Leftover Tri-tip Stew

     I had leftovers of that delicious tri-tip that I made and I thought that a stew sounded good with all of this cold weather that we have had.  It was very flavorful and I thought that I would share the recipe with you.  Even though it has a lot of vegetables in it, my husband still thought that it was really good.  Write it on the record books!

Tri-tip Stew:

Leftover tri-tip (cut into bite sized pieces)
2 potatoes ( diced)
1 large carrot ( diced)
1/2 head of cabbage (diced)
1 t parsley
1/4 t pepper

Place the tri-tip & cut up veggies in the same Dutch oven that you cooked the tri-tip in the night before.  The juices from the night before should remain in the Dutch oven as well.  Season with parsley & pepper.  Add just enough water to cover the meat & veggies.  Bring to a boil on the stove and turn the heat down to a simmer.  Cook until the veggies are soft.  (About 20 minutes). Ladle into bowls and serve with bread.

Tasty Tri-tip

     My neighbor butchered one of his cows recently and gave our family some meat.  Last night for dinner I made a tri-tip.  I think the best way to cook a tri-tip is to grill it but because of all of the snow, I decided against that.  I ended up using the oven and it turned out wonderful.

Tri-tip:

1 t garlic salt
1/2 t dry minced onion
1/4 t pepper
1/2 t salt
1/2 t sage
1/2 t parsley
1 tri-tip
1 c water

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.  While the oven is preheating, mix together all of the seasonings in a small bowl.  Rub generously all over the meat.  Place the meat on the counter and let it sit for 1-2 hours.  Put the meat in a Dutch oven and pour in the water.  Cover with the lid and bake in the oven for 45-50 minutes.   Slice the meat and place it back in the juices until ready to serve.

Trailer Trash

     Early on in my marriage, my husband and I lived in a travel trailer for two and a half years.  It was one of the most challenging times in both of our lives.  The close quarters were almost suffocating at times.

     One night we were having an argument.  (This is rare for us because we usually get along great.)  To get to our bed we had to climb a small ladder.  Our bed was close to the ceiling.  In fact, neither one of us could sit up in bed or our heads would smack the ceiling.  We continued to bicker as we got into bed.  I was so irritated that I rolled over away from my husband and when I did that my elbow whacked the ceiling.  It hurt so bad!  There was about five minutes of silence and my husband rolled over and whispered, "Trailer trash" into my ear.  We both started laughing until our sides hurt.  I don't  remember what we argued about that night but I will always remember the laughter that came after.

     The moral of the story is:  Try and find humor in every situation.  It just might make you feel better.

Blackberry Pie

     I thought that I would give you my favorite dessert recipe EVER!  I have always loved blackberries.  I have fond memories of picking blackberries in the summer at my childhood home.  I ate more than I put in the bucket.  They were so big, juicy and sweet.  I just couldn't resist popping them into my mouth.  If you have access to blackberries, you must make this right away.

Blackberry Pie:

1c sour cream
3/4 c sugar
3 T flour
1/8 t cinnamon
1/8 t salt
3 c blackberries
1 unbaked pie pastry

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.   Bake pie pastry for 12 minutes & set aside to cool.  Reduce oven to 350 degrees.  In a bowl mix sour cream, sugar, flour, cinnamon and salt.  Gently stir in blackberries.  Spoon mixture into pie crust.  Bake 50 minutes covered with foil.  Remove foil & bake 20 more minutes.  Cool & refrigerate before serving.

Maple Snow

     This morning, I woke up to lots of snow on the ground.  I love it when it snows!  It makes me so happy!!!  A fun idea with children young and old is to make Maple Snow.  You can't over think this process because it can gross you out to think about the dirty air that makes up snow.  I figure you only live once and "God made dirt, so dirt don't hurt."

Maple Snow:
1 large bowl of clean snow
maple syrup

Drizzle the snow with desired amount of syrup.  Enjoy!

Embarrassing Football Moment

     Back in the early 90's, I was in Anaheim, California.  I was staying at a hotel babysitting for some people who had conferences to go to. I watched their three children during the day while they were in meetings.  There was a lot of excitement in the hotel because the Seattle Seahawks were staying on the ninth floor.  One sunny afternoon, the children and I were in the elevator on our way to the swimming pool.  There were two large men in the elevator with us and one of them pushed the button for the ninth floor.  I stupidly said, "Did you know that the Seattle Seahawks are staying on that floor?"  The two men chuckled and one of them said, "Yes, we play for the team."  My face turned five shades of red and I said, "Oh."  The men continued to chuckle as they got off on the ninth floor.  That was the longest elevator ride of my life!

     The moral of the story is:  Don't say anything if you are ever in an elevator with famous people.

Tasty Apple Salad

     Sometimes I feel like eating a salad.  I don't always feel this way, but when I do I want something that I can whip up fast.  This is a salad that I make often.  I ate it at my friend Julie's house several years ago and it has become a family favorite.

Tasty Apple Salad:

2 heads romaine lettuce (torn)
1 gala apple (diced)
2 carrots (shredded)
1 bunch of parsley (chopped)
1/2 c walnuts (chopped)

In a large bowl mix up all of the ingredients.  Toss to combine & serve with Ranch dressing.