It's been a quiet summer in my kitchen because it's been a crazy summer around the rest of the Gibbons house. Lots of travel for me + lots of work for Bobby = take out, airport dining, hospital food (which actually is pretty decent), and meals-for-one. And my meals-for-one are pretty uncreative. When Bobby's on call, and IF I'm home (big 'IF' these past few months) I shamefully admit to rotating dinners between Chipotle, Panera, and spaghetti or spaghetti squash with EVOO, garlic, tomatoes and parmesan or mozzarella. Nothing too fancy!
*Side Note* I'm really into spaghetti squash these days. If you're not sure how to make it, just take a sharp knife and poke some holes into it in a couple of places, put down 2 paper towels in the microwave, and do 5 minutes on high, flip it on the other side, and 5 more minutes on high. I strongly recommend waiting a few minutes for it to cool before taking it out, or using an Ove Glove of some sort. Then cut the squash down the middle, scoop out the seeds, and take a fork to the 'meat' of the squash. Substitute as cooked pasta! Brilliant!
But anyway--we're ready to settle into Fall around here--Bobby's been in the ICU all summer and moving to a General service tomorrow (yay!) and I have three travel-free weeks this month! So I promise some good Fall recipes coming your way (and maybe some lingering summer ones that got delayed).
Also, based on feedback received from a recent email blast/rant (Tales from the Middle Seat: A Travel B!tch's Guide to Not Being An Idiot at 35,000 ft) that most people enjoyed--or pretended to--I'm contemplating a humor/opinion blog to share things like Middle Seat, and other similar [essays? short stories? notes? not sure]. I'm a little gun-shy to try the double-blog route again. But sound off in the comments if you're in support and I'll think about it. Who wouldn't love an extra dose of pointed and usually sarcastic Anne Wit? Or you can comment if you'd like to read Tales from the Middle Seat and I'll email it to you.
OR you can just read the recipe below :-) Which is why you clicked this link in the first place, right?! OK so Ropa Vieja is my very favorite-favorite-favorite Cuban dish. Love it. So I was beside myself with glee when Real Simple emailed me this recipe for my slow cooker! You know I love a good slow cooker recipe and this one is awesome. And it makes a ton so you'll have lots of leftovers!
Slow-Cooker Ropa Vieja
- 28oz can diced tomatoes (No Salt Added in this house)
- 2 red bell peppers, sliced long-wise, 1/4-1/2in thick
- 2/3 onion, sliced
- 2 tsp dried oregano (I probably use more)
- 1 tsp cumin (again...I probably use more)
- 1-2 lbs flank steak, cut crosswise into thirds
- 1-2 cups rice (I used Basmati because it's delicious)
- 1 avocado to garnish
- Handfull cilantro to garnish
About 25-30 minutes before serving, make the rice, slice an avocado and prep your cilantro. Then right before serving, use two forks to shred the meat and mix well with the tomato mixture. I serve rice, then meat, then garnish. So good!
