
Mexican Beef Stew
A simple recipe that could be made in a slow cooker or on the stove top
Ingredients
- 1 pound beef stew meat cut into 1-inch pieces
- 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
- 1 Tbsp canola oil
- 1 - 15 oz black beans drained and rinsed
- 2 medium carrots peeled and chopped
- 1 small onion chopped, about 1 cup
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1 -14.5 oz diced tomatoes undrained
- 2 cups beef broth
- 2 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
- 1 frozen bag of whole kernel corn
chopped avocado, chopped cilantro, and/or crushed red pepper (optional)
Instructions
- Coat the beef with flour. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium high heat.Add beef and cook about 5 minutes, stirring frequently, until beef is browned; set aside.Add the beans, carrots, onion, garlic, and browned beef to either a slow cooker or stock pot. Gently stir in tomatoes, broth, chili powder, cumin, salt, and pepper.Cover and cook 3-4 hours on high or 6-7 hours on low, until beef is fork tender.Carefully remove lid and stir in corn and cook 10 minutes longer or until corn is heated through.Top with avocado, cilantro and/or crushed red pepper, if desired
Notes
The mexican beef stew can easily be doubled

Roasted Chicken
Ingredients
- mixed roasted vegetable potatoes, carrots, mushrooms (whatever you want)
- 6 lb whole chicken
- 3-4 tbsp finely chopped fresh thyme
- 2-3 shallots, minced
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp pepper
- 2 medium red onions, chopped
- 1/2 cup dry red wine (or chicken broth)
- 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
Instructions
- preheat oven to 350 f
- wash and pat chicken dry, remove the giblets
- In a small bowl, combine the thyme, shallots, salt, and pepper- rub mixture under the skin of the chicken
- Place the onions in a roasting pan (with a lid) , top with the chicken, skin side up. Pour the wine and balsamic vinegar over the chicken. Place the lid back on the dish. Bake covered for 1 hour.
- Remove the lid and bake for another 1 hour, or until a meat thermometer reads 180 f. The chicken will be nice and brown! Let stand for 15 minutes before carving.
- Pour the onion sauce into a small bowl and skim off the fat, and serve

Aunt Ruth's Chili
Ingredients
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1 tsp oil if needed
- 2 onions
- 2 celery
- 2 garlic
- 1/2 green pepper
- 14 oz tomatoes crushed
- 1 tbsp cocoa
- 2 tsp cumin
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 tbsp chili powder
- 1/2 tsp hot pepper sauce
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- 4 cups red kidney beans cooked
- 1 can tomato sauce
Instructions
- sauté ground beef, onions, celery, garlic and green pepper
- add tomatoes, cocoa, cumin, salt, sugar, and chili powdercook about 5 minutes
- add hot pepper sauce, cinnamon, beans, and tomato sauce
- cover and simmer until beans are cooked (about 1 1/2 hours)