This post originally appeared on the Taste and Savor blog on September 20, 2011
With the official start of fall fast approaching and a break in the summer heat, I started thinking that it was time to dust off the ole’ Crock Pot and start cooking up some cool weather comfort food. Coincidentally, as thoughts of my own Crock Pot entered my conscious, I was inundated with Crock Pot chatter from my neighbors, co-workers and Facebook posts. I happened upon two Facebook pages that celebrate the joys of Crock Pot meals. The first, is a page called “Crock Pot Girls” that posts classic Crock Pot recipes. The second page, “Skinny Crock Pot” sparked my interest, as it features lighter, healthier recipes.
Ingredients:
1 spanish onion, medium dice
2 carrots, medium dice
2 celery stalks, medium dice
4 cloves garlic, minced
3-4 lb chuck roast, cut into one inch pieces and trimmed of excess fat
1 14 ounce can of diced tomatoes, drained
1 10.5 ounce can of tomato puree
1 1/2 cup chianti
1 tablespoon fresh cracked Black Pepper
Cover pot and cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 4 hours. Sauce may be thickened before service with a slurry of 1/4 of cold water and 1 TBSP of cornstarch. Stir in the slurry and cook uncovered until sauce reaches desired thickness.