Pulled Pork Tacos

I found this recipe on Tricia’s site. Looks like it’s originally from Allrecipes.com. Regardless of where it comes from, it’s wonderful!!! I’m a big crockpot fan, especially on the weekends. Even better, this recipe only has 6 ingredients. You will love, love, love this. If you’re not a pork fan, I bet this recipe would work just fine if you subbed chicken breasts.

Pulled Pork Tacos
3 lb. pork tenderloin

1/2 tsp. salt

2 4 oz. cans of diced green chiles

3 cloves garlic, crushed

1/4 cup taco sauce

1/2 cup water

Place roast in bottom of the crockpot. Season with salt. Place garlic and green chiles on top. Cover with taco sauce. Pour about 1/2 cup water around the edges of the roast. (Note: You may not need 1/2 cup, because after cooking, there was quite a bit of liquid left. Next time, I’ll probably only use about 1/4 cup.)

Cook on low for 7 hours. At end of cook time, remove roast from crockpot and shred. (At this point, drain some — but not all — of the liquid in the crockpot, if necessary.) Return shredded meat to crockpot and let sit for about 15 minutes, so that it can absorb some of the liquid.
Serve on tortilla shells with your favorite taco toppings. Enjoy!

Slow Cooked White Chicken Chili

I found this in my Google Reader and knew I had to try it. We had a short burst of cold, blustery weather during March in Texas. I always crave soups/stews on cold days so this was perfect.

My favorite thing about this is that it’s in the crockpot. Throw everything in early in the day and then go about your business. Dinner will take care of itself.

Slow Cooked White Chicken Chili

1 pound of boneless, skinless chicken

1 cup dried beans, rinsed and sorted ( We used white beans )

1 medium onion, chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

2 teaspoons oregano

½ teaspoon salt
1 10
¾ ounce can cream of chicken soup

5 cups of water

1 teaspoon cumin

¼ teaspoon hot pepper sauce

1 4.5 ounce can diced green chiles
* We also added 2 fresh jalapenos, chopped

Soak beans overnight. ( We skipped this step )

Drain beans. Place in slow cooker with chicken, onion, garlic, oregano, salt, soup, and water. Cook on low for 8 hours, or until beans are done. Before serving, stir in cumin, hot pepper sauce, and chilies. Serve with sour cream and cheese.

Salsa Chicken

Always on the lookout for recipes to make in the crockpot, when I saw this recipe from the novice chef, I had to try it out. This recipe takes you no more than 5 minutes to put together and throw in the crockpot.

If not for the yummy smell taking over your kitchen, you’d totally forget about dinner until it was time to eat. This was great over brown rice, but also made for great leftovers, wrapping up in a tortilla. You can use whatever salsa you want in this recipe. We are partial to the Pace Hot Picante Sauce.


Salsa Chicken

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (you may use frozen or unfrozen chicken, it does not matter which)
1 cup of your favorite Salsa
1 package reduced sodium taco seasoning
1 can reduced fat condensed cream of chicken soup ( We used low sodium )
1/2 cup reduced fat sour cream ( We used fat free )

Add chicken to slow cooker.
Sprinkle taco seasoning over chicken.
Mix salsa, sour cream, and cream of chicken soup; pour over chicken.
Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.
Shred Chicken with two forks and incorporate with all the sauce.

Serve over rice & Enjoy!

Slow Cooked Puerto Rican Pork (Pernil)

I’m a big fan crockpots. It’s so nice just to prep something and then forget about it. Your whole house will smell delicious. Even the neighbors might ask what you’re cooking. This recipe will take you almost no time to prepare and after an overnight marinade in the fridge, just drop it in the crockpot & forget about it. **Bonus: You can make a great sandwich with the leftovers.

Slow Cooked Puerto Rican Pork (Pernil)

4 lb Pork Shoulder or Pork Butt
6 Cloves of Garlic, pressed
1/4 tsp Ground Black Pepper
1 tsp Oregano
1 1/2 Tbs Olive Oil
1 1/2 Tbs White Vinegar
4 tsp Salt

Combine garlic, pepper, oregano, olive oil, vinegar and salt.  Rub pork with garlic mixture and refrigerate overnight.

When ready drop into the crockpot on low for 8 hrs. You'll know it's done once it's practically falling off of the bone.

Crockpot Burrito Soup

I usually go to Elly’s site when I’m craving lamb or something else Greek. I stumbled across her Burrito Soup & knew that this was a must-do.This was a really nicely seasoned and easy dish to make. Always on the lookout for crockpot ideas, this would be great for a crowd if you are having people over to watch “the game”. Or if you just want to make a hearty soup and have some tasty leftovers.

Crockpot Burrito Soup

2 tsp. canola oil

1 large onion, diced

1 lb. extra lean ground beef

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 can (8 oz.) tomato sauce

5 cups beef broth

2 Tbsp. aleppo (or any) chili powder)

1 Tbsp. cumin

2 tsp. oregano

1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper

2/3 cup corn

1 can black beans, drained and rinsed

1/2 cup uncooked rice (or, cook rice separately)

Heat a large  heavy-bottomed skillet over medium heat and add oil. Cook the onions for a couple minutes before adding the beef. Brown the beef with the onion and drain if necessary. Put  back on the heat and stir in the garlic, just until fragrant.

Pour the beef mixture into the crockpot and then add the tomato sauce, beef broth, spices, corn and black beans. Cook on low for…however long you’re gone.
Increase temp to high and add the rice, just until cooked. Alternatively you can put the cooked rice in bowls and ladle the soup over it.

Garnish with your favorite toppings.

CrockPot Orange Chicken

I love using my crockpot on the weekends. When I saw this recipe from Stephanie pop in my Google reader, I knew I had to make it. I love orange chicken when getting take-out but you know it’s fried & heavily sauced (aka not that great for you). I felt like I was cheating using this recipe because it tasted so good and I knew it was made actually pretty healthy.

The only thing I changed from Stephanie’s original is that when we were ready to eat, I steamed some fresh broccoli and tossed it into the sauce right before serving. We’ll definitely be having this again.

CrockPot Orange Chicken

1 1/2 pounds boneless chicken, cut in 2-inch chunks
1/2 cup flour
olive oil, for browning the chicken
1 tablespoon kosher salt
6 ounces (1/2 can) frozen orange juice concentrate, thawed (I'd opt for little-to-no pulp. The pulp can taste a bit bitter when cooked)
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
3 tablespoons ketchup

Use a 4 quart slow cooker for best results. Dredge the chicken pieces with the flour, and shake off the excess. Go ahead and throw away any remaining flour, we won't need it. Heat olive oil in a large skillet on the stove and brown the chicken on all sides. There is no need to fully cook it, just sear it enough for the flour to stick and get a nice coating.

Plop the chicken pieces into your slow cooker. In a small mixing bowl, combine the orange juice concentrate, brown sugar, balsamic vinegar, salt, and ketchup. Taste. If you'd like the chicken to be a bit sweeter, add a touch more sugar. Pour sauce mixture evenly over the chicken, and toss gingerly to coat.

Cover and cook on low for 6 hours, or on high for 3 to 4. Serve over white or brown rice.

Oriental Beef and Noodles

Another Crock-pot Recipe. This one is incredibly easy to throw together & pretty tasty, although not the prettiest to photograph. We both liked this for an easy dinner that you don’t really have to pay attention to during the day.

We made just a few changes to Colleen’s recipe, and I think it gave it just a tad more flavor. Yum!

Oriental Beef and Noodles

1 (16 ounce) package frozen stir fry vegetables
2 - 2 1/2 pounds beef stew meat, cut into 1" cubes
1 (12 ounce) bottle stir-fry sauce, any flavor
1/2 cup water
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper (we changed this to about a teaspoon for a little mote heat)
2 (3 ounce) packages ramen noodles, broken
1/4 cup green onions, chopped

Coat a 4 quart slow cooker with cooking spray. Place frozen vegetables in the bottom and top with stew meat. In a medium bowl, stir together stir-fry sauce, water, and red pepper. Pour over stew meat and vegetables in cooker.

Cover and cook on low for 9-10 hours or on high for 4 1/2-5 hours (I recommend low, it will help to break the meat down more).

At the end of cooking time, Stir noodles, Ramen spice packets, and green onions into meat mixture. Cover and let stand 10 minutes more. Stir before serving. This can be kept on warm for 1-2 hours.

Rustic Chicken

For Joelen’s October Tasty Tool event, she’s highlighting crockpots/slow cookers. I try to use my crockpot once or twice a month so I already have a few recipes in this blog with the Crockpot tag. However, for Joelen’s event I wanted to try something new.

I knew I wanted to make something with chicken and I wanted to use artichokes. I found this recipe on RazzleDazzleRecipes.com. It takes all of 2 minutes to throw everything in the crockpot and then you just sit back and wait, enjoying the smell of a home cooked meal that you don’t have to work hard for. Enjoy!!

Rustic Chicken


1 to 1 1/2 pounds chicken breast tenders, or boneless chicken breasts cut in 1 inch strips

1 tablespoon real bacon bits (I omitted these)

1 15 ounce can diced tomatoes, drained

1 15 ounce can artichoke hearts, quartered

8 ounces fresh mushrooms, sliced

1 packet dry chicken gravy mix

1/4 cup red wine

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
** I added about 6 large stuffed Green Olives as well.



Combine all ingredients in a crockpot; stir to combine. Cover and cook on low 6 to 8 hours. Serve over pasta or rice.

Paula Deen’s Taco Soup

I love Paula Deen. So last week when I was trying to come up with an easy Sunday meal, I found this crock-pot recipe from Paula Deen. This is also a nice way to help clean out some of the cans in your pantry.  We made this using only 1 lb of ground turkey but other than that, we stuck to the recipe. It was an easy way to have a nice warming dinner and it made tons of leftovers which keep pretty well.

**I'm submitting this recipe to Joelen's Foodie Film's blog event. She has  fabulous website that I would recommend any of you to check out. Joelen's Culinary Adventures is one of my favorite blogs to get inspiration from. And she's always running some cool blog event. This is the first one I've ever participated in though. :)



Paula Deen's Taco Soup

2 pounds ground beef

2 cups diced onions

2 (15 1/2-ounce) cans pinto beans

1 (15 1/2-ounce) can pink kidney beans

1 (15 1/4-ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained

1 (14 1/2-ounce) can Mexican-style stewed tomatoes

1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes

1 (14 1/2-ounce) can tomatoes with chiles

2 (4 1/2-ounce) cans diced green chiles

1 (4.6-ounce) can black olives, drained and sliced, optional

1/2 cup green olives, sliced, optional

1 (1 1/4-ounce) package taco seasoning mix

1 (1-ounce) package ranch salad dressing mix

Corn chips, for serving

Sour cream, for garnish

Grated cheese, for garnish

Chopped green onions, for garnish

Pickled jalapenos, for garnish

Brown the ground beef and onions in a large skillet; drain the excess fat, then transfer the browned beef and onions to a large slow cooker or a stockpot. Add the beans, corn, tomatoes, green chiles, black olives, green olives, taco seasoning, and ranch dressing mix, and cook in a slow cooker on low for 6 to 8 hours or simmer over low heat for about 1 hour in a pot on the stove. To serve, place a few corn chips in each bowl and ladle soup over them. Top with sour cream, cheese, green onions and jalapenos.

Tinga Poblana with Chicken

I turned this into a crockpot meal. Really, all I did was let the chicken pieces go in the broth, onion, & garlic for a few hours, until it was shred’able.  Right before I took the chicken out, I browned the chorizo, onion, & garlic. I added it all back to the crockpot and let simmer together for another hour. Sorry this is not more precise, but I just tried to break the steps out for the crockpot similar to the order the original recipe has it.

However, if you are looking for precise, feel free to check out the below recipe at the Taste Of Home Cooking blog.  :)



Tinga Poblana with Chicken

William-Sonoma Mexican Cookbook

1 lb bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs (DON'T substitute with chicken breasts or boneless, skinless!)

1 white onion, 1/2 cut into large cubes, 1/2 finely diced

4 cloves garlic, 2 smashed, 2 minced

Salt

1 tablesooon cooking oil

1/2 lb chorizo, casings removed and crumbled

1 can chopped tomatoes (if in juice, drain. If in sauce, don't drain)

1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano

2 bay leaves

2 canned chipotles en adobo with 1 tablesoon sauce, diced (we used half this amount and it was plenty spicy)

Garnishes:

mince white onion

diced avocado

sour cream

Place the chicken, onion chunks and smashed garlic in a saucepan and add water to cover. Add 1 teaspoon salt and bring to a boil over high heat, skimming off any foam that forms on the surface. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, until the chicken is opaque throughout, 20-30 minutes.

Using tongs, transfer the chicken to a plate. Reserve the broth. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove and discard any skin or fat or bones and coarsely shred the meat with your fingers or a fork.

In a large frying pan or Dutch oven over medium heat, heat the oil. Add the chorizo and fry for about 5 minutes. Remove the excess rendered fat. Add the finely chopped onion, garlic and saute until beginning to soften, but not yet starting to brown, about 1 minute. Add about 1 cup of the reserved chicken broth, deglaze the pan. Add the shredded chicken, tomatoes, oregano, bay leaves and chiles. Stir until blended. Simmer, uncovered, until the flavors are blended, about 15 minutes. Add more broth to the pan if the mixture begins to stick, but do not add too much; the mixture should absorb the liquid and not be runny. Remove and discard the bay leaves and season to taste with salt.

Slow Cooker Hoisin Beef Stew

I’ve never tried a roast with an Asian flair to it, but this recipe  from Whole Foods was a delicious way to try. The overnight marinade helps to infuse every bite with the unique Hoisin flavor. It’s a great reason to break out that unused crockpot. I hope you like it. This was great over Jasmine Rice & served alongside steamed edamame.

 

Slow Cooker Hoisin Beef Stew

1/2 cup beef broth
1 (10-ounce) bottle hoisin sauce
1 teaspoon hot sauce
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 (1-inch) piece peeled ginger, grated
1 1/2 pounds cubed round or chuck stew beef
2 yellow onions, roughly chopped
1 cup baby carrots
2 ribs celery, roughly chopped

Whisk together broth, hoisin, hot sauce, garlic and ginger in a wide, shallow dish or bowl. Add beef, onions, carrots and celery and toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Transfer meat mixture to a slow cooker, cover and cook on a low setting until beef is very tender, 6 to 8 hours. Alternately, cook on a high setting for about 3 hours. Ladle into bowls and serve.

Per serving (about 13oz/378g-wt.): 430 calories (90 from fat), 10g total fat, 3.5g saturated fat, 110mg cholesterol, 1300mg sodium, 24g total carbohydrate (2g dietary fiber, 14g sugar), 55g protein

Dos Enchiladas

So… every once in awhile we’ll spend a day making enchiladas. And by once in awhile, I mean about once a year. The Enchiladas Verde recipe below comes straight from our friend Rick back in Minnesota. It is an all day labor of love but sooo worth it. Oh, and prepare to make friends because this makes a lot. We ended up taking a pan of these next door to our neighbors since this made about four 9*13 pans full of enchiladas.

The Avocado Enchilada recipe below that is based on marathon-runner Deena Kastor's Avocado Enchilada's recipe. However, I found it at Gillian’s Blog and saved it forever… until just the right time. Delish!



Dos Enchiladas (Enchiladas Verde has the monterey jack & Avocado Enchiladas have the cheddar)

Enchiladas Verde

3 1/2 to 4 lbs Boneless Chicken Breast
ROASTING YOUR PEPPERS ADDS BEST FLAVOR
12 -24 Fresh Green Chili Peppers OR 4 - 4 oz Canned Diced Green Chili
3 to 5 Fresh Hot Peppers of Choice (Jalapeno, Habanero) or 1 6oz jar
1/4 Cup Flour
8oz Sour Cream
3-4 cans 12oz Green Chili Enchilada Sauce
2lbs Sharp Cheddar Cheese Shredded
36 Count Corn Tortilla

Roast Fresh Hot Peppers in oven @ 350 degrees till skins are dark brown
almost black, peal skins from pepper, dice peppers and add to crock pot
for desired heat. (Jar or Canned Green Chili, Jalapeno or Habanero
Peppers may be used to avoid hassle of above ) Clean chicken breast and
place Chicken Breasts in CROCK POT along with the four 4oz cans of green
chili, Cook on low for 6 - 8 hours or until you are able to shred
chicken.

After Chicken is shredded, remove from heat, add small amounts of flour
to chicken and mix, add just enough flour to absorb liquid, after you
have all liquid absorbed let stand for 10 to 15 minutes. This waiting
period is to keep the sour cream from curdling when added. Add sour
cream.

This is the hard part to explain. In a frying pan add oil to cover
bottom of pan 1/4 inch deep. Heat oil over medium to medium low heat.
You want the oil hot enough to soften the tortilla but not hot enough to
deep fry it. Rule of Thumb: BUBBLES ARE BAD.

Place one tortilla in oil, flip, pull out when soft, drain, add chicken
meat & roll, place into 8x11 pan in two rows. You can get about 12 - 14
enchiladas in pan. Once pan is full of enchiladas Drizzle Enchilada
sauce over enchiladas. 1 1/2 cans per pan usually works well, Cover well
with shredded cheese.

Bake @ 350 for 45 - 60 Minutes or till edges are light golden brown. Let
stand for 10-15 minutes before serving.

~*~  ~*~  ~*~  ~*~  ~*~  ~*~  ~*~  ~*~  ~*~  ~*~

Avocado Enchiladas

2 ripe avocados (slice 'em down the middle lengthwise/along their Prime Meridian and then use a knife to carefully pop the seed out. Scoop the flesh out with a spoon)
1/8 red onion, finely chopped
1/4 cup cilantro leaves, roughly chopped
Lime juice
1/4 jalapeno pepper, seeded and chopped
1/2 tomato, seeded and diced
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/4 tsp. cumin
Salt and black pepper to taste
2 flour tortillas
Enchilada sauce
A little grated sharp Cheddar or Monterey Jack cheese
Additional cilantro leaves

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a glass baking dish with cooking spray. Smush up the avocado in a glass bowl. Add the onion, garlic, cilantro, cumin, tomatoes, jalapeno, lime/lemon juice, and salt and pepper. Mix together as you would if you were making guacamole (um, this really is a guacamole!)

Spoon the avocado mixture into the tortillas and roll them up. Place tortillas in the prepared baking dish and cover with enchilada sauce. Sprinkle with cheese. Bake in a 350-degree oven for 20 minutes. Sprinkle with additional cilantro just before serving.

Roast Lamb with Peppercorn Crust

I’m not sure why, but I was really craving lamb this weekend. Maybe it was because we just had great lamb @ Fogo De Chao for Cancy’s birthday…. Or maybe I was just having a carnivorous moment. In any case, Katie has a great recipe that I used for the marinade, but I made mine in the crockpot instead of roasting in the oven. I hope you like it.

Roast Lamb with Peppercorn Crust

6 Tbsp crush dried assorted peppercorns
4 Tbsp fresh rosemary leaves
2 Tbsp fresh mint leaves (I omitted)
10 garlic cloves
1/4 c. raspberry vinegar
1/2 c. soy sauce
1 c. dry red wine
2 boned leg of lamb (I used a shoulder roast instead)
4 Tbsp dijon mustard (I omitted)
2-4 Tbsp flour

In a large baking dish, combine 2 Tbsp crushed peppercorns, rosemary, mint, garlic, vinegar, soy sauce, and red wine. Add the lamb and turn to coat with the marinade.
Marinate the lamb, covered, in the fridge 8-12 hours, turning occasionally.

 

Set the roast in a CrockPot and pour 1 c. of the reserved marinade carefully around but not over the roast; discard remaining marinade.

Cook in low for 6-7 hours (depending on the size of the cut of lamb)
Remove roast from pan, and cover with foil to stand for 20 minutes before carving.
Over medium heat, heat pan juices, adding 2-4 Tbsp flour to thicken, and serve over lamb slices to serve.

I drizzled just a little of the pan juices on it and sprinkled with some reduced fat Feta cheese. Also, because the lamb itself is a pretty rich piece of meat, I served this with a little bit of homemade Tsatziki to balance it out.

 

Remove lamb from the marinade and drain, reserve the marinade. Roll the roast, tying with kitchen twine. Pat 2 Tbsp of crushed peppercorns into the lamb

 

Crockpot Bacon and Cheese Chicken

This is a super easy recipe, but I’ll warn you that it’s not very photogenic. It definitely tastes much better than it looked. The teriyaki & ranch makes for a really interesting combination of flavors. It’s a good Crockpot experiment. I found this on …and a cookie for dessert. It originated from the blog, A year Of Crockpotting.

Crockpot Bacon and Cheese Chicken

3-4 chicken breasts
12 pieces cooked and crumbled bacon (I used 6)
1/4 cup teriyaki sauce
1/2 cup Ranch salad dressing (I used fat free)
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese ( I used low fat cheese)

Place the chicken in the Crockpot. In a small bowl, combine the teriyaki sauce and the ranch dressing. Pour sauce over the top of the chicken. Add the shredded cheese and the crumbled bacon to the Crockpot, getting between the chicken pieces, if you can.
Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 3-4.

Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

This recipe comes from our Port Aransas cookbook that we got down in Port A when we got married. We’ve been back a handful of times since then and enjoy it each and every time. I got the cookbook out because I started thinking about Port A again since we started to plan a trip down there at the end of the month with Cody & Carol.

I’ve made this recipe a few times and am going to put it in my own words as the original instructions are a bit all over the place. This is a great Fall type dish and a good way to get some vegetables. We’ve made just a couple of ingredient substitutions, but here is how we like it.

Stuffed Cabbage Rolls

12 Large Cabbage leaves

1 lb Ground Turkey

1 Beaten Egg

1/4 C Milk

1/4 C finely chopped onion

1 Tsp Salt

1 Tsp pepper

1 Tsp lemon pepper

1 C Cooked Rice

1 8oz can of Tomato Sauce

1 Tbsp Brown Sugar

1 Tbsp Lemon Juice

1 Tbsp Worcestershire

Start by browning your ground turkey. Season your ground turkey as it browns with garlic salt & lemon pepper. When this is done, drain and set aside.

Start water boiling in a large pot for your cabbage. The easiest way that I’ve found to get the leaves off is to submerge the whole head of cabbage for a couple of minutes and pull it out, taking as many leaves off as you can easily. Submerge again until you can pull a few more off. You want to keep the leaves as in tact as possible. Do this until you have about 12 whole leaves.

In a large bowl, combine the ground turkey, egg, milk, onion, spices, & rice. Mix well. Take about 1/4 C of this mix and put into the center of a leaf. Fold in the sides, then fold up the bottom until it looks like a little burrito. Place them seam side down in the Crockpot until you have gone through your leaves or ran out of stuffing.

In another bowl, combine the tomato sauce, brown sugar, lemon juice, & Worcestershire. Pour this over your little cabbage burritos and put the lid on the Crockpot. Cook these in the Crockpot on low for about 6 hours.

 

 

Creamy Chicken Wild Rice Soup

This soup really just comes together on its own. After living in Minnesota for awhile, I think this type of soup becomes a cold weather staple. I don’t think I’ve ever made this the same way twice, but that’s part of the fun. Here is one idea to get you going, but try different things it… Make it your own.

 

Creamy Chicken Wild Rice Soup

 

3 boneless, skinless chicken breast

4 C of chicken broth (you may need to add more as needed)

1 C carrots, chopped

1 C celery, diced

1 jar of button mushrooms

1 C cooked wild rice (pre cook this before you make the soup)

Seasoning (salt, pepper, Adobo seasoning, nutmeg, chicken bouillon)

1 C Fat Free 1/2 & 1/2

 

Turn your crockpot to high and add broth & chicken breasts. Meanwhile, prepare your vegetables adding them to the crockpot once finished. Add cooked wild rice.

 

Add your seasonings as desired. I like this soup a little peppery and I think that a nice complement to all of the other flavors in here, is just a little bit of nutmeg.

 

Leave this in the crockpot for an hour on high and then turn to low for 4-6 hours. When the chicken looks done, take it out and shred it into small pieces before adding back into the crockpot. When you are close to being done, add the 1/2 & 1/2. Let simmer together 1/2 hour before serving.

 

This is nice topped with green onions, cheese, you name it.

Crockpot Pinto Beans

This is another weekend Crockpot cooking recipe. I discovered my first “pot of beans” while Cancy & I were dating. He grew up in the south and it was a pretty common meal. I had never had it before. But here I am, married for a little over a year & a half. Every now & then, we’ll have a “pot of beans’

You can really mix this up and try different things in it each time. It took me awhile to get it right but now I can cook it and Cancy will say that the spice is just right. So, here’s a typical southern meal. Pinto Beans.  Gotta love ‘em.

Crockpot Pinto Beans

3 cups dry pinto beans, rinsed through a colander

Spices (today I used Bolner’s Pinto Bean Seasoning, Garlic Salt with Parsley, salt & pepper, & a little bit of Sriracha hot sauce)

Meat (today I used jalapeno chicken sausage)

Place rinsed beans in a crock pot and cover with about 2 inches of water. Add your spices & stir to mix. Add your meat and cover. 

Cook on high for 1 hour and then reduce to low for 5 or more hours.

 

** Spices = Here are a few that we’ve used in the past. Feel free to mix & match: Bolner’s Pinto Bean Seasoning, Garlic Salt with Parsley, salt & pepper, Sriracha hot sauce, chili powder, garlic powder, dry minced onion, minced garlic, jalapeno salt)

** Meats = You don’t have to use any meat but it does give a little extra flavor. We’ve used cubed pork, cut bacon, ham, and chicken sausage.

 

 

Beef Burgandy

This recipe comes from Michelle’s blog, Sugar & Spice. Last Weekend, I was looking for a new Crockpot recipe and came across this one. The beef turned out super moist and really tender. However, I realized I am not a big fan of pearl onions. I much preferred the sliced onion in here. Cancy said he liked it though so I have a feeling we’ll be making this again. It has sort of a retro feel to it, like 1950’s housewife & I appreciate that.

Beef Burgundy

 

1 (10-ounce) package fresh pearl onions
1 (2-pound) top round steak, trimmed and cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes
2 1/2 cups sliced onion (1 large)
1 garlic clove, minced
Cooking spray
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/3 cups less-sodium beef broth
1/2 cup Burgundy or other dry red wine
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1 bay leaf
1 (8-ounce) package mushrooms
3 cups hot cooked medium egg noodles (about 4 cups uncooked pasta)
Thyme leaves (optional)

 

1. Drop pearl onions in boiling water; cook 1 minute. Drain onions; peel.

 

2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add steak; sauté 5 minutes or until browned. Place steak in a 3-quart electric slow cooker. Add sliced onion and garlic to pan; coat with cooking spray, and sauté over medium-high heat 5 minutes or until tender. Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Sprinkle flour over onion-garlic mixture; cook 1 minute, stirring constantly. Gradually add broth, wine, and tomato paste, stirring constantly. Cook 1 minute or until thick. Add pearl onions, dried thyme, salt, pepper, bay leaf, and mushrooms.

 3. Pour wine mixture over steak in cooker. Cover and cook on LOW 6 to 7 hours. Discard bay leaf. Serve over noodles or mashed potatoes. Garnish with thyme leaves, if desired.

4  servings. (Nutritional info does not include noodles or potatoes) Each serving = 327 calories, 7.1 g Fat, 97 mg Cholesterol, 358.3 mg Sodium, 17.7 g Carbohydrates, 42.9 Protein 

Slow-Cooked Carnitas Tacos

Polly made this recently and it looked soooo good. Her original recipe is here. I was looking for something to make in the Slow Cooker this weekend and this sounded perfect. I made a few changes to the original. I hope you enjoy it.

Slow-Cooked Carnitas Tacos

2 lbs. of boneless country-style pork ribs cut into 1 ½ inch cubes

3 Tbsp Carne Guisada seasoning

1/2 large onion, cut into 4 pieces

1 jalapeno, diced

1 avocado, halved, pitted, sliced

fresh cilantro sprigs

1 small package of queso fresco cheese, crumbled

whole wheat tortillas

 

Toss pork into a Ziploc bag and add seasoning. Shake bag until meat is completely covered & add to slow cooker. Place onion pieces on top of pork. Cover slow cooker and cook pork on low setting until meat is very tender and falling apart, about 6 hours. When you have about an hour of cooking left, add diced jalapeno & stir.

 

The pork should shred easily with a spoon while still in the slow cooker. Heat tortillas. Sprinkle crumbled cheese in tortilla, place shredded meat on top. Top with avocado & cilantro.

 

 

Crockpot Chicken Taco Soup

I’ve been meaning to make this recipe since I came across it on Melissa’s blog who had it from another Melissa’s blog. So I altered the original to fit what we liked and had on hand. My version is below and you can see the originals through the links above.

Crockpot Chicken Taco Soup

1 onion, chopped

1 (16 oz) can Ranch Style Beans w/Jalapeno

1 (16 oz) can Black Beans

1 (11oz) can Mexicorn (drained)

1 (8 oz) can tomato sauce

1 (12 oz) bottle of beer; I used Dos Equis

2 (10 oz) cans of Rotel (un-drained; I used 1 hot & 1 normal)

1 packet of taco seasoning

3 boneless, skinless chicken breasts 

Place onion, ranch beans, black beans, corn, tomato sauce, beer, & Rotel into the Crockpot. Add the taco seasoning & stir to combine. Lay defrosted chicken breasts on top of the mixture, pressing down slightly until covered by the other ingredients. Set Crockpot for low heat and cook for about 5 hours. 

Remove chicken breasts from the soup and allow to cool just long enough to be handled. Shred or dice the cooked chicken and add back into the soup. Allow to cook another ½ hour to 1 hour.

When ready to dish up, you can serve plain or topped with any number of goodies. I added low-fat shredded cheese & guacamole. Cancy added shredded cheese & sour cream. You could also add crushed tortilla chips.  

6 servings. Each serving =259.9 calories, 2.1 g Fat, 21.7 mg Cholesterol, 1,573 mg Sodium, 38.2 g Carbohydrates, 17.1 g Protein