Thursday, November 4, 2010

Beef Stew

Beef stew in a total comfort food and a complete meal in a bowl.  I like to serve it with crusty bread (like the 24 Hour Bread from yesterday) or a simple side salad.  This recipe makes enough to serve a crowd and is so easy to make because it relies on a slow cooker to do all the work while you enjoy the results.

In the insert of your slow cooker, place:
3 celery stalks, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
1 large onion, diced
1 pound of potatoes, diced (I like to use red skin waxy potatoes because they stand up to the long cooking process without falling apart)
Add in 2 pounds of beef chuck, cubed

In a separate bowl mix:
1 c water
1 T kosher salt
1 t pepper
2 T worchetershire sauce
2 bay leaves
1 t dried thyme

Pour this mixture over the beef, cover, and turn the slow cooker to low for 10 - 12 hours (5 - 6 hours on high)
Half an hour before you want to serve the stew, mix together:
1/4 c water
2 T corn starch

Stir this mixture into the stew along with
1 c frozen peas
1 c fresh or frozen green beans, chopped

Cover again and allow the stew to thicken

This beef stew reheats remarkably well and makes enough that you can take it with you for lunch the next day!  Also, by using the slow cooker the stew is ready to eat when you are - in a busy house when different family members eat at different times, everyone gets a warm, fresh bowl.  Joyful Eating!

Wednesday, November 3, 2010

24 Hour Bread

I love the smell of bread baking in the oven! And really - who doesn't? But I don't love all of the kneading, rising, kneading some more, and mess it creates in my kitchen. I swear, when I make bread from scratch there is flour from one end of my kitchen to the other. The solution? This recipe for 24 hour bread. While it does take a little advance planning (about 24 hours, if you hadn't already guessed that) the recipe involves no kneading and minimal cleanup but yields one gorgeous loaf of artisan bread. Soft and chewy on the inside, golden brown and crusty on the outside.

I've adapted this recipe from Jim Lahey's No-Knead Bread recipe, published in the New York Times and available here.

24 Hour Bread
In a large bowl combine:
1 1/2 c whole wheat flour
1 1/2 c while flour
1 1/4 t kosher salt
1/4 t instant yeast
Stir in 1 5/8 c water

The dough will be very wet and sticky.
Cover with bowl with plastic wrap and set aside. Allow the dough to rise 18 hours. (I typically make the dough the evening before I want to eat the bread.)
This is what the dough will look like after resting for 18 hours.  The top will be bubbly and smell very yeasty.
Turn the dough out onto a floured towel and allow to rest for 15 minutes. After the dough has rested, form it into a ball using minimal flour.

Dust the towel with cornmeal and lay the ball of dough seam side down, then dust the top with cornmeal. Allow the dough the rest 2 hours, until it has doubled in size.

1 1/2 hours into the resting time, preheat your oven to 450 F.  Put your baking dish into the oven as it heats. The dish should be 6 - 8 quarts and have a lid.
When the dough is double its original size, turn it over seam side up into the preheated dish.  Cover and bake for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, remove the lid and continue to bake 20 minutes - or until the top of the loaf is golden brown.

Remove the loaf from your baking dish carefully and cool on a wire rack.








Enjoy this bread warm with butter or as a side dish to a hearty soup or stew.  Like the beef stew that I'll show you tomorrow!  Until then, Joyful Eating!

Tuesday, November 2, 2010

Pasta Primavera with Grilled Chicken


Pasta Primavera with Grilled Chicken is a quick week night meal that is simple to make and sticks to your ribs.  It's actually two dishes in one - the grilled chicken can partner with a wide variety of other sides and the pasta can be a side to many other proteins or stand alone as a vegetarian entree.

Grilled Chicken
In a ziploc bag combine:
1/4 cup olive oil
1 T balsamic vinegar
1 t kosher salt
1 t smoked paprika
1/2 t freshly ground black pepper

Add 1 pound of chicken breasts (the number the vary based on the size of the breasts, I'm using 3 in the photos) and marinate for 20 minutes.

As the chicken finishes marinating, heat a grill pan over medium heat and brush with vegetable oil to prevent sticking.  Grill the chicken for 7 - 8 minutes per side.  When the chicken is cooked all the way through, remove from the pan and tent with foil so that it remains warm until ready to serve.



Pasta Primavera
While the chicken marinates, prepare the vegetables for the pasta primavera:
1 large onion, diced
1 green bell pepper, cut into strips
1 red bell pepper, cut into strips
2 cloves of garlic, peeled
2 zucchini, sliced


Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and coat with olive oil.  When the oil is hot, grate in the garlic cloves, then add the diced onion.  When the onion is translucent, add the red and green bell peppers and cook until soft.

While waiting for the onions and peppers to soften, cook 1 pound of pasta according to package directions.
Add in the sliced zucchini as well as:
1 can chopped tomatoes with green chiles
1 c frozen corn
1/2 c frozen peas

Cook until heated through, then add the cooked pasta.  If the sauce seems dry, add some of the pasta cooking water 1/4 c at a time until the sauce is the right consistency.
To serve, make a bed of pasta on the plate and spoon on additional sauce.  Then slice one chicken breast and lay over the top of the pasta.







I'll be back tomorrow with 24 hour bread - and trust me, it's not nearly as difficult as the name implies!  Joyful Eating!

Monday, November 1, 2010

Welcome to my Kitchen

Hi Everyone!

Welcome to A Joyful Kitchen! The purpose of this blog is to inspire you to get into your kitchen and experiment with new recipes as well as document my adventures in the kitchen.

We'll get started tomorrow with my take on Pasta Primavera with Grilled Chicken.  Please feel free to email me at AJoyfulKitchen@gmail.com or leave a comment below if you have any questions or suggestions!