Sausage Stew

My weekly meal plans can sometimes take a u-turn if I find something unexpected on sale at the store. But then I stock up and life happens and whatever it was that I bought still sits in the fridge 3 or 4 days later. So before it reaches "the point of no return," I have to come up with a plan to use the bargain I found, along with whatever else has accumulated in the fridge during the past week.

This week it was ground pork. My intent was to whip up a couple meatloaves for freezing, but I never got around to it--life, kids, and holiday exhaustion got the better of me. The solution? Search Grandma's archives for something different that used ground pork and...behold!...I found something that not only used up the pork, but also some accumulated vegetables--celery, carrots, potatoes, and onions, and--bonus--some tomato soup leftovers! It was a trifecta of budgetary compliance! I was also able to convert it to a crock pot meal. 

The verdict? Surprisingly delicious and hearty and it was satisfying to know that nothing went to waste in the fridge this week. Grandma would have been proud.

Ground Pork Stew

1 lb lean ground pork

1 cup celery, chopped

1/2 cup onion, chopped

2 cups potatoes, diced

1 cup carrots, sliced

1 cup frozen peas

1 cup frozen corn

10 oz can of tomato soup

1 tsp dried parsley

salt and pepper to taste

Heat a large skillet or Dutch Oven. Brown pork, onion and celery then add potatoes, carrots, peas and corn. Stir to combine and add tomato soup, parsley and salt and pepper. Mix well. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat, and simmer for 2-3 hours. (In a crockpot, I cooked it on low for 6 hours.)