Crock Pot Asian Peanut Butter Pork

Posted on December 6, 2012 by atangledyarn84

After many many days of sour stomachs and flu hangovers, the hubs and I have our appetite back! So in honor of that here is the latest Pinterest recipe adventure, Crock Pot Asian Peanut Butter Pork! (from a pin that led to the Cassie Craves food blog)

Ingredient list was simple and I only made two substitutions! I used apple cider vinegar instead if white because that’s what I had on hand and I used a bone in pork butt instead of tenderloin. Why you ask? Simple, bone in pork is tastier, cheaper, and holds moisture better (at least in my opinion). Moisture retention in slow cooked meats is essential!

Set up was easy too as I did all the measuring and slicing the night before and stored in the fridge. So in the morning i just had to throw together! First onion…

Then the trimmed up pork butt…

Then remainder of the ingredients….

I let this slow cook for 7 to 7 1/2 hours. The sauce did scorch a bit on the sides mostly because the hubs slacked on his scrape and stir job during the day. But it didn’t seem to affect the flavor. I deboned the pork and shredded with my fingers it was so tender. I chose to blend up the remaining liquid and onion into a sauce to make it creamier even though the recipe didn’t specify…

And then mixed in the sauce into my shredded pork…

I served mine with leftover corn and mashed potatoes from the fridge. But it would also be excellent over rice or even on a bun for a sandwich.

I LOVED this recipe mostly because I love PB. I could detect the tang of vinegar, little hints of brown sugar, and lots of peanut goodness. The hubs could take it or leave it, he wanted it to be spicier. (He also didn’t enjoy smelling PB all day either.) Such is the eternal struggle in our household, sigh.

This is another Pinterest success that I think will remain in my crock pot arsenal!

Back Up Plan Thanksgiving

Posted on November 22, 2012 by atangledyarn84

Well, we made the trek to my hometown for a family thanksgiving yesterday. We have gorgeous 60-70 degree weather here in Kansas. It wa on course to be a great trip. Our plan was to have a nice meal with my parents and grandma as the rest of the extended family is out of town.

The best laid plans…..

Both my parents woke up this morning with the flu. My dad had been up and down all night with an upset stomach. So we implemented plan b: lunch at grandmas with just the three if us!

We had turkey (slow roasted and carved into a crock pot)

We had potatoes and gravy (all home grown from the family garden)

And of course delicious rolls made by my mother before she got sick

Mmmmmm Thanksgiving!

I am truly thankful for my life and those who are in it and all that I have. Today is for hanging with grandma and nursing mom and dad back to health.

And maybe a little knitting and football from the easy chair!

Sweet and Sour (and Hot) Beef

Posted on November 20, 2012 by atangledyarn84

My husband and I truly disagree on very few things, but level of spice in food is one of them. My husband likes a good burn and bite or even make your nose run hot. I like mild to medium spice but nothing that hurts (so to speak). It’s a constant battle and I usually win. Mostly because I am the cook, lol!

Today I tried a new crock pot recipe that I hoped would strike a balance. I made Sweet and Sour Beef from the Taste of Home Slow Cooker Classics. Pretty simple recipe:

2 lbs boneless beef round
16 oz tomato sauce
Sliced carrots
1 sliced onion
1/2 cup molasses
1/3 cup cider vinegar
1/4 cup sugar
2 tsp chili powder
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp salt

Basically put the beef in the bottom if the crock pot, mix the remaining ingredients together, and pour over beef. Cook on low 7 ish hours. The cookbook also called for this to be served over noodles, but we are trying to cut out starch so we skipped that.

Results were great! I strained the juices and thickened into a sauce with a basic flour and butter roux.

It made a devilishly thick sauce with a hint of sweet molasses and a vinegary bite at the end. The chili powder and paprika gave just enough heat for me. The husband sprinkled on some crushed red pepper flake for added heat. I will note that crock pot recipes don’t always make the most beautiful dishes.

The low and slow cooking really softens the ingredients and tends to make everything the same color. Don’t let this discourage you! Crock pot food is delicious and can be really healthy. Not to mention it is hot and ready for you when you get home!

I LOVE this cookbook and this recipe got a big thumbs up from the hubby. Definitely a keeper! The house smells wonderful and it was very filling even without the noodles. I betcha the husband even goes back for a midnight snack!

🙂

Sunday At Full Tilt

Posted on November 18, 2012 by atangledyarn84

I would like to say I LOVE MY HUSBAND! He has been outside ALL afternoon picking up leaves. And I really mean all afternoon!

This has left me free in the house to do some dishes, some laundry, throw together a leftover surprise casserole for dinner, wind some yarn into cakes, and plan some drills for volleyball practice.

And I still haven’t played with any of my birthday yarn yet either!

Sundays are exhausting!! I hope all is well in your neck of the world 🙂

Fake Thanksgiving

Posted on November 10, 2012 by atangledyarn84

The hubs and I are invited to a Fake Thanksgiving tomorrow with wonderful friends. I am in charge of bringing pie:

(My first try at pumpkin pie, hopefully it’s ok!)

Oh and wine…

I might also bring a chocolate creme pie since I’m not a fan of pumpkin. Right now though it’s time for some knitting. I currently have a Rikke Hat by Sarah Young.

Happy Pre Thanksgiving!

Pot Roast Heaven

Posted on November 8, 2012 by atangledyarn84

Ooooooo myyyyyy gooooooood. Dinner was magical! Never under estimate the power of grain fed well staight from the farm beef. The roast literally fell apart when I took it out of the crock pot. It was fork tender but retained a nice texture without being mushy.

The flavor brought me back to my childhood and the amazing dinners my mother used to make us. I grew up in rural America where beef quality is king. The mix of the spice of the ranch and Italian seasonings with the earthy flavors of the gravy and beef was heavenly. I have always loved this recipe but store bought beef can’t hold a candle to what I made today!

The onions came out buttery and soft, but under seasoned. I could take them or leave them really. The potatoes cooked nicely and were delicious with a little of the beef drippings drizzled over them.

All in all……so much deliciousness. And the compartmentalism worked like a charm and it was nice to keep the flavors separate that is until I wanted to combine them. DEFINITELY doing this again!

Happy Eating!!

WIP Wednesday: Pot Roast Experiment

Posted on November 7, 2012 by atangledyarn84

I have WIP of the food variety today. Years ago a coworker passed on a delicious pot roast recipe that is my absolute favorite. It’s so simple and it’s easy….it’s ridiculous!

These are the ingredients to pot roast heaven:
One cut of beef roast (any kind works)
One packet ranch mix
One packet Italian seasoning
One packet brown gravy mix
1/4 cup water or beef stock
Done!

This is a Pinterest recipe I see a lot recently but I have been using it forever. I used to add veggies but due to the gravy and seasonings they turn very dark in color. They were always cooked perfectly and tasted amazing, it’s just that they didn’t look the best. So I decided to experiment today!

I placed my bone-in roast in the bottom of the pot and sprinkled with seasonings and water just like normal. Then I laid down a layer of tinfoil and added tinfoil wrapped (home grown) baking potatoes and a couple of onions slathered with butter also wrapped up tight in foil.

I should end up with a moist fork tender roast on the bottom with an amazing drippings for sauce AND perfectly baked potatoes with crazy buttered onions on top. That is if my crock pot can handle the load, ha! Some assembly required for dinner of course.

Ill try to post the outcome later tonight! (The best part of this experiment is that my husband has to sit at home and smell it all day long while I’m at work, lol)

Happy WIP Wednesday!!

A Muffin To Brighten My Monday

Posted on October 29, 2012 by atangledyarn84

Where do you stand on Pinterest recipes?

I love paging through wonderful recipes and creative craft ideas. But I have to admit…..my results have sometimes been less than stellar.

To cheer myself up after my washing machine/sewer overflow problem this past weekend I decided to try a delicious looking recipe from Pinterest, Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Muffins.

The instructions were easy and the ingredient list short, so I went from ingredients to finished baked cup cakes in less than 30 minutes. Here is my results:

Look great so far, right? I bake in silicone and use a rotation method with my really old and really stubborn oven so that I don’t end up with charcoal bricks.

Despite my best efforts the bottoms burned and it was really hard to peel the paper. I cooked the least amount of time the recipe suggested. Argh……

They were ugly BUT they were tasty! The mix of savory peanut butter with the sweet chocolate chips was amazing. The muffin was fairly light and maintained moisture even with the “over caramelization” of the bottom. (But hey, those just pull off right?) The recipe made 16 muffins for me that were about 200 calories apiece.

Next time I think I will use a nuttier tasting PB to punch up the flavor and also skim milk to trim a few calories. I am going to call this a Pinterest success because it was technically my oven and not the recipe that caused me problems.

I packed one of the muffins for breakfast at my desk this morning and my cubicle mate said it smelled wonderful. I doubt they last long in our house!!

Happy Monday!

My mother loves me

Posted on October 28, 2012 by atangledyarn84

The surprise visit yesterday from my family resulted in a few delicious surprises.

Stromboli made by my talented mother

And Halloween pop corn balls made by my grandmother. A tradition since before I was born.

Today is a good day!

Monday Fail

Posted on October 23, 2012 by atangledyarn84

Apologies for the barrage of cooking related posts lately. It’s just that I am currently knitting for craft fair stock. Which means endless repetitions of the same patterns, over and over and over again. Not very exciting for a knitting blog! T-minus 25 days to the first show.

So I have been taking my creativity out in my cooking. I have a whole freezer full of beef to cook! So yesterday I pulled out some sirloin tips to slow cook in the crock pot with cream if mushroom, beef stock,and veggies (carrots, onion, and celery).

Turns out your crock pot works better when it’s PLUGGED IN! (Insert string of curses here………) The husband luckily found my neglected pot and got everything on the stove and cooking away. And we managed to save dinner, sort of….

There are no photos of this dish because well it looked like……ok so I won’t tell you what it really looked like. Lets just say it resembled wet dog food. The flavored weren’t bad, but the carrots had turned everything a orangey brown and the beef was very grey. I skimmed out the meat and put the veggies and broth through the food pro. All this accomplished was a thick creamy sauce in god awful orange brown. I would note that this color change probably would have happened in crock pot anyway, sigh.

The husband and I poured the sauce over the meat and served over streamed rice. It tasted fine, I just really couldn’t get over the look of it. Food should be pretty AND tasty!

Live and learn! It was a recipe I had never tried (and probably won’t again) and I vow to always check the crock pot cord. The good news is that yesterday is gone and I get a chance to do it all again today!

I hope Monday was kinder to the rest of you!

My Tangled Yarn Knitting Adventures

Ramblings from an obsessed knitter

Category Archives: Food