Hot Beef Sundaes

Of course it makes it cooler if you eat your beef sundaes out of actual sundae dishes

Sounds disgusting doesn't it?

Plains Fair Beef Sundae stand

I'd seen the beef sundae stands at the fair, and my instinct was to stay away from them. My son, of course, had completely the opposite idea.  He had to try one while we were at the fair and then after devouring his, he decided that was what we had to have for dinner next time it was his turn to cook.

If someone else is cooking, I'm pretty open to what they want to make, so I got him the ingredients. Then I remembered he had football practice and wouldn't be home until time to eat, so I ended up making them.  I've decided I'm converted. It's not totally a crockpot meal, but if you just do instant versions of the couple other ingredients (and why wouldn't you?!) it's still only 15-20 minutes to get it all on the table.

It was incredibly easy and everyone actually ate them.  I did do the instant versions of everything included because my family actually likes it better, I hate to cook, and it's so much faster. My husband pointed out it's just Shepard's Pie which is basically true. It's probably even closer to the casseroles my mom always made from all the leftovers after big family holiday dinners (except she doesn't do the instant version). Either way, this is even easier than those things (so easy all three of my older kids can make it pretty much by themselves) and my picky kids actually ate it.

This is our version.

Ingredients:

• beef (we used about a 3 lb roast)
• 1 package french onion soup
• 2 cups beef broth
• 4 packages instant potatoes
• 2 packages instant gravy
• can of corn 
• 1 package shredded cheese 
• (these portions easily fed 7 people)   

Steps: 

1. Dump the soup mix in the beef broth & microwave it a minute or so to dissolve it.
2.  Put the beef in the crockpot & pour the broth/ soup mixture over it.
3. Cook beef until it shreds easily. (This was about 6 hours on high for our 3 lb roast.)
4. Shred beef
5. Cook instant mashed potatoes.
6. Make instant gravy.
*steps 5-6 both amount to boiling water and adding in the mix
7. Warm up corn.
8. Let kids scoop up their beef and potatoes.
9. Let everyone add their sundae toppings. (We went with grated cheese and corn, but more adventurous eaters could be more interesting!)
10. Add a cherry tomato on top! (This is not on the list of the five vegetables most of my kids will eat so it's not pictured in the sundae above.)

And you have a finished meal in about 15 minutes after you take it out of the crockpot!

I've found one more thing for my kids to eat while I try to convince them that there are other acceptable dinner choices besides large helpings of meat and potatoes or some sort of noodles covered in red sauce!