I’m posting this recipe because I keep losing this recipe. I figure if I put it on the blog I can at least search for it on here. It’s basically French Onion Soup except that there are pieces of steak in it. It’s one of my favorites, the photo does not do it justice. It’s really best to let it sit around for a day before you enjoy it. If you don’t I highly doubt that the soup police will come visiting…but they might, it could be a slow time for them.

Wanted to show you my cute new business cards that Moo offered up to me. I had been using Moo cards before and knew that I like them so when they asked me if I would like to try some of their newer stuff on them I thought that sounded like a good idea. Clearly you can see how spoiled my dog is. So thanks to Moo I now have cards in time for BlogHer Food in the coming months.

And lastly if you live in the Seattle area and have seen the Swedish Fish Eggs please tell me where you have seen them. I love them and only found one package this year…very sad about that.

Steak and Onion Soup

4 TBSP unsalted butter
2 TBSP olive oil
2 sweet onions, sliced
1 pound quality stew meat
1 ½ cups sherry
10 cups beef stock
2 TBSP dried garlic (the dehydrated kind)
¼ cup unsalted butter, melted
8 TBSP flour
Salt and pepper to taste

In a large sauté pan, melt 4 TBSP butter and sauté the onion until translucent. Set aside.

Remove onions and add oil. Then add stew meat and brown on all sides (best you can). Remove from pan.

In a small saucepan combine the melted butter and flour and form a roux, the darker your roux the more flavor you will get. I went for a chestnut brown color myself.

In a large stockpot, heat the sherry over medium-high heat and reduce by half. Then add the beef stock and reduce by one-third.

Add the roux and dissolve completely. Add back the meat and ¾ of the onions.

Add garlic, salt, and pepper and let simmer for 45 minutes.

Add remaining cooked onion right before soup is finished, this will help layer your flavors.

Serve with a little bread and cheese of your choice. I used a ghetto hamburger bun and some Swiss.

One can talk a good talk but in all honesty my talk was put to the test on Super Bowl Sunday. While scrolling through my Facebook page on the way back from the party (no I was not driving) I noticed that my ex-husband had changed his profile picture as well as posted photos of him and a girl hiking. This was it. This was my gut check moment. The moment where you can say all you want oh gee I want them to find someone, but what is your real feeling?

So what did I feel? Happiness. He looked happy. Genuine in the moment happy. And I was happy for him. She looked nice. I didn’t pick her to pieces like women like to do. I texted him and asked about her. When I found out she wasn’t with him in a romantic capacity I was disappointed as he seemed so happy in the photos. But then I kindly reminded myself that as long as he looked that happy I should just be thankful for that.

I passed my gut check. I passed my real test so to speak…or what I thought was going to be my real test. It was nice to know in a way that when push came to shove I was truly happy for him. And I hope he feels the same for me.

Some people ask me why it works for us, how can we stay friends? Well for one thing it’s one of the reasons we split. Makes no sense right? We made the choice to split before we hated each other because we didn’t like the idea of hating each other. And while we knew we weren’t a good match as a married couple we knew that we were still compatible as friends. We also don’t hang out all the time. He isn’t my best friend. He isn’t my go to on personal stuff. There are boundaries and that’s okay…there should be.

If you have followed this blog for a long time you know that my ex was always referred to as the picky eater. Apparently he is expanding his taste buds now, but here is a dish I know he would have eaten. It’s kiddo approved and something that gets made often around here. The Alfredo sauce makes it sinful but oh so yummy.

Three Cheese Prosciutto Alfredo Baked Ravioli

1 Jar (26oz) San Marzano marinara sauce (you can use your favorite)
2 pounds store-bought fresh three cheese ravioli
1 batch Prosciutto Alfredo Sauce (see below)
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

Cook ravioli in a large pot of boiling salted water just until they float to the top (pasta will continue to cook in oven). Drain pasta; return to pot.

Make the Alfredo sauce.

Spoon some marinara sauce on the bottom of a 9-by-13 inch baking dish. Layer one layer of cooked ravioli.

Spoon over 1/3 of the Alfredo sauce. Then spoon over a thin layer of the marinara sauce. Sprinkle with ½ cup mozzarella, and 1/8 cup Parmesan.

Repeat until you get to the top of the baking dish. Cheese on top should be the last layer.

Bake until golden, 20 to 25 minutes. Cool slightly before serving.

Prosciutto Alfredo Sauce:
4 ounces Prosciutto, small dice
6 TBSP unsalted butter
2 tsp. chopped garlic
6 TBSP flour
1 cup heavy cream
3 cups milk
8 oz. Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, grated
In a large saucepan over medium-high heat and add prosciutto pieces and cook for two minutes.

Turn heat down to medium and add the butter and garlic and let sauté for one minute. Then add the flour and stirring the whole time sauté another minute. It will be clumpy at this point.
Add the cup of heavy cream and the milk, whisking the whole time. Turn up to medium-high heat and bring to a boil. The minute you get to the boil. Turn down to low-medium and add the cheese, whisking the whole time. When cheese is completely melted and sauce is smooth (minus the prosciutto pieces) the sauce is ready.

Hi All…. Susan and I of She’s Becoming Doughmesstic decided to do a blog post swap for Super Bowl. If you want to see what I made head over to her site.

Hello everyone! I’m thrilled to be here, guest posting for Miss Peabody, Queen of Sweet. Me? I’m Susan, and I have my own blog – She’s Becoming Doughmesstic. Over there you’ll find lots of sugary goodness, a few dinner worthy concoctions, breads, breakfasts…you name it. But like Peabody, I LOVE desserts, so you’ll find no lack of them there!

When the two of us put this plan in motion, I had every intention of making you all something sweet. Cupcakes, brownies, cookies. But P probably has you covered there, so I opted to go a little savory, and present you with this incredible Sweet Potato Chili.

After having survived a long and brutal winter, filled with lots of football and the foods that go along with it, I thought it was time to change the snacking line-up for this year’s Super Bowl. Sure, you need the staples when watching the big game: Chicken Wings, Meatballs, Chips & Dip. But why not add in a little sweetness? A little heat with those chips? How about Sweet Potato Chili?

Thick enough to use as a nice dip for some Tortilla Chips, but just as good on its own as a meal, this chili offers a nice kick along with it’s refreshing cilantro and orange zing to keep it fresh. And the sweet potatoes? Well, they are the icing on the cake…and I know you LOVE cake.

Three Bean & Sweet Potato Chili

Makes 10 servings

• 4 Tablespoons Salted Butter
• 1 Teaspoon Minced Wet Garlic
• 1 Sweet Onion, chopped
• 1 Tablespoon Chili Powder
• 2 cups Vegetable Stock
• 1 1/2 pounds Sweet Potatoes, cut into cubes
• 2 – 15oz. cans Mild Green Chili Diced Tomatoes, not drained
• 1 can Rotel Diced Tomatoes with Lime & Cilantro, drained
• 1 – 15oz can Black Eyed Peas, drained
• 1 – 15oz. can Black Beans, drained
• 1 – 19oz can Cannellini Beans, drained
• 1 can Sweet Corn, drained
o 1 Tablespoon Orange Juice
• 1/2 cup fresh chopped cilantro
• 1 Tablespoon Orange Zest
• 1/2 Tablespoons Lime Zest

Melt butter in large dutch oven or pot. Add onions and cook over medium high heat for 2 minutes. Add chili power and stir, cooking for another minute.

Add vegetable stock and sweet potatoes, and cook on medium/low for about 10 minutes. Add tomatoes and beans, then simmer for roughly 10 more minutes. Add corn and orange juice and cook 5 additional minutes. When ready, add zest and cilantro. Serve with tortilla chips if desired, and enjoy!

Thanks for having me today, Peabody! It’s been fun!

Many of my friends are sad that Heidi Klum and Seal are divorcing and so very shocked as they seemed so happy (with the exception of my delusional guy friends who think they have a shot with Heidi now…hahahaha). A lot of people seem to be a lot of things. I firmly believe that people have three lives: a public life, a private life, and a secret life.

People always tell me how open I am on here and what not, I can assure you that there are many a thing you don’t know, and well that’s okay. You don’t need to know everything about me. We don’t need to know everything about celebrities. I am not sure what happened along the way but it’s not our right to know what celebrities are doing at all times. I don’t care if they pump gas just like me. Or that they eat ice cream. They carry their own groceries. They aren’t like me. You know why? Because no one is following me around with a camera trying to take photos of me at the grocery store. Thank goodness too. If someone saw me today, I took the dog out in pj bottoms and gigantic sweatshirt with my hair being some sort of throwback tribute to Duran Duran. The only thing following me is a hungry cocker spaniel when I have food in my hands.

Of my friends who have gotten divorced (and even including me), they all seemed to be sooo happy. Partially because if things work out you don’t want your friends judging your spouse and partially because people don’t really like to hear people complain all the time. I honestly think that as a general rule most people in your life would be shocked to learn something about you.

This chili in a way is like people a lot of different layers that make you who you are. This is not a throw it all in one pot and leave it for hours kind of chili. It’s one that requires not only hours of cooking, but four layers of seasoning and four different times. This is how you build depth in food. It’s how something goes from good to really good. I sent this with my BFF to for him and his co-workers to eat. One of them asked for the recipe so I figured I would put it up. It would be great for a cold night or a Super Bowl party.

Lots O’ Spices Chili

1 pound Cubed Beef Roast
1 pound ground beef
1 can kidney beans (14 ounces)
2 cans Beef Broth
2 cups Water
2 cans Tomato Sauce (15 ounces each)
¼ cup ground Masa
Vegetable Oil

1st Spices
2 Tbsp. onion powder
2 tsp. Beef granules
1 tsp. Chicken granules
1 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. season salt
1 Tbsp. paprika
1 Tbsp. Hot Mexican chili powder (McCormick makes it)
1 Tbsp. ground chili pepper

2nd Spices
2 tsp. Cumin
1 tsp. garlic powder
1/4 tsp. season salt
1 Tbsp. Hot Mexican chili powder
1 Tbsp. chili powder

3rd Spices
1-1/2 tsp. cumin
1 tsp. onion powder
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1 Tbsp. chili powder
1 Tbsp. Hot Mexican chili powder

4th Spices
1-1/2 tsp. cumin
1 Tbsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. garlic powder

Brown ground beef in 2 tsp. oil. Then add cubed beef and brown that.

Add 2 cans beef broth, 2 cups water, 1 can Tomato Sauce and 1st spices.

Bring to boil, cover and cook at medium boil until beef is almost tender (2 hours).

At the end of two hours add 2nd spices, kidney beans, ¼ cup ground masa, and 2nd can of tomato sauce. Bring to boil, then turn down and simmer for ten minutes.

Add 3rd spices and bring to a boil. Turn to a simmer and simmer for 10 minutes.

Add 4th spices. Adjust to taste for salt and for heat add Tabasco Sauce.

Adapted from the International Chili Society

1998 Chili Cook Off Winner Kathy LeGear