Wednesday soups, beef barley.

Wednesdays are soup days.  My fiancee has a work related class and a problem to solve every week with a small group of co-workers.  Often she has no idea when she can run home quick for dinner so I tend to make some sort of crock pot based soup.  That way its ready when ever she can come home.  Once i get a few more typed up I'll have a section on the top for Wednesdays soups.  This week I made a an easy crock pot beef barley.

Crock Pot Beef Barley.

Ingredients

2 Quarts of beef broth

6 oz can of tomato paste

1 cup of barley

A couple of potatoes cubed

1/2 to a pound of beef cut into cubes

chopped mixed vegetables.

Salt and pepper

I normally start out with the beef broth and tomato paste in the crock pot on low while I get everything else ready.  Add in the barley and potatoes.  I used 2 white potatoes washed then cubed, I like the skin of the potato so I don't peal them.  Next add in the beef.  Ended up using some stir fry beef strips that I cut into rough cube strips.  I always try to keep a bag of frozen mixed veggies in the fridge for soup.  Open the bag and pour them in.  I'll also add whats ever in the fridge either fresh or left overs.  This soup got a carrot some celery and fresh green beans along with some tex-mex corn mix left overs.  Stir everything together with a good helping of salt and pepper.  Leave on low for 6-8 hours and enjoy.

Cheater Chili

Nothing beats a warm bowl of chili cooked in a crock pot for a few hours on a mid winter's day.  Now I'll admit I cheat and use Bear Creek's "darn good" chili mix as a base.  I'll add a pound of browned ground beef a chopped green pepper garlic and some crushed red pepper.  Throw it in the Crock-pot for 6-8 hours and enjoy.

Ingredients for my cheater chili

1 package of Bear Creek "darn good" chili mix

1 pound of browned ground beef

(cooked with slat fresh black pepper and a clove of garlic)

1 small can of tomato paste

1 chopped green pepper

1 clove of garlic

couple shakes of crushed red pepper

Stir together and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

Serve with your choice of cheese and sour cream.

forgotten wardrobe

The family we bought our house from were great people.  They left a bunch of items behind that they had no use for in their new home and instead of hitting the dumpster they offered them to us.  One of the pieces the left was an old small simple wardrobe.  It had been painted white at some point in its life and the bottoms of the legs have seen better days.  The rest of the piece is still in good shape under the paint. I plan on getting the paint stripped off and give it a little restomod flair with new pulls and a new hanger rod.  Not 100% sure one how we'll use it yet but got a few ideas.

4 square 411

You may ask what is an American 4 Square?  Well its a style of home built from the 1890s-the 30s that were often square to make the best use of smaller city building lots.  They were some of the first houses built with a more open floor plan compared to the traditional and Victorian style homes.  The square shape allowed for larger rooms on the first floor and the upstairs the bedrooms tended to be build off a center hallway.  The attic space tended to be open with dormers on the sides.  They also tended to feature handcrafted wood work and built in features.

Our 4 square was built in 1905 on the lower east side of Erie, PA.  Unlike many of the homes from this era this one kept many of its as built 1905 features on the first floor.  Solid oak floors with oak panels on the walls along with a large built in oak chest in the dining room.  The first floor also has large bay windows that let a large amount of light into the living room.  The dining room enteranc is framed by 2 large columns creating and open feel.

Please pardon the mess I'll get better photos soon.  most were taken while we were still moving in.

The front entrance and stair case.  The small oval window is stained glass.

The living room and fire place

Looking into the living room from the dining room

The built in hutch in the dining room

Beginnings

We all need to start somewhere.  I decided to follow my good friend Steph @http://www.neverthesamespicetwice.com and jump into this blogging thing.  So welcome to life in an American 4-square I'm your host Drew.  My wonderful fiancee, Cassie and I purchased this wonderful 1905  American 4-square style home in August.  This is our adventure in home ownership cooking and life in general.

Sit back, grab a drink and enjoy the ride.

Welcome to Life in an American 4-Square