Crock-Pot Chicken Noodle Soup

INGREDIENTS
½ lb. boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 medium onion, chopped
2 carrots, peeled and sliced into coins
1 stalks celery, sliced
1/2 tsp. dried oregano or dried thyme
1/2 tsp. dried rosemary
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
4 c. vegetable broth
2 c. of water
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
8 oz. pasta
Freshly chopped parsley, for garnish
kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper


DIRECTIONS
In a slow cooker, combine chicken, onion, carrots, celery, oregano, rosemary, garlic, and bay leaf. Pour over chicken broth.

Cover and cook on low, 6 to 8 hours.

Remove chicken from slow cooker and shred. Discard bay leaf. Return chicken to slow cooker and add pasta.

Cook on low until al dente, 20 to 30 minutes more.
Season to taste with salt and pepper

Southwestern Barley Chili

INGREDIENTS:

14.5-ounce can diced tomatoes, undrained
16-ounce can tomato sauce
1 cup medium pearled barley (not quick cooking)
4 cups vegetable broth
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin
1 teaspoon dried oregano
Dash chipotle pepper seasoning (more or less to taste)
1 Tablespoon of minced garlic
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (15-ounce) can pinto beans, rinsed and drained
1 1/2 cups frozen corn kernels
8 ounces of sliced mushrooms
Season to taste with salt after it is done cooking

SLOW COOKER Instructions: Combine all ingredients into a 6-quart slow cooker. Stir well.
Cook on high for 2-3 hours.

Serve the chili with toppings, if desired.
The chili will thicken considerably upon cooling. Add vegetable broth or water as needed to achieve a desirable consistency (especially if reheating the leftovers).

TOPPINGS
Shredded cheddar cheese, sour cream, sliced green onions, tortilla chips or other toppings

Crock Pot Bowtie Casserole

Crock Pot Bowtie Casserole

1 lb. lean ground beef
1 onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 (15 oz.) can tomato sauce
1 (15 o) can stewed tomatoes
1 tsp. oregano
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
salt/pepper
5 oz. frozen spinach, thawed (can also use fresh spinach)
16 oz. bowtie pasta, cooked
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, shredded
1 1/2 cup mozzarella, shredded

Brown ground beef with onion and garlic.  Season with salt and pepper. Put in crock-pot and add tomato sauce, stewed tomatoes, seasonings, spinach and cheeses. Cook for 6-7 hours on low. Season with salt and pepper to taste just before serving it over cooked pasta.

Honey-Garlic Chicken Wings

These are ridiculously delicious wings and great for anyone avoiding nightshades.  If you cook them on the barbecue (which is the way we like them!), they end up as a “dry” wing (they are still moist and tasty though!).  You can also cook them in the marinade in the oven for a sticky, gooey wing (but these will also have more sugar this way).  They are delicious either way!

 Ingredients:

• 3 lbs chicken wings, separated
• 1/3 cup Honey
• ¼ cup Lemon Juice
• ¼ cup water
• 2 Tbsp Coconut Aminos or Reduced Sodium Tamari Soy Sauce
• 2 Tbsp Apple Cider Vinegar
• 2 tsp Garlic Powder
• ¾ tsp Ground Ginger
• 1 tsp smoked paprika (if nightshades are ok for you)

1.    Heat honey, lemon juice, water, soy sauce, vinegar, garlic and ginger in a small saucepan over medium-high heat.  Turn heat down to low once it starts to simmer and let simmer for 5 minutes.  Remove from heat and let cool.
2.    Pour marinade over chicken wings (I like to do this in a large ziplock bag but you could do this in a bowl or baking dish too).  Let marinade in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours (the more the better).
3.    Barbecue chicken wings until cooked, turning once (something like 20 minutes total, depending on how hot your barbecue is).  Alternatively, place in a greased baking dish (or line with foil) and bake at 400F for 1 hour, turning once.  Enjoy!

Crockpot Honey Sesame Chicken

INGREDIENTS:

1 lb. boneless, skinless chicken thighs, about 5
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup of honey
1/2 cup of coconut aminos
2-3 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp. butter
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 cup diced onion
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes
Sesame seeds

INSTRUCTIONS:

Place the chicken thighs in the crockpot insert and sprinkle salt and pepper on both sides.
In a medium sized bowl, combine honey, coconut aminos, red wine vinegar, butter, garlic, onion, and red pepper flakes. Stir to combine well. Pour over the chicken in the crockpot.
Cook on low for 3-4 hours or high for 1 1/2-2 1/2 hours.
When done, remove chicken from stock pot and cut into chunks. Throw the chicken back in and stir around to recoat the chicken in the sauce.
Serve hot over a bed of brown rice (optional) and sprinkle some sesame seeds on top.

Filipino Chicken Adobo Crockpot !!

Josh served his mission in the Philippines and introduced me to Chicken Adobo.  I instantly fell in love with the dish and craved it SO bad during my pregnancy with Jackson.  There was a place called Little Manilla down the road that I ate at weekly back in 2006.  Unfortunately the owner had to move back to the Philippines and I have been missing it ever since!  So about a month ago I was making a cashew chicken Recipe, but didn't have cashews or rice wine vinegar.  So I obviously left out the cashews and substituted Red Wine Vinegar.  AND GUESS WHAT HAPPENED?!?  Holy Smokes I accidentally made Chicken Adobo.  It tastes awesome!  Enjoy!!!

2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thigh tenders  (don't use chicken breasts)

1 Tbsp butter
1/2 cup soy sauce
4 tsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp garlic pepper
4 Tbsp ketchup
2 Tbsp brown sugar
2 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 medium onion chopped and sauted
1 medium potatoe chopped
cup carrots chopped


Chop onion. Heat butter in skillet over medium-high heat. Saute onions for about 5 minutes on each side.

Chop chicken, potatoes and carrots and place in slow cooker. Once onions are done sautéing place in slow cooker.


Combine soy sauce, vinegar, garlic pepper, ketchup, sugar, garlic, and ginger in small bowl; pour over chicken. Cook on HIGH for 3 to 4 hours.  Server over rice. Makes 4-6 servings.

Cashew Crockpot Chicken

2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thigh tenders (don't use chicken breasts)

1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp black pepper
1 Tbsp butter
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tsp red wine vinegar
2 Tbsp ketchup
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes (omit if feeding kids because it makes it too spicy)
1/2 cup cashews

Combine flour and pepper in resealable food storage bag. Add chicken. Shake to coat with flour mixture. Heat butter in skillet over medium-high heat. Brown chicken about 2 minutes on each side. Place chicken in slow cooker. Combine soy sauce, vinegar, ketchup, sugar, garlic, ginger, and pepper flakes in small bowl; pour over chicken. Cook on LOW for 3 to 4 hours. Add cashews and stir. Server over rice. Makes 4-6 servings.

Review:
We actually made this without the cashews and it was still amazing!

Chicken Cacciatore

Start by chopping onion and garlic and sauteing in olive oil

Remove that mixture and place it in your blender.

Add whole chicken thighs (or you can chop them up) to pan and cook until golden.

Remove from pan and set on a papertowel.

Add chicken broth, wine, tomato paste, thyme, salt, pepper and marjoram to the onions and garlic in the blender and blend it until smooth.

Place chicken in a slow-cooker and pour that yummy sauce right over it. Pop in a bay leaf on top and cook for a few hours. When you have about 1/2 hour to go, add the mushrooms and the chopped green pepper. When it’s all done serve over your favorite pasta with a little parmesan and fresh herbs if you feel like it. (And doesn’t feel like cheese??)

Yummy yummy yummy yummy yummy. I could drink it.

Chicken Cacciatore

1 lb. chicken thighs, (cut into bite-sized pieces if you want too, I usually don't cut them till after I take them out of the crockpot)

1 tsp. Kosher salt

1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

1/2 c. olive oil

1 onion, roughly chopped

5-6 cloves garlic, peeled and either crushed or halved

1 6-oz. can tomato paste

1 c. white wine (you can also use apple or white grape juice mixed with 2 teaspoons red wine vinegar)

1 1/2 c. chicken broth

1/4 tsp. thyme

1/4 tsp. oregano

1/2 tsp. salt (omit if using cooking wine; you may shrivel up and die if you add the salt in addition to cooking wine because cooking wine is treated with salt to make it undrinkable)

1 c. sliced mushrooms (or more if you love them. Mushrooms are divine in this dish!)

1 green bell pepper, chopped (can substitute other colors)

Heat olive oil in skillet over medium heat. When oil is hot, add onions and garlic and stir frequently until onions are tender and garlic is fragrant. Remove with a slotted spoon (this is why you need to keep the onion and garlic pieces big), shake off excess oil (you don’t have to go crazy here, a little olive oil never killed anyone!), and transfer to your blender. Increase heat to medium-high.

Add chicken pieces into the hot pan and stir quickly to prevent pieces from sticking together. Saute until chicken is golden. Remove chicken with slotted spoon and drain on a paper towel. Turn off the heat under the oil, lest you start a grease fire. I am NOT speaking from ANY kind of firsthand experience here… ;)

While chicken is draining, add wine, chicken broth, tomato paste, thyme, 1 tsp. salt, 1 tsp. black pepper and marjoram to the onions and garlic in the blender. Blend until smooth. Place chicken and bay leaf in your slow cooker and then pour the sauce over the chicken. Place lid on slow cooker and cook on high for 3.5-4 hours. When you have about 1/2 hour to go, add the mushrooms and the chopped green pepper. Cook until mushrooms and pepper are tender. Remove bay leaf and serve over pasta.

FREEZER MEAL INSTRUCTIONS:

Complete steps through browning the chicken. Instead of placing chicken in your slow cooker, place it in a freezer-safe container and cover with sauce. When ready to eat, place frozen mixture in your slow cooker and cook on high for 4-5 hours. You can either cut the mushrooms and peppers ahead of time and freeze them separately from the chicken and sauce or you can just plan to have those in your fridge when you’re ready to make this.

Crockpot Sweet Salsa Shredded Pork

Ingredients

salt and pepper to taste
4 pounds boneless pork loin roast (you can substitute 4lbs of chicken and it's still fabulous)
2 Tbs butter
1 cup salsa
1/2 brown sugar



CROCKPOT

Season the pork with salt and pepper.  Place the butter in a pan over medium heat and then pan sear the pork.  Put the pork in the crock pot and pour 1 cup of salsa and 1/2 of brown sugar on top.

Cook on low for 6-8 hours.  Shred with a fork and let it sit for 30 minutes and serve.