Easy Beef Stew

EASY BEEF STEW

2 lbs stew meat

1 onion, chopped

5 potatoes, peeled & cut into small chunks

8 carrots, peeled & sliced

1 can tomato soup

1 can whole tomatoes

1 can green beans with juice

Salt & pepper to taste

Thaw & brown stew meat, season with salt & pepper while cooking. Place all ingredients in crock pot. Cook on high for 3 hours. Freeze half for an easy dinner later.

Make due Chicken Broth

Some recipes, like the pot pie, need a little chicken broth - I discovered a way to create it easily for those times I don't have it on hand or available to me.

1 cup hot water
2 Tbls. cream chicken soup
1 tsp. salt

Mix together well.
If I am using in a recipe that does not include chicken I strain off the chicken pieces by pouring with a fork.

Ham Pot Pie

1/3 cup butter or margarine

1/3 cup flour

1 14 oz. can chicken broth (or 1 ¾  cup) (alternate= Make due Chicken Broth recipe.)
2/3 cup milk (fresh or canned)

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

3 cups chopped ham

1 14 oz can green beans drained

Pie shell for 9 inch two crust pie

Go to Pie Crust recipe

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Melt butter in pan, add flour and stir until slightly bubbly. Add chicken broth slowly, stirring constantly. Add milk and stir constantly until consistency of gravy. Stir until sauce is smooth (3-5 minutes.) Add ham & beans, stir together well. Remove from heat.

Place pie crust in bottom of 9 inch pie pan. Pour mixture into pie shell. Cover with the other pie crust.

Trim & pinch edges to seal pie.
Bake until golden brown, about 30 min.

***I like to cut three leaf shapes and roll three small berries out of the left over pie dough and place on top of pie before baking for decoration.

Warm Rice, Milk & Sugar

This is a simple combination, one of the favorites at our house and another easy one that I like to remember. We like it for breakfast or sometimes an after dinner sweet.

cooked rice
milk
sugar
cinnamon
raisens if desired

Mix ingredients to taste and warm in the microwave.

Apple Oatmeal Muffins

½ cup pancake mix
1 cup uncooked oatmeal
½ cup brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 cup milk
1 egg
¼ cup vegetable oil
½ cup peeled chopped apple
1/3 cup raisins

Heat oven to 415 degrees. Grease bottoms of muffin tin with vegetable oil. Combine pancake mix, oats, brown sugar and cinnamon. Add remaining ingredients; mix just until dry ingredients are moistened. Fill cups 3/4 full. Bake 15 to 20 minutes. Makes 10-12

Fruit in the Middle Muffins

2 cups pancake mix
1/3 cup sugar
1 cup milk
1 egg, beaten
1/3 cup vegetable oil
Fruit preserves/jam

Heat oven to 415 degrees. Grease bottoms of muffin tin with vegetable oil. Combine pancake mix and sugar in a medium bowl. Add milk, egg and oil. Mix just until dry ingredients are moistened. Do not beat.

Fill each muffin cup half full with batter. Spoon 1 teaspoon of preserves into center of each. Top with remaining batter, filling each cup 2/3 full. Bake 17 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Makes 12

Made with strawberry jam.