Slow Cooker Corned Beef and Cabbage

I made this one awhile back for St. Patrick's Day. Turned out wondefully!I usually use Guinness to make this but other dark beers will work just as well. This time, I used 1554 by The New Belgium Brewing Company.

Ingredients

3 lb Corned Beef Brisket
1/2 cup Onions, chopped
4-5 small Potatoes, diced
2 cups Carrots, chopped
1 Tbsp Brown Sugar
1 (12oz beer)
12 oz water
1 small head of Cabbage, chopped

Instructions
1. Spray Crockpot with cooking Spray or line with Slowcooker liner.
2. Place Onion, Potatoes and Carrots in the bottom.
3. Place Corned Beef on top.
4. Sprinkle with Brown Sugar and the Spice Packet (if included)
5. Pour Beer over top. Fill bottle with water and add that as well.
6. Cover and Cook for 8-10 hours.
7. Add Cabbage in the last hour.
Serve with the beer you used to cook with!

Featured Beverage
I used 1554 by New Belgium. It was awhile ago since I made this but this beer was awesome! It worked perfectly for this meal. I will be buying this again. I highly recommend it to dark beer lovers such as myself.

Easy Slow Cooker Chili

Time for another Crockpot Monday post. I went with an old classic this week. I made Slow Cooker Chili with some Corn Muffins. Awesome meal to come home to. I took the pictures while it was nice and hot because I couldn't wait to eat so they turned out a little steamy.

Ingredients
2 lbs Lean Ground Beef
1 cup Onions, chopped
1 Tbsp Garlic, minced
1 can Black Beans, Drained and Rinsed
1 Green Pepper, diced
1 (28oz) can Diced Tomatoes-no salt added, undrained
1 (15 oz) can Tomato Sauce
1 Tbsp Chili Powder
2 Tsp Cumin

Cheese for topping (Optional)


Instructions
1. Brown Beef in Skillet. Drain.
2. In slow cooker, mix Beef and remaining ingredients.
3. Cover and cook on low heat for 7-8 hours or on high heat for 4-5.

Quick Tips

•  I used a slow cooker liner to reduced the amount of clean up. 
• You can also used Ground Turkey to make Chili for a healthier option. 

Irish Stout Stew

It's taken me awhile to come up with a Beef Stew recipe that I am satisfied with. This is an old favorite and a great meal for a winter's night after a long day at work. I served this with a Guinness and a piece of baguette. Hope you enjoy!

Ingredients
Oil
1/2 cup Flour
1/2 Tsp. Salt
2 lbs Beef Stew Meat, cubed
3 stalks Celery, sliced
2 Carrots, sliced
5 Yellow Potatoes, diced
1 Onion, sliced
1 tsp Garlic, minced
3 cups Beef Broth
1 (6 oz) Tomato Paste
1 (12 oz) Guinness
1 tsp Thyme

Instructions
1. Heat oil in large skillet.
2. In large bowl, mix Salt and Flour. Coat Beef in Flour mix.
3. Brown Beef in skillet.
4. Add Celery, Carrots,  Potatoes, Onion, and Garlic to slow cooker.
5. Top with Beef.
6. In medium sized bowl, stir Beef Broth and Tomato Paste. Pour over Beef.
7. Slowly pour Guinness over top.
8. Sprinkle Thyme over top.
9. Cover and cook for 8 hours.

Featured Beer

Obviously, I enjoyed this with a Guinness. I am certain most people are familiar with this one so my description will be brief. It's delicious.... I prefer it on draft but it is a great one to cook with as well. I recommend that you pour it in a glass at a vertical angle when enjoying it with this meal.

Slow Cooker Tortilla Chicken Soup

Well I've been meaning to keep up with my posting but things have gotten crazy. I made this dish last Monday as part of my Crockpot Monday. I went to take the picture when I realized that this meal is not very visually appealing. Shane referred to it as "the dish whose picture does not do it justice". He loves when I make this one. I also didn't have my Chicken Broth on hand so I went without. Usually, it will have a bit more of a soup texture because of that.

Ingredients

2-3 boneless, skinless Chicken Breasts
1 can Black Beans, drained, rinsed
1 cup Corn
1 can Diced Tomatoes, undrained
1 tsp Garlic, minced
1 tsp Onion Powder
1/2 cup Chicken Broth
8 oz Cream Cheese
Baked Tortilla Strips (See below)

Instructions
1. Place Chicken Breasts in crockpot.
2. In large bowl, stir Black Beans, Corn, Tomatoes, Garlic, Onion Powder. Stir together. Pour over the Chicken.
3. Add Chicken Broth.
4. Top with Cream Cheese.
5. Cover and cook for 6-7 hours.
6. Shred chicken with two forks. Top with Baked Tortilla Strips and serve.


Baked Tortilla Strips
1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
2. Cut a Tortilla into 1 inch strips.
3. Place on a baking sheet sprayed with cooking spray.
4. Bake for about 10 minutes or until golden brown.

Beef Stroganoff

Today was my first day back to classes for the semester. This meant that it was time to start doing my Crockpot Mondays again! Mondays are my longest work day so it is nice to come home to a fully cooked meal. This is also really quick to throw together.  This recipe only uses 1 1/2 lb of meat since it's just for two of us. Always have leftovers though. 

Ingredients 

1 1/2  lb Beef Stew Meat

1 cup Onion, chopped

1 can Cream of Mushroom Soup

8 oz fresh Mushrooms, sliced

1/4 tsp pepper

4 ox Cream Cheese 

1 (oz) Sour Cream

1 (12 oz) package Egg Noodles

Instructions

1. In crock pot, mix together Beef Stew Meat, Onions, Soup, Mushrooms, and pepper. 

2. Cover and cook on low heat for 8-10 hours. 

3. Stir in Cream Cheese until melted. Stir in Sour Cream. 

4. Serve over Egg Noodles. 

Quick Tip: For a quick clean up, use sow cooker liners. 


Featured Beer

Tonight I'm having a Mt Carmel Winter Ale. Another Cincinnati brew. I am definitely on a Winter Warmer kick. I can;t seem to get enough of this style of beer lately. This one is a good alternative if you can't pick up a Great Lakes Christmas Ale. This beer has an inviting Ginger aroma and a hint of orange spice.