Pot Roast (That I Actually Like)

Today I made pot roast for the first time in my life. I always hated it growing up, but I needed a quick and easy meal and Paula Deen made it look good, so Ben and I went to the grocery store this morning to get a chuck roast. Here's how I made it:

Paula Deen's Pot Roast
1 (3 to 4-pound) boneless chuck roast
salt
pepper
garlic powder
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup thinly sliced onion wedges
3 cloves garlic, crushed
2 bay leaves
1 (10 3/4-ounce) can Healthy Request cream of mushroom soup
1/4 cup red wine
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon beef bouillon granules
3/4 cup water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Sprinkle both sides of the chuck roast with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Heat oil in a large skillet and brown the roast, searing it on both sides. Place the meat in a roaster pan. Add onions and garlic to skillet for 1 to 2 minutes to absorb leftover roast juice. Place into roaster pan with meat and bay leaves.

Combine the mushroom soup, wine, Worcestershire sauce and beef bouillon into a bowl. Pour over the roast. Add water.

Cover pan with foil and bake for 3 to 3 1/2 hours or until tender.

Remove and discard the bay leaves. Transfer meat to serving dish and spoon gravy over top.


The pot roast was delicious. Brian said it was "restaurant quality" and suggested we serve it to company. Then he started flipping through the Meijer ad to see if chuck roast was on sale this week so we can have it again.

If pot roast had tasted like this when I was a kid, I would have eaten it!

Christmas Jello

Lately, we've really been enjoying a family recipe for jello salad that we normally only make at Christmas time. But it is so good that we want to keep eating it!

Christmas Jello

Can of Crushed Pineapple
2 boxes of Cranberry Jello (or 1 Cran and 1 Raspberry)
Can of Whole Cranberry Sauce
Carton of Cool Whip, thawed
3 oz. of Cream Cheese, softened

Drain pineapple into a glass measuring cup. Add water to make 1 cup. Microwave to boiling. Combine with jello packets in a mixing bowl. Stir 2 minutes or until dissolved. Then add 1 cup cold water. Stir in pineapple and cranberry sauce. Pour into 9 x 13 dish and let set in refrigerator for about four hours. When set, combine softened cream cheese and thawed cool whip. Use this to frost the jello and let set another hour or two before serving.

Jack likes to lick the beaters for the frosting. Here's a picture from the day before Ben arrived when I made the jello for Christmas Eve. (We have a rule that Jack can lick the spoon or beaters only if he is sitting on his blue chair in the kitchen -- otherwise, he wanders around the house leaving frosting everywhere.)

Easiest Omelette EVER

Tonight we were watching Paula Deen and I just happened to be planning breakfast for dinner. Paula, likewise, was making breakfast and she showed how to make the easiest omelette ever. I decided that rather than just making scrambled eggs to go with our french toast and fruit compote like I had planned, I would try the omelettes instead.

Here's the recipe:

EASY Omelettes
6 large eggs
salt
pepper
add-ins of your choosing
2-3 resealable plastic bags

Bring a large pot of water to boil. Whisk eggs with salt and pepper. Add mix-ins, such as peppers, ham or cheese. Put a ziploc bag in a liquid one-cup measuring cup and fold sides out. Pour a portion of the egg mixture into the bag. Remove air from bag and seal. Repeat for remaining bags. Drop bags into boiling water. Cook 8-10 minutes, turning bag occasionally. When done, slide out of bag onto plate. Top with a little cheese or other garnish.

Yes, it was that easy. And it really works!