Category: Crockpot /Make Ahead Meals

Crock Pot Beef Stroganoff

Beef, Crockpot /Make Ahead Meals, Throwback Thursday

Hey there! Happy Thursday!

Wait? WHAT??? Is it only Monday? Darn it! I thought for sure we were at least to Thursday. Oh well…

All kidding aside, I decided to try to make at least one crock pot meal a week, especially on a crazy weeknight. I plan on making more meals in my crockpot these next couple of cold and crappy months. As my friend Bonnie calls it, JanFeb. JanFeb. is a summer loving beach bum’s worst nightmare. When I am dreaming of bikinis and flip flops, JanFeb. wakes up my warm blanket smothered body and slaps me in the face with ice and wind. I actually have to leave my warm bed and freeze my butt off the rest of the day. Blah! Eat some of this…then go to the gym in case you still want to fit in that bikini…

So today, Monday, Jan. 5, I decided that I will use my crock pot at least once a week. I am not even going to bother putting it back under the counter. Be on the lookout for for more crock pot recipes these next couple of months.

This one of my family’s favorites.  I tried to take a better end picture as well, but no such luck. I actually find food from crock pots very hard to photograph. Everything has cooked all day together and mashed their flavors together. Good for your tummy, but not really photogenic. Maybe one day I will be able to capture a perfect picture of it!

But until then, these cute little sous-chefs make up for it!

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Easy Beef Stroganoff

Ingredients

Beef sirloin cut into chunks or strips
salt and pepper, to taste
3 tablespoons butter or margarine
1/2 lb fresh mushrooms, sliced in half
1 medium onion, sliced or diced into medium sized pieces
1 bag frozen pas
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups beef broth- reduced sodium or so sodium is best
2 tablespoons of Worcestershire sauce
3 crushed and finely diced garlic (or 1 tablespoon garlic powder)
1 package of cutup cream cheese (room temp.) or sour cream (or a combo)
1 package wide egg noodles
Season the beef with salt and pepper and let stand (in refrigerator) as you prepare the other ingredients – let stand for up to two hours.

Directions

Brown the meat in your pan. Let it cool and add it to your crock pot. Cook your chopped onions, garlic, and sliced mushrooms in the beef drippings with a few shakes of olive oil. You can prepare this part the night before and put in your fridge until the morning.

In the morning, add your Worcestershire sauce and beef broth. Cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours. Near the end, add your peas. Make a slurry by whisking your flour and a tablespoon of the liquid from the crock pot together. Add that and your room temperature cream cheese (or sour cream, or combo of each.

Cook egg noodles and add all together at the end.

 

Chicken Bruschetta with Pasta – Gluten Free!!!

Beef, Chicken, Crockpot /Make Ahead Meals, gluten free, Pasta, Side dishes...veggies, potatoes, grains

Hey guys. So one of my friends was going to come and hang out and offered to bring dinner tonight. I was going to take her up on it, when I totally felt like I needed to cook something. I told her to bring a salad and some red wine; I would take care of the rest. I had no idea what I wanted to make.

I had a day to myself… I went to Pilates, went to lunch, and got my hair done. Then I decided to go to Fresh Market to look around and decide once I got there.

I really wanted to make my Bruchetta Chicken with pasta and marinara. But my friend is gluten free, so I needed to first make sure I could find a decent gluten free pasta. Quinoa pasta is supposedly gluey, plus it cost like $8. Then I saw brown rice pasta. I thought I remembered Rachel Ray say she really liked this, plus it was on sale for $3ish. Score! I got chicken breasts, tomatoes, mozzarella, basil, anchovies (don’t balk yet!), and all the other ingredients for the sauce..

Bruchetta Marinara Sauce

Ingredients

2-3 anchovies
1/2 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, crushed and minced
1/2 container mushrooms sliced and chopped
1 28 oz. can of crushed crushed tomatoes
1 28 oz. can of diced tomatoes
4 squirts of tomato paste
1/3 bottle of red wine; I used Cabernet
2 tablespoons of Worcestershire
2 pats of butter
3 tablespoons sugar.
3 tablespoons of Dried Italian Herb mixture
fresh basil crushed and chopped
1 bay leaf

Directions

Heat a large dutch oven on med-high heat with 1 tablespoon olive oil and 2-3 anchovies. I know some people are going to make the stink eye at my anchovies. Don’t ya’ll. One of the main ingredients in Worcestershire is anchovies! Worcestershire is a chef’s best secret ingredient. You eat it is Caesar Salad, Hamburgers, Meatloaf etc… Once those tiny fish hit the pan, they melt like butter. You will thank me. Please try them. If you want to try to make this, but don’t have anchovies, just add a couple more tablespoons of Worcestershire.

Add a bit more olive oil and your onions. Cook down for 2-3 minutes with a bit of salt and pepper. Add your Mushrooms and garlic. Cook for a few more minutes before adding your tomato paste. Mix that around for a few minutes. A deep tomato smell will fill the air after a couple of minutes. Then add in your wine and Worcestershire. Mix and reduce down for 5 minutes or so. Add your herbs, bay leaf, and sugar. Mix and Reduce to low. Cook for at least 1 hour…the longer the better.

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Bruchetta Chicken

4 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts- season each side with salt and pepper.
Then, brown both sides of chicken in your cast iron skillet. Each side about 8-10 minutes. Put the pan in a 350 oven.

Cut a tomato and some mozzarella. Thinly slice some basil. I roll mine up then chop it up. Place these on top of your chicken in the oven. When you start to see your cheese melt a bit, turn on the broil. Cook until all the cheese is melted and browned on top.

I made the brown rice pasta according to the package. It still had a bit of a bite to it, so I added it the sauce. I mixed well. So yummy! I wouldn’t mind buying this pasta again for a gluten free friend =)

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Chicken Pot Pie using leftovers…

Chicken, Crockpot /Make Ahead Meals, Leftovers/ Freezer Meals

It has been a bit since I have posted. Lots of repeat dinners and friends giving yummy food to our family. Recently we have gotten a KFC feast. Fried chicken and all the fixings? Can’t complain!!! Apparently everyone thinks we are a family of 12 instead of 5… no worries! Just gotta find something to do with the leftovers. Chicken Pot Pie to the rescue! Here is my crazy recipe…

Dice up and cook an onion, along with 2 diced carrots,celery,and 1 container of sliced mushrooms in 3 tablespoons of butter.
Stir the veggies around and cook them for 3 to 4 minutes, until they just start to soften.
Then throw in cooked KFC green beans, mashed potatoes, and 1/2 the gravy, and the chicken. I like to have a mix of white and dark meat shredded or cut into big chunks. I took the meat off the bone and took the skin off. If a little skin stays on, it will not hurt the mixture =) Sprinkle a little flour (2 tablespoons) all over the top. Then pour in 1/2 cup or so white wine…chicken broth if you are all out of wine… add 1 teaspoon of salt and pepper, turmeric… a bit of dried thyme and fresh chopped parsley (optional)
Add a splash of half-and-half or cream for a little creamy richness.
Finally, just let the mixture bubble up until it’s nice and thick; add in frozen peas and cook for 2 minutes. Then set it aside for a sec. (If it gets too thick, just splash in a little more wine or broth.)
Move mixture to a casserole/oven safe dish. Soak biscuits with remaining gravy then crumble on top. Cook at 350 for 20 minutes.
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Crockpot Pork Ragu

Crockpot /Make Ahead Meals, Leftovers/ Freezer Meals, Pasta, Pork

I have made pork ragu a few times on the blog. I have made it with different forms of pork and varied the recipe each time to what I had in the cupboard with what I thought I should buy and add in it. It is a really special meal. It is not hard, but it still takes time and love to create. I recently found a nice pork butt in the freezer and wanted to use it in a new and creative way. I had wanted to cook it yesterday, but we went to the zoo and didn’t get home until late in the afternoon. No time to cook it for dinner, so I thought maybe I could make it in the crock pot instead. I wasn’t sure I could pull it off, but it was a big hit at the house. Tons of leftovers, so that is a plus. Seriously, you have to try this!

Crock Pot Pork Ragu

Ingredients

1 onion, chopped
2 carrots, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
large handful of mushrooms, sliced
3 cloves garlic, crushed
1 can crushed tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tablespoon sugar
1-2 cups beef broth
red wine-optional

Pork Butt seasoned with…
1 1/2 teaspoon of salt, pepper, italian seasoning, fennel seed,

Directions

The night before, I brown the pork on all sides (seasoned with the herbs and other seasonings) in a dutch oven. I had to cut my pork in half so it would fit. I actually cooked all the veggies and sauce for just a bit so they could cook down a little to fit in the crock pot. Then I put the meat in the crock pot and covered it with the sauce. I refrigerated it over night. Then I cooked it on low all day. When I got home, my house smelled amazing! Serve over pasta, rice, polenta, mashed potatoes… Always serve with crusty bread for dipping and sopping up all the meaty sauce!

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Crock Pot Creamy Chicken and Mushrooms

Chicken, Crockpot /Make Ahead Meals

First day of school. My girls had a great day as students. I had a great day as a teacher. It is going to be a wonderful year!!! This morning I made this crock pot meal. I served it with sauteed spinach and rice pilaf. Everyone loves rice. Spinach, on the other hand, is not so loved. Spinach is not the girls’ favorite vegetable. Too bad; they all have to take at least one bite. This dish may not be super photogenic, but it is super tasty.

Crock Pot Creamy Chicken and Mushrooms

Ingredients

4 skinless chicken thighs (bone-in) seasoned with salt and pepper
1 container of sliced mushrooms
1 onion chopped
1/2 cup chicken broth
1 cup sour cream
heavy cream as needed

Directions
Chop onions
Slice mushrooms
season chicken
place all in crockpot
add chicken broth
cook on low for 6-8 hours
Come home to juicy shredded chicken
Add in sour cream; let melt and stir. Add a bit of heavy cream if needed- can leave this out

Serve over pasta, rice, couscous, polenta, or with crusty bread or toast.
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