55 degrees and Toasty / Crock Pot Ideas

So, we survived the winter ice storm. I love media- how fantastic and destructive they can make things sound just for some good newsworthy stuff to cover. There were a lot of power outages (not us, thankfully) but they had power restored to the last few today.

Last year, when this "ice storm" happened, there were homes without power for two weeks, and electric crews from other states were called in to help us fix the damage. It was so, so much more extensive.

Anyhow, we did end up with a literal sheet of ice down our sidewalk, driveway, and road (out to the blacktop, I suppose, though I have not been brave enough to drive it). It was thick enough that when I walked out to the mailbox after Phil had left for work this morning, I saw his tracks in the light snow dusting, but he had not broken through the sheet of ice below it.

The second problem was that the water and the cold froze our corn storage bin shut. Meaning we could not get corn out. Meaning we could not heat with our furnace. As so many times before, we relied on our trusty fireplace insert to keep us warm. Since our fireplace is downstairs in our living room, not much of the upstairs gets heat - meaning our bedrooms were not much above freezing.

We made a bed for Ryan on the couch and the rest of us camped out in the guest room (I'm a big fan of having that on the first floor now - last year we had to carry the bed downstairs whenever we wanted to sleep where it was warm!)

Previously experts in all-night fire keeping, we thought we would have no problem keeping the small area warm until morning. But, hopelessly out of practice, we made a fatal error and left the damper open a bit too much. At three am I woke up, freezing, and got up to change David. A check of the thermostat confirmed my worst fears- 51 degrees. And hours before daybreak, when we would be able to work on the corn bin and get more wood.

Needless to say, the rest of the night was not very restful, and at 5:30 when I woke and started coffee, threw on three more layers of clothes and drug Phil outside with me to open the corn bin, the brisk cold did little to improve my attitude.

But with a makeshift torch (no joke) he was able to warm up the slide-plate enough to dry off the ice which had locked the bin shut. With a squeal, I opened it up and shuffled (remember the sheet of ice) back to the house with sweet, sweet heat.

By 6am, the house was heating up to 55 degrees, and OH did it feel toasty. Never thought I would say that.
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Winter Food

I am sure most of you are seasoned cooks, but something I wish I would do more of is use my crock pot. Not only does your house smell good all day long, but you have the pleasure of knowing dinner is already DONE by 9am (or 10, if you're a late starter like I was this morning!)

Because I am cheap and on a budget, I have learned some tricks for crock pot cooking. Go simple! I will explain my half-week of crock-pot food for you here.

Buy a roast. Get a cheap one (when you cook them so slow, it doesn't have to be spectacular meat. I look for sales and end up with the cheapest one. I know there are those out there who would scoff at me, but trust me, you won't notice).

If it's too big for your crock pot, cut it in half and freeze the second half for another week. They thaw easily in the microwave and its always nice to have one on hand.

Day One:
Cut up some potatoes and carrots in the bottom of your crock pot. Put the raw roast on top (make sure it's thawed, though). Sprinkle garlic, a bit of salt, some onion powder...some rosemary if you'd like on top of the roast. Its forgiving, so play with the seasonings a bit. Pour 1 cup of bullion on top (I boil 1 cup of water and dissolve a bullion cube in it). Put the lid on. If you are going to be home all day, put it on high for the first few hours, and then stick it on low until you are ready to eat. This takes many hours, so make sure you have it going by 10am if you want to eat at 6.

With leftovers, take the potatoes, carrots and half of the meat out. Leave the rest of the meat in the crock pot. Put all of this in the fridge.

Day Two
Wake up, put the crock pot back on to cook on low. Pour a generous amount of barbecue sauce over the meat, and maybe 1/4 cup water (not much). Let cook until you are ready for dinner. Put this on toast for some really great hot meat sandwiches.

Day Three
The other meat you saved out could be used many ways, but I love putting it in the skillet with a bit of oil for a few minutes to warm it up and make it a bit...I don't know, crunchy? I don't know if that's the right word, but you get the idea. Then, add some taco seasoning, a can of black beans, and voila, you have the beginning of some good burritos. (Don't forget the salsa, sour cream, and rice.)

Anyhow, I am a big fan of cheap and easy food. You can do nearly the same recipes with ham, too (except for day three, of course!) And I completely recommend it for winter meals.