Lulu's Recipe Box

Crock Pot Sante Fe Chicken

 

Whoever invented the Crock Pot is a genius! It makes my life so much easier when I can throw everything into the Crock Pot the night before, turn it on before I leave for work in the morning, and come home later that day to a delicious smelling dinner. Tonight's dinner in the Crock Pot was Sante Fe Chicken. After cooking on low for about 8 hours, the chicken literally shredded itself. This made me very happy because one of my least favorite kitchen tasks is shredding chicken. This shredded chicken is full of flavor, low-fat and makes a wonderful topping for homemade burrito bowls! We made our burrito bowls with a layer of rice, sante fe chicken, and finally garnished it with sour cream, shredded cheese and green onions! You could also make tacos or nachos with this great recipe! What's your favorite Crock Pot recipe?  I'm always looking for more to try! This Sante Fe chicken is ranking pretty high on my list, but my all-time favorite is this BBQ pulled pork.

Ingredients:

24 oz (1 1/2) lbs boneless skinless chicken breast

14.4 oz can diced tomatoes with mild green chilies

15 oz can black beans

8 oz frozen corn

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

14.4 oz can fat free chicken broth

3 green onions, chopped

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp cayenne pepper (to taste)

salt to taste

Directions:

Combine chicken broth, beans, corn, tomatoes, cilantro, scallions, garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, cayenne pepper and salt in a Crock Pot. Season chicken breast with salt and lay on top. Cook on low for 8-10 hours. Half hour before serving, remove the chicken and shred with two forks. Return chicken to slow cooker and stir in. Adjust salt and seasoning. Serve over rice or in tortillas for tacos. Garnish with cheese, sour cream, fresh cilantro, and green onions.

***Recipe from Gina's Skinny Recipes

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork Sandwiches

TC is going to a school get together tomorrow and he needed a main dish to share with everyone. He asked me if we could make pulled pork and I said yes, as long as I could use this new recipe! I was able to taste test one sandwich today and it was delicious and so simple to make. It tasted pretty darn close to my favorite pulled pork sandwich at Flying Mango in Des Moines, IA. Since I only make it home to Iowa a few times a year, this recipe will definitely curb my cravings for Flying Mango.  I didn't make the coleslaw, but I definitely will next time. It would be so yummy on top of the pulled pork or on the side. Here's hoping TC brings home some leftovers tomorrow night. I want another sandwich! 

 

Serves 10

Ingredients for the Pulled Pork:

1/2 cup ketchup

1/3 cup cider vinegar

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

6 ounces tomato paste

2 T. Worcestershire sauce

2 T. yellow mustard

1 1/2 tsp. salt

1 tsp. onion powder

3 pounds boneless pork sirloin roast, cut into 3 pieces

sandwich roll/hamburger buns

Ingredients For the Cole Slaw:

1 bag (14 oz) cole slaw mix

1/2 cup mayonnaise

3 T. canola oil

1/4 cup sugar

1 T. Cider vinegar

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 tsp. celery seed

1 tsp. onion powder

Directions:

Mix together the ketchup, cider vinegar, brown sugar, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, yellow mustard, salt, and onion powder in a crock pot. Add pork and turn pieces to coat with sauce. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or until the pork is tender (it should be easy to shred). Once done, shred pork and return to the crock pot. Stir the pork into the sauce.

For the cole slaw, mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Cover and let chill for 1-2 hours.

Put some pork on a bun and and top with cole slaw if you prefer.

*** Recipe from member mrswilliams on Tasty Kitchen

Slow Cooker Beef Stroganoff

I'm really on a roll with meal planning so far this year. I've enjoyed going to the grocery store just once to get all of my ingredients for the week. It saves me time and gas money not running to the grocery store several times a week when I find myself needing an ingredient for a meal. One of my other goals in the new year is to try a new meal every week. So far this week, I've tried two new meals, stuffed shells and this slow cooker beef stroganoff from one of my favorite recipe sharing websites, Tasty Kitchen. All of the recipes I have found on Tasty Kitchen have been wonderful, including this slow cooker meal. It's a great comfort meal, especially in the winter. It's also easy to throw together and easy on the wallet. The only thing I would do differently next time is to make the sauce a little thicker. It all depends on your preference, but TC and I both like a thicker sauce. I think next time I will experiment and take out the water to see if that helps thicken it up a bit. Serve this over egg noodles, pasta or mashed potatoes.

Serves 8 (I'll be cutting the recipe in half next time for just the two of us)

Ingredients:

2 lbs. Beef Stew Meat

1 whole onion, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 lb. sliced fresh button mushrooms

1 can cream of mushroom soup

1/2 cup water

1 tsp salt to taste

1/2 tsp. fresh ground black pepper

2 T. Worcestershire sauce

1 cup sour cream

Directions:

Place everything except for the sour cream into your slow cooker and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

Stir in the sour cream and cook on high for another 15-30 minutes.

Serve over egg noodles, pasta or rice.

***Recipe from Tasty Kitchen

 

 

Slow Cooker French Onion Soup

My favorite soup, hands down, is French onion. If French onion soup is on a restaurant menu, I don't have to think twice about ordering a bowl. So when I saw this easy slow cooker version, I knew I had to try it.  I put it on my menu for this week, but I couldn't wait until Thursday to make some. Plus, today's snow day seemed like the perfect opportunity to eat warm, comforting soup! The soup was delicious. It seemed too good to be true that it would be so simple to make AND taste better than some French onion soups I've had at restaurants. I can't wait to make this again!

Note: This recipe only serves 2 people. I was able to fill up the two bowls above and there was a little leftover.

Ingredients:

2 cans of beef broth

3 Tablespoons butter

2 yellow onions

1/2 tsp. granulated sugar

1/4 cup cooking sherry (or dry white wine)

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

French baguette

Gruyere or Swiss cheese (I used slices of Swiss. Next time, I'll try Gruyere)

Directions:

Heat your CrockPot to high and put the butter in to start melting. Slice the yellow onions into thin rings. Break up the onion slices with your fingers and rub them around in the melted butter. Add the beef broth, sugar, salt and sherry. Cook on high for 6-8 hours or low for 10-12.

Slice the French bread and arrange them on a baking sheet. Bake in a 400 degree oven until the bread is  crisp and golden at the edges, about 5 minutes. You could also put them in your toaster to get them crispy.

Ladel the soup into broiler-safe bowls and set the bowls on a baking sheet. Top each bowl with baguette slices (do not overlap slices) and place 1 or 2 slices of cheese on top (or shredded cheese if that's what you are using). Put them under the broiler (watching closely so you don't burn the top) until cheese is melted and bubbly around the edges.

Carefully tranfer the hot bowls to plates for serving.

 

***Recipe from A Year of Slow Cooking

Crock Pot Smothered Beef

Here is another delicious and easy slow cooker recipe for your busy weeks. Only three ingredients and five hours of cooking time needed! If you want more than 2-3 servings, I suggest doubling the recipe. Serve on top of rice or noodles for a warm, filling meal. 

Printable Version

Ingredients:

1 pound stew meat (can also buy chuck roast and cut into pieces on your own)

1/2 package dried Lipton Onion Soup mix

1 can cream of mushroom soup

Directions:

Mix all ingredients together. Cook for 5 hours on low heat in Crock Pot. You could also bake uncovered in oven for 3 hours at 300 degrees. Serve over rice or noodles.

Beef Roast with Shiitake Mushroom Sauce

My friend Sara gave me this recipe after she made it for me a few weekends ago. It was a wonderful variation on your typical beef roast. I really enjoyed the sauce/gravy. It has a tangy, almost sort of Asian flair with the hoisin sauce. I especially liked it with the shiitake mushrooms and would even add more next time. It is a filling and comforting dish especially with some sour cream mashed potatoes on the side. Can you tell I liked the sauce?  I have enough of it on my plate! : )

 

Printable Version

 Ingredients:

4 ounces fresh shiitake mushrooms, sliced

4 pound beef boneless rump or tip roast, trimmed of fat

1/4 cup hoisin sauce 

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1/4 cup water

2 T. cornstarch

2 medium green onions, sliced

Directions:

Place mushrooms in slow cooker. Top with beef. Spread hoisin sauce over beef, sprinkle with garlic and salt. 

Cover and cook on low heat setting, 8-10 hours, or until beef is tender.

About 10 minutes before serving, remove from cooker, place on serving platter and over to keep warm. Mix water and cornstarch in 4 cup measuring cup, or medium microwavable bowl, until smooth. Pour juices from cooker into cornstarch mixture. Mix well. Microwave uncovered on high, 2-3 minutes, stirring halfway through cooking, until mixture boils and thickens slightly. 

Cut roast in slices, spoon sauce over beef slices. Sprinkle with green onions. 

***Recipe from Betty Crocker "More Slower Cooker Recipes"

Crockpot Chili

This is my sister's crockpot chili. It's spicy and is great with a little sour cream and cheese on top. Also try the great cornbread mix from Crate and Barrel. You just have to add eggs, butter and milk to the mix. It's not as yummy as Flying Mango cornbread in Des Moines but it's pretty deilcious for being from a box.

1 T. olive oil

1 onion chopped

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 lb. ground beef

28 oz. crushed tomatoes

6 oz. tomato paste

2 T chili powder

15 oz. dark kidney beans

1 T sugar

salt and pepper to taste

Heat olive oil in skillet over med-high heat for 2 minutes. Saute onions and garlic in oil. Add ground beef and brown. Remove meat and onions to a colander and drain off fat. Put browned beef mixture into slow cooker. Add all other ingredients and stir well. Cover and cook on low 8-9 hours.