin to be a jelly. I'm looking forward to trying this one out as soon as my current mani (a challenge accepted) requires replacing.

That's it, my girlies. I hope you have a great evening. Check back early. Check back often. New posts will be made soon!! Thanks for stopping by.

Listening to: Not Only Numb by Gin Blossoms
Mood: HOT!! (and not in a good way)

Beef - it's what's for dinner

Good morning, Kitschies!

It's Tuesday. It feels like Sunday. And I have the WHOLE week off!! I'm enjoying my visit with my family and am looking forward to some alone time with the hubs for our 6th wedding anniversary later this week. I hope everybody had a good 3-day weekend. We've been eating our way through our visit (as always) but my mom always says that calories don't count between family and friends. Yea!! Speaking of calories...I made Toffee Bread Pudding from Polishing Off's blog last night for my dad's birthday. OMG YUMMM!! My sister, who doesn't usually like bread pudding, even had a serving of it. We have a *little* bit left but I'm sure it won't make it through lunch.

I've said it before, but I'll say it again. I love my slow cooker. It's so nice to get it all set up before I leave for work and then come home to a great smelling house. And it's extra nice to not have to do much to complete the meal. Here's one of my favorite beef recipes for the slow cooker.

Steak & Mushrooms

1 pound boneless beef round steak (about 1" thick)
2 medium onions, sliced
2 4.5 oz whole mushrooms, drained
1 12 oz jar beef gravy
1/4 cup dry red wine



Cut meat in to four servings. Place onion slices on bottom of slow cooker. Arrange mushrooms over onions and then add beef. Stir together wine and gravy. Pour over meat. Cover and cook on low 8-10 hours.



NOTES: I usually use sliced mushrooms for this recipe. I never realized the recipe even called for whole mushrooms until I made it this last time. I think I actually like it better with sliced mushrooms. For the dry red wine, I usually use cab, but you can use whatever red cooking wine you have on hand.

Thank you for everybody who has voted in my poll. Looks like I'll be ordering Charla for sure, in addition to Ki and Yasmeen. Happi and Ibiza are tied for 3rd...I'm no good at breaking ties so I might just have to give in and order both! And that's just fine with me. :) And a big thank you to Libby's Pink Vanity! I won her 50 follower giveaway. If you haven't checked out her blog before, I recommend that you do. She does some great posts and is really good about updating everybody on giveaways on the blogs she follows.

Listening to: Moon Over Bourbon Street by Sting (very groovy, man)
Mood: relaxed

Sunday Dinner

I decided to make Sunday dinner easy this week and made pulled pork in the slow cooker. Neil works for food brokerage company and occasionally gets goodies to bring home. Friday he brought home 5 lbs of pork cushion meat. Yeah. I know. That sounds...gross. But, it's basically like a pork roast. It's from the shoulder and has had the majority of the fat trimmed off which means it's a pretty lean cut of pork. I have never made pulled pork before and went on a hunt for a good recipe. I didn't know what else to have and Allrecipes recommended potato salad as a side. I came across a good looking recipe and decided to try it, too. It's a night of firsts.

Pulled Pork Sandwiches

3 1/2 lb pork roast
1/4 cup water
1 cup spicy BBQ sauce
1 small red pepper, thinly sliced
1 tsp chili powder
12 sandwich buns

Place pork roast into slow cooker. Add 1/4 cup water. Combine BBQ sauce, red pepper and chili powder. Pour over pork. Cover and heat on low for 6 to 8 hours. Remove pork from slow cooker and shred with 2 forks. Combine with sauce in slow cooker. Serve on buns.

NOTES: I used 4 lbs pork cushion meat, Jack Daniels Spicy Original BBQ sauce, small orange pepper (the reds looked bad at the store), cayenne pepper powder and wheat burger buns. I had this two days later for lunch - I think it was better the second time around.

The finished product

Warm Dijon Potato Salad

5 medium red potatoes
1/4 cup reduced-calorie mayonnaise
1 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
1 green onion, chopped
2 tsp cider vinegar
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground pepper

Place potatoes in a large saucepan and cover with warm. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 20 minutes or until tender. In a large bowl, combine the remaining ingredients. Drain potatoes and cut into cubes; add to the mayonnaise mixture and gently toss to coat. Serve immediately.

NOTES: I ended up using 1 1/2 times the recommended amount of ingredients for the potato salad (save the potatoes). If you make as is, it would be really dry. My hubs liked this and he usually *only* likes his mom's potato salad.

The finished product

Listening to: Under the Bridge by RHCP
Mood: Productive

Super Easy Monday Supper

In the Harmeyer household, Monday dinners are usually done in the slow cooker. Tonight was no exception. Here is a super easy slow cooker recipe that I love. I remember my mom making this and it's always been one of my favorites. Enjoy!

Beef Tips for the Slow Cooker

1 1/2 lbs beef stew meat
1 envelope dry onion soup mix
1 can golden mushroom soup
1/2 cup red wine
1 can mushrooms - drained

Place beef stew meat in slow cooker. Sprinkle dry onion soup mix over beef. In small bowl, combine golden mushroom soup and red wine; pour over meat. Add mushrooms. Stir to mix. Cook on low 7-8 hours. Serve over hot egg noodles or rice.


What are your favorite slow cooker recipes?

OOOOOH!!! And just a side note. As soon as I reach 15 followers, I will do my first give away. Not exactly sure what it'll be just yet, but I am thinking it'll be recipe/food related. Spread the word my kitschy friends! :)

Listening to: Separate Ways (Worlds Apart) by Journey (one of the WORST vids of ALL TIME - LOL)
Mood: Relaxed