Slow Cooker Chicken and Dressing

William really likes this one, which (in my opinion) is the mark of a good recipe.

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt and Black Pepper
4 slices Swiss cheese
1 can (14.5 oz) chicken broth
2 cans (10.75 oz each) condensed cream of chicken, celery or mushroom soup, undiluted
3 cups packaged stuffing mix
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, melted

1. Place chicken in crock-pot slow cooker. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Top each breast with cheese slice. Add broth and soup. Sprinkle stuffing mix over top; pour melted butter over all. Cover; cook on LOW 6 to 8 hours or on HIGH 3 to 4 hours.

Makes 4 servings.

Mexican Chicken

2 to 4 chicken breasts
1 medium onion, sliced
1 can (10 3/4 ounces) condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
1 can (10 ounces) Mexican-style diced tomatoes with green chiles, undrained
1 package (8 ounces) pasteurized process cheese spread, cubed

1. Place chicken, onion, soup, and tomatoes with chiles in slow cooker. Cover; cook on LOW 6 to 8 hours or on HIGH 4 hours.

2. Break up chicken into pieces. Add cheese spread, cook on HIGH until melted.

Serve over hot cooked spaghetti. YUM!!!

*From Crock-Pot cookbook

Cashew Chicken

This was really good the night of. After storing it overnight I think the rice soaked up the rest of the liquid, so it turned a little dry. But it was still tasty. I only used 4 chicken breasts, and I added generous amounts of the rest of the ingredients, which adds more flavor.

6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 1/2 cups cashews
1 cup sliced mushrooms
1 cup sliced celery
1 can (10 oz) condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1/4 cup chopped green onion
2 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 tablespoons soy sauce
Hot cooked rice

1. Combine chicken, cashews, mushrooms, celery, soup, green onion, butter and soy sauce in crock-pot slow cooker.
2. Cover; cook on LOW 6 to 8 hours or on HIGH 4 to 6 hours or until done. Serve over rice.

*From Crock-Pot cookbook

Easy Pork Chop Dinner

We just barely finished dinner, and it was tasty!!

1 large onion, thinly sliced
3 to 4 medium baking potatoes, sliced
6 pork chops (I only used 4)
1 can (10.75 oz) condensed reduced-fat cream of celery soup, undiluted (I used cream of mushroom, because that's what I had in the cupboard. And mine wasn't reduced-fat)
1/2 cup water or milk (I chose milk)

1. Place onion and potatoes in slow cooker. Top with pork chops.
2. Combine soup and water in small bowl; pour over chops. Cover; cook on LOW 6 to 8 hours.

We ate this with steamed asparagus. Even William loved it. Everything was really tender (I was at work, so it cooked for the whole 8 hours) and very easy to eat. We'll be having this again!

*From Crock-Pot cookbook

Creamy Baked Chicken

So last night I went home and pulled down a recipe book, trying to find something to make for dinner from my bare fridge--I wasn't interested in going to the store. And I actually found something really quickly. Plus, William loved it!! Here it is!

Salt
Pepper
Paprika
8 Chicken Breasts (I think I only used 6--enough to cover the bottom of the dish)
1 can Cream of Chicken soup
1 cup Sour Cream
1/2 cup mayo
2 Tablespoons onions (green onions would probably be really good--I just used regular onions because that is what the recipe called for and that is what I had in my fridge)
1 Tsp Lemon Juice
1 cup shredded Cheddar Cheese

Mix everything together and pour over the top of the chicken breasts. Bake covered at 300 for 1.5 hours or 275 for 2 hours (I did the 2 hour option because my chicken had come out of the freezer and was thawed in the microwave--I wanted to make sure it was really done).

Serve over rice. (We are out of rice, so we used Quinoa. It works great.)

I think this would be great crock pot chicken as well--the chicken would be juicier and fall apart easier....

Easy Enchiladas

These enchiladas are really easy.

2-3 pieces of chicken, cubed and cooked
2 cans cream of something (generally cream of chicken, or 1 can cream of chicken, 1 can cream of mushroom)
1 can enchilada sauce
1 sm. can green chilies (diced)
Cheddar cheese
Sour cream
Green onions
tortillas

Mix the chicken, cream of somethings, chilies, half the enchilada sauce, some sour cream and some cheese in a bowl. This is your filling for the tortillas. Fill up the tortillas and place in a baking dish. Top with green onions, sour cream dollops, and cheese. Bake at 350F for 30-40 minutes (until cheese is melted and everything looks done).

You can also do this in a crock pot so that the chicken is cooked when you get home. Just throw everything into the crock pot with the frozen chicken. 40 minutes before dinner, shred the chicken and fill the tortillas. Top and bake as instructed above.

YUM!!

Taco Soup

This is a really easy one, and it is SO delicious! It was an official recipe once, but I always tweak things to make them easier and to suit my desires.

1 lb of ground beef (more or less, whatever you'd like).
1 large can stewed tomatoes
1 large can other tomatoes
2 cans of beans, drained (I like to add black beans and something of a different color, to make it look pretty)
1 package frozen corn
1 package taco seasoning

Throw it all in the crock pot and let it sit. Start it early in the morning and it will be ready for dinner. The meat will cook and the juices will blend with the other ingredients to make a yummy soup/stew. Or, if that freaks you out, cook the meat before and add it to the rest of the ingredients. Server over tortilla chips and top with sour cream and cheese.

Cream Cheese Crockpot Chicken

So today I made up my own recipe and cooked it in the crock pot. It turned out pretty good. I'm not sure that I would do anything differently, except maybe a little less butter. But here it is:

4 pieces skinless boneless chicken breast, frozen
1 can cream of chicken soup
3/4 cube of butter
1 sq package cream cheese
1 package ranch dressing mix

Put the cream of chicken soup, the butter, and the chicken in the crock pot. Sprinkle the chicken with the ranch dressing (I spread it on both sides of the chicken). Set the crock pot to low and cook for 6 hours or so. An hour before you're ready to eat add the cream cheese and let it melt, still on low heat. Shred the chicken with a fork and stir so everything is blended. Serve over rice.

We ate it with a salad. Yum.

Slow-Cooker Meal: pulled-pork tacos

I just made these tonight. They were extra yummy, and made a lot of food. Since we love leftovers, that's a wonderful thing!

Hands-on time: 15 min/ total time: 4.5 to 8.5 hours/ serves 6/ RealSimple, Feb 2009
Nutrition information: 728 calories; 40g fat (15g saturated fat); 180mg cholesterol; 982mg sodium; 47g protein; 45g carbohydrates; 9g fiber.

2 cups store-bought salsa, plus more for serving
2 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons dried oregano
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
Kosher salt
1 2.5-lb boneless pork butt or shoulder, trimmed of excess fat
18 corn tortillas
1/2 cup fresh cilantro sprigs
3/4 cup sour cream
1 lime, cut into wedges

~In a 4- to 6-quart slow cooker, combine the salsa, chili powder, oregano, cocoa, and 1 teaspoon salt. Add the pork and turn to coat.
~Cook, covered, until the meat is tender and pulls apart easily, on high for 4 to 5 hours or on low for 7 to 8 hours.
~Twenty minutes before serving, heat oven to 350 degrees F. Stack the tortillas, wrap them in foil, and bake until warm, about 15 minutes.
~Meanwhile, using 2 forks, shred the pork and stir into the cooking liquid. Serve with the tortillas, cilantro, sour cream, lime, and extra salsa.