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Tuesday, May 05, 2009

Comfort Food

It’s May, my rhododendrons, azaleas, and hydrangeas are starting to come. So why is it raining!!?? You know the old saying, April showers bring May flowers. But it’s not supposed to bring rain in sunny California. So it’s cold and damp, and that inspires me to bring out my Crockpot and make some delicious comfort food. My mom made some great stuff in the slow cooker, filling the house with all these wonderful scents. A couple of weeks ago, her church had a huge book sale, and if you went after two in the afternoon, you could fill up a shopping bag with books for $5. I got all the slow cooker cooking books! Plus some Lisa Kleypas, Mary Balogh, Tami Hoag, JD Robb. Anyway, there was a wonderful recipe for beef stew, very simple but it sounded so tasty. So I think I’ll make that. I love the Crockpot because you buy really cheap meat and make a great meal. Mmmm, some of my other favorite, beef bourguignon, stroganoff, Norwegian meatballs (my hubby’s Norwegian and he loves these), Asian short ribs, my mother’s chili simmered all day long. Ooh, I’m getting hungry already. And it makes the gloom of the rain fade away.

What’s your favorite comfort food? And if you’ve got a favorite Crockpot dish, I’d love to hear about that, too.

Hmm, Josie, my heroine in Fair Game, wouldn’t have time for the Crockpot. She’s too much the career-minded woman. Oh well. She doesn’t know what she’s missing!

Post a comment and I’ll enter you in the drawing (you must type in your email address to actually be entered) for an autographed copy of my book Somebody’s Lover. I have to admit this is one of my very favorites, always makes me cry. I’ll also add you to my newsletter for updates on all the fun stuff and releases, too. And be to sure visit my Jasmine blog for more contests.

Jasmine, Jennifer and JB!
http://www.skullybuzz.com/
http://jasminehaynes.blogspot.com/
Newsletter: skullybuzz-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

21 comments:

Jennifer Skully/Jasmine Haynes said...

Good morning, everyone!

housemouse88 said...

Hello Jasmine,

I have to say my favorite recipe for my crockpot is the standard roast, potatoes, carrots, and onions. I do mine a little different because I add canned mushrooms. We love our mushrooms. I use them in just about everything. Please enter me in the contest.

house_mouse88 at yahoo dot com

Have a great day.

Terry S said...

I've been told the politically correct term now slow cooker :-) My favorite is a variation for sausage and beans to serve over rice and only takes about four hours in the crockpot.

2 cans White Beans
1 can tomatoes with onions, bell peppers and garlic
1 can chile peppers (spicy level to meet your own taste preferences
1 package hot/spicy turkey sausage

That's it except maybe tabasco if it still isn't hot enough for you. And for anyone who doesn't like to spicy, go mild on everything...the rice will make it even more mild.

I already have "Somebody's Lover" so you can leave me out of the contest. I really enjoyed it!

Caroline said...

Hi Jasmine - my all time favourite crockpot recipe is chicken casserole. You can't go wrong with a good 'ole fashioned chicken casserole!

Would love to be entered for your draw - email is storercaroline45[at]yahoo[dot]com

Thanks very much! Take care. Caroline x

Unknown said...

Hello Jasmine,

My favorite crockpot/slowcooker recipe is my mom's stew. She puts beef, potatoes, carrots, onions, tomatoes, peas, corn, green beans, and sometimes lima beans. It's really good :)

I don't have a copy of Somebody's Lover, so I'd love to get a chance.

jaam121388 at yahoo dot com

robynl said...

I love a roast beef done in the crock pot with potatoes cut up in quarters, carrots sliced, onions in half or quarters. I shake a Beef spice on the roast and cook this for app. 7 hrs. The meat just falls apart.
With the left overs I pull the meat apart with a fork, put it in a fry pan to heat with lots of BBQ sauce mixed in. We then eat this on buns (BBQ Beef Buns).
Please enter me; yourstrulee at sasktel dot net

Jennifer Skully/Jasmine Haynes said...

Roberta, I would have added the mushrooms if I'd had a can. Because you're right, they're great in everytihng!

It's like Kleenex, Terry! The brand name is Crockpot, but the real name is slow cooker. And that recipe sounds wonderful! thank you so much. And I'm so glad you enjoyed Somebody's Lover.

I'll check the recipe books for Chicken Casserole, Caroline. Thanks for the recommendation.

Your mom's stew sounds great, too, Ash. She puts everything in there. That's what is so great about the slow cooker.

The roast beef sounds yummy, Robyn! And it does double duty with BBQ!

And you're all entered (except Terry who has SL), thanks for posting!

Estella said...

I don't have a favorite comfort food, but I do like a good crockpot stew.

kissinoak@verizon.net

Helen said...

Hi Jasmine

Well here in Australia the weather is cooling down and I love stews and soups with crunchy bread rolls in winter I don't have a slow cooker but I love making vegetable soup in the cooler months warms us up and is filling.
One of my daughters bought a slow cooker last week and made a really nice lamb stew with lamb pieces and lots of vegies.

rsibbrit@bigpond.net.au
Have Fun
Helen

Unknown said...

Hello Jasmine. I wanted to stop in and give you my favorite crock pot recipe.
I make pulled pork in my crock pot and it is wonderful and very easy.
I put a pork butt and then mix a package of mccormicks pulled pork seasoning and throw it on top of it. Makes some wonderful bbq.

Dont enter me in the contest for Somebody's Lover for I alread have it and it is 1 of my all time favorite books. Good luck to whoever wins it, you will LOVE it.

Jennifer Skully/Jasmine Haynes said...

Yep, Estella, a good crockpot stew does it every time. Yum

And Helen, the lamb stew sounds wonderful. Unfortunately my husband hates lamb. My mother once made BBQ lamb ribs and told him they were pork. He ate them. When she asked him if he liked the ribs, he said that the sauce was very good, but he could do without the lamb. Hah, he didn't fall for her trick. So I'll make the lamb stew for my mom!

Jennifer Skully/Jasmine Haynes said...

Sara, you slipped in while I was typing up my comment! The pulled pork sounds delicious. I'm going to have to try that one, too. And it sounds so easy. Thanks also for your kind words about Somebody's Lover!

Jane said...

Hi Jasmine,
I love Korean short ribs, too. My favorite comfort food is fried noodles. It's my dad's specialty and I always have him make it for me.

janie1215 AT excite.com

Unknown said...

Oh yes, I forgot to say that I'm so jealous you got to fill up a bag with books from great authors, all for $5!

Jennifer Skully/Jasmine Haynes said...

I wonder if the Korean short ribs are like the asian short ribs I've made. Very delicious. And fried noodles, they sound yummy, too.

My mother was a bit miffed, Ash, because last year, it was only a dollar to fill the bag with books! But I thought it was well worth the $5. And my brother got some in the bag, too. All in all, it was a haul!

Pat Cochran said...

I love my slow cooker and my
microwave! I once cooked our
Thanksgiving turkey in my microwave
oven( it was an earlier, larger version of that oven!) I love doing
soups, stews and chilies in the slow
cooker. I won a trophy at our
parish cook-off with my chili a
couple of years ago.

Pat Cochran

Unknown said...

It most certainly is worth it :) I should look around and see if there's a place around here doing that...

Oh man, everyone is talking about various Asian food and it's making me hungry! I love Asian food! I love my best friend's mom's eggrolls and dumplings (they're Vietnamese). Two of my friend's parents own restaurants, and I love eating at both places. One's a Vietnamese restaurant, and the other has food from China, Korea, and Japan.

macbeaner said...

Favorite comfort food? Chocolate

Crock pot? I usually only crockpot roasts....

Pam P said...

Hi Jasmine. I love stew in winter when it's cold, warms your insides, and cooks well in a crockpot.

Comfort food for me is ziti and meatballs, I'll just reheat day after day until it's gone. But my real comfort food is sweets, preferably chocolate.

Jennifer Skully/Jasmine Haynes said...

OMG, Pat, how was the turkey in the microwave!? And congratulations on that trophy for your chili!

Mmmm, all the things you mention are making me hungry, too, Ash! I think I'm going to have to make those Asian short ribs soon!

And Macbeaner and Pam, chocolate is such a great comfort, too. I love the dark stuff.

Thanks all for the great suggestions for the crockpot! Now I'm off to drawer the winner for Somebody's Lover!

Jennifer Skully/Jasmine Haynes said...

And the winner is Helen from Australia!!! Congratulations, Helen, I'll be emailing you for your address.

Thanks everyone!