Home Cooking...Beef Stew, Homemade Bread, and a Chef Salad

Ingredients for Beef Stew:
2-3 pounds beef arm roast, rump roast, or pot roast
5 cloves garlic, sliced into small wedges
salt and pepper to taste
1 medium red or yellow onion, sliced
1 32 ounce box of beef stock
5 large potatoes, cubed
4 large carrots, cubed
2 stalks celery, chopped

Instructions for Beef Stew:
Using a paring knife, make slits into your roast about 3/4 inch deep (evenly spaced all over the roast), poke one small, cut wedge of garlic in to each slit.

Preheat a large dutch oven over medium heat, until a drop of water sprinkled into the pan beads and dances across the inside of the pan.
Place roast in pan to brown, the meat will stick at first but will loosen when it is ready to turn. Cook uncovered for about 5 to 10 minutes on the first side. Turn and season with salt and pepper.

Break onion slices into rings and spread them on top of the roast and let the roast brown another 5 minutes. Add the beef stock, then the potatoes, carrots, and celery in layers. You may add more salt and pepper to taste at this point if you like.

Reduce heat to low and cook for 1-2 hours; longer cooking times will make the meat more tender.

Some fun hints for making Beef Stew:

If you like gravy, after you remove the meat and vegetables from the pan, you will have some liquid left. Mix 2 tablespoons of cornstarch or flour into 1/2 cup of cold water. Bring the liquid to a boil and add cornstarch and water. Stir until gravy is desired consistency, season to taste and serve over your meat and stew, yum.

If you want to make this in a crock pot transfer the meat to a warm crock pot after you brown it and before you season it and add the onions, then follow the instructions the end, only cook on low heat 6-8 hours.

Delicious...Hearty Beef Stew will warm your day.

Ingredients for Homemade Bread:
3 1/2 cups bread flour
2 teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon wheat gluten powder (optional)
1 1/2 cups milk (or 3 tablespoons powdered milk and 1 1/2 cups water)
1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast

Instructions for Homemade Bread:
Place first 6 ingredients in your bread machine bread pan, put yeast in yeast dispenser and start the bread machine (I use the normal setting or "sandwich style" setting).

Makes a 2 pound loaf

Or follow your bread machine's instructions.

If you want bread that looks like you didn't use a machine, use your bread machine's "dough mode." Remove the dough and place it into a greased loaf pan. Bake for 20-25 minutes (or until golden-brown and hollow sounding when tapped).

There is nothing like freshly homemade bread, so warm and delicious, my family loves it.

Instructions for Chefs Salad:
Fresh Romaine lettuce or a spring mix (my favorite)
Multiple toppings of your choosing:
sliced carrots
boiled eggs
real bacon bits
cucumbers
spinach
olives
chopped tomatoes
chopped green onions
you can even add raisins or craisins, if you like

Toppings for Chefs Salad:
salad dressing of your choice
seasoned croutons of your choice

Instructions for Chefs Salad:
Wash and chop lettuce and place in to a large salad serving bowl, add ingredients your family loves and toss.
Serve with your favorite seasoned croutons and dressing.

Very simple, very fresh and nutritious...Chefs Salad!