Ropa Veija

Saturday tends to be a busy day around our house. The grandkids and my parents usually come visit. Dinner is often times not thought about till late in the day when I'm tired but NOT last weekend. I was on top of things. I managed to fix Chicken Tettrazini for lunch for the masses at my house and I also filled the crockpot with some dinner fix'ns for Billy Head and I. Of course when I said it was a new recipe, Billy Head automatically turned up his nose. SNOB! But to his antics.... I say HA! It turned out to be really good. Give it a try.

Ropa Veija

• 3 pounds chuck roast- ( I used a package of stew meat)
  
• 1 small or 1/2 large onion, chopped (red or yellow onion)
• 1 cup chopped celery (or more)
• 2 medium green peppers, chopped
• 2 medium red peppers, chopped ( I didn't have any of these so I didn't put them in)
• 1 package sliced mushrooms (this was my addition, recipe didn't call for it.)
  
• 1 can chopped tomatoes (15 oz)
• 1 small can tomato paste (6 oz)
• 2 bay leaves ( I only used 1)
  
• 2 Tbsp chili powder ( I only used 1 Tbsp)
  
• 1 tsp oregano
• 3 boullion cubes ( I only used 1)
  
• salt and pepper

Preparation:

1) Salt and pepper the meat, and brown it (** I skipped this step)

2) Layer onion and celery on bottom of crock pot (slow cooker).

3) Put meat on top.

4) Drain the tomatoes and save juice. Layer tomatoes, peppers and mushrooms over the meat, along with the bay leaves.

5) Mix the rest of the ingredients together (including the reserved tomato liquid) and pour over the rest of the food. ( ** I thought the the mixture looked rather thick so I added about 1/2 cup water. )

Cook 2 to 3 hours on high, or 5 to 7 hours on low.

I served it over penne pasta or it would be good over rice or shred the meat and fill a tortilla with the mixture.

Stew Season

The best part of our little hometown is the Brunswick Stew sold at the annual RailRoad Festival. Every year my sister and I make a hurried trip downtown to the vendors selling the "Golden" stuff. We usually wind up buying at least 4 to 5 quarts. After hearing my little grandson ask... "what's in this stuff that makes it so yummy, I knew I had to learn how to make it.

So here we go.... Yummy style Brunswick Stew

Place a small pork roast in the crockpot. Cover with water, add a small sliced onion and about 2 Tbsp. Worcestershire Sauce. Cook on high for about 4 hours. Remove meat and shred.

Boil a whole chicken till tender. Add enough water to cover it. Remove the chicken and shred the meat. Leave water in pan. (You may need to add a little more if it evaporates while cooking). Add 1 chopped onion, 3 medium potatoes, diced, and 1/4 cup diced celery. Cook till veggies are tender. Add 1 bag of frozen white corn (I used Private Selection brand from Kroger), 1 cup baby lima beans. Cook for about 10 to 15 min. Add the shredded chicken and pork and two cans diced tomatoes.

Recipe called for a whole bottle of ketchup but I only added about 1/2 cup. I added tomato juice. I just kept adding it and letting it cook down till it got the consistency I wanted. I also added about 4 to 5 teaspoons apple cider vinegar, about 1 Tbsp Worcestershire Sauce, 2 to 3 drops Liquid Smoke. I also added a pinch of sugar, some salt, pepper, Texas Pete and cayenne pepper to taste. That's about it. You really just have to play around with the spices and tomato juice to get it the way you like it. But according to my daughter and her kids.... It was YUMMY!

Move over Rachel Ray

Last night when I got home from work and took on that nightly question of what's for dinner, I opened the fridge to find smoked sausage calling my name. Now please understand this is NOT my meat of choice and I only buy it to satisfy Billy Head's craving for meat. Okay, now what? What to do with smoked sausage. And grilling was out of the question since it was cold out and I didn't feel like braving the elements. This is where the "Move over Rachel Ray" part comes in.... I grabbed that hunk of sausage, some potatoes, onions and whatever else jumped out at me and I began... my own RECIPE. Yeah, I don't have many original recipes in my arsenal but I guess you have to start somewhere, right?

1 package smoked sausage, cut into bite size pieces
2 medium potatoes, thinly sliced
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 green pepper, cut into strips
1 package grape tomatoes, cut in half
1 tablespoon Mrs. Dash or grill seasoning
1 teaspoon cajun seasoning
1/4 teaspoon garlic salt
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil
Balsamic vinegar

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place sausage and veggies into a baking dish. Sprinkle with seasonings. Drizzle with olive oil (enough to coat veggies). Cook at 400 degrees for about 25 to 30 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Add a splash of Balsamic vinegar and return to oven for another 5 to 10 minutes.

I wound up broiling the dish for a few minutes to get the sausage crispy. Billy Head likes his meat crispy or sometimes burnt. No problem for me. I like to burn things. He commented that this was very good. Next time I may add some cabbage wedges to the mix.