This is so yummy... you've got to try it!

Okay maybe this isn't the most traditional summer meal but then again we haven't been experiencing the hottest summer either... In the freezer I had some beef shanks that were part of the Holy Spirit offering we had received from our local church a couple of weeks ago. It's quite the tradition for Azorean portuguese families. I found this great recipe for Osso Buco from Giada, made a few changes to it by using the beef shanks instead of the veal shanks indicated in the recipe and I was extremely impressed with how it turned out... I think you'll like it too!

Helena’s Take on Osso Buco

Ingredients:

1 sprig fresh rosemary
1 sprig fresh thyme
1 dry bay leaf
2 whole beef shanks (about 1-2 pound per shank)
1 lb of stewing beef, cubed
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup butter
1 onion soup mix
4 carrots, sliced
3-4 stalk celery, sliced
2-3 cloves of garlic
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 tablespoon hot pepper paste
½ cup dry white wine
½ cup water
2 cups chicken stock
3 tablespoons fresh flat-leaf Italian parsley, chopped
1 tablespoon lemon zest
1 raw garlic clove, thinly grated

Directions

For the beef shanks, pat dry with paper towels to remove any excess moisture. Season each shank with salt and freshly ground pepper.

In a large Dutch oven pot, heat butter until melted. Add bee shanks and stewing beef to the hot pan and brown all sides, about 3 minutes per side. Remove browned shanks and reserve.

In the same pot, add the onion soup mix, carrots and celery. The salt in the soup mix will help draw out the moisture from the vegetables. Saute until soft. Add the tomato paste and mix well. Return browned shanks and stewing beef to the pan and add the white wine, water, hot pepper paste and garlic, reduce liquid by half, about 5 minutes. Add rosemary, thyme, bay leaf and 2 cups of the chicken stock and bring to a boil.

Lay beef shanks and stewing beef at the bottom of the crockpot, pouring out all liquids, spices and juices from your pot. Set crockpot to high (4 hours) to ensure meat is tender and falls off the fork.

Once done, carefully remove the cooked shanks from the pot and place in decorative serving platter. Remove bay leaf, rosemary twig and oregano twig before serving. Pour all the juices and sauce from the pot over the shanks.

Garnish with traditional gremolada of: chopped parsley, lemon zest and grated raw garlic and serve with a saffron rissotto.

Enjoy!

An overnight Crockpot Success..

I needed some chicken for my Buffalo Wing Dip and had a chicken in the fridge that was ready to be used and the herbs in my balcony garden were starting to grow so nicely. I came across this crockpot recipe for a chicken and it was perfect for my dip as the chicken was so tender and just fell off its bones. The rest of the chicken and bones, I used to make some chicken stock and store in the freezer for a later recipe.

Chicken with 40 Cloves Garlic

Ingredients:

2 sprigs fresh thyme
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
2 sprigs fresh sage
2 sprigs fresh Italian parsley
40 cloves garlic, unpeeled
1 onion, chopped
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 whole chicken
2 stalks celery

Directions:

Place sprigs of thyme, rosemary, sage, parsley and half of the garlic in chicken cavity. Place celery in stoneware. Put chicken on top of celery. Add remaining garlic around chicken. Sprinkle salt and pepper over chicken. Cover; cook on Low 8 - 10 hours (High 4 - 6 hours). To serve, place chicken, onions, garlic and celery on serving platter.

Note: You can squeeze roasted garlic out of skins onto toasted French bread slices and spread with knife topped with some crumbled goat cheese and a little rosemary. Yummy!

Enjoy!

Spare Ribs... and still on budget...

Okay so I've fallen behind already with trying to keep up with my weekly list of updates but I have been cooking regularly so that's always a bonus right? With a goal this month to really try to stay on budget and not to waste food, I'm so excited to say that we've been really good about it (even with hosting a birthday party and a sleepover for 10 kids) . Yes, there is always room for improvement but we are in much a better position than where we were a couple of months ago. With only a couple more days left in the month, we'll see if this month will be a success or a learning experience :)

In the meantime, while at the grocery store a couple of days go, I came across a sale with 2 racks of sideribs for the low price of $6.00. With only a mere 24 hours before meeting the expiry date, threw these ribs into the crockpot and dinner was ready in just a couple of hours with some yummy side dishes too. The original recipe can be found using the link below as I've made changes to the recipe that are reflected already below.

Crock Pot Spare Ribs

Ingredients:

1/2 cup Ketchup

1/2 cup BBQ sauce
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 cup Water
1/4 cup Vinegar
1 tbsp Brown sugar
1 tsp Sugar
1 tbsp Dehydrated onion
2 racks of side ribs, (cut in 4 ribs)

Directions:

Combine all ingredients in crock pot and stir well. Add the spare ribs. Cook on LOW for 8 hours. Once ready, pour crockpot liquid into a pan to thicken sauce. I added a tbsp of cornstarch dissolved in 1 cup of cold water to the liquid, put it to heat until it reduced and thickened to my likening. I then took the sauce and poured it on the ribs in the crockpot, although you could serve it on the side with the ribs.

Serve with pesto rice, crunchy coleslaw and/or green beans with sherried mushrooms.

Enjoy!

Frugal dinners and yummy leftovers...

..who would have thought...

My husband and I are really trying to make healthier and more frugal choices for our meal. Some months we can rack over $800 on grocery bills and dining out… Lord, forgive us for the amount of food that some months we may throw out due to spoilage or lack of time and ideas as to what to do with all of the food in our fridge.

So during a grocery store run for little essentials, I came across a Canadian Living Special Issue: Make Ahead Meals: Cook Now, Save Time Later. So this month this little magazine of 96 pages will be my inspiration.

Today I start with a recipe from page 45: Sirloin tip Oven Roast with Porcini Mushroom Jus … This basic recipe was to provide for at least another 4 recipes that would use leftovers but of course I had to make a little change to accommodate for my lack of time, placed it into the Slow Cooker with all of my vegetables for a one pot dish…

Slow Cooker Pot Roast

Ingredients
3 pounds outside round roast
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tsp each dried thyme and pepper
1 packet dry onion soup mix
1 cup beef stock
3 carrots, chopped
1 onion, chopped
12 mini white potatoes
1 stalk celery, chopped

Directions

Mix the garlic, oil, thyme and pepper. Rub over top and sides of roast. (Will do this next time: Brown on all sides in a large skillet over high heat)

Place onions in slowcooker. Mix onion soup mix with beef stock and add to slowcooker. Place roast in the slowcooker and sprinkle remainder of ingredients around the roast.

Cover and cook on low setting for 8 to 10 hours or on high for 6 hours.

P.S. Sorry for the lack of pictures this week but couldn't seem to capture a picture before we all dug into the yummy meals...

Crockpot... could it get any easier?

There is a restaurant close to our home that has absolutely the best BBQ ever!! Everything from ribs, barbequed chicken to pulled pork sandwiches. People flock to this small restaurant often waiting in line as the smell from the grill envelops them... Pulled pork is what I had on the brain but the I wasn't brave enough to go out and weather the storm so I pulled the crockpot out of its dusty cupboard and decided I was going to try to replicate these sandwiches at home. Never suspected it could be this easy...

BBQ Pulled Pork Sandwiches

Ingredients

1 pork shoulder roast (about 2 ½ pounds)
1 tbsp minced garlic
1 bottle (21 ounces) President’s Choice BBQ Sauce
2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
2 tsp brown sugar
2 medium onion, chopped, divided
8 hard rolls

Directions

Place 1 chopped onion along bottom of slow cooker. Rub garlic all over pork shoulder. Place roast in slow cooker on onion. Cover. Cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 5-6 hours.
Remove pork; shred meat with 2 forks. Discard any fat and any liquid in slow cooker. Return pork to slow cooker and top with remaining onions.
In a separate bowl, combine barbecue sauce, lemon juice and brown sugar. Cover pork in slow cooker with this mixture. Cover; cook on low for 2 hours or on high for 1 hour longer.

Serve on hard rolls with coleslaw and potato salad.

Enjoy!