Love in a Crock Pot: Valentine's Dinner at home.

They say the quickest way to a man's heart is through his stomach. In my case, the quickest way to my honey's heart is through his stomach AND having a home cooked meal for Valentine's day. We stopped going out for V day years ago, and I usually try to make something new and adventurous. Not this year. I decided to make a simple roast and vegetables. I had bought some red potatoes, celery, carrots and onions at Kroger the other day. But instead of a big roast, I picked up some beef tips that were on sale. Then, I came up with a simple slow cooker recipe that turned out quite flavorful. Well, except for the gravy.... that's an experiment for another day.

1. Place vegetables in crock pot. Season with salt and pepper. 

2. Toss meat in flour seasoned with salt and pepper. 

3. Lay meat on top of vegetables. 

4. In a separate bowl, mix together the following: 1 can of diced tomatoes, 2 tsp brown sugar, a pinch of chili powder, a few shakes of greek seasoning (i used Konrikos brand- its MSG free), 1/4 cup red wine, 2 tsp mustard and one cup of beef stock.

5. Pour into crock pot. 

6. Cook on high for 3 hours and then cut heat down to low. (this is what I did- high for 3 hours and low for 5 hours, but it would probably be fine on low all day. I just wanted to make sure everything cooked well.)

The finished product! 

I thought it turned out pretty well. The meat was very tender and the whole dish was juicy enough that gravy wasn't necessary (and thats a good thing because my gravy was lumpy and could have stood up on it's own. Gravy flavored jello anyone?) I guess I will save the "Making Gravy Experiment" for another blog post. Also, the flavor and acidity of the tomatoes blended nicely with the sweet mustardy flavor of my sauce. I will definitely make this again. No spice packs or cream of anything soups in this one. Notice the cute little gravy boat next to the bowl. My Granny Pugh made that. Isn't it cute? She would be so proud of my cooking. (except for the gravy. I guess in that case, I would ask her how to make it really well!) 

Ok, I had to include this one to show the beautiful 2 dozen white roses on the table- one dozen for me and one dozen for Riley. Isn't he sweet?