Summer Slow Cooker Recipes

I can't be the only person who looses all motivation for cooking once the outside temperature rises above 95 can I? I mean, who wants to heat their house up while the air conditioner is trying to cool it off? Not to mention standing over the hot, hot heat sweating while making dinner. Nope, not me. The thing is, I can only stand so much barbecuing before I get bored. All the food pretty much feels the same to me from a barbecue. There just isn't enough variety. So, I dusted off my old slow cooker and gave her a go. Don't you think that she was too dusty. After all, she gets used all winter long. I love me some soups and hearty meals in the winter. So her and I work together almost every day in the winter. But not so much in the summer. Anyway, I ended up making the most incredible meal and decided I needed to keep going for it...as the forecast calls for days over 100 for a very long time yet. So, here's some inspiration for both you and I...though most these meals I've tried in the past and just forgotten about.

* spinach artichoke chicken

* broccoli beef - have you ever tried it over ramen noodles instead of rice? Yum!

* honey garlic chicken & veggies

* salsa verde chicken - hello tacos!

* balsamic roast beef - sure it's hearty, but it's good!

* spaghetti squash & meatballs - don't tell anyone, but I use premade meatballs, making this literally the easiest meal ever. And you feel healthy eating it because it's spaghetti squash! 

* orange chicken

* apple bacon stuffed pork chops - I left out the walnuts, as I'm not a fan

* cilantro lime chicken tacos - because can one have too many taco nights in their life?!

* pulled pork - this is a healthy one, free of sugar. Pulled pork can literally be served any way you like - as a sandwich, as a taco, in a "lettuce boat", making it bread free. Anyway you like it, I love it topped with Frank's RedHot sauce.

And just in case you are looking for a refreshing side dish to change up those barbecue dinners a bit, this cucumber dill salad is amazing. 

If you have any healthy(ish) crock pot recipes you love, send them my way. I need to combat all my ice cream and otter pop eating ways with supposedly healthy dinners to make myself feel better ;)

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Blueberry Applesauce Muffins

Let me tell you a little story. On Monday, a neighbor stopped by to see if Connor wanted to come over and play. The dad asked what we were up to and I replied, "baking". I asked Ian to pick Connor up from the neighbor's house on his way home from work. Well, apparently when the dad told Ian that we were baking, Ian made sure to let him know that doesn't normally happen in our house. Way to shatter the image of Jessica the baker, Ian! 

Anyway, I have made applesauce muffins in the past and none have ever turned out very good. They have generally turned out rather tasteless because of the lack of unhealthy ingredients sugar. This time I added blueberries to them which made them mighty tasty and they were quite moist too. So, here's the recipe. It's an easy one too.

Ingredients:
1.25 cups flour
1.25 cups of rolled oats
1 tsp baking powder
.5 tsp baking soda
.5 tsp cinnamon
1 cup applesauce
.5 cup plain greek yogurt
.5 cup brown sugar
2 tbsp olive oil
1 egg
.75 cup blueberries (I used frozen)


Directions:

1. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees
2. Mix all your ingredients together, except for the blueberries
3. Once mixed, stir in the blueberries
4. Oil your muffin pan, or use liners
5. Divide the batter between 12 muffin cups
6. Bake for 14-16 minutes; use a toothpick to check if they are done, which is when the toothpick comes out clean from the muffin
7. Enjoy!

We ate them all within two days, but they stayed super fresh and moist for both days. Callum especially loved them...and so did I. 

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For Love of the Crockpot

I feel like I need to get it out there that the runner up to this photo was one of me actually kissing my crockpot. Yes, I do love it THAT MUCH.

I have been on the crockpot bandwagon way before it was even cool. Yes, it is cool. A couple weeks ago, I was reading the news and in the article, some big time chef dissed the crockpot. I instantly felt defensive. And may have even considered writing this lady a letter. I mean, she hadn't just dissed an acquaintance of mine, but a super close and super reliable family member of mine. Since I knew a letter would be no help, except to maybe give her a laugh in her day, I thought I would instead share some of my favorite go-to crockpot recipes.

I try new crockpot recipes almost weekly. Pinterest is my go to source for recipes. The problem is, it is hard to find ones that are at least semi healthy, don't require a ton of extra work (so are more one pot style meals) and aren't soups. There are a couple soups on this list, but all these recipes are meals I have made numerous times and are winners in my house.


Honey Garlic Chicken and Veggies - Bonus points for this being a "one pot" recipe because the veggies are already in it!

Spaghetti Squash and Meatballs - In full disclosure, I use pre-made meatballs, making it literally "stupid easy" (see the name of the actual recipe on the link to get that one).

Sausage Spinach Tomato Soup - So incredibly much flavor. And given how much spinach that goes in, I consider it a one pot recipe as well. Bonus points for this being a soup my husband actually loves…I'm the soup lover in the family, not him.

White Chicken Chili - It only has five ingredients. It really can't get any easier.

Southwest Chicken Soup

Teriyaki Chicken - This one may take a couple extra steps to make the sauce thicken at the end, but it tastes really good.

One of my ultimate favorites, I don't have a recipe for, Rootbeer Pulled Pork. You literally just throw in the pork roast, completely cover it with rootbeer (I have had better results having the pork roast completely submerged vs. using a specific amount) and cook it all day. At the end of the day, pull the roast out and shred it. Then add some rootbeer from the crockpot and come bbq sauce and mix it all together with the pulled pork. It is so dang good.


Wow, I really proved that big time chef wrong there, didn't I?! But seriously, the crockpot is one of the most used items in my kitchen. And I am loving life come dinner time when all the work is already done and we just get to eat. So I think it and I will be best buds for a long time.

You can also find me on:

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Southwest Chicken Soup {Crockpot Recipe}

I thought summer was in full swing here, then something happened. A couple days of cooler weather has been sent our way. To take advantage of it, I though I would make one last pot of soup before summer sets in and BBQ season begins. 

This soup truly is yummy. And I love anything that I can put together in the morning and have done at dinner time.

Southwest Chicken Soup:

Ingredients:

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 yellow onion, diced

3 cloves of garlic, minced

1lb of boneless, skinless chicken breast...I cube mine to help with the shredding later

1.5 cups of black beans already cooked (or 1 can)

1.5 cups of corn (or 1 can)

2 14.5oz cans of diced tomatoes

4oz can of green chills 

1/4 cup of enchilada sauce (I used red sauce)

2 cups of chicken broth

season with paprika, cumin and black pepper...and if you want to add extra spice, red pepper seeds. (I don't measure my spices, I just throw in what I feel like throwing in)

Directions:

1. Throw all the ingredients in a crock pot

2. Cook on low for 8-9 hours

3. Shred chicken with a fork

4. Serve in a bowl and garnish with shredded cheese, slices of avocado and a spoonful of sour cream. 

Your mouth and stomach will be happy you made this.

P.S. I originally found this amazing recipe on pinterest...I love that place for recipes! I changed it up a bit and made it my own. Feel free to change it to your liking as well. 

Food for Thought

I like cooking, though that doesn't mean I am good at cooking. I am one of those people that isn't the best at following detailed directions. Thus, I am not great at following recipes. They just get so complicated, have so many ingredients that I have never heard of and don't get me started on all the measuring! So really, I use recipes as my inspiration. I then take them and do whatever the heck I want!

Enter my dinner creation last night...shepherds pie. I watched a friend make it a few weeks back and figured I could conquer it. And conquer it I did! It turned out scrumptious. Let me tell you what I did...

Ingredients (remember, I don't measure anything):
ground beef
yellow onion
mushrooms
red wine
carrots
potatoes
tons of cheese

Directions:
Cooked ground beef, yellow onions and mushrooms together. Then added some red wine toward the end. Cooked the carrots and potatoes separate from each other, then mashed both. Then I put the beef layer in a pan, carrots went next, then the potatoes and cheese on top. I threw it in the oven until the cheese was crispy and...voila...shepherds pie!

I know it isn't much of a looker, but it sure was tasty...though I do think anything with crispy cheese on top is delicious!