Are you traveling this week for the holidays? What are you wearing for the (hopefully) bearable trip? I've put together a comfortable and casual look that is great for planes, trains, and automobiles.
It's Christmas week. Last minute gifts, anyone? I've pulled together a handful of items you can run to your local store/mall/overnight ship to make sure you can have something under the tree!
1 1/2 pounds Ontario Corn Fed stewing beef such as chuck, round, brisket, cut into 2 inch pieces
1 cup onion, diced
1 cup carrot, diced
1 cup celery, diced
8 ounces mushrooms, quartered or sliced
2 tablespoons garlic, chopped
1 teaspoon thyme, chopped
2 teaspoons smoked paprika
2 tablespoons tomato paste
4 cups beef broth
1 cup pot barley
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon fish sauce
salt and pepper to taste
Directions
Cover the dried mushrooms in 1 cup of just boiled water and let sit until tender, about 15 minutes, before draining, reserving the water, and chopping the mushrooms.
Meanwhile, cook the bacon in a larges sauce pan over medium-high heat before setting aside.
Add the beef and sear until lightly golden brown on all sides before setting aside.
Add the onions, carrots, celery and mushrooms and cook until tender, about 7-10 minutes.
Add the garlic, thyme, paprika and tomato paste and cook until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.
Add the broth and deglaze the pan by scraping up the brown bits on the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon while the broth simmers..
Add the broth, barley, bacon, beef, reserved chopped mushrooms, reserved mushroom water, bay leaves, balsamic vinegar, worcestershire sauce and fish sauce and either bring to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the beef is fall apart in your mouth tender, about 2-3 hours, OR transfer to a preheated 350F/180C oven and roast, covered, until the beef is tender, about 2-3 hours, OR transfer to a slow cooker and cook on low for 6-10 hours or on high for 3-5 hours.
Remove the bay leaves, season with alt and pepper to taste and enjoy!
Line a 15x10x1-inch baking sheet with the saltine crackers. Set aside. Preheat oven to 375°F.
In a small saucepan over medium-high heat, melt butter. Add in sugar and bring to a rolling boil, stirring constantly. Once it begins to boil, remove from heat.
Pour over saltine crackers. Place in a 375°F oven for about 10 minutes, until crackers are browned and caramelized.
Sprinkle with white chocolate chips and allow to sit for several minutes (until they melt). Spread with a spatula evenly over crackers and immediately sprinkle with crushed candy.
Allow chocolate to set and store in airtight container for up to 5 days.
Some of the best gifts are personal, unique, different. What makes them better is knowing they're handmade with love from a small business owner. You all know and love Etsy, so I thought I would sift through the thousands of items on the site and pull out some fantastic gifts.