French Beef Stew in my Le Creuset

So, I was in Atlanta for work and went to a demonstration kitchen at the convention center we were in.  After watching a cook use Le Creuset pots....one lucky person in the audience won a stew pot.  Well.....it was ME!!!  Very exciting...the pot retails around $200....crazy right!

I fully expected to blog about how it wasn't worth the money...however, I LOVE this pot.  It is basically a very well made cast iron pot that is coated.  It cooks very evenly and goes from stove top to oven.

I don't know that I would spend the money on it...but it was FREE!!!  If you happen to win one, buy one, or get one as a present.......you won't be disappointed.

Now....for my first cooking experiment in the pot....I made one of my favorite comfort foods.....a recipe passed down from my Mom.

French Beef Stew

2 lbs Tenderloin (Filet) we use what we cut off of the untrimmed Filet tenderloin from Costco

                  You can use London Broil for a cheaper version....but the Filet is my first choice for this.

1/4 Cup Oil

1 onion-Chopped

1 can Beef Broth

2 Bay Leaves

3Tbsp Tapioca (In the baking aisle)

32oz can Diced tomatoes

1 Tbsp Parsley

2 cloves garlic-minced

2 1/2 tsp Salt

5 stalks Celery, 5 Carrots and 3 large Potatoes (do not add in first part of cooking)

Preheat oven to 350

Brown tenderloin in oil in a pan that has a lid that can go into the oven. (Dutch oven)

Add all of the above ingredients except carrots, celery and potatoes....

Stir until well blended. Let simmer for about 10 minutes.

Bake in oven for 1 1/2 hours.

Then take out and add cubes of carrots, potatoes and celery. Cook for an additional 1 1/2 hours or until carrots and potatoes are tender.

Enjoy!  Great with some crusty Sourdough. My family has this for Christmas Eve dinner....and it just reminds me of home;-)

Cinnamon Roll Rice Krispie treats (5 ingredients)

I experiment with food a LOT, and every once in a while, I'll create something that makes me think 'Wow, that is awesome!'.  And, that's what happened this time with this recipe for Cinnamon Roll Rice Krispies.

It's one of those that is so easy and turned out so great, that I can't believe I didn't think about it before!  If you've been reading this blog, you know that I LOVE cinnamon rolls (drooling as I write about them), and Mary doesn't like Rice Krispie treats (I know...what is wrong with her?...Love ya, girl!).  Mary tried some 'gourmet' rice krispie treats earlier this year to try to see if she would find some that she likes.   Well, I think I created one that she will like, if not love!

I'm always trying to loose weight, and one of the ways that I can be successful at loosing weight is to find items that I like and make them into foods that have lower calories or fat.  What I've found in the past is that Rice Krispies can help curb your hunger for sweet treats and they are low fat! 

So, I've been craving cinnamon rolls lately, and had the idea that to make them into Rice Krispie treats will help satisfy that craving without all the calories and fat from an actual cinnamon roll.  And the results are Amazing!  In fact, the bad thing is that they taste so good, that I may not be able to stop with just one!  I've already had one to taste test... oh yeah...yummy!!

Here's the recipe for you to try out, and let me know what you think!

Ingredients:
3 Tablespoons of butter
1 - 10 oz bag of marshmallows
6 cups of Rice Krispies cereal
1 teaspoon of cinnamon
2 Tablespoons of Cream Cheese icing (add more if you want to be naughty)

Directions:
Melt the butter in a large pan

Add the marshmallows and stir to melt

Stir in the cinnamon when the marshmallows are almost completely melted

Stir in the cereal when the marshmallows are completely melted

Press into a 9x13 pan and add icing to the top.  
 

Tip:  Put the icing into a plastic sandwich bag and cut off the tip of one end, then use like a pastry bag to draw designs on your cinnamon rolls.

After they have cooled, Cut and enjoy!

Sweet Endings!
Dee