September Stew

Are you like me and have a freezer with lots of stew meat that is calling to be used? Well, I found this recipe on Pintrest and really enjoyed it! I made a few adjustments to work with what I had time for (the crockpot, not the oven). It comes from the great little blog Life As A Lofthouse.

Oven Baked Stew (which I turned into a crockpot recipe)
6 servings


1 (1 oz) package of Dry Onion Soup mix
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Paprika
1 pound lean Beef Stew Meat (cut up into bite sized pieces)
2-3 medium Potatoes, peeled and diced into 1 inch pieces
3 large Carrots, peeled and diced
1/2 an Onion, chopped
1 can Cream of Celery Soup
1/2 cup Ketchup

DIRECTIONS: Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a large plastic bag, combine the dry onion soup mix, salt and paprika. Add in meat and shake the bag to coat meat with the seasonings. Place into a lightly greased 9x13 baking dish.

Top meat evenly with diced potatoes, carrots and onion.

Mix the cream of celery soup and ketchup in a small bowl. Pour all over the meat and vegetables. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 2 hours.

(My directions differ here. I was using frozen stew meat so I defrosted it, then browned it in the frying pan and while doing so I sprinkled the paprika, onion soup mix and salt on it. After the meat was browned, I put it in the crock pot on low with the carrots, chopped onion, cream of celery, ketchup and potatoes. I cooked it on low for about 7 hours. It was yummy!)

Hutch Redo

I picked up a wood hutch off Kijiji a few months ago (actually my husband carried it down an apartment building staircase by himself.....what a good man). It was a steal for $40. I loved the shutters and was excited to try out my new paint gun and air compressor.
With the help of my knowledgeable sister-in-law, we sanded, painted and transformed this piece. I decided to leave the top wood and just restained it to a darker stain.
Unfortunately the top half of the hutch doesn't fit in the spot I have for it in my house, but I am really happy with how it turned out!

BEFORE:


AFTER:




I lucked out and was able to sell the hutch I had for enough to cover the price of the new one, as well as all the paint and supplies for refinishing.
I think I may be addicted to painting and refinishing furniture! I have already purchased a wood desk to redo, but that may have to wait until the spring.