French Dip Sandwiches (Our Best Bites)

Story:
The extent of my meat dishes, sadly enough, is mostly limited to frozen chicken breasts, ground beef, and an occasioual ham.  So when I make something different, Ben warmly welcomes it.  Especially this dish... he loves a good sandwich, and French Dip is one of his favorites.

I bought myself the beautiful "Our Best Bites" cookbook for Christmas last year (2011).  Ummm... LOVE IT!  I love their food, their photos, and their clear instructions.  So good.  I highly recommend it.  I found this recipe in there; I've made it twice and Ben was pretty much drooling both times.  Thumbs up.

Ingredients:
2 T olive oil
1 (2 1/2 - 3 pounds) beef roast
Kosher salt
Ground black pepper
2 (1 ounce) packages dry onion soup mix
2 C water
2 (14.5 ounce) cans beef broth
1 (16 ounce) package sliced Swiss cheese
Hard/Crusty rolls

Directions:
Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.  While the oil is heating, sprinkle all sides of the roast with kosher salt and pepper.  Carefully place the roast in the pan and sear it on all sides. This shouldn't take more than a few minutes--you just want to quickly brown the roast to add flavor and seal the juices.

Transfer the roast to your slow cooker.  Sprinkle onion soup mix over the roast and add water and beef broth.  Cook on high for 4-6 hours or on low for 8-10 hours. (OBB recommends: You can also cook it on high until it begins to boil and then switch the heat to low; the meat is more tender.)

When the meat shreds easily with a fork, shred the entire roast.  Serve on sliced crusty rolls with a slice of Swiss cheese.  I like to put these under a broiler/in my toaster oven to toast the bun and melt the cheese.

Serve with the juices from the slow cooker as au jus for dipping.  Sooooo good.

German Pancakes

Story:
My mom made these German pancakes for special breakfasts for us, on occasion.  I don't know how my mom had a way of making everything feel special.  Megan says she does things "fancy."  I love that about my mom.  She would do these pancakes up in two round cake pans and they come out of the oven soooo puffy and buttery and beautiful.  She would have sliced peaches on a bowl on the tableclothed-table served on our glass dishes with two separate glasses--one with milk and a miniature glass with juice.  She would even have a little glass bowl of powdered sugar you could use the teaspoon to sprinkle some on top of the pancakes.

Unfortunately for my children, I now make these when I'm in need of a quick dinner.  Sorry, kids.  Don't have that wonderful "fancy gene."  I usually have the ingredients on hand so I can whip 'em up real quick and finish the breakfast dishes that are still left in the sink while the pancakes are in the oven.  I don't even own a tablecloth.  I'm not sure how my mom did it...

I have TWO VERSIONS of this recipe, prepared basically the same way. The first is my mom's recipe, it is much air-ier and fluffier.  The second was in the Crestwood 1st Ward's ward cookbook, submitted by a friend, Heather D.  It is denser and thus more filling for lots of tummies.  Needless to say, I usually prepare the latter.  My mom prepared them in, like I said, two round cake pans.  I keep it simpler and use a 9x13 casserole dish (used for both versions).

Ingredients:
MOM's Version:
6 eggs
1 C flour
1 C milk
dash of salt
3 T butter

HEATHER's Version:
10 eggs
1 1/2 C flour
1 1/2 C milk
(she didn't call for it, but I still use a dash of salt)
1/2 stick butter

Directions:
Mix all the ingredients in a blender.  Place the butter in the bottom of 9x13 and place in oven while it is preheating (careful not to burn the butter).  Bake at 400 degrees for 25 minutes (Mom's version) or 425 for 20 minutes (Heather's version)... until poofy and lightly browned on top.  Serve immediately.  Sprinkle with peaches, berries, and powdered sugar.

(My kids pour syrup on them, but I still have enough "fancy" left in me that I can't destroy the dish with it.... out of respect for my mother, I guess.)