The Ultimate Comfort Food

Slow Cooker Pot Roast - so easy and oh... so good!

It takes about 10 minutes in the morning to put this together. At the end of the day, you'll have a nice, hot meal that is delicious and satisfying. All you need is some bread to soak up the juices. Yum. Pairs well with wintry weather.

This is my absolute favorite way to make a pot roast or beef stew. I've been making it for years and it never disappoints. Try it and see what I mean.

Slow Cooker Pot Roast

3-4 lb. top or bottom round roast

3-4 carrots, peeled and cut up (more or less as you desire)

2 ½ lbs. potatoes – peeled if you wish – and quartered

2 ribs of celery, cut up (more or less as you desire)

1 small or medium-sized onion, diced

1 14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes

14.5 oz. of water

1 tsp. beef bouillon powder

1 bay leaf

2 tsp. dried herbs – either Herbes of Provence or Italian seasoning - or 1 tsp. basil and 1 tsp. oregano 

10 generous shakes of Worcestershire sauce

Salt & freshly ground pepper to taste

Place all the fresh vegetables in the bottom of a slow cooker. Place beef on top – removing any extra fat as you wish. Add the diced tomatoes. Fill the empty can with water and add. Put in a bay leaf and add the worcestershire sauce. Sprinkle meat with the bouillon powder, dried herbs, salt (1/2 tsp. or so) and a few generous grinds of pepper. Put on the lid, turn the cooker on high and cook for 6 hours without removing the lid. Remove bay leaf before serving.

Use this same method for beef stew. I prefer extra lean stewing beef and I double the amount of water. The vegetables will exude their juices, too.  If necessary, you can always add more water at the end of the cooking time.

When love flies out the window, does the buttercrunch go with it?

Probably.

But it's easily replaceable.

You can find these guys almost anywhere ...

Sugar, butter, chocolate, nuts, and corn syrup

Add a little heat to get things moving...

     and you've got the makings of something special.

Mmmmmmm. Now that's better.

Buttercrunch

1 cup salted butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 tablespoons water
1 tablespoon light corn syrup
2 cups chopped nuts
2 2/3 cups semisweet chocolate chips or other chocolate, finely chopped

Toast nuts in a skillet, stirring over medium high, until fragrant.

Grease a 9 x 13 baking pan or line pan with aluminum foil, grease well, and hang over edges. Sprinkle with half the nuts followed by half of the chocolate.

Melt butter in a large, deep saucepan. Stir in the sugar, water and corn syrup, and bring the mixture to a boil. Boil gently, over medium heat for about 10-15 minutes until the mixture reaches 300°F on a candy thermometer or when tests brittle when dropped from a spoon into cold water (hard-crack stage).

When the syrup has reached the hard-crack stage, pour it quickly over the nuts and chocolate. Sprinkle on remaining chocolate and nuts. When the mixture begins to set, press down with spatula and spread the chocolate evenly.

While the candy is still slightly warm, use a spatula to loosen it from the baking sheet, or lift out aluminum foil and remove candy. Break into pieces. Enjoy.

Recipe adapted from kingarthurflour.com

Simply perfect curry

Transforming "leftovers" into a work of art

The first time I had this chicken curry was during a visit to an artist's home on Cape Cod.

I was invited to dinner. "We're just having leftovers," Beverley said.

"Leftovers" is not what one might expect from the looks of that gorgeous, contemporary Cape Cod home! Beverley designed the house and her husband built it. It was surrounded by a moat, with wooden planks leading to the front door. Entering the house, a sculpture stood directly in the foyer. To the right, a narrow gallery with artwork was illuminated against white walls. Beyond the sculpture was a huge cathedral-ceiling living room, simple in design, with rough-hewn woodwork. Looking up to the second story on the right side of the living room, a long corridor led to Beverley's studio. And straight ahead, all along the front of the house, were huge floor to ceiling windows. A small, practical kitchen was tucked away on the right side.

We stood in that kitchen, drinking wine and talking, while I watched Beverley's husband make chicken curry.

Here I was, in my early 20's, feeling like a little kid in the company of these two amazingly talented people in their incredible home. The meal was delicious, and I told them so.

"This is not what I would call leftovers," I said.

Chicken Curry

3 cups cooked chicken or turkey

1 large onion, sliced

2 teaspoons curry powder (more or less to taste)

2 TB oil

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

2 14 oz. cans diced tomatoes (if you prefer, sliced fresh tomatoes or canned plum tomatoes squished with a fork will make a saucier curry)

A handful of raisins steeped in hot water for a few minutes until they’re plumped (optional)

Salt & freshly ground pepper to taste

In a large skillet, heat oil and add onions. Cook onions and garlic over medium-high heat until wilted. Stir in curry and allow to cook for several minutes until the oil begins to separate from the spices. Add chicken and diced tomatoes. Drain raisins and add them at this time. Let cook for 10-15 minutes over medium-low heat. Add salt & pepper to taste.  (Amounts of ingredients can be varied to suit your taste.)

Serve with rice or couscous.

This dish is nice when paired with a light white wine that has a little sweetness to it. Some suggestions - a chenin blanc, a sauvignon blanc with a little semillon in it, or a light Italian white that's not too dry. 

I happened to pick up this wine the other day that caught my eye.

This blend has the minerality which I like, with a nice soft finish of pineapple and pear flavors. I didn't buy it to go with anything in particular. But, I had it on hand and found that it complemented the sweetness of the tomatoes in the dish.

I hope you give this easy recipe a try and let me know what you think and what you drink!