Crockpot Honey Wheat Bread

I got this recipe from the book 101 More Things to do with a Slow Cooker a while back, and finally got around to trying it.

I have to admit, I was a tad skeptical since I've never baked using the crockpot before. But I decided what the heck and gave it a shot. And you know what? It came out really good! And it was easier than the traditional kneading and rising and rolling method of making fresh bread. I like this crockpot baking!

Crockpot Honey Wheat Bread

2/3 cup powdered milk
2 cups warm water
2 Tbs canola or vegetable oil
1/4 cup honey
3/4 tsp salt
1 envelope or 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
3 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup flour

In a bowl, dissolve powdered milk in warm water, then combine with oil, honey, salt, yeast, and half of both flours. With an electric mixer, beat on low speed 2 minutes. Add remaining flour and beat on low until combined. Place dough in greased 4 to 5-quart slow cooker. Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 to 3 hours.

Remove stoneware from slow cooker and let stand 5 minutes. Invert bread onto a serving platter while still hot.

Check out more great crockpot recipes at Dining With Debbie's Crockpot Wednesday!

Crockpot BBQ Pulled Pork

This was super easy and SOOOO good, I can't believe I've never done it before!

Crockpot BBQ Pulled Pork

• 3 to 4 lbs pork roast
• salt and pepper
• water
• 1 - 2 bottles BBQ sauce
• Hamburger Buns

1. Season roast with salt and pepper
2. Place roast in crockpot, add enough water to cover roast about halfway
3. Cook on low 8 - 12 hours
4. Remove roast from crockpot
5. Pour out liquid and fat from crockpot
6. Using two forks, shred pork
7. I had a TON of pork at this point, and only 2 people to feed. So I decided to only prepare what I needed for one meal now and freeze the rest (figuring it would freeze better without the BBQ sauce). So, if you're going to freeze some of the pork for a future meal, separate that amount now.
8. Return the pork you're going to eat now to the crockpot, add BBQ sauce (probably about 1/4 cup sauce per sandwich size portion of meat), and mix well. Leave in crockpot until heated through (30 minutes or so).
9. Spoon BBQ pork onto toasted hamburger buns and enjoy
10. To prepare the frozen pork, just thaw, pour some BBQ sauce on, and heat in the microwave or stovetop. Mix it up real well and then serve.

Check out more great crockpot recipes at Crockpot Wednesday!

Crockpot Turkey and Wild Rice Soup

Don't look now, but there's only a few weeks left until Thanksgiving! This recipe is one of my favorite ways to used leftover turkey - it is a nice change of pace from the usual turkey sandwiches and pot pies, and is loaded with veggies to help you recover from too much pie :) My version is based on this recipe from the Year of Slow Cooking site, I just make a few little tweaks. I like to use Uncle Ben's wild rice for this, I think the extra seasoning adds a lot of good flavor, but usually I just use whatever is on hand (or is on sale).

Crockpot Turkey and Wild Rice Soup

• 8 - 10 cups turkey broth (substitute chicken broth if you don't have turkey)
  
• 1 box of Uncle Ben's wild rice, prepared as directed on package
  
• ~2 cups cooked turkey (I usually use dark meat)
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 1 cup chopped carrot
• 2 tsp sage
• salt and pepper to taste
  
• 2 cups spinach leaves
• 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

Put everything in your crock pot. Cook on low 8 - 10 hours.

Experience more crockpot joy over at Dining with Debbie's Crockpot Wednesday!

Chicken (Crock)Pot Pie

This recipe is derived from a Campbell's Soup can label. It's pretty quick and easy to do in the oven, but that's no reason not to crockpot-ify it :) So here goes:

Filling:
1 can cream of potato soup
1/4 cup milk
1/8 tsp ground pepper (I also add a dash of salt)
1 cup frozen mixed vegetables, thawed
1 cup of cooked chicken (diced or shredded leftovers works, as does canned chicken)

Topping:
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
1 cup all purpose baking mix (ie Bisquick)

Grease the inside of your crockpot (4 or 5 quart works best). Combine the filling ingredients in your crockpot. In a separate bowl, mix the topping ingredients, then carefully pour on top of the filling. Cook on low for 4-6 hours.

(To cook in the oven, prepare as above using a pie dish instead of the crockpot, and cook for 30 minutes at 400˚F).

And look! I remembered to take a picture, after dinner that is:

I like this recipe because if you keep a can or two of chicken around, this makes a great "oh crap I forgot to take anything out to defrost" meal :) You can also substitute turkey or beef - I often use leftover roast or steak.

Check out more crockpot fun over at Debbie's Crockpot Wednesday!

And even more recipes at The Grocery Cart Challenge Recipe Swap!

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Crockpot Peppercorn Steak plus Baked Potatoes

The steak recipe can be found at the Year of Slow Cooking blog. This came out really good - Ninja Hubz was disappointed because I didn't make enough for leftovers.

What I did that isn't in the recipe was to make some crockpot baked potatoes to go along with the steak! After preparing everything and putting it in the crockpot as described in the recipe, I just grabbed two potatoes, washed them off really well, poked them a few times with a fork, wrapped in foil, and carefully laid them on top of the steaks. Seven hours later - voila! Steak and potatoes. So easy!

Visit Dining with Debbie for more Crockpot Wednesday!

Crockpot Carnitas

This was really good. You need to make this. Seriously. We had carnitas tacos, but the meat can also be used in burritos, enchiladas, on nachos, on top of some mexican rice, however you like it. We have tons of leftovers too - enough for dinner tomorrow and more for the freezer. And I got to use tomatoes and chiles from my garden. I have a bajillion little chiles so I'm happy for any excuse to use them up!

Crockpot Carnitas

• 4-5 lb pork shoulder roast (boneless or bone-in doesn't matter)
• 2 packages taco seasoning
• juice from 1 orange
• 1 can diced tomatos and chiles (like Ro-Tel), or equivalent amount of fresh diced tomatoes and chiles
• 1/4 cup diced onion

1. Trim excess fat from roast, place in crockpot
2. Cover roast with the remaining ingredients
3. Cook on low all day (8-10 hours)
4. Remove from crockpot and shred meat - discard bone if present (or save for making soup)
5. Serve meat on warm corn tortillas* with your favorite toppings - diced avocado, shredded lettuce, shredded cheese, salsa, sour cream

*I usually fry the corn tortillas in a couple tablespoons of vegetable oil until they are crispy, but still pliable. This isn't the healthiest way to prepare them, but it is sooooo yummy! If I'm in a rush though, I'll just steam the tortillas in the microwave.

Check out more great recipes at
Crockpot Wednesday
The Grocery Cart Challenge Recipe Swap

Crockpot Enchiladas

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 package taco seasoning (plus water as specified on package)
• 1/4 cup diced onion
• 2 cups enchilada sauce
• 6 corn tortillas
• 2 cups grated pepper jack cheese
• sour cream, sliced green onions (optional)

1. Prepare ground beef according to instructions on taco seasoning
2. Layer tortillas, enchilada sauce, meat, and onion in crockpot
3. Cook on low for 8-10 hours
4. Approximately one hour before serving, top with cheese
5. Garnish with green onions and sour cream if desired

Check out more great recipes over at
Crockpot Wednesday
The Grocery Cart Challenge Recipe Swap

Crockpot Cornbread Taco Casserole

A few weeks ago I tried this, but decided it still needed a little work. So I re-did it today and decided to attempt crockpot-ifying while I was at it. Here's what I ended up with:

Crockpot Cornbread Taco Casserole

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1 package taco seasoning
• 3/4 cups water (or how ever much is called for by the taco seasoning)
• 2 cups diced tomato (or 1 can diced tomato)
• 1 green bell pepper, diced
• 1 package cornbread mix (enough for 6 muffins)
• milk, eggs, margarine, and/or whatever the cornbread mix requires
• 1/2 cup cheddar cheese

1. Prepare ground beef according to instructions on taco seasoning
2. Grease sides of crockpot (I used a 5 quart)
3. Place taco meat, tomatoes, and bell pepper in crockpot, mix well
4. Prepare cornbread mix according to package, spoon over top of meat mixture in the crockpot
5. Cook on low for approximately 6 hours
6. Top with cheese and serve

This came out very good but I think it could use some onions cooked in with the meat.

Check out more great recipes at
Crockpot Wednesday
The Grocery Cart Challenge Recipe Swap

Bulk Chicken Prep (Crockpot Wednesday)

A couple of weeks ago I picked up a 10 lb bag of chicken leg quarters for $5.80. Of course my freezer's been so full I couldn't possible cram 10 lbs of chicken legs in it! So I went ahead and cooked it up, shredded it, and then just had some much smaller bags of chicken which I could cram in the freezer. And I have cooked chicken meat ready for a variety of dishes. Batch cooking like this makes my life so much easier!

If you've never had 10 full pounds of chicken legs, believe me, its a lot of meat. I don't have a single pot large enough to cook all of it, so I split it in half. One half simmered on the stove in my big stockpot with some salt and pepper, parsley out of the garden, a bunch of vegetable remnants from the freezer I save for just such a purpose, and enough water to cover it all. I let it simmer all day (about 8 hours), then pulled the chicken out and shredded the meat off the bones. I strained the liquid and kept it for chicken broth. The meat got split into 3 bags which should each be enough for one meal and put in the freezer.

The second half of the chicken went into the crockpot, along with 2 packets worth of taco seasoning mix, and about 1 cup of water. I cooked it on low all day, and shredded the meat from the bones and froze it. This yielded about another 3 meals worth of prepared meat which went into the freezer.

We had some of the taco seasoned chicken in quesadillas last night and it was delicious! Having all this meat on hand is great for casseroles and soups, or even throwing on top of a salad.

Check out more ideas for your crockpot over at Crockpot Wednesday!

Crockpot Vegetable Beef Soup

I love making soup. It's so easy, it's so frugal, and its different every time. Whenever I have leftover bits of veggies hiding in the fridge, I chop them up and put them in the freezer. When there's too much stuff in the freezer, I make soup.

My freezer is PACKED.

So today I made soup! Last weekend I scored a ton of cheap ground beef, and prepared and froze a bunch of it, including browning 3 lbs with garlic and onion. I've always shied away from crockpot recipes that require you to brown your meat before putting it in the crockpot - I mean, if I have to cook it twice, its not really making anything easier, is it? But by cooking up a big batch of meat and sticking it in the freezer, it makes it a cinch. I can handle trying some of these recipes and still have the convenience of a quick one-pot meal. Yay!

I also happened to have 6 cups of beef broth lurking in the depths of my overfull freezer. And digging through my cupboards yielded a small bit of pearl barley waiting patiently for a purpose.

So last night I pulled 1 lb of the pre-cooked ground beef and all 6 cups of the frozen broth out, and put them in the fridge to defrost overnight. This morning, they were still pretty much frozen. No worries, I started dumping everything in my trusty 4-quart crock pot, and quickly realized that it was too small. Soooo, I brought out the 6-quart crock pot and dumped everything in there. Aside from having twice as many dishes to wash, it all worked out ok :) I added some frozen carrot coins, chopped celery, chopped zucchini, and diced tomatoes from the freezer, the barley, some salt, pepper, and italian seasoning. I turned it on low and went to work. When I got home 10 hours later, yummy delicious soup was waiting for me! Hooray for crockpots.

I probably would have added some more broth if I'd had any. The soup came out pretty thick, another 2 to 4 cups of broth would have made it much more soup-like. Or some tomato juice probably would have worked too. The other option would be to use 1/2 lb of ground beef mixture instead of the full pound. But it tasted just fine and was very filling. We have several servings for leftovers.

For those of you who like your instructions slightly more detailed than "put a bunch of stuff in a crockpot and go to work all day", here is an actual recipe version (the quantities are estimated, feel free to use whatever you have on hand).

Crockpot Vegetable Beef Soup

• 1 lb ground beef
• 1/2 an onion, diced
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 8-10 cups beef broth
• 1/4 cup pearl barley (uncooked)
  
• 1/2 cup sliced carrot
• 1/2 cup sliced celery
• 1/2 cup chopped zucchini
• 2 cups diced tomato (fresh or frozen), or 1 can diced tomato (with liquid)
• 2 tsp italian seasoning
• salt & pepper to taste

Brown ground beef with onion and garlic, drain well. Add to 6-quart crock pot with the rest of ingredients. Cook on low 8-10 hours.

If you try this, or have any suggestions or comments, I'd love to hear what you think!

Check out more of Crockpot Wednesday over at Dining with Debbie

Menu Plan Monday - 8/2/09

This week I'm trying to focus on using up stuff I've had around forever and need to use up. That means delving down to the bottom of the freezer for a turkey breast I got several months ago for $.88/lb, and a whole chicken that's been in there a while. Along with the turkey I'll be using up some mashed potatoes from the freezer, and some canned Pilsbury biscuits that are past their "best by" date. I also have a number of boxed dinner kits lurking in my cupboards that I don't really want to eat. I'm not sure why I have them, I suppose they were a good deal and I thought I'd try them out, but evidently I shouldn't have bought more than one, because I think they're kind of gross. I can't STAND wasting food though, so I've decided that I will use the noodles from these kits and throw the icky sauce powder stuff out. They can't screw noodles up that badly, can they? :) I'll let you know how it turns out!

• Sunday: Crockpot Roast Turkey Breast, Mashed Potatoes (from freezer), biscuits, salad
• Monday: Leftover turkey dinner
• Tuesday: Turkey Noodle Casserole (based on this recipe, but I'll use turkey instead of chicken and a homemade white sauce instead of the mushroom soup)
• Wednesday: Leftover casserole
• Thursday: Crockpot Roast Sticky Chicken, Mashed Potatoes, Veggies
• Friday: Chicken Enchiladas, Mexican Rice, Salad
• Saturday: Leftover Enchiladas, Rice, Salad

Check out more great menus at Menu Plan Monday

Crockpot Beef Fajitas

If I haven't mentioned it before, I LOVE my crockpot. It is just SO nice to come home from work and have dinner already cooked, sitting there waiting patiently for you. This dish is nice because you can use relatively cheap cuts of meat (I usually use london broil) - since it is sliced thin and slow cooked all day, it gets pretty tender. I haven't tried this with chicken yet, but I'm sure it would come out just as good.

I like to get everything ready the night before, so in the morning all I have to do is dump everything in the crock and turn it on. For this dish, that means I slice the meat and veggies the night before and have them ready in the fridge. Then I set out the crockpot and the fajita seasoning on the counter so I see them and remember to get everything going in the morning. I don't function so well in the mornings, so if I don't have the "reminder" on the counter, I will forget :)

Crockpot Beef Fajitas

• 1 lb thinly sliced steak
• 1 package fajita sesoning mix, or homemade equivalent
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 to 2 cups sliced bell peppers (I like a mix of green and red)
• 1 to 2 cups sliced onion
• 6 flour tortillas
• toppings of your choice: grated cheese, sour cream, etc

Put meat in crockpot, top with seasoning, add water. Cook on low all day (8-10) hours. About 30 - 60 minutes before serving, add bell peppers and onions and mix well. Serve on warmed flour tortillas, top with cheese and sour cream.

For more great recipes, check out:
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Crockpot Wednesdays

Menu Plan Monday - 7/12/09

Last week's crockpot fest was a success - my new 6 quart crockpot arrived in plenty of time to make my roast chicken, and it came out awesome. The potato soup recipe I tried was pretty good, but I believe with some tweaking it can get better, so I'll be trying that again in a week or two.

This week I'm planning several new recipes. I seem to have an abundance of smoked sausage in the freezer, so I headed over to the Hillshire Farm's website and browsed some of their recipes and decided on the Garden Vegetable Linguini. And the pork chop recipe included in Org Junkie's menu plan last week sounded so good I decided to give that a try as well!

• Sunday: Garden Vegetable Linguini
• Monday: Honey-Garlic Pork Chops, Noodles, Salad
• Tuseday: Crockpot Chicken Alfredo (recipe below), Salad
• Wednesday: Leftovers/Fend for Yourself
• Thursday: Grilled Cheeseburgers, Oven Fries, Salad
• Friday: Crockpot Chicken Tacos
• Saturday: Eating out for hubby's birthday

Crockpot Chicken Alfredo

• 3-4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 1 pkg Italian salad dressing mix
• 1 can cream of chicken soup
• 3 Tbsp margarine or butter
• 1 pkg cream cheese

Layer all into crock pot and cook on low for 5 to 6 hours, chicken will fall apart. Serve over cooked pasta.

Check out more menus at Menu Plan Monday

Menu Plan Monday - 7/5/09

Well I had a week off from cooking while we were out of town, and the past few days have just sort of been "winging" it. My love of the crockpot continues to grow since it has been so hot I have no desire to turn on the oven or hang around a hot stove! In fact, I finally decided to order a larger 6-quart oval crockpot (my current one is 4-quart) so I can do some serious meals in it! I also got a copy of the "Fix It and Forget It Lightly" crockpot cookbook from the library, so you can expect to see a lot of crockpot meals in my menu plans as long as the weather stays hot. When we're not crockpotting, we'll be grilling.

• Sunday: Steak salad, baked potatoes, corn on the cob - all cooked on the grill
• Monday: Steak sandwiches (leftovers from Sunday), possibly oven fries (depends on how much effort I feel like exerting), garden salad
• Tuesday: Crockpot Potato Soup (no, its not soup weather, but I have a big bag of potatoes that need to get eaten)
• Wednesday: Leftovers/fend for yourself
• Thursday: Crockpot Sticky Chicken (recipe below), garden salad
• Friday: Chicken Salad (from leftovers)
• Saturday: Crockpot Macaroni and Cheese

Assuming my new crockpot gets delivered as scheduled, I am going to make my favorite roast chicken recipe in the crockpot! This chicken comes out so amazingly delicious in the oven, but it takes a long time to slow roast so I rarely have time to make it. Hooray for crockpots! This is also perfect for a workday since it has be prepared and marinated overnight, so in the morning all I do is throw it in the crockpot and turn it on. How much more simple can it get?

Roast Sticky Chicken

• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 onion, quartered
• 1 whole chicken

In a small bowl, mix together salt, paprika, onion powder, thyme, white pepper, black pepper, cayenne pepper, and garlic powder. Remove and discard giblets from chicken. (I also take the skin off, I think it absorbs more flavor that way and hopefully is a little healthier). Rinse chicken cavity, and pat dry with paper towel. Rub chicken inside and out with spice mixture. Place onion into the cavity of chicken. Place chicken in a resealable bag or double wrap with plastic wrap. Refrigerate overnight, or at least 4 to 6 hours.

To cook in oven:
Preheat oven to 250 degrees F (120 degrees C). Place chicken in a roasting pan. Bake uncovered for 5 hours, to a minimum internal temperature of 180 degrees F (85 degrees C). Let the chicken stand for 10 minutes before carving.

Crockpot:
I plan on throwing this in the crockpot before I leave for work and cooking all day on low, it will cook about 10 hours. Also, I plan on putting some balled up aluminum foil in the bottom of the crockpot so the chicken is raised up a bit and does not sit in its juices/fat all day.

Check out more great menus at Menu Plan Monday.

Menu Plan Monday - Repurposing Leftovers

• Sunday: Crockpot Mongolian Beef, brown rice with veggies
• Monday: Eggplant Parmesan, french bread that needs to get used, garden salad
• Tuesday: Spaghetti, garden salad
• Wednesday: Fend for Yourself
• Thursday: Bubble Pizza
• Friday: Crockpot Chicken Tacos (recipe below), Mexican Rice
• Saturday: Chicken Tortilla Soup (made from leftover chicken taco stuff - recipe below)

I try to designate at least one night a week as "Fend for Yourself" where everyone is in charge of feeding themselves. Ninjas need to learn self-reliance. They also need to use up leftovers. FFY nights accomplish both.


Chicken Tacos and Chicken Tortilla Soup
Two things that make me very happy are my crockpot, and repurposing leftovers. The following recipe for crockpot chicken tacos is in itself cheap, easy, and yummy. The first time I made this, for some reason I used a giant package of chicken breasts and made a ridiculous amount. We ate tacos for two nights in a row, and still had a TON of leftovers. As delicious as they were, I just couldn't face them for a third straight night, and thus this chicken tortilla soup recipe was born.

The soup is VERY flexible. The recipe below should be considered a guideline. Use this opportunity to use up any leftover veggies hiding in your fridge, and don't worry if your amounts are a little off. You may wish to add some additional cooked chicken if there isn't much left from the tacos... but it is also quite good with just a little bit of meat. Just use what you've got, soup is very forgiving.

Crockpot Chicken Tacos

• 1-2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breast
• 1 pkg taco seasoning
• 1 cup water
• 1 can diced tomatoes and chiles (undrained)

Put all ingredients in crockpot. Cook on low 8-10 hours. Shred chicken and remove from crockpot using a slotted spoon. Serve on corn tortillas with standard taco toppings (cheese, lettuce, avocado, sour cream, etc).

Save all the juices and veggies that are left in the crockpot, as well as any leftover chicken, for making chicken tortilla soup.

Chicken Tortilla Soup

• 2 Tbs cooking oil
• 1 onion, diced
• 2-3 cloves garlic, diced
• 6 cups chicken broth
• 1 can diced tomatoes and chiles (undrained)
• 2 cups diced or shredded cooked chicken (leftover from tacos)
• Seasoning to taste: salt, pepper, chili powder, coriander, cumin
• Optional: 1-2 cups cooked rice (plain or Mexican)
• 6 corn tortillas plus 1/4 cup oil for frying them, or equivalent amount of lame store-bought tortilla chips

In a large soup pot, heat the oil. Saute onions and garlic until transluscent. Add broth, tomatoes, seasoning and whatever was left of your taco meat/juices (or a couple cups of cooked chicken if you don't have leftovers). Start with about 1/2 tsp of each spice and adjust to your desired level of spiciness. Ninjas like it hot, so we end up with at least 2-3 tsp of chili powder. Add in rice (if using), simmer for about 30 minutes.

While the soup is cooking, take the corn tortillas, cut them into bite size pieces, and fry them in hot oil until they are crispy (about 1-2 minutes - flip half way through cooking time using tongs). You may need to do them in batches depending on how big your pan is. Salt them as soon as they are done frying, and allow to drain on a paper towel. Try not to eat them all before the soup is ready.

Serve soup in bowls topped with your fried tortillas (or lame store-bought chips), cheddar cheese, avocados, sour cream... whatever you had with tacos the day before that you have leftovers of.

Check out more Menu Plan Monday.