Showing posts with label Crock Pot. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Crock Pot. Show all posts

Friday, December 28, 2012

Chicken Enchilada Soup

Being home this week inspired me to do some cooking to try some new things and have leftovers to hold us over into January.  B requested something "spicy" so I tried this Chicken Enchilada Soup.  It is spicy and really tasty.  I made a couple of edits to the recipe, noted below.

I even remembered to take a picture!

Chicken Enchilada Soup
I used small chunks of chicken rather than shredded.  This tasted fine and cooked through nice and fast but they were kind of hard to fish out of the broth once they were cooked.

I couldn't find Cojito cheese.  The site says to use what you have on hand so I used about 4oz cheddar and 4oz feta, tasted really good so that worked fine.

I broke up whole wheat Tostitos scoops on top. 

Not a huge fan of the cilantro so I will leave that off in the future.

You can make this in the crock pot, but I made it on the stove top.

ENJOY!

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

Apple Chicken in the Slow Cooker

I'm a sucker for meal planning and diet websites, it's not good!

The latest - www.emeals.com

I heard about it through Groupon and signed up for the Portion Control menus.  The options look pretty tasty!  I made my first recipe tonight and it came out pretty good!



Apple Chicken
3/4 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/4 t dried thyme leaves
pepper
1/4 t salt
2 T brown sugar
1 T butter melted
1/2 of an onion, thin sliced
1/4 C FF Chicken broth (I made using a bouillon cube)
2 T apple juice
1 green apple, sliced
1/4 C chopped pecans (I left this out)

Sprinkle chicken with thyme, pepper & salt.  Place onions in bottom of slow cooker.  Top with chicken.
In a small bowl combine brown sugar, butter, broth, and juice, mix well, pour into slow cooker.
Cover, cook on low 5 hours (or high for 2 hours).
Stir in apples, cover and cook 1-2 hours on low (or 30 minutes on high) or until chicken is cooked and apples are tender.
Sprinkle pecans on top and divide into 3 services.
Serve each over 1/2 rice and broccoli

Sunday, November 18, 2012

PARTY!!! (with recipes)

Last night R and I threw and awesome party to celebrate M getting her PHD.

We rock at science!!  Or at least decorating with science related stuff.

Awesome scientist cake from The Iron Tomato
And, what everyone's been waiting for - recipes for the best party food EVER!

New for this party, and instant success, Bodacious Bean Dip (from food.com).

2 (14 ounce) cans fat-free refried beans
1 (14 ounce) can corn
1/3 cup green onion
2 1/2-3 tablespoons taco seasoning (I use Pampered Chef Southwest seasoning)
1 1/2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded

Directions:

1. Combine all ingredients except the cheese into a greased 2 - 3 1/2 quart slow cooker.
2. Cover and cook on high for 30 minutes and then on high heat for another 30 minutes OR on low heat for 2-3 hours.
3. Add cheddar cheese for the last half hour on low heat.
4. Serve with tortilla chips or as a filling for warm flour tortillas.

I didn't add the cheese, kept it Vegan for R.  It was still really tasty, cheese isn't needed.


Crockpot Meatballs

1 Bag Swedish bite size frozen meatballs (I use whatever frozen meatballs I find at the store, doesn't seem to matter)
1 Cup A1 Sauce
1/4 stick butter
2 T brown sugar
3 T Sour Cream
2 1/4 Cup Ketchup

Defrost meatballs in crockpot.  
Heat Sauce in saucepan and pour over meatballs
Leave on crockpot on warm

I like to serve these with some dinner rolls so people can make mini meatball sandwiches if they want.  
I got this recipe from someone on a chat board I belong to.  I'm not sure where it originated.

Spiced Beef Empanadas (also good with turkey) from CookingLight.com

1 T Olive Oil
1 small onion, chopped
1/2 lb ground beef (80 to 85% lean)
1/3 cup golden raisins (I leave these out)
2 T ketchup
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
Kosher salt and black pepper
2 store bought refrigerated rolled pie crusts (a good brand, not store brand)
1 large egg, beaten
Sour Cream for serving
Heat over to 375.  Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, 5 to 6 minutes.  Add the beef and cook, breaking it up with a spoon, until no longer pink, 3 to 4 minutes.  Stir in the (raisins), ketchup, cinnamon, 1/2 tsp salt, and 1/4 tsp pepper.

Using a 2 1/2 inch round cookie cutter (or glass), cut out circles from the pie crusts.  Divide the beef mixture among the circles, brush the edges with water, fold in half and press with a fork (or fingers) to seal.  Transfer to a baking sheet and brush with the egg.  Bake until golden, 20 - 25 minutes.  Serve with sour cream.



Sunday, October 7, 2012

Crock Pot Beef Chili

Another of the family favorites...beef chili.  This recipe is SUPER easy.  Literally just throw everything in the crock pot and let it cook.  The only prep is to cut up an onion and rinse some beans.

1.5 lbs ground beef
1 1/2 T ground cumin
2 T chili powder
1/2 tsp salt
3 garlic cloves
7 oz diced green chilies (I used canned)
1 medium onion chopped (use discretion, you don't want to be overwhelmed with onion)
1 15 oz can chili beans, undrained
1 15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
14.5 oz can diced tomatoes
12 oz can tomato paste

Add everything to crock pot, mix, cook on low for about 5 hours.  We typically end up leaving it on warm or simmer for a while after and it's fine.

To serve I usually put some diced red onion and shredded cheese on top and serve with some crusty bread.

This is a big recipe, makes 8-10 servings.

The chili freezes well.  I like to freeze a couple of smaller portions to have later on as a topping for a baked/sweet potato.

Enjoy!

Sunday, September 30, 2012

Crock Pot Pulled Pork

Since I broke out the crock pot last weekend I decided to make something today so I wouldn't have to cook this week. 

I asked Brad what I should make so, of course, he requested Pulled Pork - his fav.

This is one of my stand-bys - so I figured I'd share:

About 2.5lbs pork roast (I use whatever boneless pork I can find, usually 2-3lbs)
1 Medium Onion chopped
1 Bottle BBQ sauce, about 14oz (whatever flavor you like most)
1 T Lemon Juice
1 tsp brown sugar (I overestimate this - yum!)

Cook pork roast in the crock pot on high 5-6 hours or on low for 10-12 hours (just drop it in there all by itself, super easy).
Remove pork from crock pot into a bowl, drain liquid from crock, shred the pork using a form (tongs also help) and return to crock pot.  Be careful, it's hot.
Add remaining ingredients.  Cook 2 more hours on high.

You can leave it on warm for a while if you're serving for a party (always a hit).
I usually get some tasty rolls to make sandwiches.  I got some sweet potatoes to have with the pork this week, can't wait!