New recipe, Week 2

This week I made three new recipes. All different. All yummy.

Going back to last Sunday when I made a meal in my crock-pot. Slow Cooker Winter Vegetable Stew. Being able to utilize some vegetables I've never used on my own -- like parsnips and leaks -- made this recipe intriguing to me. Dave and I thought this was a good stew recipe. I thought that it lacked some flavor (next time I'll add minced garlic and paprika), although it tasted better when I brought it for lunch the following day. Since I knew a vegetable stew wouldn't be enough of a meal for my husband, I just bought one of those Lloyd's BBQ pork tubs and heated that in the microwave to have in addition.

Dave rated this 4 jalapenos. I rated it 3.5 jalapenos (see, I don't always rate things higher :))

Wednesday night I made Emeril's Beef and Broccoli. My friend Nicki recommended this one to me. There were some differences with what I made than the recipe -- I substituted 2 Tbsp of rice vinegar and 2 Tbsp of balsamic vinegar for the 4 Tbsp of Chinese black vinegar. I also used regular honey. I also only made "one batch"....meaning used 1/2 the beef and 1/2 the broccoli (but I still used the same amount of sauce). Also just used frozen broccoli, since I had it stocked in my freezer. I like Asian food, so I keep things like rice vinegar and hoison sauce in my cupboard. lol. This was my favorite meal of the week. The sauce was so authentic tasting. It was really fast and easy to make too. Dave said it was the best stir fry I've made.

Dave rated this 4.5 jalapenos. I rated it 5 jalapenos.

Thursday night I found a recipe that allowed me to use the winter vegetables that were still in my fridge after making the stew Sunday night. Oven-roasted Roots. It's similar to a recipe that my sister, Becky, makes, so I hoped it'd be as good. I made it with parsnips, carrots, leeks and potatoes. I served this as a side-dish -- with hamburgers being the main course. Although, I was way more excited about the vegetables (I usually am). I think this time, Dave may have been more excited about the vegetables too. He took all the leftovers with him to have as his lunch. I love the flavor of balsamic vinegar, and it gives the vegetables great flavor. Call us weird, but Dave and I love parsnips now. But I must say, that Becky's oven-roasted root vegetable recipe is better.

Dave rated this 4 jalapenos. I rated it 4 jalapenos.