RECIPE: Bad Day Comfort Food Beef

I'm not saying yesterday was a bad day. It was actually an awesome day -- brunch with friends, a three-mile walk, and some Oscar dress-bashing. (Loved Cameron, hated Charlize.) And to top it off, I concocted a delicious pot roast recipe which I'm totally whipping out the next time I do have a craptacular day. I LOVE COMFORT FOOD.

Doesn't this just make you feel warm and fuzzy?

• 2-3 lb. beef roast
• 1 can of beef broth
• 1 can of condensed cream of mushroom soup
• 1 can of whole peeled potatoes, diced
• 10 baby carrots, chopped
• 1 package of dry onion soup mix

Brown the roast on all sides (I used a cast iron skillet on high heat; only took a minute or two). Throw everything in the slow cooker and cook on LOW for 6-8 hours. The juices from the meat will mix with the other stuff and make a killer gravy, so I recommend having some mashed potatoes or biscuits at the ready. You can always add extra carrots or potatoes. I might try substituting canned FO soup for the dry mix next time, just to have more gravy.

RECIPE: Easy-Cheesy Potatoes

Velveeta is like my bad-boy crush. I know it's wrong, but I can't resist. I was in a comfort-food mood last night, so these scalloped potatoes are full of bad choices. I'll do penance at the gym next week, I promise.

• 2 cans of sliced white potatoes (low-sodium)
• 6-8 slices of bacon
• 1 cup shredded asiago cheese
• a cup or two of cubed Velveeta (about 2/3 of the big bar)
• 1/2 cup heavy cream
• 1/2 cup skim milk

Fry the bacon; don't spill the fat on the hot burner and almost burn down your kitchen like I did. Shred it and add it to your slow cooker with all the other ingredients. Cook on LOW for 2 hours, or until the cheese is all melty. It may seem a little thin while it's cooking, but once you remove the lid and let it cool for a minute or two, the "pasteurized cheese product" will magically attempt to reconstitute itself, creating a thick, gooey sauce. Yum.