Food goodness

Is the texture of this pasta perfect? No it is not. Is this a perfectly balanced dish? Again, no. But do you have a hot home-cooked dinner at the end of a long day without having to do anything, and will your child actually eat it? Yup.  Ingredients: 16 oz dried pasta (bigger shape like fusilli or penne preferable) 2 24oz jars of sauce (or equivalent with crushed tomatoes and water) Frozen meatballs, some amount (I used 12 beyond meatballs)  2 handfuls mozzarella cheese (ricotta/marscapone/grated parm optional, and probably you could get away without the mozz) Directions: Pour half a jar of sauce into the slow cooker Add half the pasta and half the meatballs. Add the other half jar of sauce   Add half the cheese. Repeat til it’s all gone. If the pasta on the top doesn’t have liquid covering it, add some water until all the pasta is covered.  Cook on low for six hours. Serve with salt, pepper, red pepper flakes & oregano so people can add more seasoning to taste....

Compiled from a bunch of different places wheeeee Ingredients: Olive oil  1 package of chicken sausage, removed from casing, or Impossible meat or other ground meat 1 yellow onion, chopped  A few carrots, chopped Some celery, chopped, if you have it 1 can of chickpeas or cannellini beans, drained and rinsed A couple big shakes of oregano or Italian seasoning and garlic powder, or whatever you like 3-4T tomato paste 1/4 cup all-purpose flour 10 cups broth of some kind 20 oz cheese tortellini - can use refrigerated or dried or probably frozen? I don't see why not A couple big handfuls of spinach or chopped kale 1/4c grated Parm or romano Instructions: In your IP, add some olive oil and onion and saute for a minute. Add sausage and spices, and cook until sausage is done. Add carrots and celery. Saute another few minutes. Stir in tomato paste and beans. Sprinkle in the flour and stir for a minute or so; make sure you don't burn it.  Pour in the broth and stir. Bring to a boil...

Best way to use our leftover smoked turkey from Thanksgiving. Adapted from this recipe .  Sauté 2 cloves garlic and 1 chopped onion in olive oil until translucent.  Add 1t each of poultry seasoning or thyme, garlic powder, and onion powder, plus some salt & pepper. Add a few rough-chopped carrots and celery stalks. Cook for a couple minutes. Cut the meat off of 2 smoked turkey legs — making sure to avoid the gross parts — and add it to the pot. Cook 3-5 minutes. Stir in one can of white northern beans, drained & rinsed.  Add 4-5c of chicken broth and bring to boil. Boil for 10 minutes. Cover with lid and simmer 45 minutes or longer (in slow cooker on high, or in regular stovetop pot).  Serve with cooked rice or pasta.

 Not often I say this, but this recipe really is better with meat (fake or real!) in it. Saute a package of chicken sausage (the best), ground whatever, or Impossible ground whatever with a big shake of oregano and/or Italian seasoning. (I wait until the end for salt & pepper.) Saute in your IP with some olive oil until mostly cooked through. Chop any combination of peppers, zucchini, mushrooms, and whatever in your fridge, plus a large onion and a few cloves of garlic. Add this to the saute and cook another few minutes. Turn off the heat and add 2 28-oz cans of crushed tomatoes, plus any fresh ones you have left over and want to use, and a pinch of sugar. Cook on low for 6-8 hours at least. Come home, add s&p, and serve over pasta with Parm. - You can also do this same thing in the IP -- after the sauteeing, set it on manual for 3-5 min. Wait at least 20-30 minutes before releasing the pressure, though, so you don't splatter your whole kitchen with hot spaghetti sauce.

 Could have sworn I posted this before, but meh! Place 1 lb of dried black beans —  no need to soak  — into a slow cooker. Add: 1 onion, halved or quartered 2 bay leaves 1t salt 8c water Generous splash of olive oil Cook on high for 6-8 hours. Store in their cooking liquid if possible.  To do this in the IP, reduce to 6c water and pressure-cook on high for 30 minutes. 

Cobbled together from several different recipes. I don't like garlic or oregano in my chicken soup; I have strong feelings about when the noodles should be cooked (afterward, not with the rest of the soup, but in the same pot); add most of the salt at the end; dear god don't put POTATOES in here wtf is wrong with you. Ingredients: 2 T butter 1 large onion, chopped  4 carrots, chopped into bite-sized pieces 4 stalks celery, chopped into bite-sized pieces 1 3-4 lb chicken or chicken parts, with bones, at least one breast Chicken stock or Better than Bouillon (or similar) About half a bag of egg noodles Herbs:  Big shake of dried thyme and/or dried rosemary 1 T dried dill (optional) 1 T turmeric (optional; I do this if we're sick; choose either this OR the dill) Salt & pepper To finish: Half a lemon Sprinkle of chopped parsley Turn the IP on saute. Melt the butter and saute the onions for a minute or two.  Add celery and herbs, and a little salt and pepper. Keep stirring...

This is cobbled together from a couple different recipes. The texture of these is fab, and I love that it saves dishes. Take 2 pint-sized Mason jars (or whatever will fit into your slow cooker and allow you to still put the lid on).  In each jar, add 1/2 c steel-cut oats, 1/2 c water, and 1 c milk of your choice (I've been using oat milk).  Add a bit of mashed banana or a few T of applesauce, or a little extra water. You can also add a little vanilla, maple syrup, cinnamon, etc. Stir each one. Put the wire rack into your IP or crockpot, so the glasses are not sitting directly on the bottom. Put the jars in, and then fill the insert of the IP or crockpot with water until it comes about 1/3 of the way up the sides of the jars. Set the slow cooker on low for 4 hours, and then the timer for 4 hours. This is probably flexible, but this time combo is working for me -- it lets the oats soak for a while and then cooks low and slow for four hours, and then stays on "keep warm" for...

 Based on  two recipes , which make one good sandwich. Chicken In the slow cooker, combine sauce ingredients: 1 bottle of BBQ sauce -- I like Stubbs, bc no corn syrup 1/2 medium onion, grated (with juice) 1 Tbsp olive oil 1 Tbsp worchestershire sauce 2 Tbsp brown sugar Stir together, and then add ~3 lbs of chicken breasts. Cook on h igh 3 to 4 hours or on low for 6 – 7 hours, then shred chicken with two forks. Slaw Stir together:  2 Tbsp mayonnaise  1/3 cup plain Greek yogurt Blop of honey  1 tsp Dijon mustard  1 tsp vinegar -- recipe calls for apple cider; I used red wine salt & pepper Then pour over 1/2 large cabbage, chopped, or a bag of pre-shredded slaw mix. Assemble the sandwiches on buns. Don't forget the pickles!

This isn't really a curry, but it's more kid-friendly than a real curry, and you can tweak the spices however you'd like. Good for using up a lot of bits of random vegetables and not heating up your kitchen in the summer. Combine: 1 c water 1 large head broccoli, cut into florets [and/or other veggies; I've used string beans and peppers too) 15 oz chickpeas, draind and rinsed 1 can or just some diced tomatoes, with juice 1 medium or large sweet potato, peeled and cubed some onion, diced some garlic, diced 1/4 c quinoa (you can do without this but it helps the texture) Generous dash of soy sauce Generous dash of salt Plus some other spices: ginger and turmeric, a little curry, about 2-3 t of each Cover and cook for 4 hours on high or 8 hours on low, until the potatoes are soft. After it's cooled a bit, stir in about half a can of coconut milk. Serve warm over rice, garnished with cilantro or parsley, and with Greek yogurt and hot sauce on top.

Modified from this recipe , because you can’t put coconut milk in a crockpot and heat it for a long time. Come on, Canada. (Maybe the blending would re-emulsify, but who is going to risk wasting delicious coconut milk?) In your IP, sauté a chopped onion with some ginger and garlic. Add: 3 tsp garam masala 1 tsp cumin 1 tsp coriander 1/2 tsp sea salt 1/2 lime, squeezed 3 tsp maple syrup Chop and add: 2 bunches fresh spinach 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, plus more for serving Using the slow cooker function, cook for 2 hours on regular heat or 4 hours on low heat. More is probably fine.  Once it’s done, let cool for a while and blend with an immersion blender. Add a little coconut milk — maybe 1/3 of a can — and blend until it’s the consistency you like.  In a skillet, heat  2 tsp coconut oil . Cut  1 brick of paneer (fresh Indian cheese) into cubes. Fry until sides golden brown, turning occasionally. While this is cooking, toast a handful of unsweetened...

Aw, little neglected food blog. Hi, buddy! A friend (thanks, Wendy!) just posted this on Facebook and I couldn't figure out how to save it, so here we are. My Go To crockpot recipe for potlucks is this: Take as many white mushrooms as will fit in a crock pot, add a stick or two of butter, an entire bottle of cooking sherry (which is just regular sherry with a bunch of salt in it, you could also buy cheap white wine and use that plus a bunch of salt), and whatever random Italian herbs I can lay my hands on (usually a ton of dried oregano, basil and rosemary, but I've even used one of those Italian dressing seasoning packets before). Basically it's done as soon as the mushrooms get soft, but the mushrooms will just keep getting better the longer it cooks -- and I never EVER take any leftovers home. Another serving suggestion:  If you wanted to serve them with something, my old favourite restuarant had a mushroom sandwich that was a baguette toasted with garlic butter, he...

We can order these from our CSA, and I love them... but they need to be cooked forever, so the crockpot is really only the way to go. We've tried soaking them overnight, but they didn't have the nice chewy consistency they get in the slow cooker. 2 c whole oats, or "groats," or whatever you want to call them 5 c milk, water, or any combination 1 shredded apple, skin on Handful of raisins or dried cranberries Sprinkle of cinnamon or apple pie spice Pinch of salt Mix everything in the crockpot & turn on low. After a few hours, check it to make sure it isn't sticking and add more liquid if necessary. It's usually done after 5-6 hours, although cooking it longer doesn't hurt. I still haven't been able to cook this overnight without the edges burning, because you really do need the stirring step, but I've also just tossed the edges & the rest of it is fine.

Hellooooooo?  Anybody here????  I mean, not like I've been here of late.  I swear I am just making the same old stuff plus new stuff on occasion and then forgetting to post it here.  For, like, 2 yrs now. Pathetic. Anyway, here's what's for dinner at our house tonight: 4 skinless and boneless chicken leg/thigh quarters (about 4 lbs) - I used 2 pkgs chx thighs S&P to season chx 1/4 C water 1/4 C smoked almonds - I used 1/4 C almond butter languishing in my fridge 1/4 C raisins 2 T cocoa powder 1 t cinnamon 1 T ground cumin 2 T tomato paste 2 chiles in adobo sauce plus 1 T sauce from can 4 garlic cloves 1 small sweet onion, cut into large quarters Place chx in bottom of your crockpot and sprinkle with S&P. Place all remaining ingredients into a blender or food processor and process until smooth. Spread mixture over chicken and cook on low for 8 hrs or high for 4 hrs. Serve with your favorite mexican side dishes. We will be having refried beans...

I've been refining this for a while now to make it easier and easier, and I think I've finally gotten there... loosely based on this recipe . 1 pound lean ground turkey or chicken sausage, or a blend of the two green/red/yellow bell peppers, finely chopped 1 onion, finely chopped 2 garlic cloves, minced 1 can (28 ounces) crushed tomatoes, undrained, plus a chopped fresh tomato or two if you have some to use up some beans, equaling about two cans -- black, kidney, white, pinto, whatever  2 c reduced-sodium chicken broth a bag of frozen corn 1 tablespoon chili powder and/or a couple adobo chiles with some sauce pepper, cumin, garlic powder In a large nonstick skillet, cook the turkey, green pepper and onion over medium heat until meat is no longer pink. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Add all spices. Transfer to a 4-qt. slow cooker. Stir in everything else. Cover and cook on low for 4-5 hours or until heated through. Serve with sour cream, cheese, cilantro, ...

This is one of the recipes that I was given when I signed up for a "Clean Eating Challenge Group" awhile back.  I liked it the first time, so I'm making it again!  The first time I followed the recipe as written.  This time I only had one can of diced tomatoes, so I added one can of crushed tomatoes as well.  I know that it will come out saucier than last time, but the flavor should be about the same.  I'm also starting with frozen chicken thighs this time, so I'm sure it will take longer to cook.   Ingredients ·          4-6 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts ·          2 14.5 oz cans diced tomatoes ·          1 medium onion thinly sliced (Not chopped) ·          4 garlic cloves ·          1/2 cup  balsamic vinegar  (for glu...

This is delicious and creamy -- I made it three times this winter. From Pinch of Yum . 1 cup uncooked wild rice (I used brown rice) 1 pound chicken breasts (I've used both frozen and fresh; both are fine and you can't tell a difference in the final product) 2 cups mirepoix (TJ's containers of mirepoix are magical and the best-spent $3 ever) 6 cups chicken broth 1 teaspoon poultry seasoning ½ cup butter (Earth Balance is fine) ¾ cup flour 2 cups whole milk (I've tried 2%; gotta say, the whole is better) a few tablespoons white wine (optional) (I didn't do) up to 2 cups additional milk or water (definitely necessary upon reheating) Rinse the wild rice. Place the uncooked wild rice, raw chicken, mirepoix, chicken broth, and poultry seasoning in a crockpot. Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours. The chicken should be cooked through and the rice should be soft. There will be extra liquid in the crockpot; do not drain. Using two forks, shred the chicken ...

From: Skinny Ms . This was very quick to throw together in the crockpot.  I only used 1 can of diced tomatoes with juice (I missed the "2" part, apparently).  The final dish had a lot of liquid in it, which is fine because you can spoon it over rice or pasta, or soak it up with some tasty bread.  However, I think that this dish would probably also have enough liquid if you drained some or all of the liquid out of the tomatoes, too.   I thought this dish had a lot of flavor - very tasty! Ingredients 4-6 boneless, skinless, chicken breasts (about 40 ounces) , fresh or frozen 2 14.5 oz can diced tomatoes 1 medium onion thinly sliced (Not chopped) 4 garlic cloves ( I sliced them thinly) 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar (for gluten-free use White Balsamic Vinegar which doesn't have caramel coloring) 1 tbsp. olive oil 1 tsp each: dried oregano, basil, and rosemary 1/2 tsp thyme ground black pepper and salt to taste Directions Pour the olive oil on bottom of s...

This is good in enchiladas, tacos, burritos, etc. 1 3-4 lb pork butt 4-6 citrus fruits, juiced - I like to use juice of a grapefruit, two oranges and a lime 1 t cumin 1 t chili powder 1 t onion powder 1/2 t garlic powder 1/2 t oregano 1/4 t cayenne 1/2 t salt 1/4 t freshly ground black pepper Trim most of fat from pork cut but leave a little for flavor and cooking moisture. Juice the citrus and pour into the ceramic vessel of slow cooker. Mix spices together uniformly in a small bowl. Use fingers to pat the spice rub all over the pork until completely used up. Set pork in citrus juice in slow cooker. Cook for 8 hours on low. Shred pork and toss with liquid.

From: Gina's Skinny Recipes Recipes with 2 ingredients are about all I have time for these days.  I took this to a pot-luck at work today and everyone really liked it.  We had leftovers for dinner in the form of quesadillas.  I took her advice and tried Archer Farms brand from Target and we liked it. Ingredients: 1 1/2 lbs raw skinless chicken tenders 1/4 tsp garlic powder 1/8 tsp oregano 1/8 tsp ground cumin salt, to taste 16 oz roasted salsa verde Ingredients: Season chicken with garlic powder, oregano, cumin and salt and place in the bottom of the slow cooker. Cover with salsa verde, cover and cook HIGH 2 hours. Remove chicken, shred with 2 forks. Remove 2/3 cup of liquid from the slow cooker, and discard (unless you want it over rice). Place shredded chicken back into the crock pot with remaining salsa, adjust seasoning to taste if needed and keep warm. Makes about 3 cups.