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I am a Honey Bee

All about my adventures with cooking, crafts, and travel

dijon mustard

Beef and Mushroom Hot Pot

I love my slow cooker. It has been there to pull me out of some tough weeks when I don’t have the time to cook but don’t want to get take out. I realized that I was neglecting it this year so I pulled out the Semi-Homemade Slow Cooker Recipes 2 and went right to a recipe I had bookmarked for a while now. I was always drawn to it because it was affordable, quick, and flavorful… sign me up!

 

I really enjoyed this slow cooker meal. I know I’ll make it again because it was so flavorful and was so simple. I made some changes to the recipe to suit out palate and what we had on hand. For example, since we always have carrots around I used fresh instead of the frozen as specified. My advice for the recipe to come out well is use low-sodium beef broth and to not cook it for too long.  The broth concentrates so it would be way too salty if you use regular broth. Because of my schedule I actually had to cook it for 10 hours. I wish I could simply tell work I need to leave early to manage me slow cooker… imagine! ha! The rice was a bit gummy/mushy at the bottom. It didn’t ruin the meal at all but just something I noticed comparing the rice at the top verse the rice at the bottom.

 

Beef and Mushroom Hot Pot

Serves 6

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
  • 2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
  • 2 pounds stew meat, cut into small pieces
  • 1 pound of mushrooms, sliced (2 80z packages)
  • 4 carrots, cleaned and sliced into 1/4″ thick rounds
  • 1 box (6 oz) of wild rice blend
  • 2 14 oz cans of low sodium beef broth
  • 1 tablespoon ground black pepper

Process

  1. In a small bowl combine the Dijon mustard and Worcestershire sauce. Mix together well and set aside.
  2. In a 5-6 quart slow cooker, combine all of the ingredients together.
  3. Set slow cooker for 6-8 hours.
  4. Mix halfway through, if the mixtures looks like it is drying out or too soft in areas.
  5. Enjoy!
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Quinoa and Brussels Sprouts Salad

Quinoa and Brussels Sprouts Salad is the perfect side for grilled hot dogs, steak, or chicken. It’s flavorful and pairs well with everything. Yum!

Post from 3/29/12, Pictures Updated 10/8/18

Post Contains Affiliate Links. Read my full disclosure HERE

I am going to be one of those people who argue the amazingness that is the brussels sprout. It can be raw in a slaw or cooked and eaten by the bowl full. You can saute it, bake it, or roast it. I don’t remember if I grew up hating them (mom?), but I can tel you now that I love them. I really think that if you hated them growing up you should give them a try again. You rock if you already love  Brussels sprouts as much as me.

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California Chicken Salad

I personally think that chicken salad is a a great example of a perfect food. Smooth yet crunchy. Salty yet sweet. Lean and yet fattening as well. The textures and flavors made great for a great combination. You have diced crunchy veggies,crunchy walnuts, and crisp grapes tossed together with moist chicken. If that was not enough all of that is held together with a creamy mayo.

 

 

I really love Waldorf Chicken Salad but the apples throw me off for some reason.  my favorite chicken salad is from Whole Foods. I love their Sonoma Chicken Salad, but my wallet doesn’t since it can add up quickly. I often think that the best way to get what you want is to combine favorites, like my donut muffins, which is exactly what I do here.

 

 

I have some rules when it comes to making chicken salad.

1- I always use a roasted chicken because the skin helps keep the chicken moist. If I take the time to make a roasted chicken at home I always make 2 so that 1 can go towards chicken salad. Or if you happen to find a roasted chicken on sale, like I did, then use one of those.

2- Shred the chicken. I think that this makes you much more careful about having consistently sized ingredients. If you chop up the chicken breast you can make the pieces too large and that is too awkward for a successful sandwich.

3- I always use Helman’s mayonnaise. Always.

California Chicken Salad

Makes 6-8 servings

Ingredients

  • 1 small roasted chicken
  • 1 cup of pecans, finely chopped
  • 1 cup of celery, minced
  • 1 medium onion, minced
  • 2 cups red grapes, halved
  • 1 cup mayonnaise
  • 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
  • salt and pepper

Process

  1. Once the chicken has completely cooled, remove the skin and set aside the pieces of meat. Shred the chicken by hand.
  2. Combine together the chopped pecans, celery, onion and grapes. Lightly combine.
  3. Add the mayo, mustard, and salt and pepper to the mixture. Combine so the chicken salad is evenly coated.
  4. Eat as a sandwich or with a salad.