Adventures in CrockPot Cooking: Chicken Parmesan

We just keep getting better at these CrockPot meals, folks. This one is sure to be a family & guest pleaser!

Ingredients:

--2-4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

--1/2 cup bread crumbs

--1/4 cup parmesan cheese

--1/2 t Italian Seasoning

--1/4 t black pepper

--1/4 t kosher salt (I think this could be left out...I felt like the meal was a little too salty)

--1 T olive oil

--1 beaten egg

--sliced mozzarella cheese

--favorite jarred marinara sauce

Directions:

• Spread olive oil in bottom of CrockPot (I went ahead and turned my CrockPot on low at this point). 
• In a small bowl, beat egg. In a separate, shallow dish, mix together bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, and seasonings. 
• Dip each breast into the egg, then into the bread mixture, coating breast well on both sides. Put chicken breasts in bottom of CrockPot and cover with 3-4 slices of mozzarella cheese. 
• Cover with chosen jar of pasta sauce. 

• Cook on low for 5-6 hours or until chicken is tender. If you use frozen chicken, it will take longer. (I don't recommend using frozen chicken for this recipe, because it makes it harder to get the egg and bread mixture to stick.)

• Serve on top of chosen pasta (we used whole wheat penne pasta) and enjoy! 

Our Reactions

Sarah - I thought this was a delicious meal! The chicken was perfectly tender and had a delicious flavor from all the seasoning and being cooked in pasta sauce for several hours. I think I would use more mozzarella slices next time, and maybe pound out the chicken breasts to make them all and even thickness.

Brian - Brian LOVED this meal. He cleaned his plate and, quite literally, licked it clean. I'm not a huge fan of reheated chicken, so this is one time Brian was VERY thankful that he could eat the rest of the leftovers! 

Adventures in CrockPot Cooking: Tamale Pie

I feel like I'm finally starting to find some good CrockPot recipes that both Brian and I enjoy. This is a great recipe to use as a side dish or an entree.

Cornbread topping (in separate, small bowl):

--3/4 cup cornmeal

--1 1/4 cup flour

--1 cup milk

--1/4 cup sugar

--1 egg

--1 t baking powder

The Filling (mix well in CrockPot sprayed with oil):

--1 can drained and rinsed black beans

--1 can fire roasted tomatoes
--1 can drained corn

--1 T chili powder

--1 t cumin

--1/2 t paprika

--1/4 cup diced onion

--1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Pour cornbread mix on top of filling and spread evenly. Do not mix together the cornbread and the filling.

Cook on low for 4 hours or until cornbread is cooked.

Serve & enjoy!

Our Reactions

Sarah - I really loved all the spices and ingredients used for the filling. It had a great flavor. The cornbread was kind of rubbery on the very top, but I just cut that thin layer off and enjoyed the perfectly cooked cornbread underneath. Really, I think this would be a great side dish to a taco salad or something. It was quite filling just by itself, but I'm also 8 months pregnant and don't eat very much at one sitting :-)

Brian - Brian really enjoyed this dish. He, too, felt that the very top of the cornbread was kind of weird, but once he got past that, he enjoyed the dish. 

Adventures in CrockPot Cooking: Cowboy Beans

I haven't been hitting any "homeruns" in the kitchen lately...I don't know if it's me or I'm just not picking the best recipes. Considering Brian will eat almost anything without any complaints, I can never really judge how bad my cooking is. To make things harder, morning sickness in the evenings has decided to return and it is NOT fun! [I'm so excited though, because that means hormones are changing again which I can only assume baby BAL is getting ready to make his/her entrance!!] Read on to see how this recipe for Cowboy Beans ranked in our home :-)

Ingredients
1 pound dried pinto beans, soaked overnight
1 small yellow onion, diced
1 pound lean ground beef
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1-2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon dry mustard
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 (10-ounce) can Rotel
1-2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
7 cups water
sliced jalapenos, optional (jarred or fresh)


Directions
You must soak the beans overnight then drain in the morning & sort out the "bad beans" - I tried to take out all the beans that had split, were a darker color, or lost their skin. Pour the beans into the slow cooker.


On the stove, brown ground beef and onion - drain fat, then add on top of beans. Add the rest of the ingredients into the CrockPot (except jalapeños). Stir to mix ingredients, cover and cook on low for about 10 hours. [I learned that you might want to do 6 hours on high, and 4 hours on low to make sure the beans cook properly.] 

Our Reactions

Sarah - This particular day, the smell of the beans cooking either made me really hungry or really nauseous, so I never really ate this as a meal. I had a few bites of Brian's. I accidently added CHOPPED jalapeños for the whole cooking time, so I think it did alter the intended taste a little bit. I felt like it took forever for the beans to tenderize, but the beans did have a great flavor to them! Also, for whatever reason, my taste buds kept thinking taco soup so when I took a bite and got a different flavor, that affected my nausea again :-(

Brian - He gladly ate this for dinner 2 nights and lunch 2 days and then decided we should freeze the rest for after baby comes. GREAT idea!! He usually complains about red or green peppers in foods, but he didn't seem to have any complaints other than the strong jalapeño flavor.

Kelly's Korner "Show Us Your Life: Breakfast Recipes"

Hey [new & old] friends!

I have linked up with Kelly's Korner today to participate in her "Show Us Your Life" series she does every Friday. There are several weeks that I have really wanted to participate and just never got around to it, but I was so excited about today because the topic is breakfast recipes! We have one breakfast recipe that Brian & I both love and eat and eat on it until it is all gone - rest assured, no leftovers go uneaten on this recipe! Click here to see this blog post about our Breakfast Sausage Casserole :-)

Happy Friday!
-Sarah