If you live in Texas, you know that there is no better place to buy your groceries than H-E-B. They have the best deals, little yellow coupon tags hanging everywhere for additional discounts, friendly service, J.J. Watt as a spokesman on their commercials (yum) and the H-E-B Buddy program. My son loves going to H-E-B for Buddy bucks. How it works, is when you check out with you groceries, the cashier will hand you little fake money papers called Buddy Bucks. (your kids has to be with you for them to offer it to you). So then you go over to the machine and they use the bucks in a giant roulette wheel (come on parents, you know that’s what it is…). Depending on what it lands on, the kid can either win points to save up for something or they win an instant prize. My son got to play when we were shopping there the other day, and won an instant prize – a yo-yo. You haven’t lived until you’ve seen a 4 year old try to yo-yo. It basically just unraveling from his hand and he dragged it all the to the car. But it’s a fun little reward to give the kids for being good while shopping.
While I was at H-E-B, I picked up one of these awesome Cocinaware Dutch Ovens. They were on sale and I’ve always wanted a Dutch oven, so it was a win win. I remember my first introduction to a Dutch oven was when my brother was in boy scouts and he and my dad would tell me about how they used a Dutch oven for a lot of their cooking. They would dig a hole, put the Dutch oven in it, and cover it with hot coals, and it would cook anything that was in there. And when I say anything, I mean anything! They made lasagna, stew, and even brownies! Yes – all while on a boy scout camping trip – no hot dogs in sight!
Now I’m not planning on cooking in the ground, but I was very excited to break this bad boy in. I thought I would start off with this recipe from H-E-B’s website for Rotisserie Chicken Broccoli & Rice Bake. I love one pot meals. They make clean up a breeze, and with two small kids, I need all the help I can get with having less dishes to wash! So, with my little guy’s help, we prepped in that Dutch oven, stirred, and baked. They only additional dishes I had to wash were the plates and silverware we ate with. And did we eat! This recipe was so yummy and the perfect belly warmer for the un-Texas-like wintery weather we’ve been having lately.
I seriously love this thing. I can’t wait to make something else in it. I’m thinking a roast. The lid has this really neat feature where the inside of the lid has raised bumps in it, so that when the steam rises in the oven, it collects on the lid and drips back down – naturally braising your meat. Cool right? Less babysitting the meat!
This Cocinaware Dutch Oven was the perfect vessel to cook this in as well. Did you know that you can make all sorts of recipes in them – from casseroles and roasts, to brownies and cakes! And I like making enough food so that I have leftovers for lunch the next day, and this 5 quart size is perfect for just that!
What would you use your Dutch oven for?
This post is sponsored by H-E-B.
