Browsed by
Category: Crockpot

Italian Lentil and Barley Soup

Italian Lentil and Barley Soup

Add a simple loaf of Italian or French bread and some olive oil for dipping, and you’ve got a great meal!
The lentils do take a long time to get tender when cooked on the low setting. If you start the soup just before you go to bed in the evening, it’ll be ready by lunchtime the next day when cooked on low heat.

picfAONS81 cup lentils
1/3 cup pearl barley
1 cup carrot, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
1 cup onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon dried thyme
1 bay leaf
3 1/2 cups broth (chicken, vegetable, or leftover Thanksgiving turkey)
2 1/2 cups water
14 1/2 ounces Italian-style or regular stewed tomatoes, undrained
1/4 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped (optional)
2 tablespoons cider vinegar (optional)

Sort through lentils to remove debris and shriveled beans, then rinse. Add lentils to crockpot along with carrot, celery, onion, garlic, dried herbs, and bay leaf. Pour in broth, water, and tomatoes. Cover and cook on low heat for 12 to 14 hours, or on high heat for 5 to 6 hours. Discard bay leaf. Just before serving, stir in parsley and vinegar (if using).

Sausage Corn Chowder

Sausage Corn Chowder

1-2 lb. sausage, depending on your families appetites, browned, crumbled, drained
4 cups cubed frozen hash browns or 4 cups cubed potatoes
1 can corn, drained
1 can creamed corn
1 can evaporated milk (may use low fat)
2 cups water
1 T minced onion (dried is fine)
pepper to taste

Dump in crock pot, stir well; cook all day on low or half a day on medium. Serve with grated cheese, oyster crackers, or CheezIts. Serves 6 plus, depending on appetites. Even better the next day and seems to freeze well also.

Roast Chicken in a Crock Pot

Roast Chicken in a Crock Pot

2 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. onion powder
1 tsp. thyme
½ tsp. garlic powder
¼ tsp. cayenne (red) pepper
¼ tsp. black pepper
1 onion
1 large chicken

Combine the dried spices in a small bowl. Loosely chop the onion and place it in the bottom of the slow cooker. Remove any giblets from the chicken and then rub the spice mixture all over. You can even put some of the spices inside the cavity and under the skin covering the breasts. Put prepared chicken on top of the onions in the slow cooker, cover it, and turn it on to high. There is no need to add any liquid. Cook for 4 – 5 hours on high (for a 3 or 4 pound chicken) or until the chicken is falling off the bone. Don’t forget to make your homemade stock with the leftover bones

24 Hour Onion Soup

24 Hour Onion Soup

When you make onion soup in a slow cooker, the flavor becomes intense—especially when you cook it for 24 hours. First, you create the broth and leave it overnight in the slow cooker. The resulting beef stock is rich in vitamins and minerals including calcium, magnesium, and phosphorus. It promotes strong, healthy bones and is good for your digestion and immune system. In the morning, you add the rest of the ingredients and let everything simmer together all day on low heat. Your deeply flavored soup will be ready by dinnertime. Top each serving with crusty bread and a slice of cheese and broil until bubbly before digging in.

2 to 3 pounds grass-fed beef bones
3 carrots, coarsely chopped
3 celery stalks, coarsely chopped
1 large onion, coarsely chopped
2 bay leaves
5 garlic cloves
Fine sea salt
2 T. ghee
6 large yellow onions, sliced
2 T. all-purpose flour
1/2 C. dry white wine
8 slices crusty bread
8 slices Gruyere cheese

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Place the beef bones in a large roasting pan and cook them until well browned, about 30 minutes. Place the bones in the slow cooker. Deglaze the roasting pan with 1/4 C. hot water; use a wooden spoon to scrape off the parts that stick. Add this flavorful water to the slow’ cooker along with the carrots, celery’, onion, bay leaves, and garlic. Fill the slow’ cooker with water. Set the temperature to low’ and leave it overnight, about 12 hours. In the morning, strain the broth through a large colander, discarding any solid pieces. Turn off the heat and let the broth cool down. The stock will set like gelatin and the fat will rise to the top and harden. Skim the fat off. Taste the broth; season with salt to taste. Pour 10 C. stock back into the slow’ cooker. (Refrigerate the remaining stock in an airtight container for up to 4 days, or freeze for up to 6 months.) Melt the butter in a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the onions and sauté, stirring frequently, until they brown, about 20 minutes. Add the flour to the onions. Cook, stirring with a wooden spoon, for about 1 minute. Deglaze the pan with the white wine. Add 1 T. salt and cook for 1 minute, then add the mixture to the slow cooker. With the slow’ cooker still on low, cook until the onions are very soft, about 8 hours. Before serving, preheat the oven to 400°F. Arrange bread slices in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake until crispy, about 10 minutes. Divide the soup between individual ovenproof bowls. Float a slice of the crispy bread in each soup bowl and top with a thick slice of Gruyere cheese. Set the oven to broil and broil until the cheese is golden brown, about 3 minutes. Serve hot.

New Zealand Rosemary Lamb Shanks

New Zealand Rosemary Lamb Shanks

New Zealand Rosemary Lamb Shanks

 

1 tsp. salt

3/4 tsp. pepper

4 lamb shanks (about 20 ounces each)

1 T. butter

1/2 C. white wine

3 medium parsnips, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks

2 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks

2 medium turnips, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks

2 large tomatoes, chopped

tap here

1 large onion, chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

2 C. beef broth

1 package (10 ounces) frozen peas, thawed

1/3 C. chopped fresh parsley

2 T. minced fresh rosemary

 

Rub salt and pepper over lamb. In a large skillet, heat butter over medium-high heat; brown meat. Transfer meat to a 6- or 7-qt. slow cooker. Add wine to skillet; cook and stir 1 minute to loosen brown bits. Pour over lamb. Add the parsnips, carrots, turnips, tomatoes, onion, garlic and broth. Cook, covered, on low 6-8 hours or until meat is tender. Remove lamb; keep warm. Stir in peas, parsley and rosemary; heat through. Serve lamb with vegetables.

 

Serving Size: ½ Shank with 1 C. Vegetables

Calories: 350

Fat: 15g

Fiber: 6g

Slow Cooked Pulled Garlic Ginger Pork

Slow Cooked Pulled Garlic Ginger Pork

1 3-4 pound pork loin roast
1/4 C. lite soy sauce
2 tsp. sesame oil
8 garlic cloves, pressed
2 tsp. ginger, grated (use fresh)
Kosher salt and black pepper to taste
3/4 C. water for bottom of slow cooker

In a mixing bowl, combine soy sauce, oil, garlic, and ginger. Set aside. Sprinkle salt over meat, and follow with some good cranks of fresh ground black pepper. Rub soy mixture all over meat to coat. Pour water into crock pot. Place roast into crock pot and cook over low heat for seven hours. At the seven hour mark, flip the roast over and pull at meat to separate whatever is ready to fall off the bone. Pour some of the liquid over the top of the meat. Cover and allow to cook for another two hours. At the nine hour mark, take two forks and shred the meat. The meat should completely fall apart. Serve over rice or with homemade Mu Shu pancakes. Garnish with scallions, bean sprouts and sesame seeds. Enjoy!

Crockpot Greek Chicken with Green Beans

Crockpot Greek Chicken with Green Beans

Crockpot Greek Chicken with Green Beans

 

1 pound fresh green beans, trimmed

2 large tomatoes, chopped

1 medium onion, chopped

1 C. chicken broth

1/4 C. snipped fresh dill

2 to 3 T. lemon juice

2 garlic cloves, minced

4 bone-in chicken thighs (about 1-1/2 pounds)

1 T. olive oil

3/4 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. pepper

Optional: Lemon wedges and additional snipped fresh dill

 

Combine the first 7 ingredients in a 5- or 6-qt. slow cooker. Top with chicken. Drizzle with oil; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Cook, covered, on low until a thermometer inserted in chicken reads 170°-175°, 4-6 hours. Preheat broiler. Place chicken on a greased rack in a broiler pan. Broil 4-6 in. from heat until golden brown, 3-4 minutes. Serve with bean mixture and, if desired, lemon wedges and additional fresh dill.

 

Yield: 4 servings

Calories: 324

Fat: 18g

Fiber: 6g