Bourbon Whiskey Meatballs

I feel like any good party requires meatballs in some way, shape, or form. Am I right? This recipe is SO fast and super simple. Even better - odds are you already have the ingredients required for this sauce in your kitchen.

This sauce is delicious. If you're planning on having a lot of people over, I suggest doubling the recipe - you want plenty of sauce to cover all your meatballs!

Ingredients:

• 1 lb of your favorite meatballs (I used frozen)
• 1/2 cup ketchup (heaping)
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/4 cup bourbon whiskey
• 1 tsp fresh lemon juice
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce

How to:

• Combine all ingredients except the meatballs in a medium bowl and mix thoroughly.
• *Place meatballs into a crockpot.
• Pour sauce over meatballs and mix so the meatballs are coated.
• Cover, turn crockpot to high, and cook for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.
• Turn to low once meatballs have thawed a little and cook for another hour or so.
• Turn down to warm, taking care not to burn your sauce.

*You can also do this on the stovetop - you don't really need a crockpot!

These are SO good! If you don't like frozen meatballs, try your own recipe with this sauce. Or you could try my recipe for Turkey Meatballs with Sun-Dried Tomatoes

The original recipe can be found here.

Crockpot Beef Stew

In theory, Crockpot recipes are great because you can throw a bunch of stuff into the pot, turn it on, leave it for 6-8 hours, and come back to a delicious hot meal. In reality, Crockpot recipes generally only work for me on the weekends. During the week,  I'm outta the house by 8:00am and rarely get home before 6:00pm. That's 10 hours. I feel like this is generally the norm for people who work 40 hours (or more...womp womp...) a week outside the home.

As I've mentioned numerous times, sometimes cooking a real meal is the absolute last thing I want to do when I get home after standing at a lab bench for 8+ hours. Jake and I probably eat more cereal and grilled cheese than we should. I came across this recipe for Crockpot Beef Stew and knew it would be the perfect thing to try on what I knew would be one of my crazier days in the lab. I prepped all of the ingredients the night before and kept them covered and in the fridge overnight. Then, before heading into work last Wednesday morning, I threw all of the ingredients in the crockpot, turned it on, and left for work. When I finally made it back to the house 11 and a half hours later (vomit), this perfect batch of Beef Stew was waiting for me.

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds beef stew meat, cut into bite size pieces or 1 inch cubes
• 1/4 cup flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 potatoes, diced
• 3 carrots, sliced
• 2 celery stalks, sliced
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 2 cups beef broth

How to:

• Mix together flour, salt, and pepper in a large Ziploc bag or bowl. Add meat and toss to coat.
• Place flour-coated meat in slow cooker and add all remaining ingredients. Stir to mix thoroughly.
• Cover and cook on low for 10-12 hours, or on high for 4-6 hours. 

After 11 and a half hours in the crockpot, the meat perfectly fell apart and tasted so flavorful. This really was one of those 'set it and forget it' meals, especially considering I prepped all of the ingredients the night before. 

My recipe is slightly modified from this one.

Beef and Broccoli

Every Thursday, the large brick pathway adjacent to the building I work in fills with various vendors and food trucks, where everything from roasted peanuts to paninis are sold. I walked by all of this at exactly the wrong time today - right before I had planned on eating my lunch. The stand that caught my eye was one that was selling delicious smelling Chinese food. I forced myself to keep walking - I knew I'd regret spending close to $10 on lunch when I had a perfectly good Lean Cuisine microwave meal waiting for me in the freezer. And as soon as I took a bite of my reheated microwave lunch, I regretted passing up that Chinese food.

I decided to make my version of Chinese-style Beef and Broccoli. This dish comes together pretty quickly, so it's perfect for that work night where the last thing you want to do is spend hours in the kitchen putting together a meal.

The original recipe can be found here.

Ingredients:

• 3/4 lb stir fry beef strips, cut into bite size pieces
• 3 Tbs cornstarch, divided
• 1/2 cup + 2 Tbs water, divided
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• olive oil
• 1/3 cup reduced sodium soy sauce
• 2 Tbs brown sugar
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 4 cups broccoli
• 1 small onion, cut into wedges
• cooked rice (if desired)

How to:

• Combine 2 Tbs cornstarch, 2 Tbs water, and garlic powder in a small bowl. Mix until smooth.
• Add beef to this mixture and toss (I transferred the cornstarch mixture and beef to a large Ziploc bag and mixed this way).
• In a separate bowl, combine remaining water and cornstarch, soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic, and ginger, and mix until smooth. Set aside.
• Heat some oil in a large skillet or pan over medium-high heat and cook beef until desired done-ness.
• Transfer beef to another container and keep warm.
• In remaining oil, stir-fry broccoli and onion for about 4-5 minutes.
• Add beef to broccoli and onion, and pour soy sauce mixture into pan.
• Cook for an additional 2-4 minutes until warmed throughout.
• Serve Beef and Broccoli over warm rice.

Take care not to overcook your beef. If you overcook it, you'll end up with chewy meat! I think the sauce to beef/broccoli ratio is just right. The crispness of the stir-fried broccoli and onion, coupled with the sweet and tangy soy sauce mixture results in a winning combination. And when served over rice - the overall texture of the dish is perfect.

Let me know what you think!