Cuddles and cooking...

Mondays are generally lazy days here in the house... I spend Mondays not doing laundry, not doing homework, just enjoying time with the kiddos not stressing over what needs to be done. Most people would do this on Sundays, but Sundays are still busy for us. But today, today the kids and I sat around the house, doing not much of anything except hanging out. I'm so grateful for these little moments... where my son just walks up and says "I love you, Mommy, I love you, Lily" and gives me his best smile. Watching my daughter have a very deep conversation of gurgles and coos with her most favorite caterpillar. Feeling my heart just melt right into my soul when she flashes her big brother an ear-to-ear smile, a smile so bright it lights up her eyes (and the room!)... How did I get so lucky?

We have started a tradition of having a group of friends over for dinner every Saturday. Its always a few regulars and occasionally the crowd blossoms from 5 to 8 or 10. I love the opportunity to cook for a group (even if I stress over the details) and nothing beats a great meal, some great spirits and great friends!

Saturday's Line Up....

For our big "family style" meal this weekend I made carne guisada. This was the first time I've ever attempted this traditional Mexican stew. We served ours with some freshly made torillas (I learned how to do that Saturday too!), yellow rice and a mix of pinto and black beans. The house was gloriously fragrant, the food was just the perfect amount of spicy, the conversation was the perfect amount of fun! And for dessert we had those delicious Brandy Snaps I was raving about. They were a complete hit! Definitely going to be the dessert I bring to dinner parties!

Ok, but onto the stew! Slow-cooker Carne Guisada!

I love that this is a slow-cooker recipe, because I adore using my slow cooker. You really can throw just about anything in it, cook it on low for just about ever and it will be perfect just about every time. This recipe does come from Martha Stewart "Food Everyday" with a few changes. I didn't give this magazine a good review a few posts ago, the recipes are still very hit or miss, but this one was a hit. There are many many  more I have selected to try.. so I'm keeping an open mind. I've made my changes to the list included here.

Ingredients


3.5 pounds bottom round, cut into 1-inch pieces
coarse salt and ground pepper
2 tbsp vegetable oil
1 medium white onion, diced medium
1 medium green bell pepper, seeded and diced medium
1 large jalapeno, seeded and diced small
5 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
1 1/2 tsp ground cumin
3/4 tsp chipotle chili powder
3/4 tsp dried oregano
6 tbsp all-purpose flour
1 3/4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 can tomato sauce
2  fresh bay leaves
3 tbsp freshly chopped parsley

Flour tortillas, warmed, grated cheddar, and cilantro, for serving

Step 1.

Adding the vegetable oil to a skillet, cook the beef in batches (depending on the size of your skillet!) until its browned on all sides. Throw it in the slow cooker as the batches are finished. 

Step 2. 

Using the same skillet, add a touch more veggie oil and saute all the veggies together until tender, about 5 minutes. 

Step 3.

Mix the flour, cumin, salt, pepper, chili powder and oregano together in a small bowl and then mix it in with the sauteing veggies. Inhale deeply, *ahhhh* the spices and veggies should be wonderfully fragrant after just a minute or two. 

Step 4.

Slowly add the broth to the veggie mixture, whisking quickly to dissolve any clumps. Then add in the tomato sauce and simmer for a few minutes. 

Step 5.

Pour sauce over beef mixture in the slow cooker, toss in your bay leaves and then cook covered on low for about 6 hours. 

Step 6. 

15 minutes or so before serving, we tossed in the parsley. The parsley was added because I realized I had forgotten to purchase cilantro. If you have cilantro, skip this step.

Serve on some delicious tortillas with rice, beans and top with cheddar (or that Mexican/fiesta mix) cheese. You'll be so glad you did!

A little touch can make all the difference... 

And if your curious about the tortillas, I found this recipe that mimicked what was done Saturday night. I don't have a recipe because Nicole didn't use one, she just did it all from memory!

Ingredients:

3 cups all-purpose flour
3 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
Pinch of sugar (optional)
3 tablespoons vegetable oil (more for softer tortillas)
1 cup water

Its a simple flour mixture. Cut the oil into the flour and baking soda. Add the water slowly and kneed by hand, roll into half dollar size balls and flatten slightly before pressing.  -- Oh, that's the one gadget you'll need for them, a tortilla press. Either a metal press, then you toss them in a skillet to cook, or one of the electric presses that cook/flatten simultaneously. They cook for about 20 seconds on each side (you'll see the little brown spots).. and voila! Home-made deliciousness! 

(you could roll them out by hand-- using a floured surface and rolling pin, and cook in a hot skillet/griddle, if you wanted to make them and did not have access to a tortilla press. Using that method, I suggest refrigerating the dough for a bit, so its easier to roll out.)

 Enjoy~!