Crockpot Beef and Noodles

So lately I've been trying to search for some really delicious crockpot meals.  I only have a few that I make pretty regularly but would love to use my crockpot more often.  Dont' you just love it when the crockpot cooks supper??  Well, I DO!!  The trouble I seem to have is that so many of the recipes call for Cream of Mushroom soup- YUCK!   After lots of reading in cookbooks and online, I've found a few that I want to try over the coming weeks.  Here's the latest- CROCKPOT BEEF AND NOODLES.  I'll be honest - I've never made beef and noodles before but my hubby and I love chicken and noodles so I thought this would be a nice alternative.  Some of the recipes I found seemed rather bland and I wanted the beef to have some flavor.  After lots of searching and reviewing lots of recipes, here's what I came up with.  I think this dish turned out so delicious and I know I'll be making this again and again.  A recipe perfect for those cold winter days!  I hope you enjoy this one!!

 This is soooooo simple!!!!!  Have you ever used the crockpot liners???  They are fabulous!!!

 Place stew meat in crockpot and cover with 2 cans beef broth and 2 cups water.  I realize it looks like a lot of liquid.  Don't worry!!  You will need all that liquid later on to cook the noodles!!

 Add in minced garlic, onion powder, salt, pepper, and Italian seasoning.  Cover and cook on HIGH for 4 hours or LOW for 8 hours.

 For the last 30-45 minutes of cooking, add in a 16 oz. pkg. of egg noodles. 

                                     
 Cook until noodles are tender and most of the liquid has been absorbed. 

 Serve immediately!

 Enjoy!!

Crockpot Beef and Noodles

2 lbs. stew meat

2 (14.5 oz.)cans beef broth

2 cups water

1 1/2 T. Italian seasoning

1 T. minced garlic

1/2 t. onion powder

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. pepper

16 oz. pkg. egg noodles (goes in the crockpot the last 30-45 minutes)

Place stew meat in crockpot and cover with beef broth and water.  Add in Italian seasoning, garlic, onion powder, salt, and pepper.  Cook on HIGH for 4 hours or on LOW for 8 hours.  During last 30-45 minutes of cooking, add in egg noodles.

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Easy Beef Stroganoff

Tonight, we had Beef Stroganoff for dinner.  My hubby loves the Hamburger Helper version of this but me- not so much.  I found a recipe a few years back on All Recipes but I've tweaked it a little over time.  I will say that tonight I reduced the sour cream significantly because I wanted my 13 month old daughter to be able to enjoy it with us.  It wasn't as rich and creamy as it usually is. So next time, I'll dish out her serving before I add all of the sour cream!  Live and learn!

 Originally, this recipe called for freshly chopped onion but I prefer to use the frozen seasoning blend.  It has onions, celery, peppers, and parsley!  It's great for chili, spaghetti, tacos, etc!!  I always have this in my freezer!!!  There's nothing worse than chopping onions!!

 Here's a closeup of that frozen seasoning blend!

 Start by sauteing the seasoning blend with about a tbsp of EVOO.  (about 3-5 minutes)  You'll want to put a small pot of water on to boil.  This dish is served with egg noodles!

 Then add in a pound of ground beef.  I used lean ground beef.  Drain off the liquid and then stir in the bouillon, garlic powder, salt, pepper.

 Then add the mushrooms!  I ended up using my spatula to roughly chop these.

 Continue to cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes or until mushrooms are heated through. 

 Remove from heat (very important)!  Then add sour cream and stir.  Remember, I only used half the amount this time.

Stir in the egg noodles!

 Dinner is served!!

Easy Beef Stroganoff

1 lb. ground beef

1/2 tsp. garlic powder

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2tsp. pepper

1 t. beef bouillon granules

2/3 c. onion (I used a frozen seasoning blend.)

8 oz. fresh mushrooms, sliced

1 pint (2 cups) sour cream

1 1/2 c. egg noodles cooked and drained

In a large skillet, saute onion blend in about a TBSP of olive oil over medium heat for about 3-5 minutes.  Add ground beef.  When meat is browned, drain excess fat from skillet.  Add garlic powder, salt, pepper, bouillon and stir in.  Add mushrooms and cook an additional 5-7 minutes or until mushrooms are heated through.  Remove from heat (very important) and add sour cream.  Stir in cooked egg noodles.