Simple Beef Chili

I mentioned on Facebook that I hadn't been posting as much because my husband and I have been very serious about a deep freezer/pantry clean out! I love having about 5 times the amount of storage space for food versus our old apartment, but I didn't want things to become lost or forgotten. I've been coming up with interesting meals lately. Usually something frozen, with a can of something, and some veggies. Nothing blog-worthy. I did however spot canned tomatoes, canned black beans, canned kidney beans, canned corn, and frozen ground beef the other day; these ingredients just scream homemade chili. I'm surprised I've never posted a recipe for basic beef chili, but this one is so easy to follow and completely customizable. You can use beef, ground turkey, ground chicken, shredded chicken, veggie crumbles, or no meat at all. You can use black beans, kidney beans, pinto beans, garbanzo beans, lentils, etc. It's up to you, so use whatever you have on hand.

Thick and Savory Beef Stew

This recipe was completely inspired by my mom. I went over to my parents for dinner and my mom used left over pot roast and gravy she had made to make a beef stew. It was the best stew I'd ever had, I was pretty sure it was because of the gravy. And I was right, the gravy makes a world of difference. I don't know why I never thought to try it that way, but it works so well. It's thick and very beefy, but overall about the same nutrition as using plain beef or chicken broth. You can fancy this up with additional spices and fresh herbs, but this is a great basic stew recipe.

Small disclaimer, hideous picture quality! This was probably day 3 of the stew, I had been getting home from work after day. So instead of having time to take a good photo when it was hot and fresh, I just snapped a quick picture at work with my phone so I could post this recipe!

Lower Sodium Beef and Potato Soup

*I wrote this two weeks ago, and told myself I would make it again to snap a decent picture. I only have one I took quickly to show my husband, then we ate it all. This happens a lot. So I never posted this. I've decided to go ahead and post it anyway, so it's definitely in past tense. I've been doing the low sodium thing for a while now and it's helping tremendously.*

During pregnancy, salt is your worst enemy. I've been swelling up like crazy lately. Mainly I've been too focused on overall calories, when I should be focusing on sodium. I'm eating 2000 calories a day and still gaining 5 lbs in one week, which is impossible by the way. So I've decided to stick as closely as I can to 1500 mg of sodium per day, plus extra potassium.

This soup can be fancied up into a stew if you feel like adding flour and taking the time to cook it out. I personally like the kinds of soups where you throw everything into a pot, bring it to a boil, reduce the heat and simmer. So although this soup is more watery than a stew, it tastes just as good. Plus no added salt!

Bœuf à la Bourguignonne

This classic French dish has been around for ages, it is also popularly known as beef burgundy. Originally a poor persons dish it has transitioned its way into Haute Cuisine, and luckily it is incredibly simple to make. My mother has made this before, and I'm a huge fan of any kind of stew so now that I have my Rachael Ray dutch oven I was stoked to finally make this dish. I made it a couple of days ago, but due to my computers decision to be lame I had to wait for hubby to get home so I could use his =*( We don't know what's wrong with it, but hopefully it will get fixed soon!! Grab your skillet and lets get to cooking, you don't want to miss out on this one!

Potato & Pepper Stoup

I've been sick the past couple of days and things have been pretty lazy around here. No working out, no going out, lots of movies, naps, and most importantly hot tea! Although it isn't cold or rainy outside, that's how it feels to me which makes me crave my favorite rainy weather food: soup!