Thursday, December 12, 2013

11 Awesome Crockpot Recipes

I love using the crock pot for dinner. It's great to throw some ingredients into the crock pot in the morning and not have to worry about dinner later on when I'm exhausted from the day. I'm sure you know how that is. These are my favorite crock pot recipes. Several of them I've probably found through Pinterest. I thought it was time to share them with all of you exciting people! : ) I have a small family and even though these recipes make a lot for a small family. We find these recipes to work well for our family since these recipes either freeze well or make great leftovers! So here they are, have at it!

Crockpot Creamy Chicken and Broccoli Over Rice
4-6 servings
* 3-4 boneless chicken breasts
*1 10 oz can cream of chicken soup
* 1 10 oz can cheddar soup
* 1 14 oz can chicken broth
* 1/2 tsp salt
* 1/4 tsp garlic salt
* 1 cup sour cream
* 6 cups broccoli florets, just fork tender (boil for 3-4 minutes)
* 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

1. Place soups, chicken broth, salt, garlic salt, and sour cream into crockpot and whisk until smooth. Place chicken in. Cover lid and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

2. When chicken is cooked, shred using 2 forks. Stir in broccoli.

3. Serve over steamed rice and sprinkle with cheese.

                          Crockpot Chicken Enchilada Soup
 

* 1 15-ounce can black beans, rinsed and drained
* 1 14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes
* 1 10-ounce package frozen whole kernel corn 
* ½ cup chopped onion
* ½ cup chopped green pepper
* 1 10-ounce can enchilada sauce (I used mild)
* 1 10.75-ounce can condensed cream of chicken soup
* 1½ cups milk 
* 1 cup shredded Pepper jack cheese (4 ounces)
* 2 chicken breasts

1. In a crockpot, combine drained beans, tomatoes, corn, onion, and bell pepper. Place 2 chicken breasts on top of mixture.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together enchilada sauce and soup. Gradually whisk in milk until smooth. Pour sauce mixture over ingredients in crockpot. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

3. Remove chicken and shred into bite size pieces. Add chicken back into soup.

4. Top with pepper jack cheese and serve. 

*Can also be topped with avocado, sour cream or crushed tortilla chips. 
* I use one can of chicken instead of chicken breasts and cook it for 4-6 hours instead of 6-8 on low.
* I also make these Homemade Tortilla Chips to eat with the soup.

                      Crockpot Ranch House Pork Chops 


6 pork chops, thinly sliced
1 pkg dry Hidden Valley Ranch salad and seasoning mix
1 can (10 3/4 oz) cream of chicken soup

1. Combine soup and ranch mix in crockpot. Mix well.
2. Place pork chops on top of mixture and cook on low for 4-6 hours.
3. Serve with mashed potatoes. The soup/ranch mixture makes a good gravy or you could have gravy with it.

* I use 3 pork chops and 2 cans of cream of chicken soup instead and it works well for our family. I also use frozen pork chops and cook on low for the same amount of time.

                             Slow Cooker Mongolian Beef

1 lb beef flank steak, cut into stir fry sized strips
1/4 cup cornstarch
2 TBSP olive oil
1/2 tsp ginger, minced
3/4 cup soy sauce
3/4 cup water
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup shredded carrots
3 medium green onions, chopped

1.Spray slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray. 
2. Place cornstarch in a bowl. Coat each piece of steak in cornstarch and place in crock pot. 
3. Discard any remaining cornstarch. 
4. Combine remaining ingredients in a bowl and pour over beef in crock pot. 
5. Cook in crockpot on high for 2-3 hours or low for 4-5 hours. 
6. Serve over rice, topped with additional sliced green onions.

                                                    Crockpot Lasagna Soup

1 lb ground beef, cooked
3 cups beef broth
1 cup water
4-5 cloves of garlic, minced
1 TBSP dried parsley
1 TBSP dried basil
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 (6 oz) can tomato paste
1 cup V8
2 cups uncooked shell pasta
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 tsp salt
optional: shredded cheese for topping

1. First mix together the can of tomatoes, and tomato paste in crockpot.
2. Next add broth, beef, garlic, parsley, basil, onion, V8 and salt/pepper.
3. Cover and cook on LOW for 7-8 hours or on HIGH for 4-5 hours.
4. When 30 minutes are left of cook time, add in the 1 cup of water and noodles. Stir to combine. Put lid back on and continue cooking for 30 minutes.

                      Slow Cooker Cheesy Chicken and Rice
 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 large onion, chopped
1 (8 oz) box Zatarain's Yellow Rice Mix, cooked according to package directions
1 cup shredded cheese
1 (10 3/4 oz) cream of chicken soup
1 (15 oz) can whole kernel corn, drained

1. Place chicken in bottom of slow cooker. 
2. Scatter chopped onion over top. 
3. Spoon cream soup over top of that. 
4. Cover and cook on low 7-8 hours or on high 3-4 hours. 
5.  A few minutes before serving, add in cooked rice, corn, and cheese. 
5. Stir to combine. 
6. Serve hot.

                        Creamy Slow Cooker Tortellini Soup

1-1 1/2 - 2 ounce envelope white sauce mix
4 cups water
1-14 ounce can vegetable broth
1 1/2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms
1/2 cup chopped onion
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon dried basil, crushed
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon dried oregano, crushed
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1- 7 or 8 ounce package dried cheese tortellini (about 2 cups)
1-12 ounce can evaporated milk
6 cups fresh baby spinach leaves or torn spinach
Ground black pepper (optional)
Finely shredded Parmesan cheese (optional)


 1.Place dry white sauce mix in a 3-1/2- or 4-quart slow cooker. Gradually add the water to the white sauce mix, stirring until smooth. Stir in broth, mushrooms, onion, garlic, basil, salt, oregano, and cayenne pepper.

2.Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 5 to 6 hours or on high-heat setting for 2-1/2 to 3 hours.

3.Stir in dried tortellini. Cover and cook on low-heat setting for 1 hour more or high-heat setting for 45 minutes more.

4.Stir in evaporated milk and fresh spinach. If desired, sprinkle individual servings with black pepper and Parmesan cheese. Makes 4 servings.


                         Crockpot White Chicken Chili 
2 cans chicken, drained
1 medium onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cans chicken broth
1 can (4 oz) chopped green chilies
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp dried oregano 
1 tsp cayenne pepper
3 cans great northern beans, drained, divided
1 cup shredded cheese

1. Add canned chicken, onion, garlic, broth, chilies, cumin, oregano, and cayenne to crockpot and mix well.
2. With a potato masher, mash one can of beans until smooth.
3. Add mashed beans and remaining beans to crockpot.
4. Cook on low 3-4 hours.
5. Top with cheese.

*I recommend using a little less cayenne pepper, it was a bit spicy for me.

                                           Crockpot Chili

1 lb ground beef, browned and crumbled
1 stalk celery, finely chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 1/2 TBSP chili powder
1 tsp cumin
1/2 TBSP garlic, minced
1 (15 oz) can petite diced tomatoes
1 (15 oz) can tomato sauce
1 (15 oz) can dark red kidney beans
1 (15 oz) can beef broth (or water)
1 tsp Worchestershire sauce
salt and pepper to taste
*optional toppings: shredded cheese and sour cream

1. Place ground beef into crockpot.
2. Open cans of tomatoes, tomato sauce and kidney beans (do not rinse or drain), beef broth, celery and onion and dump those into the crockpot.
3. Add chili powder, cumin, Worchestershire sauce and mix thoroughly.
4. Add salt and pepper to taste.
5. Cover with lid and cook on low for 4-6 hours (the longer, the better)
6. Serve with toppings.

               Crockpot Corndog and Bean Casserole
6-7 hotdogs, sliced thin
1 (16 oz) can baked beans
1 package Jiffy corn bread mix

1. Add baked beans and hot dogs into crockpot, mix together.
2. Cook on low for 1 1/2 hours until liquid is starting to bubble.
3. In a small bowl, mix corn bread mix according to package.
4. Add a layer of corn bread mixture on top of the baked beans and hot dogs.
5. Put lid back on crockpot for an additional 30 minutes or until the corn bread is firm to the touch.
6. Serve.

                        Crockpot Augratin Potatoes
8 large potatoes, peeled, sliced
1 1/2 cups shredded cheese
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 (16 oz) container sour cream
1/2 cup onion, chopped
1/4 cup butter, melted

1. Mix all ingredients, except cheese and place into crockpot.
2. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, stir often while cooking.
3. Put in cheese in last 30 minutes of cooking.
4. Serve.

Friday, December 6, 2013

Beef Stroganoff

I happened to find this recipe online through Pinterest and decided to try it. I'm always looking for more recipes to add variety to our meals. When I found this recipe, I quickly read through it, mainly looking at the ingredients to determine if it would be a budget friendly recipe and sounded appetizing.

After deciding that it could be a great budget friendly, yummy and easy recipe I quickly pinned it and moved on to pinning other things. Later I had remembered finding the recipe and made sure I had all the ingredients on hand to make it for dinner. As I went to make it for dinner, I suddenly read that you were supposed to let it simmer on medium high heat for 1 1/2 hours, then add more ingredients and cook for an additional 45 minutes. I thought, "Ha! Whatever, that's totally unnecessary" and decided I would just simmer it for 30 minutes before adding the remaining ingredients and set the timer as it started to simmer. Within ten minutes all the liquid had cooked out or evaporated and the food was starting to stick to the bottom of the pan. I then decided to forget the rest of the 20 minutes of simmering and add the next step of ingredients. It turned out okay but it wasn't much of a sauce, so I added another 1/2 a cup of sour cream and 1 cup of milk. Voila! I cooked it for a couple more minutes and served it over cooked egg noodles. It was very good! My husband even liked it and he usually doesn't like beef stroganoff at all and was quite surprised it like it the recipe. So for the first time in my life I was able to modify a recipe and find it edible and even delicious! I was soo proud of myself! Anyways, here's the modified recipe so you can make it too. Picture below is from original recipe post online.

1 lb ground beef
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 can mushrooms (4 oz), drained
1 cup sour cream
1 cup flour
3 TBSP flour
1 cup water
1/8 tsp pepper
1/8 tsp salt
wide egg noodles

1. Brown ground beef in skillet and drain fat.
2. Add onion, and garlic and continue to cook until onion starts to brown.
3. Add mushrooms and water, stir.
4. Cover and cook, let simmer medium heat until liquid is cooked in.
5. Add sour cream, flour, and milk, stir, cover and let simmer for 5-10 minutes.
6. Boil noodles according to package directions and serve sauce over noodles. Enjoy!

Thursday, November 21, 2013

2 Dessert Recipes Perfect for Thanksgiving

I don't know how to bake pies... at all. No clue! This is my way of cheating that process and still enjoy 2 Thanksgiving favorites. 

Lemon Lush tastes just like Lemon Meringue pie in my humble opinion and Pumpkin Dessert tastes like Pumpkin Pie. 

Lemon Lush
1 (8 oz) container Cool Whip
3 cups milk
2 (3 1/2 oz) packages instant lemon pudding
2 (8 oz) packages cream cheese, softened
1 cup flour
1/2 cup butter, melted

1. Mix and spread the butter and flour in bottom of 13 x 9 x 2 dish. Flatten out. Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes. Cool.
2. Combine powdered sugar, cream cheese, and 2 cups of the cool whip until well mixed. Spread over crust.
3. Mix lemon pudding and milk. Spread over cream cheese mixture. Chill.
4. Serve with remaining cool whip.

Store leftovers in the fridge.

Pumpkin Dessert

Cake Layer
1 pkg yellow cake mix (save 1 cup dry mix for top)
1/2 cup melted butter
1 egg beaten

Mix and pour into a greased 9 x 13" pan

Pumpkin Pie Layer
3 cups canned pumpkin
2 eggs
2 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 cup brown sugar
2/3 cup milk

Mix together and spread on top of first layer

Crumble Top Layer
1 cup reserved cake mix
1/4 cup sugar
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup melted butter

Mix together and sprinkle on top. Bake at 350 degrees for 35 minutes.

Store leftovers in the fridge.

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

How to Make Foaming Hand Soap!

Want to save money? Make your own foaming hand soap! I have a 3 1/2 year old that tends to waste a lot of hand soap when washing her hands and since we've been potty training, that is a lot of hand soap (and money) being wasted every day.

Anyways, lets get started!

First, you will need:
* foaming hand soap dispenser (Yes it has to be a foaming one!)
* clear hand soap refill
* 7.5 fl oz hand soap dispenser
* water
* liquid measuring cup
* clean, empty gallon milk jug


Pour 5 cups of water into the milk jug.
 Fill up the 7.5 fl oz hand soap dispenser with the clear hand soap from the refill bottle and pour it into the milk jug. I just let it sit upside down on the milk jug for a couple minutes to let it empty completely.
 You can do this twice and it will fit in the milk jug. Even after doing this twice, I still had 75% of soap in the refill bottle to make more later. I think I spent about $2 on the foaming soap dispenser and about $4 on the refill soap bottle. That's even cheaper than just refilling the 7.5 fl oz soap dispenser with the soap refill container.


Now it's your turn to make your own foaming hand soap and start saving money! Go for it!