Home cooked meals

I go through phases where I like to cook and other phases where I cannot stand it. I think I'd like to cook if I made more time to select recipes and shop for the week. The last thing I want to do when I get home is find a recipe, realize that I don't have any of the ingredients, battle the evening crowd at the grocery store to come home starving...not wanting to wait an hour for dinner to be ready. So last night Grant and I went to the grocery store with a recipe in hand. I got all the ingredients and started making the recipe when I got home from work. Here is the recipe we(I) chose:

Aromatic Beef Stew with Butternut Squash

Ingredients

2 tsp. olive oil

1 lb. stew beef (round or chuck), cut in chunks

1 large onion, chopped

1 Tbsp. peeled, minced fresh ginger

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 lb. peeled cubed butternut squash, cut into 1-1/2-inch cubes (about 2-1/2 cups)

1 14.5-oz. can no-salt-added diced tomatoes

1 8-oz. can no-salt-added tomato sauce
1-1/2 cups lower-sodium beef broth

1-1/2 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

3 cups cooked whole wheat couscous

1/4 cup sliced almonds, toasted*

1 to 2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley

Directions

1. Heat oil in 4-quart saucepan over medium-high heat. Add beef. Cook until browned on all sides, about 5 minutes. Transfer meat to plate, leaving juices in saucepan. Add onion to pan. Cook 6 minutes, stirring often, or until softened and translucent. Add ginger and garlic. Cook, stirring, 1 minute more.

2. Return beef to pan. Stir in squash, diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, beef broth, cumin, cinnamon, and red pepper flakes. Bring to boiling. Reduce heat to a simmer; cover. Cook until beef is tender, 30 to 35 minutes.

3. Serve with couscous. Sprinkle with almonds and parsley. Makes 6 servings.

4. *Note: Toast almonds in a dry skillet over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, about 2 minutes or until golden brown.

Nutrition Facts

Calories 421, Total Fat (g) 11, Saturated Fat (g) 3, Monounsaturated Fat (g) 6, Polyunsaturated Fat (g) 1, Cholesterol (mg) 29, Sodium (mg) 206, Carbohydrate (g) 57, Total Sugar (g) 10, Fiber (g) 10, Protein (g) 25, Vitamin C (DV%) 1.17, Calcium (DV%) 9, Iron (DV%) 23, Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet

We'll see how it turns out!