Pots and Pins

Chocolate Pretzel Cookies...

We were going to drive up to Whistler, BC ...(Happy Memorial Day everyone!) spend the weekend shopping, eating, hiking, relaxing...but it was so rainy and cold we shifted gears and headed to the outlet malls...yeah, outlet malls vs. Whistler - bet you didn't see that one coming!  Actually, we just didn't want to drive all that way (4+ hours) in the rain and spend our time indoors trying to see the mountains through the clouds.  (This in NO WAY is the same as giving away tickets to The Eagles and staying home to eat carrot soup instead!)   So shopping therapy it was...now, the mister, who doesn't even buy his own potty pants loves to shop, as long as I'm right there with him.  He'll buy the most inane things, too..."Hey, don't we need a new scrubber for the kitchen?" and "Don't you need some luggage?"  He has a thing for luggage.  And he loves to look at wallets, he's had the same one for THIRTY years - because he just looks and never buys.  But put him in the middle of the Nike store and look out...he's a whirling dervish - practically pushing people out of the way as he grabs shoes, shirts and shorts...stopping only to ask me what size he wears.  We took a break from the action and treated ourselves to a chocolate dipped pretzel...it was good, but not as good as these homemade Chocolate Pretzels...because they're not really pretzels, they're chocolate cookies masquerading as pretzels!

 

Chocolate cookie dough rolled into "snakes," twisted into "bows," sprinkled with raw sugar then baked until firm - the smell of sweet, sweet chocolate will get your heart racing!  Dipped into white chocolate and these little cookies go from an afternoon treat to an addiction.  

Chocolate Pretzel Cookies - Adapted From Bon Appetit, June 2004

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup butter, room temperature

1 cup sugar

2 large eggs

nonstick vegetable oil spray

1 large egg white

1/2 cup raw sugar (also called turbinado sugar and available at natural food stores and most supermarkets and cooking stores)

20 oz. white chocolate (high quality makes a difference!  I used Lindt), chopped

Whisk flour, cocoa powder, and salt in a medium bowl.  Using electric mixer, beat butter and sugar in large bowl until fluffy.  Beat in eggs 1 at a time.  Stir in dry ingredients.  Gather dough into ball; wrap in plastic and chill for at least an hour.  (Can be made a day ahead.)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Spray 2 baking sheets with nonstick spray.  Cut off about an inch in diameter size portion of dough and roll into a "snake", a 16-inch long rope.  To form a pretzel shape, lift 1 end of rope and press about 1 1/2 inches past center of rope, forming loop.  Lift second end of rope and press about 1 1/2 inches past center of rope, crossing over first loop.  Transfer to baking sheet.  Repeat with remaining portions of dough. 

Lightly beat egg white in small bowl to loosen.  Brush pretzels with egg white.  Sprinkle with raw sugar.  Bake until firm, about 15 minutes.  Cool on racks. 

Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.  Melt white chocolate in double boiler set over simmering water; stirring occasionally, until smooth.  Dip top half of pretzels into melted chocolate then transfer to prepared baking sheet to cool.  Repeat with remaining pretzels.  Let stand at room temperature for 15 minutes to allow chocolate to begin to set.  Chocolate will be set in about an hour.  Makes 24 pretzel cookies.  

"Life is one big canvas; throw all the paint on it that you can."  ~ Danny Kaye

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One year ago:  Lemon Pound Cake

Two years ago:  Candy Bar Pie

Tickabox - Town Pillow...

Last year, on the way home from the 28-mile long garage sale, we hit upon an antique store of sorts...mostly junk...sprinkled with a few antiques and I discovered this cross-stitch - it's not very big, only 13x17-inches and was worked in 6-strands of floss on a black cotton background:

But it "spoke" to me so I slapped down my 2 bucks and carted it home and put it in my pile.  I love the colors - and it's such a nice little village!  I turned it into a pillow for our family room and can now "tick" it off my list:  

That's the extent of my sewing this week - except for tailoring and hemming two pairs of men's dress pants and making a few adjustments on one beautiful prom dress...the weekend is going to be busy - the rains are supposed to stop and the mister and I have BIG PLANS!!  Have a wonderful Memorial Day, remember those you've loved and lost, and I'll see you on Monday.

Carrot Soup With Ginger and Lemon...

Here was the plan:  The mister flies in from Knoxville, I pick him up at SeaTac and we rush over to Key Arena to see The Eagles in concert...the concert that was supposed to be on May 13th when our schedules were clear...the concert that was postponed because someone in the group was sick...the concert that we paid $185 EACH to attend.  Postponed until the 26th...a day full of "IF" and in the pit of my stomach I knew what would happen... 

The mister, tired from his flight and his travels, called when the plane touched down and said, "I'm not going.  I'm too tired and that's that."  I should have expected it...we are notorious for buying tickets to concerts and plays and not going...it's a very expensive hobby of ours.  We always think it sounds fun but when it comes right down to it, we're home bodies and driving downtown in the rain to see a show usually always loses against lounging about in pj's in front of the TV.  Shameful.  Disgusting.  Slothful laziness beyond beyond.  But these were tickets to The Eagles...arguably the greatest band (aside from the Beetles) of all time!  These weren't tickets to Smokey Robinson, or George Strait, or Bette Midler, or Liza Minnelli or Kenny Chesney or The Temptations or Barry Manilow or Reba McIntire ...and yes, we had tickets to see all of those shows (and many more, that's just all I can remember!) and gave them away!  Gave them away!  But to give away tickets to The Eagles...THE EAGLES...oh, it's just too painful to even think about for one more moment...I have no more words to say...the oxygen has been sucked from the room.  I'm still in shock.

  

Home, in pj's, watching American Idol while friends were rockin' with The Eagles...well, at least we had this insanely good soup to wash down our sorrow...and it worked...THAT'S how good this soup is.  Fresh ginger that sparkles in the mouth, fresh lemon juice that will pique your taste buds into wanting more...and the color - how happy is that?!  You'll want to print this one, then laminate it and stick it inside your cupboard door because it's going to become a staple in your menu...definitely make it for a ladies luncheon, or when you have the boss and his wife over and want to impress them, or make it for a holiday dinner when everyone's expectations are high...it's the one soup that can handle any and all situations...and - dare I say it?  Yes...it's healthy, too!!  No lie!  Feast upon this one - I'm giving it five dangs my friends...it's dang, dang, dang, dang, dang good!

Carrot Soup With Ginger and Lemon - The Kinloch Lodge Hotel, Isle of Skye, Scotland via Bon Appetit, June 1997

1/2 cup butter

1 1/2 cups chopped onion

1 tablespoon finely chopped, peeled fresh ginger

1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic

1 1/4 lbs. medium carrots, peeled, chopped (about 3 cups)

2 tomatoes, seeded, chopped (about 1 1/3 cups)

1 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon peel

3 cups (or more) vegetable broth or chicken stock

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

4 tablespoons sour cream, for garnish

1 small carrot, peeled, grated, for garnish

Melt butter in heavy large pot over medium-high heat.  Add onion; saute 4 minutes.  Add ginger and garlic; saute 2 minutes.  Add chopped carrots, tomatoes and lemon peel; saute 1 minute.  Add 3 cups stock and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat, cover partially and simmer until carrots are very tender, about 20 minutes.  Cool slightly. 

Puree soup in batches in blender or use an immersion blender and blend until smooth.  Mix in lemon juice.  Season with salt and pepper.  Bring soup to a simmer, thinning with stock if desired.  Ladle into bowls.  Top with sour cream and grated carrot.  Serves 4.

Deluxe Mexican Brownies...

Oh I suppose you could call these Cappuccino-Cream Cheese Brownies with Chocolate Glaze, which is the name Bon Appetit gave them...but then you'd have to eat them with your pinkie sticking out and use a napkin.  If you just think of them as dressed up brownies there's no need for pinkies or napkins because there isn't time or need...you'll be too busy savoring every bite to even think about your pinkie and you'll want to lick your fingers clean instead of using a napkin...why waste one bit of this delicious dessert on a napkin?

Last week's garage sales were great - I came home with a cool mirror, a halloween vase, a cross-stitched baby quilt and a stack of Bon Appetit magazines dating from 1992 to 1997 and only a quarter a piece!  (No mom, they didn't see me coming!)  And in one of those magazines I found this recipe...it reminded me of a recipe I've had for about twenty years, called simply, Mexican Brownies, so I dug it out and compared the two,  and they were very similar.  Combining the recipes into one was the best decision I've made all month!

  These take a bit of time to make - they're a three-step process.  First you make the brownies, rich and fudgy with a crunch from whole toasted pecans.  Then you let them cool completely with a big sign that says STAY OUT OR ELSE!! placed nearby so your boy doesn't come in and cut into them like my boy did!  Step two is the cream cheese filling - powdered sugar, cinnamon and Mexican vanilla...oh my...it's divine.  This filling would be so great in crepes, or in between chocolate chip cookies or straight out of the bowl!  Step three is the chocolate ganache glaze that goes on top...milk chocolate, cream and butter...can I get an Amen?  

IF you like chocolate fudge and cream cheese, and cinnamon (cinnamon and chocolate are classic Mexican ingredients, hence, the name for this brownie...don't you just love the word hence?" and milk-chocolate ganache then you're going to love these...five dangs my friends...five coma-inducing dangs...or, as I like to say, Roll me in Brownies and Put ME To Bed!

Deluxe Mexican Brownies - Adapted from Bon Appetit 1997 and My Sister's Brownies, 1988

8 oz. bittersweet chocolate

12 oz. semi-sweet chocolate (you can use chocolate chips)

22 tablespoons (2 3/4 sticks) butter, room temperature, divided

1/4 cup water

2 tablespoons instant espresso powder

1 1/2 cups sugar

4 large eggs

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 cup whole pecans, toasted

2 (8 oz.) packages cream cheese, room temperature

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon Mexican vanilla, or good quality vanilla

1/2 cup heavy cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Butter and flour a 13x9x2-inch metal baking pan.  In a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat, toast pecans until lightly browned and fragrant, about 5 minutes.  Set aside. Chop 8 ounces of the chocolate into small pieces.  Combine chocolate with 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) butter, 1/4 cup water and the espresso powder in a heavy, large saucepan.  Stir constantly over medium-low heat until melted and smooth.  Transfer to a large bowl.  Cool five minutes.  Whisk in 1 1/2 cups sugar, then eggs, one at a time.  Mix in flour with a wooden spoon and salt, then pecans.  Pour batter into prepared pan and bake until tester inserted into center comes out with some moist crumbs still attached, about 20 to 22 minutes.  Cool completely in pan on rack.

Make filling:  Beat cream cheese and 6 tablespoons butter in medium bowl until smooth. Add powdered sugar, cinnamon and vanilla and beat until well blended.  Spread cheese mixture over completely cooled brownies as evenly as possible.  Cover and refrigerate until cold, about two hours.

Make chocolate glaze:  Chop remaining 12 ounces of semi-sweet chocolate (or chocolate chips).  Mix chocolate with cream and 4 tablespoons butter in a heavy saucepan.  Stir over medium heat until smooth.  Cool glaze until barely lukewarm, about 15 minutes.  Pour over cream cheese; spread gently to cover.  Refrigerate for additional two hours until glaze sets.  Using a warm knife (dipped in hot water and wiped dry), cut into 2-inch long, 1 1/2-inch-wide bars.  Chill overnight.  Makes about 36.  

"I believe in an open mind - but not so open that your brains fall out!"  ~ Arthur Sulzberger

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One year ago:  Rainbow Swap Blocks

Two years ago:  Stracciatella Tortoni Cake With Espresso Fudge Sauce

The 8 Most Important Foods To Have In Your Fridge...

1.  Whipping Cream or Heavy Cream...can't cook/bake/live/breath without it...from making tender biscuits and scones to rich, calorie-laden sauces...got to have cream!

2.  Buttah...which is a given - it's like salt and pepper - a necessity on the table and in most foods or else how are you ever going to end up with Thunder Thighs and spend your entire life trying to get rid of them?  That IS your heart's desire, too, right?  Besides, you can't have cream without butter...or is it the other way around?  (Two other "givens" are lemons and limes...I use them constantly...fresh, no bottled business.)

3.  Yogurt...usually Greek Yogurt is what I have on hand - it makes the best salad dressings and sauces.  I would NEVER, EVER stick a spoon into it and eat it plain - would rather eat dirt...but a salad dressing or BBQ sauce with Greek Yogurt is probably as close to winning the lottery as I'll ever come.

4.  Parmesan Cheese...fresh shredded and fresh grated...it goes on everything and I love to add it to soups for a little extra saltiness...sometimes I buy a brick of Parm and shave it myself...but mostly I buy these little tubs because they're so convenient and I go through them pretty quickly.

5.  Cottage Cheese...with lemon and pepper scooped up with potato chips.  There, now you know my ONE vice...my weakness...my Kryptonite.  Don't knock it 'till you've tried it.

6.  Lemon Curd...yes, you can make it yourself but if you're short on time and need a fast dessert, spoon a little lemon curd into a pastry shell and call it pie...or heat it a bit, just until it melts and pour it over vanilla ice cream...the mister thinks ice cream with lemon sauce is the best thing in the world...he has no idea it comes out of a jar.  Dessert is a snap with lemon curd!

7.  Buttermilk...for cakes, and scones and potatoes and the best fried chicken EVER...and don't even THINK about using that fake buttermilk floury stuff...yuk!  

8.  Sour Cream...oh my, where to begin?  I go through VATS of the stuff - can't make stroganoff without it, can't have any Mexican food without it, can't have most soups without a dollop on top...sheesh, it's in and out of the fridge as much as I am!

Those are my "regulars" - they're on my shopping list every week...along with Calamatta Olives...and cheese; Fontina, Harvarti, Gruyere, Swiss and Cheddar.  If you add in flour, all of the sugars, powdered, granulated and brown, you can make over 5,000 recipes with the ingredients above.  Actually I have no idea how many things you could make but I'm quite certain it would be close to 5,000. 

I'm going shopping.  Don't want Mr. Safeway to feel the effects of the economy because of me!

Red Pepper Cream Risotto...

I'm a sucker for risotto...I would do almost anything for it...especially on a cold, rainy Saturday when the mister is away doing who knows what and I have complete control of the menu AND the TV remote!  Surrounded by magazines, Caesar Beezer the Wonder Dog, and lots of plump pillows, I settled in with a piping hot bowl of risotto and watched Sweet Home Alabama followed by How to Lose a Guy in Ten Days...it was, by far, the best evening I've had at home in 7 1/2 years - give or take a year.

Risotto is really just creamy rice...but those words don't roll off the tongue as nicely as risotto...and even though risotto takes a while to make, it's worth it.  I saw this recipe, Pasta With Roasted Red Pepper Sauce on The Pioneer Woman and my taste buds were piqued.  It did sound wonderful but I didn't feel like pasta - even cute little pasta like the orrecchiette Pioneer Woman used...so I adapted her recipe for risotto...please forgive me Pioneer Woman...but you'd like this, I know you would!  

Red Pepper Cream Risotto - Adapted from Ree Drummond, The Pioneer Woman

3 whole red bell peppers

1/2 cup pine nuts

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 tablespoons butter

1/2 large white onion, chopped

2 1/2 cups vegetable broth

1 cup white wine

1 cup Arborio Rice

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

Grated Parmesan for garnish

Fresh Italian parsley, chopped, for garnish

Roast red peppers over an open flame, under a broiler, or on a grill until the skin is blistered and blackened.  Put peppers in a Ziploc bag and allow to sweat for about ten minutes.  Remove the peels from the charred peppers, along with the seeds and membranes and set aside. In a 10-inch skillet over medium-high heat, toast the pine nuts, in an even layer, until lightly browned, about 5 minutes, but watch carefully so they don't burn.  In the bowl of a food processor, combine the red peppers with the pine nuts and process until smooth.  Set aside. 

In a large skillet, heat olive oil and butter over medium-high heat, and add onions.  Cook for 5 minutes, then stir in the rice and cook for additional two minutes, stirring constantly.  Reduce heat to medium and slowly stir in one cup of vegetable broth and stir, continuously, until all liquid is absorbed.  Gradually add the white wine and cook until all liquid is absorbed, stirring constantly.  Gradually add the last 1 1/2 cups of vegetable broth, again, stirring constantly until all liquid is absorbed.  Stir in red pepper and pine nut mixture and cream.  Add salt and pepper.  Stir until well mixed.  (Total cooking time should be about 30 minutes, if you've had the heat too high you'll be done cooking faster but your rice won't be as soft...to remedy this, add more broth and cook slowly until rice is done - soft but still with some "bite" to it.)  Serve with grated Parmesan cheese and fresh parsley as garnish.  Serves 2 to 3.

This was my dinner.  It was also my late-night snack.  And my breakfast the next morning.  The sweet red bell pepper taste is perfect- not strong, or over-bearing, like a raw green bell pepper...and the creaminess of the sauce...mmmmm...let's just say I went to my happy place.  Calories?  Don't even go there...as I like to say...never let a good thing go to waste...just waist.  

Irish Chain Baby Quilt...

Eleven years in the making - ELEVEN!  In 1999 I made a quilt for a friend of my daughter when she got married and I loved the fabric I used - wanted more but could never find it and all I had left were some 6-inch blocks and a few strips - just enough for a baby quilt.  I set those blocks aside and about five years later I found them, buried deep in my stash and decided it was time to sew them up.  I paired them with the red fabric and the top came together in about an hour - it is rather small! 

But something happened after the top was pieced and it ended up back in the UFO pile (Un-Finished Objects) for another five years.  Last year, I rescued it yet again and got a back pinned to it faster than you can say FREE QUILT (anything that sits for more than six months in your stash is free.)  Then...back into the pile it went!!  Now, eleven years later, it is quilted, "birthed" (washed and gently pulled from the dryer all warm and soft), and ready to wrap a baby in...except I don't have a baby...I only have Caesar...lover of quilts, keeper of golf balls:

Caesar Beezer knows a good thing when he sees it.  I'll probably never get the quilt back from him, he's vicious when it comes to "Indian Giving"...

Flowers For Church...

Some people do service just to do it - expecting nothing in return.  I'm not one of those people.  I expect something in return...I expect BLESSINGS!  So when I was asked to do flowers for church I immediately said YES because I am in need of some blessings!!  

Six arrangements...which, loosely translated means six blessings, no?  I shall be sitting here at home waiting for them to arrive...anytime now...doorbell works or you can knock...HELLO?  ANYONE LISTENING?!?  This IS how the service/blessings thing works, right? 

Portobello Mushroom and Sausage Pizzas...

The rains have returned.  But that's life in Seattle - one day it's sunny and 70 and everyone runs around in skimpy clothes thinking it's summer and the next it's 48 and rainy - then everyone puts on socks with sandals and flannel shirts over their wife beaters and shorts.  Well, not everyone.  Just the loggers.  And the Microsofties.  Most everyone.  Which is why Seattle has a coffee shop on every corner - bipolar weather makes people want to drink something hot - and eat something hot...and that is why, my friends, we had pizza for dinner.  But not just ordinary pizza...as the mister said, "Why can't a guy just get a pizza from Dominoes instead of designer pizza?!"  Why indeed?  Well, I'll tell you why...one simple reason, this pizza is downright better.  End of discussion.

 

No crust to deal with...for some people pizza is all about the crust but if you're from "Southbeach" or diabetic, this is the perfect pizza.  Portobello mushrooms, so perfectly round - just the right size to hold cooked Italian sausage and onions (and you could add green peppers and garlic, too!), topped with purchased marinara sauce, shredded mozzarella cheese and fresh basil...oh...to have a computer "smell" key right now!  One was filling enough for me but the mister downed two!  That's his standard operating procedure...complain loudly then lick the plate clean.  

Portobello Mushroom and Sausage Pizzas - Adapted from Bon Appetite, August 1997

4 (4-inch-diameter) portobello mushrooms, stemmed, dark gills scraped away

olive oil

2 sweet Italian sausages (about 10 oz.), casings removed

1/2 white onion, finely chopped

dried crush red pepper to taste (I used about 1/2 teaspoon)

1/2 cup purchased marinara sauce

1/2 cup grated mozzarella cheese

fresh basil, chopped, for topping

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Brush mushrooms with oil, on the smooth outside of the mushroom; arrange oil-side down on a baking sheet.  Bake mushrooms until almost tender, about 8 minutes.  Maintain oven temperature.

Saute sausage and onions in a medium skillet over medium-high heat until brown and cooked through; breaking up sausage with the back of a spoon into small pieces, about 8 minutes.  Using a slotted spoon, remove sausage and onions from skillet.  Divide sausage/onion mixture evenly between the mushrooms.  Top each with crushed red pepper then about 2 tablespoons marinara sauce (or more if the mushrooms can hold it) and about 2 tablespoons  mozzarella cheese.  Sprinkle fresh basil over tops. 

Bake mushroom pizzas until heated through, about 10 minutes. Makes 4 pizzas.  Serves 2.

You'll like this - I promise.  All of the flavors are there...and if you want to add pepperoni or olives, do it!  You can top your shroom any way you like it...that's the beauty of this beauty...the only thing you can't do with it is fold it in half and eat it like a New Yorker...but really, folded pizza is highly over-rated!

Beef Stroganoff...

We had quite a mad-cap adventure this past weekend...the Aussie was going on a cruise and she packed everything she needed...her "bathers", her lingerie, her sun-block...yep, everything except her PERMANENT RESIDENT CARD!  She showed up at the dock in California with her passport and apparently they just sniggered...said without her PRC she could NOT get on the boat!  That bit of news set into motion a most hilarious race, which didn't end as we had all hoped - with her getting on the boat...instead her husband got on the boat, she spent the night in a hotel and will try to meet up with the boat on Tuesday morning in Cabo...or, as she likes to say, CARBO...I've spent plenty of time in Carbo, but I've yet to go to Cabo!

 

We live about 35 minutes from the airport in Seattle...that's if two people are in the car and the HOV lane is used and it's not rush hour...we made it to the airport in 22 minutes...I sat in the death seat with my eyes closed, praying, the entire way, while the mister bobbed and weaved in and out of traffic at bread-neck speeds.  Once at the airport I raced into the Virgin America  desk - poured out the story and begged them to get her card onto their plane that was leaving in eleven minutes...the agent explained that the plane door closes ten minutes before the flight and it would never make it and then she said, "Oh what the heck!" and took off running like a bag of gold was waiting for her.  I burst into tears...have no idea why...except that nice people are so hard to find these days!  Ten minutes later, however, she was back, panting, out of breath, she missed the flight.  Plan B.  Off to Alaska Airlines where the next flight left (we were trying to get her card to her in time for her to pick it up at LAX and get back to the boat before it sailed) and the witch at Alaska could NOT have been more rude or cared less...she could stand a few lessons from the Virgin America people.  We ended up at Alaska Cargo Center where we shipped her card to LAX...the Aussie picked it up, had a burger for dinner and slept in a hotel room by herself while her hubby sailed the high seas.

 

The mister and I stopped for lunch at Goldbergs Deli - which is the reason he agreed to get involved in our amazing race - I promised him lunch at Goldbergs if he drove...he's a sucker for a good corned beef sandwich and they have the best around.  We had a nice big lunch...and THEN I remembered that I had already started dinner in the crock pot.  The story of my life.  We ate a bit later than usual and I'm STILL thinking about dinner...the MOST AMAZING sauce...straw worthy to be sure!

Cooking the roast in the crock pot is my favorite way to make this dish - the meat is so tender and it practically falls apart...You can even put your roast in the crock pot frozen, just give it another hour and a half to cook...I love my crock pot - it frees up my time in the kitchen and makes dishes like this so easy - after everything is cooked in the crock the final meal can be on the table in 15 minutes or less!  Give this one a try - it's SO worth it!

Beef Stroganoff - Pots and Pins

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 1/2 lbs. sirloin roast

1 cup red wine

1 large white onion, chopped

2 cups mushrooms, sliced

1 can (14. oz.) beef broth

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

2 tablespoons butter

2 tablespoons flour

2 cups sour cream

1 teaspoon garlic, minced

1 package (16. oz.) egg noodles, cooked according to package directions, and drained

In a large skillet, heat oil until hot, add roast and brown on all sides.  Remove roast to large crock pot turned to high.  De-glaze skillet with red wine for about 2 minutes, then pour wine into crock.  Add onion, mushrooms, beef broth, salt and pepper, mix well, cover and cook for 5 hours.  Remove roast to a cutting board, let sit for ten minutes and then cut into bite-sized pieces.  Strain liquid to remove onions and mushrooms into a large bowl, set aside the liquid and the mushroom/onions.  In a large skillet melt butter and flour together and cook for about 2 minutes over medium-high heat, stirring constantly.  Add in garlic and cook for another minute.  Slowly add in reserved liquid from crock and whisk together.  Bring mixture to a boil, reduce heat and add sour cream.  Adjust seasonings with salt and pepper to taste.  Add meat and mushrooms/onions to the skillet, heat thoroughly.  Serve over egg noodles.  Serves 8 to 10.

This one gets 5 dangs...you'll want to slurp up the sauce...and I recommend you do...it's dang, dang, dang, dang, dang good.  Amen.