What Cookin' this Weekend

The weather may be warming up iaround here...finally but I am not ready to put away the old crock pot to start up the grill.  Sunday is supposed to be a dreary raining day so it will be perfect to plug in the slow cooker and have a nice easy dinner that I get to smell cooking all day long.

I have a great recipes for Lasagna for the oven but I think I am going to give it a try in the crock pot.  I have always wondered how it would turn out...I think it is time! 

Here is the recipe I am going to give a try. 

Find it here.

What You Need
1 lb.ground beef
1 jar (24 oz.) spaghetti sauce
1 cup of water
1 container (15 oz.) POLLY-O Original Ricotta Cheese
1 pkg. (7 oz.) KRAFT 2% Milk Shredded Mozzarella Cheese, divided
1/4 cup KRAFT Grated Parmesan Cheese, divided
1 egg
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
6 lasagna noodles, uncooked

Make It
BROWN meat in large skillet; drain. Stir in spaghetti sauce and water. Mix ricotta, 1-1/2 cups mozzarella, 2 Tbsp. Parmesan, egg and parsley.

SPOON 1 cup meat sauce into slow cooker; top with layers of half each of the noodles, broken to fit; and cheese mixture. Cover with 2 cups meat sauce. Top with remaining noodles, broken to fit; cheese mixture and meat sauce. Cover with lid.
COOK on LOW 4 to 6 hours or until liquid is absorbed. Sprinkle with remaining cheeses; let stand, covered, 10 min. or until melted.
Not sure it is going to be any easier to make than a regular oven lasagna but I will enjoy the smells it creates through out the house. 

Have a great weekend!  What are you cooking?

How Yummy Does this Look?

On Fridays I usually post a new recipe that I plan on trying over the weekend.  I try to find new slow cooker recipes for Sunday....it doesn't get any easier.  But after reading my friend Jessica's post over at Barefoot by the Sea, I stopped my search for the perfect dish. 

She posted a Puffed Oven Pancake recipe that looks so yummy I cannot resist!  I love breakfast anytime of the day.

Find the recipe here.

PUFFED OVEN PANCAKES (aka German Pancakes)

From Better Homes & Gardens New Cook Book

- 2 T butter

- 3 eggs

- 1/2 C milk

- 1/2 C flour

- 1/4 t. salt

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Put butter in baking dish (I just use an 8-inch casserole, I think the recipe calls for a round oven skillet or something)…heat in oven 3-5 minutes, til butter melted.

Beat eggs. Add milk, flour and salt. Beat til smooth. Pour immediately into baking dish. Bake 25 minutes, or until puffy edges and looks done in center. Serve with fruit, syrup, powdered sugar, whatever you like!

I am sure my daughter will like this recipe.  She is so picky but how can she resist a puffy pancake with some powered sugar on top (always enticing).  I think I may cut up some bananas, strawberries and apples to go with this puff.  I cannot wait to try this one.

I know I said I had more giveaways this week but the week got away from me.  I will be rolling out a new giveaway on Monday!  Stop back to enter to win!

Have a wonderful weekend!!



Slow Cooker Friday?

I can't wait for Slow Cooker Sunday for this one.  I am throwing this one in the crock pot today!

Slow Cooker Upside Down Chicken Pot Pie

Find the recipe here.

Ingredients
1 1/4 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs
1 tablespoon instant chopped onion
1 dried bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 jar (18 oz) chicken gravy
2 medium celery stalks, cut into 1/2-inch slices
2 1/4 cups Original Bisquick® mix
2/3 cup milk
1 bag (12 oz) Green Giant® Valley Fresh Steamers™ frozen mixed vegetables

Directions
1.Place chicken in 3 1/2- to 4-quart slow cooker. Top with onion, bay leaf, pepper and gravy. Place celery on gravy.
2.Cover and cook on Low heat setting 8 to 10 hours.
3.About 30 minutes before serving, make and bake 8 biscuits using Bisquick mix and milk as directed on package.
4.Meanwhile, gently stir frozen vegetables into chicken mixture. Increase heat setting to High. Cover and cook 15 minutes. Remove bay leaf.
5.For each serving, split biscuit and place in soup bowl or tart pan. Spoon about 3/4 cup chicken mixture on top of biscuit.

Note: This recipe was tested in slow cookers with heating elements in the side and bottom of the cooker, not in cookers that stand only on a heated base. For slow cookers with just a heated base, follow the manufacturer’s directions for layering ingredients and choosing a temperature.

Have a great weekend.

What's for dinner?

I cannot believe that it is Friday again...not that I am complaining in the least bit...but wasn't it JUST Monday.  Boy times flies when you are having fun...or just REALLY busy! 

I feel like I am continuously trying to be organized but never seem to get there.  I would love to be one of those gals who plan their family's meals out just once a month.  Wow...would that be clever or what!!  There would be so many advantages to doing that.  You could buy in bulk, you could have make left overs into a new meal and you could take away the stress of...the "what's for dinner" question every day!!!   I know I would love not to have to think about that all the time. 

I don't think I can dive right in to planning a month ahead of time so I am going to try to do a week at a time which really should not be that hard.  And I can imagine that most of you are saying....don't you do that already?  Well...I try...but it never seems to work out...something come up and we never stick to the meals I planned.    To keep me on track look what I bought....

Starting Sunday I am making a resolution to do it!  Once I get this weekly planning down, I am going to give the monthly menu a good "college try." This calendar opens up to see the full month but the bottom has this great planning section for each day of the week...

If you have any good ideas on how to stay on track...feel free to share.  And if you want to check out a great blog that posts weekly and monthly menu idea visit Hoosier Homemade.  Oh...and you will also find lots and lots of CUPCAKE ideas and other delicious recipes!

Have a great weekend!

It is time to give in...Fall is really here

I have come to grips with the fact that I must put my flip flips away and take my turtlenecks and sweaters out....but I don't have to like it!  One thing I do really like about the colder weather coming in is that I can settle in to my old weekend routine of slow cooker Sunday! 

 I do use it during the week as well but I have found that I need to stay close by to my cooker.  I thought it would be a good idea to get a huge 6 quart cooker for the 3 of us (really 2 because my daughter will rarely eat anything that comes out of it).  When cooking smaller portions in such a large pot...things tend to get the "you know what" cooked out of it.  When recipes call for cooking 8-10 hours on low...this usually means cook 6-8 hours on low and make sure you keep an eye on it after 6 hours or you are going to be eating charcoal.  

So...I am going to try to stick to my Sunday routine and find a smaller, more practical pot, for those week day slow cooker fixes!

Here are a couple recipes I am going to try right away 

Tangy Pulled Pork Sandwiches
SUPER SIMPLE

Ingredients

1 pork tenderloin (1 pound)

1 cup ketchup

2 tablespoons plus 1-1/2 teaspoons brown sugar

2 tablespoons plus 1-1/2 teaspoons cider vinegar

1 tablespoon plus 1-1/2 teaspoons Worcestershire sauce

1 tablespoon spicy brown mustard

1/4 teaspoon pepper

4 kaiser rolls, split

Directions

Cut the tenderloin in half; place in a 3-qt. slow cooker. Combine the ketchup, brown sugar, vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, mustard and pepper; pour over pork.

Cover and cook on low for 4-5 hours or until meat is tender. Remove meat; shred with two forks. Return to the slow cooker; heat through. Serve on rolls. Yield: 4 servings.

Chicken Saltimbocca

(you must say this in your very best Italian accent)

Ingredients
6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves (4 ounces each)
6 thin slices deli ham
6 slices Swiss cheese
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 can (10-3/4 ounces) condensed cream of chicken soup, undiluted
1/2 cup dry white wine or Progresso ® Chicken Broth
Hot cooked rice
Directions
Flatten chicken to 1/4-in. thickness. Top each piece with a slice of ham and cheese. Roll up tightly; secure with toothpicks. In a shallow bowl, combine the flour, Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Roll chicken in flour mixture; refrigerate for 1 hour.
In a large skillet, brown roll-ups in oil on all sides; transfer to a 3-qt. slow cooker. Combine the soup and wine or broth; pour over chicken.
Cover and cook on low for 4-5 hours or until meat is longer pink. Remove roll-ups and stir sauce. Discard toothpicks. Serve with rice. Yield: 6 servings.

Both of these recipes can be found at Taste of Home at http://www.tasteofhome.com/

Do you have any slow cooker recipe favorites you want to share?  I am always looking for new yummy ideas!

Have a GREAT weekend!

What a great idea!

The other day I was meandering around the grocery store (by myself for a change) and I came across a great meal idea. McCormick came up with the idea to sell recipes which include all the spices you need. You just need to buy the other ingredients!

I decided to try this recipe:

Quesadilla Casserole

This was a really easy recipe to make and can be changed to make it your own. The recipe calls for ground beef but you can substitute with ground chicken or turkey. you can change the flour tortilla to whole wheat tortillas. You can add diced tomatoes to the mixture if you like and use a low fat Cheddar Cheese instead of regular.

These seem like great starting points for many recipes ideas!!

Have a wonderful Friday!