Tasty Tuesday + So Frikken Crafty #3 (finally)

Okay, so to make up for my epic makeup fail yesterday(you like how I did that? Make up for makeup. Lol.) I'm giving you two awesome things today! Woohoo for you!

Let's start off with today's recipe! I have been craving beef stew for a while now, ever since I saw a post on Bison soup over at Made By Girl. Now I've never tried Bison meat, and I doubt they even carry that on Guam so beef stew is the next best thing.

Please be advised that I have never made beef stew before. The last time I remember eating beef stew was a few years back, when I was back home in Hawaii. My parents are great cooks and my dad always comes up with great new recipes all the time. Btw, don't tell him I said that. I'm notoriously rebellious against him and I make it a point to disagree with him about everything. If he finds out that I actually like his cooking, I'll never be able to live that down.

Anyway, so I decided to look up a recipe online, tweak it a little, and try to whip up some beef stew for dinner later this week (possibly tonight). Here's the recipe I'll be using:

Serves: 12
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour, 30 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours
Ingredients:

3 lbs boneless chuck roast, cut into 2-inch pieces
3 tbsp vegetable oil
2 tsp salt
1 tbsp freshly ground pepper
2 yellow onions, cut into 1-inch chunks
1/4 cup flour
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup red wine
3 cups beef broth
1/2 tsp dried rosemary
1 bay leaf
1/2 tsp dried thyme
4 carrots, peeled, cut into 1-inch slices
2 stalks celery, cut into 1-inch slices
3 large russet potatoes, peeled and cut in eighths
1 package of fresh mushrooms, sliced


Directions:

1. On medium-high heat, add the vegetable oil to a large heavy pot (one that has a tight fitting lid).

2. When it begins to smoke slightly, add the beef and brown very well. Do in batches if necessary. Add the salt and pepper as the beef browns.

3. Once browned, remove the beef with a slotted spoon set aside.

4. Add the onions and sauté for about 5 minutes, until softened.

5. Reduce heat to medium-low, and add the flour and cook for 2 minutes stirring often.

6. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute.

7. Add wine and deglaze the pan, scraping any brown bits stuck to the bottom of the pan. The flour will start to thicken the wine as it comes to a simmer.

8. Simmer wine for 5 minutes, and then add the broth, bay leaves, thyme, rosemary, and the beef.

9. Bring back to a gentle simmer, cover and cook on very low for about 1 hour.

10. Add potatoes, carrots, and celery, and simmer covered for another 30 minutes or until the meat and vegetables are tender. Taste and adjust seasoning.

11. Turn off heat and let sit for 15 minutes before serving.

I'm a big hungry kinda girl so I love me some comfort food but I've also been going through a healthy-ish phase lately so the meat & veggies together is the best of both worlds. Plus, this recipe makes a whole lot of stew, so its perfect to store for a cold rainy day!



And now that your mouth is watering, let's get moving on to the third installment of So Frikken Crafty! Yay! Aren't you excited? Well I am - mostly because I had to put off so many ideas due to the lack of materials and supplies available to me here on this tiny island. :(

Anyway so this is a super simple way to add a little flair to an old pair of shorts or jeans (if you cut them into shorts like I did). I actually got this idea from Pinterest and they looked so amazing and cute that I just had to add this project to my "To-Done" board. Which I have yet to make. I'll do that now.

Here's what you'll need:

- Lace or crochet applique (If you've got an old lace table cover or a bunch of your grandma's old doilies, go ahead and use it!)

- Denim shorts

- Needle & Thread

And here's what you do with it:

1. Once you've figured out how much lace you'll be using, cut a triangle out each side of your shorts to fit the lace, using the seam as your center point. (If your shorts have a hem, cut that part off to get a frayed look when you wash it)

2. Now that you've got a huge slit on the side of your shorts, sew the lace on. Don't forget to do the other side too!

3. And lastly, add some extra flair by applying the extra lace onto the front and/or back pockets. (I cut another triangle piece out of one of the back pockets and added lace for a peek-a-boo effect)

Well I hope you all liked today's post as much as I did! Please comment below and let me know if you did or didn't! And don't forget to follow me on Pinterest too! Fyi, my name on Pinterest, as well as everything else is FrikkenDuckie. Have a terrific Tuesday everyone!