Summer is Repeat Season - Part 2

Back to the Crock

Yes, Ladies and Gents, we’re back to the crock pot this week. Frankly, I was hoping by now that the weather would be warm enough that I didn’t look forward to something hot and comforting. But as those of you who are with me here in the Pacific Northwest know, it’s been a dismal Spring. The first day of Summer was gorgeous and warm, but it’s been drizzly and rainy ever since.

But enough about the weather.

Dinner this week was a repeat of one of our first endeavours, Beef Carnitas.

And since I didn’t actually put the whole recipe down last time, here it is.

Beef Carnitas
From the PreventionGuide Slow Cooker Recipe Book

2lb lean beef stew meat, cut into ½ inch pieces
¾ cup mild salsa
2 tbsp chopped chipotle peppers in adobo
½ tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground black pepper
1 cup beef broth or water

Combine all ingredients in large slow cooker. Cover. Cook on low 6-8 hours.
Serve with warm tortillas, sliced avocado, shredded cheese and chopped onion.
Yield – 6 servings

So I went back to the last time I mentioned this recipe and noticed that I mentioned something about adding cumin and chili powder. If I did that last time, it was my idea, because this recipe doesn’t have those things in it. But it certainly wouldn’t hurt it any. It would give the flavors some nice depth and a little smokiness. So by all means, if you try this, experiment with a little of each.

Now, since we’re doing Weight Watchers and tortillas can cost you some serious points, we decided to do Carnitas Bowls. Some brown rice instead of a tortilla, some diced avocado tossed in lime juice, salt and pepper, some fat free shredded cheddar, fat free sour cream and a little taco sauce and chopped green onion later, we were very happy with our bowls of colorful, tasty goodness!

I would, of course, never make this with water. Use broth. You will thank yourself for the added richness.
I also added some extra chipotle because I love the flavor. It’s easy to overdo it, though, so be careful!

This recipe was from the book that got us started on this crock pot rollercoaster ride. And this week of carnitas reminded me why we kept going. The recipes we’d tried were bursting with deliciousness!

There are still several I want to try from this book, like the Turkey, Sweet Potato & Cranberry Stew, but they’ll have to wait until later. I just can’t face a recipe like that in the summer. If we ever get summer, that is. Until we do, I don’t want to tempt fate by making an autumnal meal.

The Moroccan Spiced Beef, however, is something I am willing to take a chance on now! Lots of chopping for that, though, so it may have to wait until I have a less busy weekend!

Thanks for reading, everyone! Happy Pride Weekend!!
See you next Friday!