Category Archives: Crockpot

Sweet And Savory Crockpot Beef Stew

Posted by Delightfully Doable on 3 November, 2014 None comments

Sweet and Savory Crockpot Beef Stew

Fall weather is officially taken a turn and come to land in Portland for the next few months. I know this to be true because at 3 am when I heard a ticking sound, I thought to myself how something horrible was about to happen. But in all reality, that horrific sound that scared me still as could be was only our rain gutters. They finally failed to keep up with the rain that was quickly filling to the brim. The amount of rain these past few days had been impossible to keep up with. Needless to say, my evening scare was fulfilled with something entirely meaningless which allowed me to peacefully fall back to sleep.

I do love the cool crisp mornings, but I must say, I truly do not enjoy the rain for extended periods of time. A little here and there but not torrential downpour for days. There’s something about a rainy day that is comforting but not a hurricane taking over my life. I may be protesting a bit because my son loves outside no matter the weather. Tornadoes and hurricanes mixed with a little snow and ice and my son wouldn’t know the difference as long as he was outside playing. I on the other hand, can handle being outside if it’s not too nor too cold. Hmmm we shall see how this will play out the remainder of winter. I’m a little snow bird who loves to bundle up by the fire with socks, jammies (aka pj’s), blankets and a hot cup of tea or coffee. God changed my life when he brought not only a baby to my life, but a boy.

Enough of my complaining about the rain, I have many months I can continue this banter on rain as it is just beginning. ;)

Anyway, Michael’s step dad was coming over for pumpkin carving and dinner. I always enjoy a cozy meal on a beautiful fall day. This meal was perfect and allowed me to spend time carving pumpkins rather then slaving away in the kitchen.

Here’s what to do:

First- have a rainy day (check)
Second- have pumpkins (check)
Third- have a crockpot and LOVE to use it (check)

VIOLA, watch the magic happen!!!!!

Ingredients:

I lb Stew Meat
1 cups baby carrots (as is)
4 Celery Stalks, chopped
1 Onion, chopped
6 Red Potatoes, chopped
2 Sprigs Fresh Rosemary
1 Bay Leaf
2 1/2 cups water
4 tbsp beef Bouillon
1 tsp garlic salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tbsp parsley
2 1/2 tbsp flour

In a crockpot add stew meat, carrots, celery, onion and potatoes.

Add in water and beef bouillon and stir.

Top off with rosemary, bay leaf, garlic, pepper and parsley. Allow to sit for 6-8 hours on low heat.

20 minutes before serving, take a cup of broth and add flour. Mix together until no lumps are present. Pour into the stew and give it a good stir. Let sit for 20-30 minutes.

Serve with fresh garlic toast and a fresh cut green salad.

While the crockpot was cooking, I was enjoying watching my son try and drill holes into his pumpkin.

“Cheez” my boys scooping out the guts…

Yes that’s right, Cooper has scissors in his hands.

The pumpkins are coming to life…or maybe that’s just us.

Marlin, Michael’s step-dad getting in on the magic as well.

pumpkin carving

Helping daddy cut some eyes out.

And here is masterpiece in action.

Carving pumpkins is never really “my thang,” but I do it for the simple joy it brings my son to watch things transform and get goop all over his hands. It was fun and we had a great time together with good food and good conversation.

Moutwatering Pulled Pork Sandwiches

Posted by Delightfully Doable on 3 October, 2014 None comments

Mouthwater Pulled Pork Sandwiches

The weekend started promptly with my sister and her beautiful family coming to visit. We had not only the best time and memories spent, but we also enjoyed wonderful food including these pulled pork sandwiches. They were mouthwatering goodness!

While they were here we enjoyed wonderful conversations and time well spent with one another. Times like these make me appreciate family and what it stands for. Family is so crucial and simple gatherings recreate those deep, lasting impressions not only on my heart, but on our children as well.

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We hung out at the very back to consume as much shade as possible (or shall I say, enjoy the port-a-potties). Just kidding…kinda!

Trace sat up in a tree enjoying the music without any distractions ahead of him. He really enjoyed this experience and I was thankful to be able to participate in this one-hit-wonder with them! :) You know, kids and their first concert experience. What a blessing that they enjoyed the atmosphere and Christian fellowship.

After being there all day in the high heat, I had planned ahead to come home to pulled pork in the crock pot. I thought this would be genius as I know we all would be hungry upon our arrival home and would need something delicious and available very promptly.

This was the perfect meal to come home to and a perfect meal to feed 8 people. :)

So lets get into it….

Ingredients:

1- 4 lb boneless pork shoulder
2 cups chicken broth
28 ounce (3 1/2 cups) Barbecue sauce, separated
2 medium onion, chopped
1 tbsp minced garlic
2 tbsp garlic salt
1 tbsp paprika
1 tbsp chili powder
1 tbsp cumin
1 tbsp white vinegar
Coleslaw
Ciabatta Rolls

Sprinkle the bottom of your crock pot with chicken broth, one onion and minced garlic.

Next, rub garlic salt, paprika, chili powder and cumin on the pork shoulder. Place in slow cooker.

Top with second onion and dump 2 1/2 cups barbecue sauce upon everything. Cover and cook on low heat for 6-8 hours (or high 4-6 hours).

When the pork is cooked remove from slow cooker reserving sauce. Add in 1/2-1 cup additional barbecue sauce and 1 tbsp white vinegar and stir well. Strain sauce to rid of any excess fat.

Meanwhile, pull pork apart with a fork and add to strained sauce. Mix together and top on a toasted Ciabatta roll with coleslaw.

Such a simple meal and so wonderfully delicious! Nothing beats a pulled pork sandwich.

This is for all you meat lovers out there! :)

Lentil Stew

Posted by Delightfully Doable on 1 October, 2014 None comments

Lentil Stew

When I woke up this morning there was a cold wind whistle, yes Autumn is near. We came from a super hot 90 degree weekend and wound up in the 60’s today. Gloomy days are perfect cozy days. I woke up to snuggle on the couch with my blanket and work on my bible study and read for awhile. And of course I had my cup o’ coffee and it was absolutely glorious.

Opting for a warm soup and fresh bread for dinner, I put my crock pot to work; lentil stew.

I took Cooper to the park this morning to get his wiggles released before nap time. Upon our return home, the house smelt of something so yummy waiting to be eaten this evening. I love walking into a house that smells of yummy food or fresh baked goods. There is something so delightful in that.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup navy beans
1 1/2 cup lentils
6 cups water
1 bay leaf
1/2 onion, diced
1 tbsp thyme
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp garlic salt
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp onion powder
2 tsp minced garlic

Clean your beans and lentils thoroughly before placing in the crock pot

Combine all ingredients together and give a good stir.

Let simmer for 8 hours.

Serve with Garlic Buttered Bread and toast.

Black Beans

Posted by Delightfully Doable on 30 August, 2014 None comments

Most people tend to purchase canned beans out of convenience but do you realize how easy it is to make them yourself? Seriously folks, this method of purchasing canned beans needs to stop. Making your own is more flavorful, healthier and honestly too easy not to partake in–let the crock pot do all the work.

This may be the shortest post of your life, all because making homemade beans are too simple, there really isn’t much to say. So lets get started…

Ingredients:

1 Cup Beans (Today I used black beans)
2 1/2 Cups Water
1 Small Onion, diced
1 Bay Leaf
2 TSP Garlic Salt
1/2 TSP Sea Salt
1 1/2 TSP Italian Seasoning

Place all ingredients in a crock pot and turn to high heat. Cook for 4 hours. Low heat for 6-8 hours.

By this point you’re house will be smelling amazing and you will be thankful you took the bold step to make your own beans.

These beans are great as a simple side dish or mixed in something such as spicy black bean burgers (hint hint).

They taste so good you literally can eat them by the spoonful. I say this because I have done this, or shall I say I partook in the spoonful eating myself mmm about an hour ago. :) Once you partake in the simplicity of making delicious, flavorful beans, you will say goodbye to canned beans forever. “So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, goodbye”… I thought about leaving the last part out as I was at a loss on how to spell auf Wiedersehen. But than the song got stuck in my head and by the time I searched for the lyrics, viola, I found it and had to say it.

Now I’m sure the song will be stuck in your head, so go dance around your kitchen with joy, that you my friends can stop purchasing canned beans as well.

Auf Wiedersehen~

Pot Roast

Posted by Delightfully Doable on 3 July, 2014 None comments

“Meat loaf, beat loaf, double meat loaf. I HATE meat loaf.” Have any of you ever seen a Christmas Story with Ralphie? His little brother chanted this saying over dinner will forever remind me of my deep hate for meat loaf as a child. Or shall I say meat in general–I hated.

Chanting this song over dinner reminds me of the days I hated eating meat. My mom was the best cook in the world so I would fill up on all her incredible side dishes and opt out of anything that came from an animal…unless… it was a hot dog. :)

My new found love for meat is sticking around forever and that is why tonight you should make my delicious pot roast. Your crock pot will do all the work for you except make the gravy. :)

I grew up in small town no-mans-land where you grow your own meat and live off the ground. I had a hard time with this as I hated meat for 26 years of my life. I literally hated meat. I was not a vegetarian as I had a deep love for hot dog. But on the other hand, hamburgers, steak, pork, roast, anything and everything that required a slab of meat to be your dinner, was definitely not appealing to me. Truth be told, I did not like the taste of the meat. It had nothing to do with raising a “friend” and sending them off to the butchers. I never grew attached to our livestock as they were quickly turned into dinner and were stinky ol’ animals.

Years of homegrown beef and pork was something I missed out on. Becoming pregnant brought out the essence of who I am that I never knew existed. A girl who loves crispy bacon. juicy hamburgers and a good medium rib eye. Okay. This may not be the essence of who I am, but pretty darn close. I have a new found obsession with steak, hamburgers and bacon that cannot be explained. I could eat steak 5 nights a week.

Anyway, now that my new found love as arrived and seems to be staying forever, I opted to make pot roast for dinner. I was preparing dinner for my family while preparing an entirely different meal for a dear friend who just had her 4th baby. Cooper and I went to visit them in the hospital this past weekend and got to enjoy the presence of baby Matthew while only being a mere 36 hours old. He was tiny and adorable; definitely made me miss the days of a tiny little infant. :(

While I was focusing on their dinner, I wanted to make something as incredible as pot roast but without all the hassle; crock pot it was. I knew making two separate meals would be time consuming so I opted for something so delicious and yet allowing my crock pot to cook for me while I made their dinner.

Pot roast is always delicious especially with potatoes and gravy and while leftovers are wonderful, a pot roast sandwich is always on my list of must haves. Our roast came from Costco, they have really great meat and though they can be a bit spendy, you get a lot of meat. I bought two roasts awhile back and froze them both, you could not even tell they had been frozen by how tender they were.

Ingredients:

1 medium pot roast
Garlic salt
2 tbsp garlic, minced
Italian Seasoning
Thyme
Parsley
Salt & Pepper
3 cups potatoes, diced
2 cups mushrooms, chopped
1 cup celery, chopped
1 medium onion, diced

Place roast in crock pot with 1 cup water and turn heat to low. Season with garlic, minced garlic, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, parsley and thyme. Chop potatoes and mushrooms. Place on top of roast.

Add onions and celery.
Season with additional seasoning if you wish, and drizzle with EVOO.
Cook on low heat for 6 hours. When ready to eat, spoon out all vegetables and roast and use the drippings to make gravy (click here for recipe).
If you have leftovers, use the roast and gravy to make the best sandwiches EVER! YUMMY!

Meat loaf, beat loaf, I LOVE meat loaf now as well as anything that has come from an animal. :)

Creamy Bacon and Chicken

Posted by Delightfully Doable on 1 July, 2014 None comments

This is a simple go to meal whenever you haven’t planned in advanced. I made this last week and it is ALWAYS a hit in our family. Simply place frozen chicken in the crockpot and begin to cook throughout the day with a little help along the way. :)

This was a day I had the kids and was extremely exhausted between the three little munchkins and planning for my dad and sons birthday get away. This meal couldn’t have been more appropriate.

Ingredients:

3 chicken breasts (frozen works great)
1 Italian Sausage Link (Bratwurst works great too)
1 can cream of chicken
1 cup sour cream
½ lb bacon
Rice

In a crockpot place frozen chicken and sausage on medium-high heat for 1-2 hours. Once chicken has begun to thaw, season to desired taste.

Once fully cooked, remove meat from crockpot and slice into decent size chunks.

Return to crockpot.

Add cream of chicken soup and turn to low heat or if your crockpot has a “keep warm” button, use that.

1 hour before dinner, broil bacon until fully cooked and crisp. Cut bacon into medium chunks and stir into crockpot. I do this an hour or so before serving to help release the bacon flavor into the cream sauce.

Right before cooking, add in sour cream and mix well. Serve over rice.

Simply and delicious! Enjoy!

Split Pea Soup

Posted by Delightfully Doable on 11 June, 2014 None comments

Ham and Split Pea soup! Yummy yum yum! Great for a day such as today when the weather cools down, a soft mist of rain comes through and you just want something comforting.

Ingredients:

1 bag of split peas
1 ham bone
½ diced onion
2 tbsp minced garlic
1 medium carrot, chopped (optional)
1 bay leaf
½ tsp garlic salt
Salt and pepper to taste
2 cups water
1 quart chicken broth

In a crockpot add all ingredients and cook on high for 4-5 hours or on low for 8 hours.

You can’t go wrong with split pea soup especially when served with my English Muffin Bread toasted.

Thanks to startcooking.com

Enjoy!

Buffalo Chicken Tacos

Posted by Delightfully Doable on 2 May, 2014 None comments

Today while I had all three kids, I wasn’t sure how to prepare a meal that was worthwhile while the kids scampered around playing. I resorted to the crockpot as that produces tasty meals while doing the majority of the work. I laid all three kids to sleep and began chopping my veggies and placing them into the pot.

As the kids awoke the smell filled the home and brought smiles to many faces.

Ingredients:

2 chicken breasts
1 cup sliced mushrooms
3 green onions, chopped
3 celery stalks, chopped
¼ cup buffalo wing sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp minced garlic
¼ tsp cumin
¼ tsp paprika
¼ tsp Backyard BBQ (optional)
Blue Cheese dressing (for topping)
Grated Cheese (for topping)
Lettuce (for topping)
Olives (for topping)
Tomatoes (for topping)

In the crockpot, place chicken breasts and mushrooms.

Chop onions and celery. Place on top of chicken.

In a small bowl mix together: wing sauce, soy sauce, garlic, cumin, paprika and Backyard BBQ seasoning.

Drizzle on top of chicken and cook on low heat for 6-8 hours.

Once cooked, shred chicken and mix well with veggies and sauce. Scoop into flour tortilla with spinach, tomatoes, olives and blue cheese dressing. Enjoy!

Crockpot Tomato Bisque

Posted by Delightfully Doable on 9 April, 2014 None comments

Friday night I had been feeling as though I was coming down with something. Cooper had been sick with a cold the last couple days and I really, really was struggling with dinner that night. I absolutely love soup and could eat soup every day of the week. My husband on the other hand loves the soups and stews I make, but if given the option of soup or steak he will choose steak. (They are a good combination together as well) So, tonight I planned on making homemade bread and my tomato bisque soup. I began the bread the previous night as it has to rise overnight. I had a really bad feeling it wasn’t going to turn out once it was fully mixed. Something about the texture made me question this bread from the beginning. I didn’t throw it out as I gave it a shot to see if it would still rise properly. The following day I went to form my loaves and it was simply not the right texture. I decided to bake it anyways and see if it was still good. Bad idea. Let me tell you, something so terribly wrong happened that I wouldn’t even try a piece once baked. It was bad, I threw it away instantly and was so bummed that now we didn’t have homemade bread for this dinner. Oh well, life happens.

What happened to the bread was I used brown rice flour verses my usual white flour. This is the ONLY thing I did different and it turned out so wrong that I must note not to use any flour other than white flour or bread flour. Who-would-a-thought. I’ve made this bread many a times without fail and it has always been a winner. NO brown rice flour next time. :)

I had hoagies on hand and lightly buttered them with garlic salt and broiled them for a few minutes. It worked in a pinch.

Crockpot Ingredients:

2 can’s diced tomatoes
1 cup celery diced
1 cup carrots diced
1 cup diced red potatoes
1 cup onion diced
1 tsp oregano
4 cups chicken broth
1 bay leaf
½ cup flour

For the cream mixture:

1 cup parmesan cheese
½ cup butter
2 cups half and half, warmed
Salt and pepper to taste

In a crockpot add chopped carrots, onions and potatoes.

Add diced tomatoes, oregano and bay leaf.

Add chicken broth…

Let simmer for 4-6 hours on med-low heat.

30 minutes before serving, melt butter in a sauce pan.
Add flour…

Whisk for 5-7 minutes until thickened. Slowly add 1 cup of soup broth to the flour mixture to avoid lumps.

Whisk well and add to Crockpot.

Stir well and add parmesan cheese and warmed half and half. Let simmer for 30 minutes to allow soup to thicken up.

Serve with my English-Muffin-Bread and a side salad.

On Sunday we went to church and came home and had leftovers. We had this delicious soup and made grilled cheese to dip into the bisque. It was so tasty and makes great leftovers.

Leave and Let be Chicken

Posted by Delightfully Doable on 13 February, 2014 None comments

Friends! Friends! Friends! This is by far the EASIEST meal yet! I must say one day when you don’t quite have the time to step into the kitchen, you can throw chicken breasts into the crockpot along with cream of chicken soup. Now I know these cans of cream of chicken and cream of mushroom are not the healthiest for you, but every now and again it’s wont hurt you. My motto: EVERYTHING in moderation! Don’t forget this and you won’t feel guilty on nights when you use the unhealthy options. :)

It is almost impossible to eat Paleo, Atkins, gluten free and all the other diets out there on a continual basis without cheating. The same days you cheat on your “diet” are probably the same days you eat many chemicals that are saturating our food products. So with this said, the sweets you crave, the carbs you run to, and so on and so forth are no better than a can of cream of chicken or cream of mushroom soup, in fact they may even be worse for you. So again, moderation is key. If you live by this rule you wont go astray. And lets be honest, you are consuming very little of this product when eaten by an entire family.

Okay enough of my rant, you all know I try and be as healthy as possible but reality is when you simply don’t have the time, cooking will always be better for you than eating out or grabbing fast food. So here is a great meal for those busy days.

Ingredients:

4 chicken breasts
1 can cream of chicken soup
Parsley
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
Garlic salt
½ cup sour cream
Rice

In a crockpot place chicken and cream of chicken soup. You may use frozen chicken (I did tonight) as the crockpot is our miracle worker.

Sprinkle with parsley, garlic salt, cayenne pepper or any other seasonings that you prefer. No need to stir. Cover and let cook for 3 hours on high.

Yup that’s right, I didn’t stir it!

Get out the rice maker, yes I told you this was an easy meal. Everything is done for you. No standing over the oven cooking, chopping, and pealing other ingredients. Begin cooking your rice.

5 minutes before serving add 1/2 cup sour cream and stir well.