stew |

Hello world!

I’m sorry its been a few days since my last post, I’m on my spring break right now and Matt doesn’t have school on Tuesdays so we headed out to his hometown to visit his dad for a few days.

Before we headed out, we made a quick breakfast of Goji Berry cereal with some sliced up Fuji apple, it was tasty!

Usually when we go over to Matt’s dad’s we cook, to show our appreciation for letting us stay and cause we like to. But tonight, his poppa had a real nice Croc Pot stew goin’ – and we weren’t gonna mess with dat!

It was a fairly simple stew: beef, potatoes, carrots, and onions in a nice broth. Matt’s dad wasn’t happy with the consistency of the broth, he said it was too thin, so I taught him how to make a slurry of cornstarch and water to thicken it. It was much better. Nice and hearty, which is exactly what you need on a chilly night.

Sometimes it’s nice feeling like the kid and having a parent cook for ya!

Afterward, we indulged in some oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.

It was supposed to rain in the morning, so we were a little apprehensive about what to do before we had to go back to the city. But when we woke up, it was gorgeous out! Hallelujah!
We grabbed a sammie from Matt’s favorite delicatessen for lunch.

I keep it classic with a turkey and cheddar on sourdough with the works, but light mayo. The deli is one of those mom and pop places where the owners know their customers by name and have the art of sandwich making down pat.

After letting our food settle for a little, Matt and I headed out to go on a hike through some trails behind a monastery. This place is gorgeous, secluded in the woods, the air is fresh and the trees are huge.

On our way back up the trail we came across this statue of the Virgin Mary. Yes, I know we were at a monastery, but it was still such a surprise.

As I was walking away from the statue, I noticed these wild mushrooms. They were just so pretty and untouched and something you hardly see in the city.

Even though we only went back to Matt’s hometown, relaxing and just hanging out was the perfect way to kick off my spring break.

What do you like to do on your days off?

The title of this post is inspired by a quote from the show Arrested Development. I will be forever depressed that the show got taken off the air, but ce la vie, at least I have all the seasons on DVD.

Since I am still sick, Matt and I decided that a nice hearty stew would be fantastic for my stuffy nose and sore throat. We decided to jam pack it with loads of veggies so I could get all my vitamins and mineral that are essential for good health.

Let the games begin!

Rather than do a typical broth based stew we wanted to incorporate something a bit different, condensed tomato soup to the rescue! We apparently had nothing but time because this stew took a long time to make, keep in mind though we spiced up almost every individual ingredient ourselves before putting it in the stew. You could shorten this recipe by omitting some of the components or just adding seasoning to the stew itself. Or if you have a bigger kitchen with more burners this would go much quicker! It’s up to you!

First things first, get your stew base heating up in a pot with enough room left for all your ingredients.

Sometimes, tomato soup can err on the tin side, so we thought making our own creamy tomato soup would be wonderful.

CAUTION: YOU CANNOT JUST ADD MILK OR CREAM TO THE SOUP. IT MAY CURDLE OR NOT COMBINE PROPERLY.

You must make a roux, like I did in the mac ‘n’ cheese. Using equal parts butter and flour again. Melt the butter first and mix it with the flour.

I used a pint of cream, so I combined 6 Tablespoons of butter and flour together and then added 1/4 cup of cream at a time until it was thick and creamy.