Crock-Pot Chronicles

A Winner! And.... A Sad Announcement

2010-06-05T08:22:00.000-07:00

Good Saturday morning to everyone!

First, I want to say that we have a winner for the brand new, revised Fix-It and Forget-It.... my 10 year-old did a random drawing and I am pleased to announce that the name he picked out of the bowl was.......

Steph the bookworm!!!

Woohoo!! Way to go, Steph! I will be sending you an e-mail to get your snail mail address and your awesome, fantastic, tasty-dish cookbook will go out next week!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Next, I need to make a sad announcement....

After much thought, I have decided to end Crock-Pot Chronicles! :(

I find it very difficult to get followers for this blog, and since I also run A Cup of Tea and a Cozy For Me, I find it difficult to keep up with the two blogs at once.

I will still post some great recipes on A Cup of Tea; I just don't have the time to run two blogs with posts every day on both of them!
Thank you so much for those of you who have followed. Perhaps if you're not a follower of A Cup of Tea yet, you'll consider popping over to see what we're all about. It is primarily a book blog, but I also post recipes, product reviews, and have great discussion topics for everyone to get involved in.
I think I am going to incorporate a couple of weekly "memes" from Chronicles into my postings on A Cup of Tea... such as "Wish-List Wednesday" and "Five Ingredient Friday". They probably won't all be slow-cooker recipes, but what the heck.... maybe you'll discover something new anyway.

So, I hope you'll all check out A Cup of Tea. Thank you for your support on Chronicles, and hopefully I'll see you around the blogosphere.

For Crock-Pot Chronicles, this is Jeanne saying "over and out".

Wednesday Wish-List ... "Something Chocolatey"!

2010-05-26T07:28:00.000-07:00

This week's wish list is brought to us by Steph! She asked for something chocolatey.... so, without further ado I bring to you:

Hot Fudge Cake

1 c. packed brown sugar
1 c. all purpose flour
3 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 c. milk
2 Tbsp. melted butter
1/2 tsp. vanilla

3/4 c. packed brown sugar
1/4 c. unsweetened cocoa powder
1 3/4 c. boiling water

Mix together 1 cup of brown sugar, flour, 3 Tbsp. cocoa, baking powder and salt. Stir in milk, butter and vanilla. Spread into bottom of slow-cooker coated with cooking spray.

Mix together 3/4 c. brown sugar and 1/4 c. cocoa. Sprinkle over slow cooker mixture. Pour boiling water on top.
DO NOT STIR!
Cover and cook on High for 2-3 hours or until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.

Serve by scooping spoonfuls of "cake" into bowls.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The cake is going to be ooey-gooey in the middle. It is supposed to look like this. The idea is that it is chocolate cake with a "hot-fudge" like center.

***** you MUST serve this warm with a big plop of ice cream on top or atleast whip cream!

This is decadent and oh-so-chocolatey!

I also have this recipe in a "bake-in-the-oven" version. I can post it if anyone requests it. But, honestly.... it's going to be 95 degrees here in New York today! Do you really want to turn on your oven???
That's the beauty of using your crock-pot! An awesome dessert recipe without heating up the house "baking" a cake!
Yee-haw! Now that's what I'm talkin' about! :)

Five Ingredient Friday...Baked Apples & Granola

2010-05-21T13:57:00.000-07:00

Baked Apples & Granola

4 large apples, peeled and sliced
1/4 c. honey
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 Tbsp. melted butter
2 c. dry granola cereal

Place apples in slow-cooker.
Combine remaining ingredients; sprinkle over apples.
Cover and cook on Low for 6 - 8 hours (or overnight), or on High for 2-3 hours.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

*****this is great to serve on a breakfast buffet, or atop homemade Belgian waffles

*****my favorite way to have this... served warm with vanilla ice cream and caramel sundae topping.... yummy, yummy, yummy!!!

Review: Fix-It and Forget-It Revised & Updated Edition... AND GIVEAWAY!

2010-05-19T07:55:00.000-07:00

Normally on Wednesdays we do a wish-list, but since I didn't have any requests this week, I decided to do a review of the new revised & updated Fix-It and Forget-It slow cooker cookbook by Phyllis Pellman Good.

The New York Times bestseller has sold over 5 million copies, and for me, it is definitely the go-to cookbook I use for my crock-pot.

This brand new revised and updated edition contains 700 recipes that are easy to prepare and most of all, delicious to eat. It has some fantastic new features that the old editions didn't have:

100 brand new recipes
"Prep Time", "Cooking Time", and "Ideal Slow-Cooker Size" included for each recipe
4 pages of basic and very helpful information: Substitute Ingredients, Equivalent Measurements, Kitchen Tools and Equipment You May Have Overlooked, Assumptions about Ingredients
"Tips for Using Your Slow-Cooker: A Friendly, Year-Round Appliance"
Drawings & illustrations

Revisions include:

Improved index
Personal Introduction by Phyllis Pellman Good
Good's personal comments throughout the recipes section

Perhaps the greatest thing about Fix-It and Forget-It is that every recipe is reader tested and submitted, so you know that the results are going to be fantastic!

This new revised edition is a beautiful softcover book that is easy to navigate. It would make a great gift for a bridal shower along with a shiny new slow-cooker for the bride-to-be!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Now, on to the giveaway! The publisher was kind enough to send me a copy of the new Revised & Updated Fix-It and Forget-It, and I will hold a random drawing for 1 winner to receive it.
You must be a follower of Crock-Pot Chronicles to be eligible.
Leave me a comment saying you'd like to enter to win, and be sure to leave me your e-mail address.
A winner will be chosen at random on JUNE 1st. I will e-mail the winner for their snail mail address, and if the winner does not respond in 48 hours, then a new winner will be chosen.

Good luck and thank you for participating!

****I did not receive any compensation for a positive review of this product. It was sent to me in exchange for an honest opinion.

Tasty Tuesday... Ramen Noodle Stew

2010-05-18T07:45:00.000-07:00

Ramen Noodle Stew

6 - 8 chicken pieces, skin removed (drumsticks and/or thighs)
4 carrots, cut into chunks
1 small onion, sliced very thin
2 c. water
2 pkg chicken flavored ramen noodles

Place chicken, carrots, and onion in slow-cooker.
In a large measuring cup, mix water with the two seasoning packets from the noodles. Pour over chicken & vegetables.
Cover and cook on Low for 6 - 8 hours, or until chicken is tender and falling off the bone.
Remove chicken from pot and de-bone so you have large chunks of chicken. Discard bones. As you are de-boning, turn crock-pot on high.
Return chicken to pot.
Break up ramen noodles into large pieces. Put in crock-pot. Stir to make sure noodles are covered in broth.
Cover and cook on High for 5 - 8 minutes, until noodles are cooked.

Serve in deep bowls, making sure each serving has plenty of chicken, carrots, and noodles in each bowl.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

***** I don't recommend adding extra salt to this recipe, as the seasoning packets contain plenty of sodium. We like fresh cracked pepper on our individual servings.

*****you can use boneless breasts in this recipe. Just shred the chicken instead of de-boning. I prefer bone-in pieces because I think it gives the broth alot of extra flavor.

*****a small salad and some warm rolls round out the meal.

Enjoy!

Manic Monday.... Chicken Cacciatore With Mushrooms

2010-05-17T13:43:00.000-07:00

I have this in my crock-pot as we speak.

It smells sooo good, and I can't wait to pile it on top of a heaping plate of spaghetti!

Chicken Cacciatore With Mushrooms

4 whole chicken legs, skin removed
1/2 lb. fresh mushrooms, quartered
2 26oz. jars spaghetti sauce
1/2 c. red wine

Place chicken legs in slow-cooker. Put mushrooms in on top of chicken.
In a large bowl, whisk together spaghetti sauce and red wine.
Add to slow-cooker.
Cover and cook on High for 3 hours, then switch to Low for 4 - 5 hours.

Serve over piping hot spaghetti.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

*****feel free to add more chicken legs if you have a large family or company's coming.

*****today, I added some slices of pepperoni to the sauce. Gives it awesome flavor.... but don't add too much, as it tends to make the sauce oily. (I added like 10 pieces).

*****we have a family of four, so each person gets their own chicken leg. Served with spaghetti and garlic bread, that is plenty for each person.

*****if you aren't fond of mushrooms, replace with some green pepper & onion slices. Or add it with the mushrooms!

*****also, red wine is not a must have! Leave it out if you prefer (but it sure does taste good!)

Enjoy!

Soupy Sunday.... Slow-Cooked Clam Chowder

2010-05-16T08:14:00.000-07:00

My kids love clam chowder! Wrong time of year, I know... but, this is a great recipe for Lenten "no meat" Fridays.

Also great on these cool Spring evenings - especially a day like today.... kind of cool and rainy.

This is a "semi-homemade" recipe, since it calls for canned soups.

Slow-Cooked Clam Chowder

3 10 3/4oz. cream of potato soup (Campbell's)
2 10 3/4oz. New England clam chowder (Campbell's)
1/2 c. butter (I use a little less)
1 small onion, diced
1 pint half & half
2 6oz. cans clams, chopped

Combine all ingredients in slow-cooker. Cover and cook on Low for 2 - 4 hours.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

*****I feel that a full 1/2 c. butter is too much, but you can use that much if that's how you like it. I actually use about 1/2 that much. Play around and see how your family prefers it!

*****Don't add too much salt... the canned soups have plenty of sodium; we like ours with lots of fresh ground pepper, though!

***** we love to have plenty of oyster crackers on hand with this chowder!

***** if you serve it with a small garden salad and corn-on-the-cob, you've got a simple meal.

Enjoy!

Savory Saturday... Swiss Steak

2010-05-15T08:29:00.000-07:00

One of many Swiss Steak recipes I have. This is one of our favorites.

Swiss Steak

1 1/2 lb. round steak, cut into serving size pieces
2 - 3 Tbsp. flour
1/2 lb. sliced carrots or 1 lb. baby carrots
1 pkg. dry onion soup mix
1 8oz. can tomato sauce
1/2 c. water

Dredge steak in flour. Place carrots in slow cooker. Top with steak.
Combine tomato sauce, soup mix and water. Pour over all.
Cover and cook on Low for 8 hours.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

***** Serve over mashed potatoes or hot buttered noodles. (our family prefers noodles with this one!)

Enjoy!

Five Ingredient Friday... Asian Pork Ribs

2010-05-14T08:11:00.000-07:00

Let's plan a fun Asian night! You don't need to order out to have your favorite restaurant foods!

Asian Pork-Ribs

5 lbs. country-style pork ribs
1/4 c. teriyaki sauce
1/4 c. cornstarch
1 26 oz. jar of duck sauce
2 Tbsp. minced garlic (or less to suit your tastes)

Place ribs in slow cooker. In a large bowl, whisk together teriyaki sauce and cornstarch. Stir in duck sauce and garlic.
Pour sauce over ribs, making sure each rib has some sauce on it.
Cover and cook on Low for 6 - 8 hours. OR cook on High for 4 - 5 hours.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

***** to make a full meal, serve with fried rice and egg rolls.
You can find great fried rice mixes in the grocery store these days! Or, I like to use Lipton-Knorr Teriyaki Noodles.

***** You can also find frozen egg rolls in the freezer case of your grocery store. I buy Ling-Ling brand spring rolls in BJ's warehouse store (the kids also like these as an after-school snack - they just pop 'em in the microwave).

***** you can also pick up a package of Chinese noodles in the ethnic section of the grocery store and serve with extra duck sauce. (like Chinese chips and dip, if you will)

These ideas are more economical than ordering out for the whole meal. And these days, who doesn't want to save a few bucks!

Enjoy!

Sorry For Being MIA

2010-05-11T05:26:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to check in real fast and let you all know that I did not fall off the face of the Earth!

It's been a crazy week - my little one has been sick, now the older one is starting, and I just can't keep up!

Hopefully by the end of the week we'll be back in the swing of things and I'll have yummy stuff for ya'll to cook!
Keep the faith, and stay tuned. :)

Wednesday Wish-List #2.... Slow-Cooked Cheddar Spirals

2010-05-05T07:42:00.000-07:00

Welcome to our weekly "Wednesday Wish-List". This week we are spotlighting a slow-cooked macaroni & cheese requested by Steph.

If there is a dish you would like to see a recipe for, please leave me a comment and I will do my best to post a slow-cooked version for our Crock-Pot Chronicles!

Slow-Cooked Cheddar Spirals

1 16oz. box spiral pasta
2 c. half-and-half cream
1 10 3/4oz. can cheddar cheese soup, undiluted
1/2 c. butter, melted
4 c. shredded cheddar cheese.

Boil pasta until al dente. Drain. In a slow-cooker, combine butter, soup, 1/2 & 1/2. Stir in hot pasta and cheddar cheese. Cover and cook on Low for 2 - 3 hours.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

*****for this recipe, I undercook the pasta just a tad so when it cooks in the crock-pot it doesn't get all mushy.

*****while the pasta is boiling, I plug in the crock-pot and let the butter melt in the bottom, then combine the soup and 1/2 & 1/2.

*****I usually stir this once or twice while it is cooking. If it looks dry, you can add a little more 1/2 & 1/2 or a little milk to make it creamier.

***** use salt & pepper according to your tastes

My kids love this with fish fillets on Friday nights during Lent. This is also perfect paired with hotdogs or hamburgers on a laid back Saturday. Serve along with a tossed salad, or tomato and cucumber slices and you have a nicely rounded meal.

Enjoy!

Tasty Tuesday... Slow-Cooked Apple Oatmeal

2010-05-04T07:41:00.000-07:00

And now for something a little different! Let's have some slow-cooked breakfast! You can prepare this at night before you go to bed and let it cook all night.

Slow-Cooked Apple Oatmeal

2 c. milk
2 Tbsp. honey
1 Tbsp butter - no substitutes!
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 c. dry old-fashioned oats (NOT quick-cooking oats)
1 c. chopped apples
1/2 c. chopped walnuts
2 Tbsp. brown sugar

Generously grease inside of slow-cooker. Mix together all ingredients. Cover and cook on Low for 6 hours.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

*****as a variation, you can also add 1/2 c. of raisins or dates.

*****if you wake up during the night, you can give it a stir. Make sure you are cooking it on the LOW setting. My crock-pot's settings are numbered 1 - 5... I cook it on around 1 1/2.

This dish is also great for Sunday brunch. Prepare it the night before, plug it in first thing in the morning, cook on HIGH for about 2 1/2 hours, and it's ready for when you come home from church!

***makes about 4 - 5 servings. If you're serving this with other dishes, such as bacon & eggs, or french toast, the servings will go a little further.

Enjoy!

Soupy Sunday... French Onion Soup

2010-05-02T10:17:00.000-07:00

French Onion Soup

8 - 10 large onions, sliced very thin
1/2 c. butter or margarine
6 10 3/4oz. cans of beef broth
1 1/2 tsp. worcestershire sauce

10 slices French bread, toasted
shredded mozzarella and/or grated parmesan cheese

Saute onions in butter in fry pan until translucent. Transfer to slow cooker. Add broth, and worcestershire sauce.
Cover and cook on Low for 6 - 7 hours until onions are tender.
Ladle into deep soup crocks; top each bowl with a slice of French bread and some cheese.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

*****if desired, you can place the soup bowls under the broiler to get the bread and cheese all toasty. Just make sure your bowls can withstand the heat of the broiler..... soup crocks work best.

***** I would caution against using any extra salt to season this soup as the beef broth is pretty salty to begin with. Make sure you taste it first before adding salt.
I DO add pepper to taste.

Enjoy!

Savory Saturday.... Hungarian Goulash

2010-05-02T10:09:00.000-07:00

Hungarian Goulash

2 lbs. round steak, cubed
1/2 tsp. onion powder
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
2 Tbsp. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 1/2 tsp paprika
1 10 3/4oz. can tomato soup
1/2 soup can of water
1 c. sour cream

In a large ziploc baggie, combine onion powder, garlic powder, flour and cubes of meat. Shake well to coat meat. Place meat in slow cooker.
Add remaining ingredients, except sour cream. Cover and cook on Low for 8 hours or on High for 4 - 6 hours.
Add sour cream about 30 minutes before serving, and turn to Low.
Serve over hot buttered noodles.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

****for this recipe (and any Hungarian dish containing paprika), my Grandma told me never to skimp on cheap paprika. Authentic Hungarian paprika is the way to go.

****Definitely serve this over hot buttered noodles. Or if you are so inclined, you can make spaetzle.

****hot crusty bread and a cool cucumber salad do wonders to round out this meal.

Enjoy!

Five Ingredient Friday...Mustard Lover's Party Bites

2010-04-30T07:07:00.000-07:00

Fridays are an opportunity to showcase recipes that call for 5 ingredients or less! You can't get any easier than that!

This week, Mustard Lover's Party Bites are perfect for game night, or tailgating. We love easy, great tasting party food!

Mustard Lover's Party Bites

12 hotdogs, cut into bite-sized pieces OR 1 pkg of Lil' Smokies, OR a combo of both (that's what I use)
1 c. grape jelly
1 c. prepared mustard

Place all ingredients in slow cooker. Stir well. Cover and cook on High until mixture starts to boil. Stir well. Turn to Low. Serve warm.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

***** make sure to have plenty of toothpicks for people to just stab & go!
***** when we go to Yankee games, I make these ahead of time, and then put the mixture in an insulated bowl that keeps food warm for hours, so we can enjoy them while tailgating.

Enjoy!

Spanish Chicken & Rice

2010-04-29T07:39:00.000-07:00

I have decided that posting three for Thursday is a little too much, so I will only be posting one recipe on Thursdays. :(
Thanks for your understanding.

Spanish Chicken & Rice

1 c. uncooked long-grain rice
1 1/4 c. chicken broth
1 c. salsa (use mild, medium, or hot - depending on your tastes)
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 c. shredded cheese

Spray inside of slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray. Put rice into slow cooker. Add chicken broth and salsa; stir well. Place chicken breasts on top.
Cover and cook on Low for 4 - 6 hours, until chicken tests done and rice is tender. Top with shredded cheese just before serving.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

****depending on how "spicy" you like it, feel free to experiment with different salsas - mild or hot for example.

*****I like to use shredded colby-jack cheese, or the fiesta blend which is lightly seasoned with taco/chili type seasonings.

*****I serve chips and salsa on the side with this dish.

Enjoy!

Wednesday Wish-List #2 Dessert.... Minister's Delight

2010-04-28T13:31:00.000-07:00

Today is "Wish-list Wednesday", where readers tell me what they'd like to see a recipe for, and I will post it on the following Wednesday.

Last week, Steph asked for a dessert recipe. This week we've got Minister's Delight!

Minister's Delight

1 21 oz. can cherry or apple pie filling
1 18 1/4 oz. box yellow cake mix
1/2 c. butter or margarine, melted
1/3 c. chopped walnuts, optional

Place pie filling in slow cooker. Combine dry cake mix with melted butter. Mixture will be dry and crumbly. Sprinkle over pie filling. Sprinkle with walnuts, if desired. Cover and cook on Low for 2 - 3 hours. Serve warm in bowls.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

***** as you can imagine, this is fantastic with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and/or a drizzle of chocolate sauce! Yummy.

Enjoy!

Manic Monday.... Vegetable Bean Soup

2010-04-26T07:40:00.000-07:00

Hi, everyone! Thanks for being patient while I was away. We had a big family weekend for my husband's 40th birthday and I've had out of town company since last Wednesday! The house was a zoo with all the neices and nephews running around, not to mention the pets following close behind, and people in and out all weekend!

So, without further ado, let's get the week started on the right foot with a fantastic recipe for a hearty soup!

Vegetable Bean Soup

6 c. cooked beans - navy, pinto, Great Northern, etc... any combination
1 meaty ham bone
1 c. cooked ham, diced
1/4 tsp. garlic powder
1 c. cubed potatoes
1 c. chopped onion
1 c. chopped celery
1 c. chopped carrots
water

Combine all ingredients in a slow cooker. Add enough water to cover all, to about 1 inch of the top of cooker. Cover and cook on low for 5 - 6 hours. Remove ham bone before serving.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

***** if you'd like it heartier, you can add 1 cup of small pasta (such as tubetini or ditalini).
***** my husband prefers when I add about a cup of chopped turnip or cabbage to this soup.

Enjoy!

Tasty Tuesday.... Slow-Cooked Easy Baked Beans

2010-04-20T06:52:00.000-07:00

Slow-Cooked Easy Beans

2 42-oz. cans of baked beans, drained (I prefer Bush's)

1 lb. ground beef, cooked and drained

1/2 c. barbecue sauce

1/4 c. ketchup

1 Tbsp. yellow mustard

3 strips of bacon, diced

1/4 c. lightly packed brown sugar

1 small onion, finely chopped

3 strips of bacon, cut in half

Combine all ingredients in slow cooker EXCEPT for the bacon STRIPS. Place the halved bacon strips over top of mixture. Cover and cook on Low for 3 hours.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

***** excellent recipe for a potluck, or backyard barbecue. This makes alot of beans - atleast 12 servings. But don't worry because people will be going back for seconds and asking for the recipe!

Enjoy!

Tasty Tuesday.... Bits & Bites

2010-04-19T12:15:00.000-07:00

This is a great appetizer or game day snack.

Bits & Bites

1 12 oz. can of beer

1 c. ketchup

1 c. light brown sugar, lightly packed

1/2 - 3/4 c. barbecue sauce

1 pkg. beef hotdogs, sliced into 1 1/2 inch pieces

2 1 lb. pkgs cocktail sausages

Combine beer, ketchup, brown sugar and barbecue sauce. Place hotdogs and sausages into slow cooker. Pour sauce over all. Cover and cook on Low for 3 hours.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

****I serve these on game day or when we're having a backyard party and barbecue. Just make sure you have plenty of toothpicks and napkins for people to be able to grab them!

**** and plenty of ice cold beer to serve with them!

Enjoy!

Savory Saturday.... Taco Chili

2010-04-17T09:22:00.000-07:00

Taco Chili

1 lb. ground beef

1 envelope dry taco seasoning

1/2 of a 12oz. jar salsa

1 16 oz. can kidney beans, undrained

1 16 oz. can black beans, undrained

1 14 1/2oz. can diced tomatoes, undrained

Pinch of sugar

Brown ground beef in skillet, drain.

Combine all ingredients in slow cooker. Cover; cook on high until mixture comes to a boil.

Reduce to Low. Simmer about 1 1/2 hours.

To reduce liquid, uncover and continue cooking .

Additional ingredients to top off individual bowls:

shredded cheese

sour cream

chopped onions

sliced black olives

broken tortilla chips

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This is a great recipe for a rainy Saturday when you're just bummin' around the house.

Because it doesn't cook **all day**, it's perfect for when you'll be home, but don't have the time to stand at the stove.

*** I plug in my crock-pot as I'm browning the beef. Then it doesn't take as long for it to come to a boil when you add all of the ingredients.

*** If it's too much liquid, you can drain the cans of beans.

*** When I make this, I put "additional" ingredients in bowls on the table, so everyone can add exactly what they want to their bowl.

*** To make it a little zippier, use a jar of HOT salsa!

Enjoy!

Five Ingredients Friday...Chicken Divan

2010-04-16T16:38:00.000-07:00

Fridays will be an oppurtunity to post recipes that call for only 5 simple ingredients! You couldn't get any easier!

Chicken Divan

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

4 cups chopped broccoli - fresh or frozen

2 10 3/4 oz. cans cream of chicken soup

1 cup mayonnaise

1/2 tsp. curry powder

Place chicken in crock-pot. Top with broccoli. In a small bowl, combine soups, mayo and curry powder. Spread over top of chicken and broccoli. Cover and cook on high for 4 - 5 hours or until chicken tests done.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

***** I like to use frozen broccoli for this recipe. A 16 oz. bag is usually sufficient.

***** I like to serve this over a bed of rice. Minute rice or Boil-in-bag is easy to use.

***** If you're not a curry fan, dry mustard also works well in this recipe. Just substitute for curry powder.

Enjoy!

Three On Thursday... Applesauce, Baked Potatoes, Cheesy Corn

2010-04-15T17:45:00.000-07:00

A trio of tasty recipes for your Thursday

Chunky Applesauce

8 - 10 large apples, peeled and cut into chunks

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup water

1 tsp cinnamon

Combine all ingredients in slow cooker. Stir gently. Cover and cook on low for 6 - 8 hours, until apples are tender. Coarsely mash apples with a potato masher.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This tastes wonderful warm, right out of the slow cooker.

***my family LOVES this mixed into oatmeal or cream of wheat for breakfast.

***if you don't have a potato masher, just use the back of a large serving spoon to mash the apples. Make it as chunky or as smooth as you prefer.

##################################################

Perfect Baked Potatoes

Potatoes

Scrub potatoes with vegetable brush. Prick each potato a few times with a fork. Wrap each potato in foil. Cover. Cook on high for 2 1/2 hours, or on low for 8 - 10 hours.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

****This recipe does not call for ANY LIQUID. Do not add water to the crock-pot.

##################################################

Cheesy Corn

3 16oz. pkgs. frozen corn

1 8oz. pkg cream cheese, cubed

1/4 c. butter, cubed

3 Tbsp. water

3 Tbsp. milk

2 Tbsp. sugar

6 slices of American Cheese broken into pieces.

Combine all ingredients in slow cooker. Mix well. Cover and cook on low for 4 hours or until heated through and cheeses are melted. Stir well before serving.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

***my kids LOVE this recipe! It's something a little different than just opening a plain old can of corn.

***this recipe makes a lot, so it's great for big holidays like Thanksgiving or Easter when you're having a houseful. Great to bring to potlucks, too!

Wednesday Wish-List #1 (First Week)

2010-04-15T17:17:00.000-07:00

I thought maybe we could try something a little different for Wednesdays. (I know it's Thursday, just close your eyes and pretend that you are reading this yesterday! LOL)

I am going to dedicate every Wednesday to readers' wishes. You just need to leave me a comment on what kind of recipe you would like to see here, and the following Wednesday I will post one that you (are hopefully) looking for.

For instance, leave me a comment something like this: "I would love to see a recipe for spaghetti sauce" or "can you give me a recipe for lamb stew?"

What do you think? I want this to be an interactive blog so I know that the recipes I'm posting are something you actually want to try!

Give it a thought, and next Wednesday I'll pick one recipe from the comments and post one for you!

Tasty Tuesday... Chicken & Dumplings

2010-04-13T08:21:00.000-07:00

I apologize for not posting yesterday. I was running around like a maniac all day, didn't get home until 5:30 last night, and by the time we did dinner, homework, etc... I was shot.
But enough with the excuses!

Today's recipe is one of my oldest crock-pot recipes. I went to a yard sale about 16 years ago and the lady had a Woman's Day Crockery Cookbook for 50 cents. Since I had just had my bridal shower and gotten my first crock-pot, I couldn't pass it up for a mere 50 cents! It was published in 1975 in magazine form and I use many recipes from it... best 50 cents ever spent!

Chicken & Dumplings

1 fryer chicken, cut into pieces (I use drumsticks and thighs...6 - 8 pieces)

3 c. water

1 large onion, chopped

Salt & Pepper to taste

Place chicken and all ingredients in crock-pot. Cook on low for 8 hours. Drop dumpling batter on top of chicken by spoonfuls. Cover, turn up to HIGH and cook for 15 minutes. DO NOT LIFT THE LID WHILE DUMPLING BATTER IS SIMMERING.

DUMPLING BATTER

1 c. all-purpose flour

1 tsp. baking powder

3/4 tsp. salt

2 egg yolks

1/2 c. milk

Stir together dry ingredients. Beat egg yolks with milk, and add to dry ingredients. Mix lightly, just until moistened. Follow directions above.

Yield: 4 servings

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

*** I do not thicken the broth for this recipe. My family likes it kind of like soup, with the clear, thin broth.

*** I also like to add baby carrots to this to make it a full meal.

Enjoy!