Carne Guisada - Love in a Bowl or a Taco, Your Choice

Dear Lauren,

This Carne Guisada is better than homemade. I call it Williemade. You can call it Dadmade. I really hope this recipe will duplicate what he made today. He just cooks and he never really follows a recipe unless he's baking. I've tried to write up his recipes before and sometimes some of the magic is missing. He assures me he's given me all the magic this time!

Carne Guisada
by Willie

2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
2 1/2 pounds top round roast, cut into 1-inch pieces
4 cups beef broth made with Better than Bouillon*
1 Tablespoon garlic powder
1 Tablespoon ground cumin
1 Tablespoon Penzey's Crushed Jalapeno Peppers*
1 Tablespoon freshly ground black pepper
1 can diced tomatoes, with liquid
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 sweet white or yellow onion, finely chopped
1 green bell pepper, finely chopped

flour tortillas
cooked white rice
guacamole
pico de gallo

Brown meat in 2 Tablespoons vegetable oil in a skillet over medium-high heat to sear. Place meat in a slow cooker along with bouillon, garlic powder, cumin, crushed jalapeno peppers, black pepper and can of tomatoes. Cook on high for 4-6 hours or until the meat is tender. 

Heat oil in a heavy skillet or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add flour and stir constantly for 8-10 minutes until dark brown, but not burned. Add onion and green bell pepper and stir until the onion is soft or translucent. Add mixture to the slow cooker. Cook for an additional 2 hours on high heat. 

Serve meat in tacos or serve the meat and broth in a bowl over rice. Garnish with guacamole and pico de gallo.

*You can substitute products other than those named here, but it won't be the same. Just sayin'.

Love,


P.S. I ate this on a cold day and it warmed me to my core.

Pho

Dear Lauren,

I saw Nick Nolte's mug shot in my mirror this morning. When I spilled coffee on my shirt a few minutes later, I thought my look was complete.

Spicy Vegetable Stew

Dear Lauren,

You know when you have a recipe that says add 1/2 cup of onion and a cup of squash.

I don't do that.

If the recipe calls for say, a cup of chopped onion, I just chop one onion and throw it in there! It always works out for me.

I just don't like having half an onion in the fridge.

It gets a little smelly.

You know what else I do?

Mise en place. It means

Love + Dad's Gumbo + Cornbread Madeleines with No Madeleine Pan

Dear Lauren,

When Dad makes gumbo it's pretty entertaining to watch him make the roux. I know it looks like he's dancing but he's actually wearing wireless earphones for the t.v. and listening to a show about a dog who guided police and later fire trucks to a remotely located house that was on fire in the middle of the night. Still, he moves all around and I can't get a clear photo of him!

Do you know what he did yesterday?

Do you know what yesterday was?

It was our Love-iversary.

Mushroom-Studded Tortilla Soup with Chipotle Chiles & Goat Cheese

Dear Lauren,

Here's a couple of my favorite things about Dad.

1) When we go to sleep at night and there's a huge thunderstorm, he doesn't mind if I leave the shades open so I can watch the lightning. Even though he has a hard time sleeping when there's any light.

2) He tells me what he really thinks about what I cook. So if he says he really loves it, he does.

I have to say this soup is not one I made thinking of Dad. I was actually thinking of you. But he loved it. Thought it was amazing. I did too.

This is not the soup. :-)

Naked Tomatoes

Dear Lauren,

This soup is a great way to use up your tomatoes from the garden and day-old bread. You could also add any leftover vegetables you might need to use up. I know some people don't like soup in the summer. I am not one of those people! But if you are, this would make a great base for a minestrone soup in the fall and winter. You could use canned tomatoes, no problem!

Making Chicken Stock While Half Asleep

Dear Lauren,

Always remember this: don't wait til late in the day to make homemade stock unless you're going to do it in the crock pot. It takes about 5 hours on the stove and what sounds like a good idea at 8 at night will not sound as great at midnight when you're really tired but are determined to see the thing through.