I'm still having fun with my new crock pot I got for Christmas. I made beef stew last week and it was sooo good! I took a combination of a crock pot recipe/ the recipe on the back of the beef stew seasoning packet.

Here's my recipe for beef stew for 2:

• 3 cups of water
• 1 can of tomato paste
• 1-2 lbs of beef stew meat
• 2 medium potatoes diced
• 5-6 small/medium carrots sliced
• 1 medium onion sliced
• 2 teaspoons of salt
• 1/4 teaspoon of pepper
• 3 tablespoons of Worchestershire sauce
• 2 tablespoons of brown sugar
• 3 tablespoons of Flour
• Few shakes of Goya Adobe all purpose seasoning. (Red Lid)

Put all the ingredients into the crock pot, stir. (You may need to whisk the flour into the sauce). Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.

This was sooo good! The beef was so tender and the tomato paste really made a thick hearty gravy. It was perfect because the evening we had this it was only 29 degrees out. Enjoy! I know I'll be making this again sometime soon!

Happy New Year Everyone! Unfortunately I'm ending 2011 and starting 2012, with a yucky chest & head cold. I'm getting better, slowly.

F.B. & I will just be celebrating New Years quielty at home this evening. We'll have some cheese, crackers, pepperoni & Martinelli's sparkling cider at midnight! And watch the ball drop in New York on TV. New Years Day, I'll be cooking ham & sweet potatoes. And we'll get to try our chocolate chip panettone cake.

Christmas Picture of us both:


I ordered some more goodies. I ordered another one of these chairs from Walmart, because I absolutely love it and I want a matching set. The chair itself is really comfortable and even cuter in person!

Arista Arm Chair- Black and White Floral (Walmart)

Royal Opulence Satin Sheet Set: Zebra (Walmart)

Oh and I got the best deal on a 4 cup Pyrex meauring cup from Big Lot's last week! $6! (No more baking disasters now, yay! Lol!)

My husband thinks I'm crazy because I never take off my wedding band. I have a very slim 3mm titanium wedding band. I also have a "blingy" part of my wedding ring that I do take off when I come home. But the wedding band itself, never comes off.

I occasionally remove my wedding band to apply lotion. But I sleep with it, shower with it. It never comes off. (It never tarnishes either because titanium doesn't! hehe!) My husband takes his wedding band off to shower & sleep. But, I'm always afraid I would forget to put it back on if I did that, lol! I mean occasionally I forget to put the "blingy" part of my ring on when I leave the house.

So how about you? Do you take your wedding band off? Or am I the only crazy one. :-p

My sweet Iris, my "ratatouille" passed away sometime last night.... I found her this morning when I woke up. My sweet girl was getting frail, she had an abscess on her one paw and what appeared to be a tumor growing in her belly. (She had a paralyzed tail from a back injury when she was younger). Though weak & getting frail, her energy was good, she was always so very excited to see me when I opened the cage door, and her appetite was good.

I will miss my "ratatouille". That was her nickname because she was the colors of Remy in the Disney movie. She was a blue berkshire. Iris was very affectionate, like her sister Jasmine. She loved to give kisses to your hands, your face. She loved grooming your nails. She had a hearty appetite like her sister Jasmine. They even looked a lot alike when they were both younger. I will miss my blue girls... it really sucks losing them so close together.

♥ I love all of my pet rats, but blue rats are my favorite color, if I had to choose. Goodbye my sweet Iris. ♥

Jasmine on the left- Iris on the right.

Iris & Jasmine- By Ciara Kay Barsotti

I got a crock pot for Christmas from my parents. Something I've wanted for awhile. The first thing I made in it, was potato soup! :-)


Here is the original recipe. And below is the recipe altered by me to serve 2 people. Perfect soup for a cold winter evening.

Potato Soup for 2 in Crock Pot

• 3 large (or medium) potatoes, chopped
• 1 half of medium onion, chopped
• 2 teaspoons of salt
• 1/4 teaspoon of pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon of minced garlic (I use the kind in a jar).
• 1 tablespoon of honey (adds some sweetness).
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 cups of milk
• 1/2 cup water
• Few shakes of Goya Adobe all purpose seasoning. (Red Lid).

Put all the ingredients into the crock pot, stir. Cover and cook on low for 5 or 6 hours.

After it was done cooking, I took a potato masher and mashed some of the potatoes up. So the soup had a creamy texture, but still had chunks of potatoes in it. Then I whisked the soup real good before I served it.

Top with cheese or croutons & enjoy!

Getting ready to cook for 6 hours!

Ready to eat!

I also made homemade Chicken Noodle Soup. Mmmm!


Chicken Noodle Soup for 2: Crock Pot Recipe

• 2 chicken thighs (fully cooked), bones removed & cut into small pieces
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• Few shakes of Goya Adobe all purpose seasoning. 
• 1 tablespoon of honey (Trust me!) 
  
• 3 cups of water
• 1 can of chicken broth
• 1 half of a small onion diced
• 1-1/2 cup of frozen mixed veggies (peas, carrots, lima beans).
• Half a box of your choice of noodles, (All I had on hand were the mini shell kind).

Set aside noodles. Add all other ingredients, stir together & cook on low for 5-6 hours. One hour before it's done, add the noodles & 1 extra cup of water. Stir & let finish cooking. (I also added a potato because we had some around the house).

We still have leftovers of the chicken soup! It made a lot! And it was sooo good!

I've been fighting a nasty cold since last Thursday, which turned into a chest cold this past Monday, so hot soup was just what I needed!

Now... can't wait to make pulled barbeque pork & beef stew in my crock pot!