Cooking a Winter Stew with DealDash

 

I don’t know about you, but I know that my family eats differently in winter than in summer. Let’s take a peek at a wintery meal we can prepare with help from DealDash .

My family eats a lot of soups and stews during the cold and wintery months. It seems to be a common theme in cooking magazines, as well as with people I know. Not only are they filling, moderately healthy (depending on what you add), they are also something that you can make with just items that you have on hand in the freezer and pantry. That means if it’s cold and snowing outside you won’t have to leave your cozy little nest of a home to go to the supermarket.

One of my favorite kitchen items in the winter is my crock pot/slow cooker. I actually have 3 crock pots of different sizes – a huge one that can accommodate a roast, a medium one that’s great for a stew or for soup, and a smaller one that can be for a gravy or fondue. I get a lot of use out of these in the winter months, if you don’t already have a crock pot (or three!) check them out on DealDash, here.

Hamilton Beach 5-Quart Portable Slow Cooker

If you are just getting started with using a slow cooker, you might be interested in a simple stew recipe:

Simple Beef Stew

Ingredients:

  • 2 pounds beef stew meat, cut into 1 inch cubes
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 1 teaspoon paprika
  • 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 1 1/2 cups beef broth
  • 3 potatoes, diced
  • 4 carrots, sliced
  • 1 stalk celery, chopped

How do you do it? Simple!

  1. Place meat in slow cooker. In a small bowl mix together the flour, salt, and pepper; pour over meat, and stir to coat meat with flour mixture. Stir in the garlic, bay leaf, paprika, Worcestershire sauce, onion, beef broth, potatoes, carrots, and celery.
  2. Cover, and cook on Low setting for 10 to 12 hours, or on High setting for 4 to 6 hours.

That’s it! And really, one of the great things about a stew like this is if you are missing an ingredient, such as the celery or the carrots you can always exclude that item, or even swap it for a different item such as peas. Personally, since I am allergic to fish and seafood I exclude the Worcestershire sauce and add in a splash of soy sauce instead. It’s delicious!

Hamilton Beach 70950 SaladXpress Counter-top Food Processor Electric w/ConesKitchenAid Artisan Stand Mixer, Apple GreenT-Fal Initiatives 18-Piece Nonstick Inside and Out Cookware Set

I hope this article has encouraged you to try to make a simple winter stew with your slow cooker.  If you’re interested in getting some items to help you with cooking at home head on over to DealDash. DealDash has food processors, stand mixers, cookware, and plenty of other items that you can use. Check out the Kitchen & Appliances category and I’m sure that you’ll find something that you can use to make your kitchen better. Good luck and happy bidding everyone!

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow!

 

Here in Massachusetts we are gearing up for our very first snow of the season! It’s coming remarkably late in the year, it was a beautiful 60 degrees on Christmas Eve. Let’s think about snow…

 

When you think about snow, what is the first thing that you think of? Well, if you’re a grown up, you are probably thinking about snow removal. No fun! We will get to that later, but for now, let’s think like kids. And how do kids feel about snow? They love it! If it’s a lighter snow they get to go out and play, and if it’s a heavier snow they even get to skip going to school. What kid doesn’t love a snow day?

When you think about playing in the snow, they first thing that comes to my mind, as a parent, is warm snow gear. If your kids old snow gear doesn’t fit anymore, or if they didn’t receive any new snow gear this year for Christmas, you might want to head on over to DealDash and check out their gift card section, here. DealDash has quite a large selection of gift cards, and there are plenty of cards available to stores that carry all manner of snow gear such as snowsuits, boots, hats, gloves, etc. Some cards that you might want to check out are Sears, Target, Wal*Mart, or even Cabela’s Sports if you are looking to get some higher quality snow gear for an older kid or teen who likes to snowboard or ski.

Alright, let’s talk about the less fun side of snow – snow removal. Snow removal can be as difficult and backbreaking or as easy as you want it to be, you just have to have the right tools for the job. If it’s a very light dusting of snow, and you just want to shovel your walk so it’s easier and safer for your family and others to walk on, just use a shovel, no problem. If it’s a mid-level snow, and the classic shovel is a bit too backbreaking for your taste, how about getting a snow pusher? They are similar to a shovel, except they have a long flat blade that you can just push the snow out of the way like a human snow-dozer. Of course, for the heaviest snow you are going to need to pull out all of the stops and use your snow blower! The good news is, DealDash has all of these snow removal products and more. Check out the Home, Garden, & Tools section here and check out all of the great products that are up for auction to make your life easier for you.

 

 

Well, I’m off to organize my snow tools, then relax with a hot tea, and check out the auctions. See you on DealDash everyone! Good luck and happy bidding.

What Will We Do With All of These Presents?

Let’s face it, as wonderful as Christmas is, the aftermath can be a mess! What are you going to do with all of your extra stuff? Let DealDash help.

First off, if you hosted your family’s Christmas celebration, I bet you have a lot of food left. So let’s talk about food storage first. I don’t know about you, but I really don’t like it when my foods are stored sharing containers in the fridge. The flavors and smells kind of meld together and I just don’t care for it. So when I am hosting people in my home I make sure that I have plenty of extra food storage containers handy and ready to go. If you are in need of food storage containers check out DealDash’s Kitchen & Appliances section, there are a few different options that come up frequently for auction. I personally prefer the glass ones, but they do tend to be a bit more expensive than their plastic counterparts, and also get very hot to touch after you have heated them in the microwave.

Rubbermaid 40-Piece Food Storage SetPyrex Premium Glass Lids Storage Container Set (Set of 3)

How about all of those new DVDs, Blu-Rays, books, and video games that you or your kid’s might have gotten for Christmas? You might need to expand your entertainment storage a little bit by getting a new bookshelf or cabinet so you can display your new items. DealDash has a ton of different options, try browsing the Home & Office category on DealDash. I know that one of my husband’s biggest complaints is that we have too many DVDs and books just randomly stashed around the family room and kid’s playroom. That problem is easily solved by getting one of these great storage units.

Systembuild 9 Cube Storage - Resort CherrySouth Shore Storage CabinetSauder O'Sullivan Multimedia Storage Tower

 

Lastly, and probably the most prolific if you have younger children – toy storage! The Toys, Kids, & Baby section on DealDash has a ton, of course! There are different toy storage options for both boys, girls, and also in neutral colors. At my house we have one of each of these options – it’s a great way to be able to organize the toys that specifically belong to either my son or daughter, and then the neutral bins I store the toys that they like to share together, such as the Legos and other building toys, art supplies, puzzles, and other things.

Delta Children Disney Mickey Mouse Toy OrganizerDisney Multi-Bin Toy OrganizerTot Tutors Toy Organizer

I hope that you and your family had a wonderful Christmas together and got everything that you were wishing for! Good luck and happy bidding everyone.

 

Surviving the Holidays With Help from DealDash

 

As fun as the holidays are, some people just can’t get into the spirit. Here are some tips to help get through the next few weeks.

No matter what the reason, be it Seasonal Effective Disorder, baby blues, or just a dislike of the holidays in general you have a right to your feelings, and you’re going to need to find ways to keep yourself busy during the next few weeks. Here are some ideas to start off your thought process.

How about learning a new skill, such as cooking a specific meal or food item? Everyone else is baking Christmas cookies or planning on roasting a turkey, but how about you learn how to make home made pasta? It’s much more delicious than store bought pasta, and you can make it as healthy (or not!) as you choose. If you have a Kitchenaid stand mixer you can make pasta really quickly and easily. Here is a simple recipe you can follow:

Ingredients:

    • 3 1/2 cups all-purpose unbleached flour, sifted (plus extra flour for preparing)
    • 1/2 teaspoon salt
    • 4 large eggs, beaten
  • 2 Tablespoons water

KitchenAid Artisan Series 5-Quart Mixer, Cobalt BlueKitchenAid Pasta Roller Attachment

Directions:

 

  • Place eggs, water, flour and salt in mixer bowl. Attached bowl and flat beater. Turn to speed 2 and mix for 30 to 60 seconds. Add more water if the dough is too dry, in 1/2 Tablespoon increments.
  • Change out the flat beater for the dough hook. Turn to speed 2 and knead for 2 minutes. Remove the dough and knead by hand for 2 minutes. Let it rest for 20 to 30 minutes.
  • Cut dough into four pieces before processing with pasta sheet attachment. Take one piece and flatten into a rectangular shape. Adding flour to both sides. Be sure to cover the other pieces. Attach the pasta sheet roller to your stand mixer and set it to #1. Turn on the stand mixer to speed 2 and run the pasta dough through the pasta sheet roller. While on #1, fold the dough in half and run it through again. Do this several times.
  • Adding a little bit of flour on each side of the dough again, change setting to #2 and pass the pasta dough through the sheet roller. Do this twice and then twice each on #3 and then #4. If you want thicker dough, don’t do the #4 setting.
  • Once again, add flour to each side of your long pasta sheet. Change the attachment to your spaghetti or fettuccine cutter and turn on to speed 2. Run the pasta sheet through and with your left hand, hold on to the pasta as it comes through the cutter. Allow pasta to dry for a few minutes before boiling.
  • When boiling your pasta, it only needs 3 to 7 minutes to boil.

You can get a Kitchenaid mixer and all of it’s various attachments on DealDash. Just click this link here and it will take you to the auctions. If pasta making sounds fun but maybe a little too ambitious check out DealDash’s Kitchen & Appliances section and perhaps you can find a fun new kitchen gadget that’s more your speed.

Rachael Ray Hard Enamel Cookware 10pc set (2-tone Red)Oceanstar 6 Piece Bamboo Cooking Utensil SetRubbermaid 40-Piece Food Storage Set

If cooking really isn’t your thing, how about using your extra time off from work (assuming you get holiday time off!) and do some of those extra projects around the house that you have been putting off for a while now? I can think of a few projects off the top of my head that need doing around my house, and I bet you can, too. If you’re really not much of a handy sort, how about getting a basic tool set from DealDash? You could get something like the Essentials 34 piece tool kit and have just about everything you need for a small project. You can find that auction, and other tool kit auctions at this link here.

Essentials 34-Piece Around the House Tool Kit with Screwdriver

If you’re more advanced in your handiness you could pick up something a little trickier to use such as a rotary tool set or even a hammer drill. Check out the Home, Garden, & Tools section here on DealDash and see what you can discover.

Of course, there’s nothing more fun than sitting down at your computer and just browsing all of the different areas on DealDash. Good luck and happy bidding everyone!

 

 

Using the Features of the DealDash App for Android

 

If you’ve been following along with my DealDash app for Android blog series you are probably getting used to bidding on the go!

However, if you missed my first two blogs on the subject I will provide a quick refresher on the basics. If you already know how to download and open the app on your Android phone, please skip down to the bottom and I will explain a few of the features that are available on the DealDash app.

If you haven’t yet downloaded the DealDash app for Android, please start off by going to Google Play. You can do this on your computer or phone browser if you like by going to this link.  Or you can just go to Google Play and type DealDash into the search box. However, the even easier way to get the app is to go to the Google Play app on your phone and type DealDash into the search box.

Verify that the publisher is indeed DealDash, and go ahead and find the green rectangle that says “install.” Just go ahead and click that button and wait for it to install on your Google Play app.

Once you have finished installing the DealDash app for Android you can click on it to open it up, and you should see a sign-in screen where you can put your regular DealDash sign-in name and password. You can choose to save this information so DealDash will automatically connect for you when you open up the app.

Now that everyone has installed the DealDash app let’s get down to the features that I haven’t explained yet. They are the exact same features that are found on the regular DealDash website, but they are shown a little differently with the app.

OpenFirst off, You’ll want to find the current open auctions. Just look at the top of your screen after you have signed in, and you will see the words All, Upcoming, Open, and Bookmarked. To find the current open auctions just click on the word “Open” at the top. This will bring up all of the items that are currently running for auction. Some of these items have already reached the $5 No Jumper limit and therefore are not eligible for bidding. Just check where it says “current bid”, and if it’s less than $5 then feel free to click on the picture to open up the bidding screen.

Upcoming

Next, you might want to see what auctions are coming up soon. Just look at the top of your phone screen, and you should see the word “Upcoming”. Just click on it, and you will be able to scroll through and see all of the items that are not only just about to start, but if you scroll long enough you should be able to see about 15 hours into the future.

 

 

Bookmarked

 

Another handy feature that you should make use of is the “Bookmarked” tab. It’s up at the top of your phone screen, also. When you have been browsing around the Open and Upcoming sections you might have noticed an outline of a star at the top right corner of each auction. If you click the star it will put it into the Bookmarked section of your app for you. That way, if you find something that doesn’t start for a few more hours into the future you can still keep track of it. Just click on the Bookmarked tab, and they will be there for you.

 

Winner

The last feature that I am going to explain is the “Winners” tab. It’s very similar to the Winners tab on the desktop site – just click it and you will be able to scroll through hours and hours of awesome DealDash wins!

 

 

 

I hope this helped some of you Android-loving  DealDashers! If you’re interested in reading even more tips and tricks check out the “Tactics & Tips” section on DealDash. The DealDash app has saved me a ton of time and money. I hope you enjoy it! Good luck and happy bidding everyone!