stuffed peppers

ingredients:
32 oz organic beef broth
6 large sweet peppers (all colors), tops removed, cleaned
2 lbs free range ground beef
4 cloves crushed garlic
1/2 red onion, chopped

instructions:
1. add broth to crock pot, arrange peppers "standing up," ladle some broth into each pepper, cover, and turn on high.

2. heat olive oil on medium-high heat, saute garlic and onions

3. brown the beef, along with the onions/garlic

4. fill each pepper with the hot beef/onion/garlic mixture. baste with broth. cover and continue to cook on high.

5. bast with broth 1-2 times per hour, for 3-4 hours.

6. serve and enjoy :)

soupy beef stew

i enjoy making soups quite a bit (and will try to do better at sharing those recipes here)! as for my beef "stew," the ingredients are all stew, but i have yet to deal with thickening the broth, and hence it ends up a bit soupy!

CROCK POT version.

ingredients:
32 ounces of beef broth
2 lbs stewing beef (browned, if you prefer - i don't bother)
6 parsnips, peeled and cubed
6 turnips, peeled and cubed
2 cups of carrots (peeled and cubed)

instructions:
1. place broth, beef, and vegetables into the crock pot on "high"

2. once at a boil, allow to boil for 30 minutes

3. reduce to "low" for an hour or two

*usually takes 4-5 hours total. i suppose you could leave it on low all day while you go to work so that you have an instant dinner when you return home, but i have yet to verify that!

*vatiations:
a. add (cooked) noodles (brown rice noodles are gluten free) at the end.
b. add a cooked grain (millet, brown rice, quinoa)

mini beef sliders

while dining at cafe muse a few weeks ago, i enjoyed two excellent free range, organic beef sliders: one with grilled balsamic onions and gruyere cheese, the other with exotic mushrooms and boursin cheese. this inspired me to make some at home, though i didn't take the pains to add mushrooms or onions, and i settled for munster cheeses. ingredients:
1 pound ground free range beef
1 tsp freshly ground pepper
2 tsp freshly ground garlic
6 slices munster cheese (any cheese) - fold or break to fit small burgers
6 whole grain dinner rolls (or other roll of choice)

instructions:
1. fire up the grill to medium heat
2. mix beef, pepper, and garlic in medium-sized mixing bowl
3. divide mixture into 6 equal parts
4. form into small patties
5. grill on lowest rack until desired doneness is reached
6. add 1 slice of cheese to each burger, and place halved rolls on top rack of grill. for a propane grill, kill the flame and close lid for several minutes
7. place on dinner rolls, and serve!!!

i recommend two sliders per person :-) i actually kept two burgers for later (did not add the cheese). i microwaved them at work and added cheese - made for great leftovers!!