Dear fall, thank you for arriving so that I no longer have to feel guilty about craving beef stew. Beef stew is the ultimate cool weather comfort meal. Its hearty, flavorful, and filling. This recipe checks all of the boxes. Cooked low and slow, the meat is fall apart tender. The broth is fill a flask and sneak it into work good. You won't want to share the leftovers. Good luck with that. 

Ingredients: 

2 1/2 pounds beef chuck, cut into cubes

2 tablespoons butter

2 onions, chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 tablespoon tomato paste

4 cans chicken broth

5 springs parsley

5 springs thyme

2 bay leaves

1 1/2 pound red potatoes, quartered

4 carrots, chopped

2 celery stalks, chopped

2 tablespoons red wine vinegar 

lavender salt and pepper to taste

Directions: In a large dutch oven, warm your oil and brown your seasoned meat. Set aside. In the same pot, melt your butter, soften your onion, add your garlic at the end and cook until fragrant, add your tomatoe paste and stir. Add your remaining herbs, broth, potatoes, carrots, celery, and meat to the pot. Bake in over for 2 hours at 325 degrees. Remove from oven, add your vinegar, season with salt and pepper. 

Sit by the fire, dip some crusty bread in this, and have yourself a wonderful afternoon. 

Its finally fall and its finally soup weather. Nothing beats a nice warm soup on a chilly autumn day. This soup is full of flavor, but also full of vegetables. Its good for you and guilt free, and something you will be happy to eat as leftovers the next day. Oh, and if that's not enough to make you want to make this dish, how about the fact that it only takes about 10 minutes? Yes please. If you're a busy mom like me, any dinner that can be cooked in less time than it takes to grab fast food is a heck yes in my book. 

Ingredients: 

1 can diced tomatoes 

1 can navy beans

2 celery stalks, chopped

2 carrots, chopped

16 ounces dried tortellini 

1 small onion, diced

1 chicken bouillon cube 

3 cups water 

salt and pepper 

1 tsp dried thyme 

1 tsp dried oregano 

1 tsp dried basil 

1/3 cup parmesan cheese 

Directions: Chop your vegetables and rinse your beans and add them into the crock pot. Add water, bouillon, and herbs. Cook on high for 3 hours. Adjust seasoning. Add pasta and cook for another 16 minutes, top with cheese and serve. 

We hope you enjoy this delicious crock pot minestrone soup. Now good cuddle up in a blanket and read a book with all of the spare time you saved by using this recipe.

Sometimes your body craves a dish that is going to stick to your ribs a little bit. I love myself a hearty stew, and this one is free of potatoes, cream, and all the other bad stuff that usually accompanies stew. The fun thing about lamb osso bucco is that it is obviously made with lamb, so the flavors are very unique from what you would expect. This is an Italian dish and is delicious when served over polenta. 

Ingredients: 
2 pounds lamb shank, cubed
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 cup flour
3 garlic cloves, smashed
2 celery stalks, diced
2 carrots, diced
1 onion, diced
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 cup white wine
3 cups chicken broth
1 bay leaf
1 sprig fresh rosemary, chopped
5 sprigs fresh thyme 
2 tablespoons parsley, chopped
zest of 1 lemon
Kosher salt and pepper

Directions: 
Heat oil in large la creuset type pan over high heat. Pat your lamb pieces dry, then sprinkle with salt and pepper. Dredge pieces in flour and add to pan. Sear on all sides until crispy and golden brown (under 10 minutes). Remove meat from pat. Cook your veggies with salt for 2-3 minutes, then add tomato paste and cook for another 2-3 minutes. Deglaze pan with wine, add your broth, thyme, rosemary, and bay leaf. Add your lamb back into the pan, cover and cook on low for 2 hours. Garnish with lemon zest, and parsley. Adjust seasoning as needed. Serve over polenta if desired. 

Bon Apetite! 

Time to resurrect an old favorite from almost 5 years ago when this blog first started. We have so many new readers, I thought it was time for us to share this treasure of a recipe again. 

When the Nelson's lived in France, Peggy bought a small little french cookbook called "The Best of France" at Harrods in London.  It's a family favorite. Every recipe is amazingly great. So for your dining pleasure, here is the best french onion soup recipe you'll ever encounter: 
    
Ingredients:                                          

1 1/2 lbs thinly sliced onions, about 3 large onions.  * see note
3 Tbs. butter
1/8 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
2 Tbs. flour
6 cups beef stock
1/2 cup white wine
Bouquet Garni *  see note
8 slices french bread ( I use baguette)
melted butter
 garlic halved
1 cup grated Gruyere 
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese

IN a large pot over medium heat, cook onions in butter with salt and a little pepper.  Stir occasionally until soft.  Add sugar and continue to stir until onions become  golden brown, Careful don't let burn.  Add flour and continue to cook 3 more minutes.  Add stock, wine and bouquet garni.  Cook partially covered for 30 minutes. 

Preheat oven to 350.  Arrange bread on a baking sheet brushing with melted butter on both sides.  Bake for 15 minutes,  turning over half way through until golden brown.  When just out of oven, cut a  garlic clove in half and rub each piece of bread with the garlic.


Remove the Bouquet garni from the soup and pour the soup into ovenproof bowls.   Place the toasted bread on top of each bowl.  Depending on the size of bread you may need to use 2 pieces of bread per bowl.  Sprinkle with cheese.  Bake the soup for 15 minutes.  Then turn on the broiler to high.  Broil the cheese until browned and bubbling.  Watch closely.     Serves 4
                                                 
Don't let a word like "Bouquet Garni" scare you from a recipe.  What your basically doing is putting some herbs in a small package,  like cheese cloth.   In this recipe I just throw in 2 bay leaves, a piece of celery,  about 1/2 tsp dried thyme and a sprig or 2 of parsley.  Then at the end I fish out the bay leaf and maybe the parsley and celery.

 Bon Appetite!