Recipes by Arlene

• 4 tbsp. olive oil
• 1 (2-3 lb.) chuck roast
• 1 can cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
• 1 envelope dry onion soup
• 12 oz. water
• ½ to 1 cup cooking sherry (optional)
• Salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste

Add olive oil to Dutch oven. Add some onion slices if desired. Brown chuck roast on top of stove in Dutch oven. Brown roast on both sides. seasoning well with salt, pepper and garlic powder. Mix soups, water and optional cooking sherry and add to roast and cover. Bake at 350° for 1½ hours in 30-minute increments. Uncover and turn roast each time.

• Quartered red potatoes
• Sliced mushrooms
• Carrot slices
• Sliced onions (if desired)
• Bay leaves (if desired)

Uncover and add the above. Add additional seasonings if desired and bake for another hour at 350° for a total of 2½ hours baking time. Remove bay leaves before serving.

• 4-6 medium red potatoes
• 1½ lbs. beef stew meat
• ⅓ cup flour
• 14 oz. can diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1 cup water
• 1 cup beef broth
• 1 16-oz. bag frozen stir fry vegetables
• Salt and pepper

Scrub potatoes and cut each into quarters. Place in bottom of 4-quart slow cooker. Mix flour, salt and pepper and toss with beef to coat. Add to slow cooker. Add undrained tomatoes, broth and water and stir.

Cover slow cooker and cook on low for 7-8 hours until beef and tomatoes are tender. Add stir fry vegetables. Recover and cook on low for an additional 30-40 minutes until vegetables are hot and tender. (Note: About an hour before adding vegetables, remove bag from freezer to allow it to come to room temperature.)

Serve in a bowl by itself or over white rice or elbow macaroni.

• 3 lbs. spare ribs
• Onion, thinly sliced

Sauce

• 1½ cups water
• ½ tsp. celery seed
• ¼ tsp. chili pepper
• ¼ tsp. dry mustard
• 1½ tsp. salt
• ½ tsp. pepper
• ¼ tsp. cayenne
• 1½ tsp. catsup

In baking dish, place ribs and onion in layers. Mix all sauce ingredients together and pour over ribs. Bake at 350° uncovered 2 to 3 hours.

• 1½ pounds stew meat
• 1 envelope onion soup mix
• 1 can cream of mushroom soup
• 10 ounces club soda

Preheat oven to 325°. In an 8-inch square baking dish, layer the above ingredients in order. Cover well with aluminum foil – no peeking allowed during the baking process! Bake for 2½ hours and serve over rice, potatoes or pasta. Serves 5 or 6.

• 1 lb. orange roughy
• 1 tbsp. melted butter or margarine
• 1 tbsp. soy sauce
• 1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• ½ tsp. paprika
• ½ tsp. chili powder
• ¼ tsp. garlic powder
• ⅛ tsp. hot pepper sauce

Combine butter, soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, paprika, chili powder, garlic powder and hot pepper sauce. Place fish in ovenproof pan. Brush with mixture and broil 5 minutes. Turn, baste and broil another 5 minutes or until flaky.

• 2 lbs. ground beef
• 1 cup dry bread crumbs
• 2 tsp. salt
• 4 tbsp. onion, chopped
• ½ cup milk
• 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 2 extra large eggs
• 1 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
• 2 tbsp. cornstarch
• ⅔ cup cider vinegar
• 2 tbsp. soy sauce
• 2 cups pineapple tidbits with juice
• 2 green peppers, chopped

Mix the ground beef and bread crumbs. Sprinkle with salt and mix in the chopped onions. Set aside. Beat the milk, Worcestershire sauce and eggs together. Mix with the meat mixture and blend well. Form the meatballs and bake in a casserole dish at 400° for 20 minutes. Drain the fat from the meatballs and set aside. In a medium saucepan, mix together the brown sugar and cornstarch. Stir in vinegar, soy sauce, pineapple and juice. Heat to boiling. Reduce heat and add the meatballs. Simmer for 5 minutes. Add chopped green pepper and simmer an additional 5 minutes. Serve over white rice.

• 10 taco shells (or chips), coarsely broken
• 1½ lbs. ground beef
• 1 package taco seasoning mix
• ½ cup water
• 2 tbsp. dried onion flakes
• 1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce
• 2 cups shredded Monterey Jack cheese
• 1 large tomato, cut in wedges
• 6 olives (green or black), sliced

Place half the broken taco shells or chips in lightly greased 6-cup (1½-quart) baking dish. Brown beef in skillet and drain. Add taco seasoning mix and water. Simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Stir in onion and tomato sauce.
 
Spoon meat mixture over taco shells or chips, sprinkle with 1½ cups of the cheese. Sprinkle remaining taco shells or chips over cheese; then add remaining cheese. Arrange tomato wedges and olives on top. Bake at 350° for 15 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

• 1 round steak
• ¼ cup chopped carrots
• ¼ cup chopped onion
• ½ cup chopped celery
• ¼ cup chopped green pepper
• 1 can tomato soup
• 1 can water

Put vegetables in bottom of crock pot. Add steak, soup, water and any additional seasonings to taste. Cook 8-10 hours on low setting. Serve over white rice. The broth makes the gravy.

Note: You can also cook chicken or pork this way with mushrooms and onion soup. Just add 1-2 cups water.

Update: We served leftovers on elbow macaroni and it was delicious.

• 1 good-size Chuck Boneless Eye roast
• 1 envelope dry onion soup mix
• 1 can beef broth
• Potatoes, peeled and cut
• Baby carrots
• 1 onion, sliced
• 1 or 2 bay leaves
• Sliced mushrooms (optional)
• Cut celery (optional)

Rinse roast and place at bottom of crock pot. Open package of soup mix and sprinkle over roast. Pour beef broth over the soup mix. Cook on high setting for about 2 hours. Turn roast over and add vegetables and place bay leaves on top of the concoction. Cook on low setting an additional 6-8 hours for a total cooking time of 8-10 hours. The longer cooking time insures the potatoes and carrots are tender. (Make sure you remove the bay leaves before serving!)

• 4 lbs. country-style pork ribs
• 1 can tomato soup
• ½ cup cider vinegar
• ½ cup dark brown sugar
• 1 tbsp. soy sauce
• 1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp. chili powder

Rinse ribs in water and layer them in crock pot. Combine remaining ingredients in a bowl and pour evenly over ribs. Cover pot; heat on medium setting for 6 to 8 hours. (If your crock pot has a programmable setting, use this setting as long as the total cooking time is at least 8 hours.)

Skim fat from juices before serving. Keep warm for serving at low heat. Makes 4 servings

Note: You can serve this with rice or boiled potatoes. When cooking is done, remove ribs and set aside. Add a little cornstarch to thicken the remaining juice and use it as gravy.