There was a really. good. sale. on “beef stew meat” (pre-cut chunks of bottom round roast) recently, and having blown through our standard slow-cooker fare, I tossed together a new one, which has been simmering away (and making me very, very hungry) all day. As you can see in the picture below, the tomato paste likes to burn and stick to the sides of the crock pot – if you’re not like me (I happen to like burnt buts), you may want to scrape the sides down with a spatula every so often.

Slow-Cooker Beef Goulash*

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds bottom round roast, cut into chunks
• 12 ounces tomato paste
• 1/4 cup dried minced onion (use fresh if you have it; I didn’t)
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic
• 5 teaspoons paprika
• 1 teaspoon red wine vinegar

Toss everything except the vinegar in your slow cooker, and stir to combine. Cook on low for 5-7 hours, stirring occasionally. Just before serving, stir in vinegar. Serve over buttered egg noodles with plenty of sour cream.

*Yes, I’m perfectly aware this isn’t a traditional goulash, but “Slow-Cooker Beef Fauxlash” sounded silly.

My goodness! Too much cooking/blogging, too little time. No matter. I’ve been keeping track of new tasty treats in my handy dandy notebook, and I hope to spend the next week or two getting caught up on what I’ve missed. Alas, there are very few pictures involved, as I keep forgetting, but I’ll supplement with stock when I can. On to the food!

What do you do when you crave sausage gravy but have no sausage? Well, we made beef and biscuits.

Beef and Biscuits

Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground beef
• 1/2 teaspoon fennel seed
• 1 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1/2 teaspoon celery salt
• 3 tablespoons minced onion
• salt and pepper to taste
• 3/4 cup flour
• 2 1/2 cups milk
• 6-8 of your favorite biscuits

Cook the ground beef in a large pan over medium-high heat, breaking the meat up as it browns. When it’s still barely pink, add seasonings and cook 3 minutes longer. Remove beef from pan with a slotted spoon so that the fat remains in the pan. (You may need to supplement with butter or vegetable oil if your meat is lean.) Sprnkle the flour evenly over the fat in the pan and whisk to combine. Cook for 2-3 minutes or until flour no longer smells raw. Add milk, a little at a time, whisking to combine. Mixture will thicken quickly with the first few tablespoons of milk but will loosen as more milk is added. Return beef to the pan, reduce heat to low, and cook for 10-15 minutes, or until sauce has thickened slightly. Serve over biscuits.

My goodness! Too much cooking/blogging, too little time. No matter. I’ve been keeping track of new tasty treats in my handy dandy notebook, and I hope to spend the next week or two getting caught up on what I’ve missed. Alas, there are very few pictures involved, as I keep forgetting, but I’ll supplement with stock when I can. On to the food!

Mushroom-Herb Soup

Ingredients:

• 1 gallon water
• 1/4 cup beef or mushroom Better than Bouillon
• 1 pound kluski noodles
• 16 ounces canned mushrooms
• 1/4 cup dried thyme
• 1/3 cup dried tarragon
• 2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon celery salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• 1 tablespoon kosher salt

In a large pot set over high heat, bring water to a rolling boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and add remaining ingredients. Cook for 15-20 minutes, stirring often, until noodles are tender and flavors have combined. Serve with a dollop of sour cream if desired.

I’m a bit under the weather this week, so I’m naturally seeking out comfort foods and easy throw-together meals. This is a bit like the Greek classic moussaka, minus the eggplant; it’s savory, creamy, satisfying, and filling.

Be sure to use plain tomato sauce and not spaghetti sauce — the added Italian seasonings aren’t necessary here. The breadcrumbs thicken the sauce and sop up any grease from the beef.

Greek-Style Beef and Potato Casserole

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds white potatoes
• 1 pound ground beef
• 1/4 cup minced onion
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 1/2 cups tomato sauce
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 cup unseasoned breadcrumbs
• 1 cup plain yogurt (homemade if available)
• 2 large eggs
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Peel potatoes and slice into 1/8″ thick rounds. In a small bowl, whisk eggs until well-blended and stir in yogurt. Set yogurt and potatoes aside.

In a nonstick skillet set over medium heat, brown beef, onions, and garlic. Add salt, potatoes and tomato sauce and cook 10 minutes or until edges of potatoes become translucent. Sprinkle breadcrumbs on top and stir to combine. Pour into a baking dish and top with yogurt mixture. Sprinkle cinnamon on top.

Bake at 350° F for 90 minutes or until potatoes are tender.

Serves 4-6.

In the spirit of the Forgotten Cook Books Series, I’d like to share a little video Mer found for me tonight. It’s an instructional movie made in what I guess are the 1940’s for housewives, teaching how to… cook frozen beef. And just deal with it in general.

Watch Cooking Frozen Beef in Entertainment Videos |  View More Free Videos Online at Veoh.com

Just check out how fatty those cuts are. And oh lord, the lard!

It may not have the greatest of names or be the heat-laden stew that some people enjoy as chili, but this recipe is a staple around these parts. A reader on one of our other blogs asked me for this recipe; it was then that I discovered that I hadn’t posted it here. For shame. So here, in all its glory, is my own personal kick-ass chili recipe.

A few notes: yes, there is chocolate (well, cocoa) in my chili. It tastes good, I swear. Do not try to use a crappy beer for this. If you’re in the northeastern US, don’t use anything less than Yuengling. If you’re elsewhere…use something you couldn’t afford in college and you should be fine. Finally, this recipe is very filling and makes a very large batch. Break it down into small containers and freeze it – it’s great to re-heat on a chilly night.

Dani’s Kick-Ass Chili con Carne

Ingredients:

• 4 pounds ground beef
• 28 ounces canned diced or crushed tomatoes with garlic
• 28 ounces canned diced or crushed tomatoes, plain
• 1 large onion, diced
• 12 ounces tomato paste
• 2 tablespoons cocoa powder
• Oregano, chili powder, cumin, and garlic to taste
• 1 pound cremini (“baby bella”) mushrooms, rough chop
• 2 cups beef broth
• 10-12 ounces good quality beer

Brown the beef with the onions and mushrooms. (Add butter or oil if your meat is too lean.) Combine all ingredients in large stockpot and cook over low heat for at least 2 hours or until reduced to desired consistency. Serve over your favorite starch (we like rice or cornbread) and with your favorite toppings.

I can only imagine that my use of ketchup in this recipe might offend (or at the very least confuse) anyone not accustomed to the vinegar-laden dishes of the Pennsylvania Dutch. I’ll even state for the record that I put ketchup on my eggs, on my toast, and even put it on steak when I was young (sorry, Dad.) I’ve had some great meatloaf in my time — my mother-out-law’s is killer — but this dish of ketchup-laden decadence will always be my favorite. How can you top the gooey tomatoey brown sugar topping?

Meatloaf

For meatloaf:

• 1 1/2 lbs ground beef
• 1 cup Italian-seasoned breadcrumbs
• 1 cup tomato ketchup
• 1 1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

For topping:

• 3/4 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup ketchup

Combine all meatloaf ingredients in large bowl and toss with fingers until well-combined. Press mixture into standard loaf pan and bake at 350° F for one hour.

Place brown sugar in small bowl and break apart any lumps. Add ketchup and stir briskly with fork until mixture is thick and homogenous. About halfway though cooking, spread topping on top of meatloaf.

Serves 6-8.

Image by Kim Scarborough

I will admit that my favorite Swedish meatballs come with a side of potatoes and lingonberry jam at IKEA, but these are a very close second. The meatballs themselves are a bit time-consuming to make, so I usually make multiple batches at once and freeze them (without the sauce). Serve over your choice of starch, and always with lingonberries.

Swedish Meatballs

Ingredients:

• 2 cups plain bread crumbs
• 2/3 cup whole milk
• 1 tablespoon melted butter
• 1/2 cup minced onion, cooked until soft, cooled
• 1 1/2-2 lbs ground beef
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 4 tablespoons butter, cubed
• 4 tablespoons flour
• 1 cup beef stock
• 1 cup sour cream
• salt and pepper to taste (for sauce)

In a large bowl, combine bread crumbs, milk, and melted butter. Allow to set until breadcrumbs are soft. Add onion, beef, eggs, and seasonings; mix until well-combined. Form into small balls and set aside.

Melt butter in a large skillet and cook meatballs, in batches, turning occasionally until browned on all sides. Repeat for remaining meatballs. Set aside. If meatballs will be frozen, cool and place in a single layer on a sheet pan. Freeze on pan overnight before placing in a freezer bag; this will keep the meatballs from sticking.

Drain off all but 4 tablespoons fat from pan. Whisk in flour and cook, stirring constantly, until mixture smells nutty and is light brown. Whisk in stock and sour cream, stirring until thoroughly blended. Mixture will thicken quickly. Return meatballs to pan and simmer gently until heated through.

Serves 4-6.