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.

Adventures in CrockPot Cooking: Cheese Enchilada Stack

Tonight's Adventure in CrockPot Cooking was definitely an adventure...

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups Chicken Broth

1 (14.5 oz) can Crushed Tomatoes

1 Tablespoon Chili Powder

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

1 small onion (finely chopped) 

8-10 corn tortillas (maybe more?)

4 cups shredded cheddar cheese (maybe less?)

1 (4 oz) can sliced black olives (drained)

Sour cream to taste

Combine chicken broth, crushed tomatoes, spices, and chopped onion in large bowl & set aside.

Cover bottom of CrockPot with corn tortillas. Sprinkle a handful (really just depends on how much cheese you like) of cheese and a few black olives. Then, put about 3 spoonfuls on top.

Repeat layering until out of ingredients. Cook on low for 3-4 hours or until bubbly. Top with dollops of sour cream as desired.

Our Responses


Sarah - I am not a fan. I will probably never choose to cook this again. We did pair it with pinto beans and spanish rice, but I didn't feel like it made the dish much better. It had a good flavor (the spices really made it have a good flavor), but I think used too much cheese and cooked it for too long and it was very mushy. I am a big "texture person" when it comes to food, though, so even though the taste may have been fine, the texture was not what I desired for stacked enchiladas.

Brian - He had 2 servings. Brian does agree that it was a little mushy, but textures don't bother him as bad.

I would recommend that you at least try this recipe and see what you think - it was not terrible, just not one of my favorites! Oh well - for 1 recipe out of 3 so far not being perfect, I'm not complaining! :-)

Happy Crocking!
-Sarah

Adventures in CrockPot Cooking: Artichoke & Chicken Pasta AND (non-CrockPot) Banana Bread

First off, that Tex Mex Roast lasted us FOREVER! Granted, we had family in town this weekend and ate out for most of our meals...but considering it's Thursday and it's the first day I've made a meal this week (because we've been eating leftovers), I consider that lasting FOREVER! 

Today, I made Artichoke & Chicken Pasta. I forgot to take a picture of the ingredients, but they are super easy to find in your local grocery store!

Chicken breasts (as much as you'd like; completely optional)

3 (14.5-ounce) undrained cans Italian Tomatoes (I used diced, but stewed would work great!)

2 (14.5 ounce) cans artichoke hearts in water, drained & lightly chopped (I just bought quartered and did not worry about chopping)

6 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 cup pimento-stuffed green olives

1/2 cup heavy whipping cream (to add later)

1 pound freshly cooked pasta (to add later, I used veggie farfalli/bowtie pasta)

Directions

(Sorry about the cruddy picture, when I put this in at lunch, I had left my camera in the car and my phone is all I had.)

Place desired amount of chicken in bottom of CrockPot. Pour all three cans of tomatoes on top. Lightly drain artichokes and chop (if necessary/desired) and toss in on top of tomatoes. Add minced garlic and green olives. Cook on low for 4-5 hours (without chicken) or on low for 6-7 hours (with chicken). 

Right before serving, stir in 1/2 cup of heaving whipping cream.

Stir in hot pasta and top with parmesan cheese, if desired.

Our Reactions

Sarah - The first words out of my mouth were, "WOW! That's like restaurant good!" The rest of the meal continued to be "like restaurant good" -- and healthier than eating at most Italian restaurants, too! I will say, I think the chicken was a little dried out and it probably would've been perfect at about the 5th hour (I only used 2 chicken breasts).

Brian - "Uh-Ma-Zing" (He's at a loss for words...)

Now, after dinner we ate a (non-CrockPot) delicious banana bread! I have tried out several different banana bread recipes over the past 3-4 years and have not found one that was just so good it stuck, but I think I have FINALLY found THE recipe and I'm so excited to share it with you! I did not take any pictures, except of the finished product, so just imagine there are pictures :-)

Ingredients

1/4 cup white sugar & 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (for baking pans)

3/4 cup butter (1 1/2 sticks)

3 cups white sugar

3 eggs

6 very ripe bananas, mashed

1 (16 oz) container sour cream

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 teaspoons baking soda

4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Grease loaf pans (I used 3) then dust with sugar & cinnamon mixture.
2. In a large bowl (like, really big), cream butter & sugar. Mix in eggs, bananas, sour cream, vanilla, and cinnamon. Mix in salt, baking soda, and flour. Divide into prepared loaf pans.
3. Bake for 1 hour (it took mine about 1 hour & 10 minutes) until toothpick comes out clean when stuck in center of loaf.

DELICIOUS!

"Happy Crocking!"

-Sarah

Adventures in CrockPot Cooking: Tex Mex Roast

I am starting a new adventure! This crazy Texas heat mixed with my 7 month pregnant body do not cope well with an oven turned on in the afternoons, so I've decided to stick to [mostly] CrockPot meals for now. I found this AMAZING website (http://crockpot365.blogspot.com) that has the widest variety of CrockPot meals, side dishes, desserts, and crafts I have ever seen! The blogger, Stephanie, even used her CrockPot to give herself a pedicure!! Now, I wouldn't say I'm going that extreme, but some of her ideas are just wonderful!

Last night, I began my CrockPot adventure with Tex Mex Roast. Everyone say it with me, "OOOOO, AHHHHH!"

Brian and I have very different taste buds, so at the end of each of these posts I'll be sure to clue you in on both of our reactions to the recipe! 

First reason I like this recipe: 5 ingredients.

Second reason I like this recipe: dump & go! 

For your ingredients you'll need:

• 2 lbs Boneless Chuck Roast
• 1 can corn w/peppers
• 1 can Chili Beans
• 1 can Rotel
• 1 teaspoon Chipotle Chili Powder

First, put your roast in the bottom of your CrockPot and sprinkle evenly with chipotle chili powder.

Then, dump the rest of the ingredients on top of the roast. DO NOT DRAIN ANY OF THE CANS! If you use a frozen roast (which is super super wonderful to do!), your cooking length may vary, but I set my CrockPot on low for about 7.5-8 hours. You want your beef to fall apart with a fork.

Our Reactions

Sarah - I must say that as it was cooking, I was slightly thrown off by the Chipotle smell. It smelled [to me] like I should be cooking a BBQ dinner, when I knew I was cooking a Tex Mex dinner. I had a rough time at first, but I tasted the corn, tomato & chili, and bean mixture...it was DELICIOUS! Once I added it all together ontop of a bed of homemade Spanish rice, I thoroughly enjoyed this meal! It was a different flavor than any roast I had ever tasted...and I think this was the first time I've eaten a Chuck Roast, so there was a lot more fat than I was used to, but I can't imagine the recipe being cooked any other way!

Brian - He LOVED it. He said it was a little spicy to him (I think that can be attributed to the Chipotle Chili Powder + Rotel), but he got himself an ice cold Coca-Cola and cleaned his plate! He loves beef, so really, this was an easy meal to please him!

As my Mom put it so pleasantly, "Happy Crocking!!"

-Sarah