French Dip Sandwiches in the Crock Pot

These couldn't be easier or more yummy. Serve the meat on a crusty, sturdy roll that won't turn to mush on contact with the juice (unless you like it mushy, of course). I often make these rolls here to serve the meat on as they hold up well to the juice.

Note, do not try to substitute beef broth for the consomme or vice versa. I tried that once. Didn't turn out nearly so well.

Recipe courtesy of the lovely Wendy Petersen.

2-inch thick roast, large
1 can Campbell's beef consomme
1 can Campbell's french onion soup
1 can beef broth 

Place roast in bottom of crock pot. Pour cans of consomme, soup, and broth over the meat. Cook in crock pot until meat pulls apart easily (8-10 hours on low or 6-8 hours on high).


For a printable version of this recipe, go here.

Sunday Dinner (Brisket & Potatoes)

This is classic, home-style eating at its best. Reminds me of Sunday Dinners at my Grandma Jean’s house (only without the lime green Jell-o squares nestled in beds of shredded iceberg lettuce). The crock-pot potatoes are a particular favorite at my house---the creamiest and most delicious mashed potatoes you can imagine!

Courtesy of the lovely Julie Mudrick.

Grandma Mud’s Brisket (or Chuck Roast, which is less expensive)

1 medium-size brisket (or chuck roast)
1 bottle Heinz Chili Sauce**
1 packet onion soup mix (like Lipton’s)
1 bottle of water (use the empty chili sauce bottle)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Combine chili sauce, soup, and water in a medium bowl. Place brisket (fat side up) in a pan that it fits into (generally, a 9 x 13 Pyrex dish will work). Pour the sauce over the brisket. Cover with foil.

Cook for 7-ish hours (time will vary depending on size of brisket). Remove from the oven and thinly slice the brisket. Return to pan and let soak in the juices. Return to oven for about 30 minutes to 1 hour until ready to serve.

**If you don't have chili sauce, mix together the following ingredients as a substitute:
2 cups tomato sauce
1/2 cup brown sugar
4 tablespoons vinegar
1⁄2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 dashes ground cloves
2 dashes allspice


Crock-Pot Potatoes

5 pounds red potatoes, peel-on and diced
1 cup water
½ cup butter cut into chunks
1 tablespoon salt
¾ teaspoon ground black pepper
1-⅓ cups milk, warmed

Place the potatoes, water and butter in a slow cooker.

 
Season with salt and pepper.

 
Cover, and cook on high for 4 hours.

 
Do not remove the excess water from slow cooker. (This contributes to the creamy texture).

 
Mash potatoes with a masher or electric beater (do NOT use immersion blender or potatoes will be overwhipped and turn out glue-y), adding the desired amount of warm milk to achieve a creamy consistency.

 
Keep warm on low until serving. Potatoes keep consistency for a couple of hours after mashing. Just keep the lid on the slow cooker and serve directly from there.

For a printable version of this recipe, go here.