Crockpot Chicken Soft Tacos

This is so simple! We use it as a filling for soft tacos with a little cheese sprinkled on top. You could also use it for enchiladas.

4-5 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 cup medium or hot salsa
1 pkg taco seasoning
1 cup sour cream

Spray your Crockpot with nonstick cooking spray. Add in chicken. Add remaining ingredients and stir. Cook on low for 6-7 hours. Add sour cream during the last 30 minutes and stir. Shred chicken, serve as you please and ENJOY!

Apricot Curry Chicken

This is simmering away in the crockpot right now. :o)

- 4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

- 1/2 medium onion, chopped

- 1 (12 oz) jar apricot jam

- 1/4 cup chicken stock

- 1 1/2 tsp curry powder

- 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

- 1/4 tsp ground ginger

- 1/4 tsp salt

Place chicken breasts in crockpot. Mix together onion, jam, stock, curry powder, cayenne pepper, ground ginger & salt until well blended and pour over chicken. Cook on low 6-8 hours.

A trick if your sauce is too thin - after chicken is done cooking, remove chicken from crockpot. Turn heat to high. Mix 1 tbsp (or more, depending on how much you want to thicken it up) of cornstarch with 1 tbsp of water together until smooth and add to the sauce. Leave the top off for a few minutes until it's thickened. A bit quicker, but messier - remove cooked chicken and pour sauce into a saucepan. Add cornstarch/water mixture and heat on high (uncovered) until thickened. Add chicken back in and serve.

You could also add chopped, dried apricots to this dish for a little texture. I couldn't find any that are peanut-free, so skipped it.

Serve chicken over rice. Yummy with stir-fried veggies on the side!

Potato Cheddar Soup

1/4 cup butter
2-3 cloves chopped garlic
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup milk
3-4 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese (I use sharp)
6 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
salt and pepper to taste

Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat. Add in the garlic and cook until softened (doesn't take long). Stir in the flour. Add the chicken broth and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally. Stir in the milk.

Place the potatoes in a slow cooker. Pour in the soup mixture. Cover and cook 4 hours on high or 8 hours on low.

Remove the cover. Puree part of the soup with a mixer. (I just use a hand mixer and put it right in the slow cooker) Stir in the cheese. If you need to thin it out, add some milk. Season with salt and pepper to taste. I serve mine with the bacon and sour cream. You could also add chives for color.

Chili .... Hold the Beans

Chris and Mason love chili, but they hate beans. So I worked up this little beanless number and it was a hit.

3 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
3 cloves chopped garlic
1 1/2 lbs. ground beef
2-3 tablespoons chili powder
28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes
2 cans Campbell's tomato soup
1 cup plain bread crumbs (optional)
Cumin - to taste
Salt - to taste
Pepper - to taste
Hot Sauce -to taste

Cook garlic in the olive oil over low heat. Keep an eye on it - doesn't take long. Add in ground beef and brown.

Spray Crock-Pot with non-stick cooking spray. Add beef and garlic mixture. Add all remaining ingredients except the bread crumbs. Stir well. Keep on low for about 10 hours, stirring occasionally. Add in the bread crumbs only if you like a thicker chili.

And for goodness sake - please top this with sour cream and cheese!!

Shredded Buffalo Chicken

Football season is upon us. And I have a new crowd-pleasing crockpot favorite. I love the taste of buffalo chicken, but those of you who know me know I can't eat meat off the bone. (Yuck.) This chicken is great on wrap or sandwiches with a little shredded cheddar, but would also be great on a buffalo chicken pizza, even nachos. And no deep-fat frying!

-4 boneless, skinless, uncooked chicken breasts
-1 bottle wing sauce
-1 packet ranch dressing mix
-2 tbsp butter

Place chicken in crockpot. Whisk together wing sauce and ranch dressing mix; pour over chicken. Cook on low 6-8 hours. Add butter to the sauce, and use two forks to shred the chicken. Don't be tempted to skip the butter, as I was. It gives the sauce a really nice texture. So good!!

Beef Stew

I usually don't make stews or soups in the summer, but I've been trying to do cooking on Sunday so that I have quick to heat meals during the week. This is an easy Crock Pot to have on hand.

1 lb. stew meat
2 TBSP flour
2 TBSP vegetable oil
3-4 medium sized potatoes, chopped
1 cup frozen corn
1 cup green beans (frozen or canned)
1 cup carrots
2 cups vegetable juice
1 cup water
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp. crushed marjoram
1/4 tsp. dried oregano
salt and pepper to taste

Place stew meat in a plastic bag and add flour, toss well. Heat oil in a pan and brown flour covered meat, half at time in pan. Place browned meat, potatoes, corn, beans and carrots in Crock Pot.

Mix together vegetable juice, water, Worcestershire sauce, marjoram, oregano and salt and pepper together. Pour over meat and vegetables.

Cook on high for 5 hours or on low for 9 hours.

Carolina Pork BBQ

We're having these sandwiches for dinner tonight with corn on the cob and salad. The sauce is not tomato-based, and is spicy and sweet. The house smells yummy. The sauce is very vinegary, so if you're not a huge fan, cut the amount of vinegar a bit.

Pork:

-3-4 lb pork tenderloin roast

-2 tbsp minced garlic

-1 (15 oz.) can chicken broth

-fresh cracked pepper to taste

Stir together chicken broth and 1 tbsp garlic in the crockpot. Add roast. Top with the rest of the garlic and fresh cracked pepper. Cook on low 6-8 hours. When meat is done, remove from the crockpot and shred with two forks. Top with the BBQ sauce.

BBQ Sauce:

-1 (16 oz) bottle apple cider vinegar

-1/4 cup packed light brown sugar

-2 tbsp kosher salt

-1/2 tbsp cayenne pepper

-1/2 tbsp crushed red pepper flakes

-1/4 tbsp hot pepper sauce

In a small bowl, whisk together all ingredients. Let stand 3 hours so everything incorporates. Whisk well before pouring over shredded pork.

Drunken Pups

My mom's recipe. I am making these tomorrow for the SuperBowl. I love snacks you can just throw together and forget. Hooray for crockpots!

2 pkgs Lil Smokies
1 1/2 cups ketchup
1/2 cup bourbon
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 onion, chopped

Mix ketchup, bourbon, water and sugar together. Place Lil Smokies in the crockpot and pour sauce over top. Stir in onions. Cook on low 4-6 hours.

You can also do this with cut up hot dogs. Then they'd be Drunken Dogs. :o)

Chicken Lasagna Florentine

This is one of my favorite low calorie, Crock pot recipes.

2 cans condensed cream of chicken soup (reduced fat)
1 pkg. frozen chopped spinach (thawed and drained)
1/2 pound cooked chicken (I used shredded rotisserie chicken breasts)
8 oz. reduced fat sour cream
1 cup milk
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
9 uncooked lasagna noodles (don't use the oven-ready noodles)
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Combine the soup, spinach, chicken, sour cream, milk, Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper and nutmeg in a large bowl.

Grease Crock pot with cooking spray and place 3 lasagna noodles in the bottom of the Crock pot. Break noodles as needed to fit. Spread 1/3 of the mixture over the noodles; sprinkle with 1/3 cup of mozzarella cheese. Layer three more noodles, half of remaining mixture and 1/3 cup of mozzarella cheese. Top with remaining noodles, mixture and mozzarella cheese.

Cook on HIGH for 1 hour and then reduce heat to LOW and cook for about 3-4 hours or until done.

Turkey & Beer Cheese Soup

Ellie has a cold, so last night we were holed up at home. Hallie and Ryan were kind enough to bring us dinner and come hang out for awhile. Hallie created this soup recipe and it was delicious. Rob loved it. She cooks like I do when I make things up... a little of this and a little of that. This is her guestimation of what she did after I forced her to write the recipe down! :o) Actually, I'm guessing on the spices... she just added them to taste, so if you think you'd like more or less, go for it!

1 Turkey breast tenderloin

1 can sweet corn

1 can Northern beans

1 bottle dark beer (she used Sam Adams)

1 small yellow onion

1 (32 oz) container chicken stock

1 cup of chopped carrots (approx)

1 tsp minced garlic

1 tsp dried oregano

1 tsp dried thyme

fresh parsley to taste

shredded sharp cheddar to taste

salt & pepper to taste

Bake turkey breast tenderloin at 375 for 90 minutes (or according to package directions.) Chop and place in slow cooker. Add rest of ingredients and simmer on low 6-8 hours. Serve with more cheese sprinkled on top.

Pork & Sauerkraut

It's tradition in my family to have pork and sauerkraut on New Year's Day. This Crock Pot version is the easiest way I've found to make it.

2 - 3 lb. pork loin roast
1 bag of sauerkraut
1/2 cup water
2 TBSP brown sugar
salt and pepper

Place the pork loin roast in a Crock Pot. Season the roast with salt and pepper. Pour bag of sauerkraut and the juices over the roast and add 1/2 cup of water. Sprinkle brown sugar over sauerkraut and stir. Cook on HIGH for 1 hour and then turn the Crock Pot to low for 5 - 6 hours.

I plan to serve this over mashed potatoes with a side of green beans. Happy New Year!

Shana Beef

I found this recipe in one of my cookbooks and have made it for parties and other get-togethers. This recipe is a big hit with Jane's husband. In fact, he is the one that started calling it Shana Beef and it has stuck.

2-1/2 lb. beef roast - I use eye of round
2 medium onions, chopped - optional
1-1/2 cups or 12 oz. can cola-flavored beverage
1/3 cup Worcestershire sauce
1-1/2 TBSP apple cider vinegar
1-1/2 tsp. been bouillon granules
3/4 tsp. dry mustard
3/4 tsp. chili powder
1/4 to 1/2 tsp. ground red pepper
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup ketchup
1 TBSP butter

Place roast in Crock Pot; add onion. Combine cola, and next 7 ingredients; cover and chill 1 cup of the sauce. Pour remaining sauce over the roast. Cover and cook on HIGH for 6 hours or on LOW for 9 hours or until roast is very tender. Remove roast with chopped onion from the Crock Pot, using a slotted spoon and shred meat with two forks.

Combine reserved refrigerated sauce, ketchup and butter in a saucepan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly or until heated. Pour sauce over the shredded meat.

Crock-Pot Pizza

Mason's first babysitter (Miss Susan) asked each of us to drop a slow cooker at her house one week. She returned them with this inside. It's super simple and could feed a small army! I've adapted it to my family's tastes over the years and you could too. I suppose you could add in mushrooms or other favorite pizza toppings.

2-3 jars pizza zip sauce
16 oz. cooked elbow macaroni
1 lb. sausage, cooked and crumbled
6 oz. pepperoni
Large chopped onion (optional)
12 oz. shredded mozzarella cheese (a little more)
2 handfuls of parmesan cheese

Spray crockpot with non-stick cooking spray. Layer half the pasta, half the sauce, half the sausage, half the pepperoni, half the onion and half the cheese. Repeat the layers. Save half cup mozzarella cheese to sprinkle on top. Add one cup water. Cook on low 5-6 hours.

Easy Italian Beef

This is one of my oldest go-to recipes. The beef turns out really tender and makes delicious sandwiches.

3-4 lb beef roast, eye of the round

1 can beef broth

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 envelope dry Italian dressing mix

1 tsp Italian seasoning

1/2 jar sliced pepperonicis, with juice

fresh cracked pepper to taste

Place the roast in the bottom of crockpot. In a small bowl, combine broth, garlic, dressing mix and seasoning. Pour over meat. Top with pepperonicis, juice and pepper. Cook on low 8 hours. When finished cooking, shred the meat with two forks. Leave the meat in the juice to store to keep it tender. I like to serve this on chewy bread, like ciabatta, and top with mozzerella cheese. Then stick the sandwich, open faced, under the broiler for a minute or two. YUM.

Crockpot Cranberry-Apple Pork

I have this in the crockpot for dinner tonight...

3-4 pound pork loin

1 can cranberry sauce

1/2 cup apple juice (I used cider)

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 onion, chopped

2 apples, peeled and chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

salt and pepper to taste

In a small bowl, combine cranberry sauce, apple juice, brown sugar and garlic. Salt and pepper the pork loin and place in bottom of crockpot. Place apples and onions around the pork. Pour sauce over top. Cook on low 7-9 hours. I plan to serve this with mashed pototoes and broccoli tonight.

**12/20/09 - Made this a few nights ago. Forgot how yummy it is. This time I seared the tenderloin first, and used unsweetened applesauce instead of apple juice because I didn't have any. I liked what it did for the sauce. Also threw in a handful of dried cranberries. Next time I will do more. Served over couscous. YUM!

Meatballs in Red Sauce

Our friend Maureen makes some of the best meatballs I have ever tasted. She uses this recipe. It's a little high maintenance for me, with the bread and all. Plus, I prefer an all-beef meatball, so I've adapted it. Or, as Rob would say, I've Janed it up. Either way, you're going to get some tasty goodness on top of your pasta.

2 1/2 lbs ground beef ( I don't recommend the leanest cut here, go with a ground chuck or round for the best taste and texture )

1/2 - 2/3 cup Italian-style bread crumbs

1/2 cup milk

2 large eggs

1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley

1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons garlic powder

2 teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons pepper

1/4 cup olive oil

Mix all ingredients EXCEPT olive oil in a medium bowl. (Aysu, I put baggies on my hands!) Heat olive oil in the bottom of a large pot or dutch oven. Form meatballs into size of your preference and brown on all sides in the olive oil. Remove meatballs and set them on a paper towel. Drain the oil from the pot, and put meatballs back in. Pour your favorite red sauce over top of meatballs and simmer for 45 minutes to an hour.

As an alternative, I prepped everything tonight and put everything in the crockpot for tomorrow. I'm going to let it simmer all day. YUM!

My favorite red sauce?? You'll have to ask Shana. :o)

Macaroni & Cheese

I now have two macaroni and cheese recipes. I always made mac and cheese in the crock pot. I love my crock pot, as you'll notice when reading some of my recipe posts. Recently, I decided to try a baked macaroni and cheese and Matt said he liked the baked version better. I love them both, so I thought I'd share both recipes.

Crock Pot Macaroni & Cheese
8 oz. cooked elbow macaroni
2 TBSP. olive oil
1/8 stick melted butter
1 can of evaporated milk
1-1/2 cups milk
3 cups shredded cheddar cheese
salt to taste

Grease crock pot with non-stick cooking spray.
Add all ingredients and stir. Cook on low for 3 - 4 hours.

Baked Macaroni & Cheese
8 oz. cooked elbow macaroni
2 TBSP butter
2 TBSP all-purpose flour
2 cups milk
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. fresh ground black pepper
1 tsp. dry mustard
1/8 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp. ground red pepper
8 oz. block sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded and divided

1. Prepare pasta according to package directions. Keep warm.
2. Melt butter in a large saucepan or Dutch oven over medium-low heat; whisk in flour until smooth. Cook, whisking constantly, 2 minutes. Gradually whisk in milk, and cook, whisking constantly, 5 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat. Stir in salt, black pepper, dry mustard, nutmeg, red pepper, 1 cup shredded cheese, and cooked pasta.
3. Spoon pasta mixture into a lightly greased 2-qt. baking dish; top with remaining 1 cup cheese.
4. Bake at 400° for 20 minutes or until bubbly. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

To lighten the calorie counts of these recipes, I use reduced-fat milk and 2% reduced-fat cheese and they taste just as good.

Shredded BBQ Chicken

I found this recipe in my go to cookbook - Easy Weeknight Favorites. I've made this a number of times. It's a great crock pot recipe that freezes well.

1/2 lemon, sliced and seeded
6 boneless chicken breasts
1/2 cup cola
18 0z. bottle of your favorite barbecue sauce
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup water

Place lemon slices in the bottom of a crock pot. Add chicken. Combine cola and barbecue sauce; pour over chicken. Cover and cook on HIGH for 3-1/2 to 4 hours or on LOW for 7 hours. Remove chicken to a platter and shred; reserving sauce in crock pot (discard lemon).

Combine the flour and water, stirring well with a whisk; stir into sauce in crock pot. Cook sauce, uncovered, on HIGH for 10 minutes or until sauce is thickened. Return shredded chicken to crock pot and serve.