Balsamic Crockpot Roast Pork

This crockpot recipe is a favorite of my husband’s because he loves roast pork, and its so super easy. The pork roast doesn’t even need to be completed defrosted first. Mine was still half frozen, and came out just as good. It typically provides about two meals for us – we’ll have the sliced roast pork with a veggie for the first meal, and use the leftovers for roast pork sandwiches with provolone and horseradish a few days later. The broccoli is just my basic roasted veggie recipe – toss in olive oil, salt, and pepper – but I added about a teaspoon of garlic powder and two tablespoons of parmesan cheese to the mix. Roast on a sheet pan at 375 degrees for about 15-20 minutes. At the end of the post, I’ve shared another side dish I’ve made with this before – chickpea and raisin quinoa.

Balsamic Crockpot Roast Pork

1 two-to-three lb pork roast

1/2 cup balsamic vinegar

1/4 cup chicken broth

1 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp dried rosemary

2 bay leaves

1 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp onion powder

salt & pepper

Salt and pepper the pork roast well, then place in crockpot. In a small bowl, mix together the rest of the ingredients, pour over pork roast. Cook on low for eight hours, or high for 4 hours.

Chickpea and Raisin Quinoa

1/2 cup plain quinoa

1 cup chicken broth

1 can chickpeas, drained

1/2 cup raisins (dried cranberries work well, too)

1 tsp cinnamon

salt & pepper to taste

Bring quinoa, broth, cinnamon, and salt & pepper to a boil in a small saucepan, reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for about 15-20 minutes until most of the liquid is absorbed. Stir in chickpeas and raisins. Remove from heat, cover, and let sit for about five minutes – this allows the rest of the liquid to be absorbed, and plumps the raisins up a bit.

Crockpot Orange Chicken

I created this recipe out of another one I saw on Pinterest that had only 3 ingredients. I added a few, but it’s still just as easy, and really delicious. Recipe makes enough for 3-4 servings.

Crockpot Orange Chicken

6 boneless skinless chicken thighs (or 2-3 boneless skinless breasts)
3/4 cup orange marmalade
3/4 cup barbecue sauce (I used Sweet Baby Ray’s Honey BBQ)
2 T soy sauce
1 tsp red pepper flakes (optional)
Zest & juice of one orange
1 orange, peeled and cut into segments
Salt & pepper

Salt and pepper chicken thighs, and place in crockpot. Cook on high for 2-3 hours. Remove chicken, cut into chunks, and drain juices from crockpot. Put chicken back into crockpot.
Mix together the marmalade, BBQ sauce, soy sauce, red pepper flakes (if desired), and orange zest and juice. Pour over chicken, set crockpot on low for about 30 minutes. Stir in orange segments at the end.
Serve over white rice.

(Photo credits: Jason Reiss)

Crock Pot Cajun Mac n’ Cheese with Crab

Ok, so this title is slightly misleading, because I made this in the crock pot AND the oven. But if you’re willing to deal with one extra step to make this, it’s very much worth it. Add more or less Cajun seasoning depending on your own preferences. Old Bay would work well in this also.

Crock Pot Cajun Mac n’ Cheese

1 lb penne pasta, cooked and drained

2 T canola oil

1/4 cup butter, melted

3 cups shredded cheddar cheese

1 can evaporated milk

1 1/2 cups skim milk

2 tsp Cajun seasoning

1 lb crab meat, in large chunks

1/2 cup bread crumbs

salt and pepper

Toss pasta with canola oil in lightly greased crock pot. Add butter, cheddar cheese, evaporated milk, skim milk, 1 tsp of Cajun seasoning, and salt and pepper to taste. Mix well and cook on low for 2-3 hours.

When crock pot is finished, preheat oven to 350, then mix crab into the mac & cheese. Pour into a 9×13 glass baking dish. Sprinkle the other tsp of Cajun seasoning over the top, then cover with breadcrumbs. Bake in over for about 30 minutes until the top is nicely browned.

Crockpot Thai Coconut Chicken Soup

There’s a soup that you can get at most Thai restaurant that I love. It has a coconut milk base, curry, chicken, shrimp, and an assortment of veggies in it usually. When I discovered a recipe for this soup, I was skeptical. It didn’t have any chicken or shrimp, and was lacking a bit in the veggie department. I made a few changes, and the results were surprisingly similar to the restaurant version. I also ended up halving the recipe one night, cooking it up quickly in a skillet, and serving it over rice as curry dish rather than a soup, and it was equally good. Add shrimp to make it extra special.

Crockpot Thai Coconut Chicken Soup

2 cans lite coconut milk

2 cups low-sodium chicken broth

2 T red curry paste

2 T fish sauce

2 T creamy peanut butter

2 T brown sugar

2 T grated fresh ginger

2 large chicken breasts, cooked and cut into large chunks

1 red pepper, julienned

1 onion, thinly sliced

1 cup baby bella mushrooms, quartered

1 cup baby corn

1 cup frozen peas

1 lime

Add all ingredients to crockpot, except for frozen peas and lime. Cook on low for 7-8 hours. In last 30 minutes of cooking, add the peas. Garnish with a squeeze of lime juice, and thin lime slices. I served mine with pan-fried kimchi dumplings, but can also be served with jasmine rice.

(Photo credits: Jason Reiss)

Slow-Cooker Buffalo Chicken Meatball Sandwiches

Ok, so this isn’t the prettiest dish ever, but it is sooo delicious. If you love anything “Buffalo” flavored (being from Upstate NY, that sounds super weird…), you must make these! The meatballs are melt-in-your-mouth good. I adapted the recipe from another one I found on Pinterest which looked good, but I felt like it could be better. The results got two thumbs up from the husband. The recipe below makes about 12 large meatballs for sandwiches, but you could also make the meatballs about half the size and serve with blue cheese dressing on the side as an appetizer.

Slow-Cooker Buffalo Chicken Meatballs

1 lb ground chicken

1 egg or egg substitute, beaten

3 scallions, chopped small

1/4 cup Panko breadcrumbs

1/4 cup blue cheese crumbles

1 1/2 cup, plus 4 T Frank’s Red Hot

1/4 cup, plus 2 T powdered ranch dressing mix

1/4 cup butter or butter substitute, melted

toasted sub rolls (or hoagie rolls for you Philly people)

blue cheese dressing for topping

Combine ground chicken, egg, scallions, breadcrumbs, blue cheese crumbles, 4T of Frank’s Red Hot, and 2T of ranch dressing mix in large mixing bowl. Mix until just combined. Roll into 12 large meatballs, and place on foil or parchment paper-lined baking sheet, greased. Bake at 400 degrees for about 5-10 minutes, just until outsides are firm to the touch.

In a slow-cooker, combine 1 1/2 cups Frank’s Red Hot, melted butter, and 1/4 cup powdered ranch dressing mix. Add meatballs, and gently toss to coat in the sauce. Add or reduce the amount of Frank’s Red Hot based on how “saucy” you’d like it to be. Cook on low for 2 hours. Serve in toasted sub rolls, topped with blue cheese dressing.

Slow-Cooker Beef Stew

I had kind of abandoned this blog for while, huh? With the wedding this past summer, then honeymoon, then back to school, the days flew by and now the year is almost over. Crazy. But I’m back due to many requests after my dear husband posted a picture of this beef stew to Instagram. I was never a big stew person (if that is even a thing one can be…) until I made this. It’s based on a Trisha Yearwood recipe, but I’ve tweaked it to fit my tastes. For example, hers is made with stout beer, but I have no desire to buy a six pack of stout for only one bottle. Neither of us would ever drink the other five bottles, so I make mine with wine. Anyway, you should definitely make this because it is seriously the best beef stew ever!

Slow-Cooker Beef Stew

1.5 lbs black Angus stew meat, cut into large cubes (I buy the pre-cut kind)

1 cup flour

4 T olive oil

1 T butter

1 lb small red potatoes, cut into large chunks

1/2 lb carrots, cut into large chunks

1 medium-sized onion, small diced

1 1/2 cups chicken stock

1 cup red cooking wine (I use a cheap Burgundy)

1 can tomato paste

2 T brown sugar

2 cloves minced garlic

2 T chopped dried parsley

salt & pepper

Heat 2 T olive oil and butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Mix flour with salt and pepper. Coat stew meat in flour mixture, shake off excess. Sear in skillet in batches, and add to slow cooker. When all meat has been seared and put in slow-cooker, deglaze the pan with 1/2 cup of chicken stock and scrape up all the brown bits at the bottom of the pan. Pour into slow-cooker. Add all the other ingredients to the slow-cooker. Stir, and cook on high for about 5-6 hours (I usually turn it down to low for the last hour of cooking). Garnish with sour cream if desired.

Crock Pot Buffalo Chicken

This is just about the simplest crock pot recipe ever. It’s definitely one of our favorites. Everyone who has tried it, loves it! I serve it on toasted rolls with blue cheese dressing.

Crock Pot Buffalo Chicken

2-3 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts and thighs (one or the other is fine, but I like the combination of both together)

1/2 a large bottle of Frank’s Red Hot Sauce

1 packet of ranch dressing mix

3 T butter

Put all ingredients into a crock pot, cook on low for 6-7 hours. About 30 minutes before the end of the cooking time, shred the chicken with a fork, and then cook for the remaining half hour.

(Photo Credits: Jason Reiss)

Crock-pot Turkey Chili

I’m finally starting to settle into a routine at my new teaching job, which (hopefully) will mean more time for new recipes and blogging. This weekend, I went all out with the fall recipes! Jason and I went apple picking this morning at Linvilla Orchards in Media, PA, so of course I made an apple crisp to have for dessert tonight. (I used my recipe for peach and plum crisp, and just used apples instead.) For dinner I went with turkey chili in the crock-pot which cooked all day while we were at an arts and crafts show in Jenkintown, where his sister and mom were selling their hand-made jewelry and glass art. (Shameless plug: Check out their stuff here!)

Crock-pot Turkey Chili

1 lb. ground turkey

2 large onions, large diced

2 green peppers, large diced

4 cloves of garlic, minced

3 T olive oil

2 cans diced tomatoes (I like these Del Monte ones!)

2 cans dark red kidney beans, drained and rinsed

1 can whole sweet corn, drained

1 T chili powder

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper (Use less if you if you like it less spicy.)

3 T flour

shredded cheddar for topping (optional)

light sour cream for topping (optional)

diced scallions for topping (optional)

Heat the olive oil and garlic in a large pan. Add the turkey, onions, and peppers. Cook until turkey is browned and onions and peppers are slightly softened. Add turkey, onions, peppers, and the rest of the ingredients (except for the flour and toppings) to a large crock-pot. Cook on low for 6-7 hours. About 1/2 an hour before serving, mix in the flour. This will thicken the sauce slightly. Top with cheese, sour cream, and scallions if desired.

(I served this with white cheddar cornbread. Stay tuned for that recipe!)

(Photo Credits: Jason Reiss)