Slow Cooker_ The Best Cookbook Ever - Diane Phillips [70]
add the onion and garlic to the same skillet and sauté until the onion begins to soften, about 3 minutes. Add the carrots, paprika, cumin, and cinnamon and sauté until the spices are fragrant, about 2 minutes.
deglaze the skillet with 1 cup of the broth and scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Transfer the contents of the skillet to the slow-cooker insert. Add the remaining cups broth, the beans, apricots, and raisins.
cover the slow cooker and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours, until the meat is tender.
skim off any fat from the top of the stew. Add the cornstarch mixture and stir to combine. Cover the slow cooker and cook for an additional 20 to 30 minutes, until the sauce is thickened.
serve the stew warm from the cooker.
serves 8
Old-Fashioned Beef Stew with Vegetables
If you have a family that turns up their nose at a “new” beef stew, this one will look just like your usual one, but without the time-intensive cooking. Just load it in the cooker in the morning, and by dinnertime you’ve got a terrific one-pot meal. Chuck works well here. Your market may sell stew meat, but check the price—it may be cheaper to buy the chuck and cut it yourself. Stew meat is usually the leftovers from many different cuts of meat, so some pieces may become tender faster than others.
6 medium Yukon gold or red potatoes, quartered
4 medium carrots, cut into 1-inch lengths
3 medium onions, quartered
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 to 3 pounds beef chuck, fat trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces
2 tablespoons olive oil
1½ cups beef broth
2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
2 cups frozen petite peas, defrosted
2 cups frozen corn, defrosted
combine the potatoes, carrots, onions, 1 teaspoon salt, and ½ teaspoon pepper in the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker, and toss the vegetables to distribute the seasonings.
add 2 teaspoons salt, 1 teaspoon pepper, and the flour to a large plastic bag and stir to combine. Add the meat to the flour, toss to coat, and shake off any excess flour.
heat the oil in a large skillet over high heat. Add the meat and brown on all sides transfer the browned meat to the slow cooker insert.
deglaze the skillet with the broth and scrape up any browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Transfer the contents of the skillet to the slow-cooker insert and add the thyme. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours, until the meat is tender.
add the peas and corn and cook for an additional 1 hour. Season with salt and pepper before serving.
serves 8
Beef Braciole
In this southern Italian dish, thinly sliced round steak is transformed into melt-in-your-mouth-tender rolls filled with savory goodness. Cooked in a tomato sauce flavored with golden raisins, the braciole is what the Italians describe as agra dolce, or “sweet and sour.” This preparation provides an interesting balance of flavor and is just waiting to be served with soft polenta, pasta, or garlic mashed potatoes. You can make the beef rolls ahead of time, refrigerating for up to 24 hours before making the rest of the dish.
Eight 6-inch-square thin slices round steak, (2½ to 3 pounds)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
8 thin slices prosciutto
8 tablespoons olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
Two 10-ounce packages baby spinach or one 16-ounce package frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and thoroughly drained
¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
2 cups fresh bread crumbs
1/3 cup freshly grated Pecorino-Romano cheese
2 large eggs, beaten
1 large sweet onion, such as Vidalia, coarsely chopped
2 teaspoons dried basil
Two 28- to 32-ounce cans crushed tomatoes, with their juice
1½ cups golden raisins
place the beef on a cutting board and sprinkle it with 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon pepper. Place a slice of prosciutto over each piece of beef and