Restaurant Style Beef Tacos

This recipe sounded FABULOUS, I of course tweaked it quite a bit, so this is my version. I had planned on making a homemade soft bread wrap and found out I needed potato flakes, I had already been to the store so I wasn't going back(I know have the potato flakes for next time!) I started this out in the crock pot too!

Restaurant Style Beef Tacos
1 lb beef
1-2 avocados,mashed with salt and pepper
corn
homemade pitas or flatbread

Place meat into slow cooker. Add in 1 cup of water and season. I used some steak seasonings. Turn on low and cook for 6-8 hrs.*I used stew meat, which was a bit tough when I went to check it, so I cut it all up even smaller(after cooking) and placed it back in the crock pot for another hr and it was much more tender.

Lay pita flat, spread avocado on top followed by beef and corn. Fold in half and enjoy!

**I loved all the flavors in this meal! We couldn't wait to have the leftovers either! Next time I will add in some halved grape tomatoes for a bit more color and flavor!

Cheesy Ranch White Chicken Chili

This recipe peaked my interest...although I am still looking for a homemade ranch seasoning, but until them I used a packet. I also adapted this to the crock pot but you can do it on the stove as well. So this came together easy and smelled delicious!

Cheesy Ranch White Chicken Chili-adapted from Siggy Spice
2 cup water
2 chicken breast
1 pkg dry ranch seasoning
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 cans(or 4 cups) white kidney beans(or cannelini beans),rinsed, drained
1-2 cans diced green chilis
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne
1 cup shredded monteray jack cheese(I used colby jack)
1 cup light sour cream
1/2 cup whipping cream(omitted to keep it thicker)

Toss everything in the slow cooker, except cheese, whipping cream, and sour cream. Stir the best you can Place on low for 7-8 hrs or high for 5 hrs.(Or until chicken is cooked through, mine was frozen when I started) Remove chicken and shred. Add back to soup. Stir in remaining ingredients. Cover and let cheese melt for about 15 mins. Enjoy!

**We really liked this soup! It was boarding on a little salty but it was still very good! We loved the addition of ranch and made it very flavorful. Next time we will add some frozen corn to the mix! This would also work great as a vegetarian meal by leaving out the chicken and perhaps adding more beans!

Sausage and Lentil Soup

This is supposed to be a Carraba's recipe...but I was unaware that they had a soup like this. It's probably because we don't normally get soup when we eat out! I haven't' been to a Carraba's lately either...and I LOVE their food, so I really don't know how this compares!

Sausage and Lentil Soup-shared from Mama Bird's Nest
6 cups chicken broth
1 onion, diced
2-3 stalks celery, diced
2 carrots, diced
1 28 oz can diced tomatoes
1/2 lb italian sausage, browned/drained(I used 1/2 sweet, 1/2 hot)
2 cups dry lentils
2 garlic cloves, minced
salt, pepper, red pepper,basil, oregano, thyme, to taste

Place all ingredients into your slow cooker. Cook on low 5-6 hours. Enjoy!

**This was pretty tasty and very hearty! K I don't think was much of a fan he compared it to some soup I made last week that I now can't remember what it was! Even Q loved the lentils, A wouldn't touch it!

Smoky Maple Chipotle Chicken Tacos

We recently had the Maple Chipotle Chicken Crispers from Chili's (which by the way are EXCELLENT) and after seeing the taco recipe on another blog I thought that maybe I could replicate the recipe, but just be a little healthier.

Smoky Maple Chipotle Chicken Tacos-adapted from Eat At Home
2 cups chicken, chopped(or 2 raw chicken breast)
2 green peppers, sliced
1 onion, sliced
1 can diced tomatoes
1/3 maple syrup
1/4 tsp liquid smoke
1  chipotle pepper, chopped fine

 Place all ingredients in slow cooker, place on low and cook for 5-6 hours. Serve in soft tortillas with cheese and lettuce.

**I did leave out some of the pepper seeds when making this. We don't like super spicy foods! This was perfectly spicy and a little sweet! The only thing I didn't like was that they were very watery...so next time I will drain the tomatoes.

South African World Cup Curry

My friend Kim, posted this recipe on her blog. She stated it was the BEST curry she has ever had, so I had to give it a try!

I won't lie, it was a bit time consuming and seemed like there were a lot of steps involved along with a lot of pots! Not quite busy mom approved...well at least with a 4 and almost 2 year old! (Kim won't like this part, but next time I will put it all into my slow cooker!)

I did use a little less meat than what it called for, but that's all I had on hand, it still made a ton of curry!

South African World Cup Curry-shared from Mac's Kitchen Adventure
3 lbs meat(I acutally used 1 lb flank steak, 2 cups chopped cooked chicken)
3 tbsp curry powder
1 onion, chopped
3 cans diced tomatoes
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cup chicken broth
1 granny smith apple, chopped
3 tbsp lime juice
2 inch piece, ginger, peeled
3 tbsp chutney
2 tbsp apricot preserves
2 jalapeños, chopped(with or without seeds, depends on your spice tolerance)
3 cloves of garlic
2 bay leaves
1 cup seedless golden raisins

*These are the directions adapted to the slow cooker, if you want to do it the way Kim and I did it, just follow the link above!

Cover meat with curry powder. Let sit, while you heat up your pan. Brown meat and place in your slow cooker. Add in tomatoes, coconut, broth, onions, and apples.

In a food processor or blender, combine lime juice, chutney, preserves, jalapeños, ginger, and garlic. Mix until pureed well. Add into slow cooker. Add in bay leaves and raisins and stir well. Turn slow cooker on low for 4-5 hours until meat is tender.

Serve over brown rice.

**The first night I was told that it was too spicy...but I thought it was fine. It was a little, but not that bad.  The second day the spiciness wasn't as prominent. This is a very flavorful dish and delicious! Thanks for sharing Kim!

Vegetarian Tortilla Soup

We had friends over this weekend for some gingerbread house and cookie decorating. They are vegetarian so I thought this soup would be perfect! I did adapt it to the slow cooker which made it that much easier!

Vegetarain Tortilla Soup-Let's Dish
1 onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
2-3 garlic cloves, minced
1 qt veg. broth
1-28 oz can crushed tomatoes
1-14 oz can diced tomatoes with gr. chilis
2-4 cups black/white beans
2 tsp chili powder
2 tsp cumin
1 pkg frozen corn
hot sauce to taste
2-3 tbsp lime juice(which I forgot)
salt and pepper to taste
4 corn tortillas, cut into strips

Place all ingredients in slow cooker except lime juice and tortillas. Stir well and turn on high for 4 hours or low for 6 hours. Ten minutes before serving stir in tortilla strips and replace cover. Add in lime juice right before serving.

**This was a little spicy, but not over powering. It had lots of flavor so everyone liked it, even K didn't miss the meat!

Beef Stew

This is a family favorite of ours! It is easy as it uses the crock pot, one of my favorite appliances!

Beef Stew- from Big Y
1 lb stew meat
1 qt beef stock
1 pkg baby carrots
2-3 potatoes, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 14 oz can diced tomatoes
2 bay leaves
2 tsp minced garlic
2 tbsp cornstarch
2 tbsp water

Place all ingredients in slow cooker except water and corn starch. Stir to combine and set to low for 6-8 hrs(or until veggies and meat are tender) One hour before serving, combine cornstarch and water until smooth, stir into stew and set slow cooker on high for one hour. This should help thicken the stew. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

**This is a great fall or winter very filling dish! Its a great crowd pleaser!

Crock Pot Indian Curry

On my quest to try more curry, I found this simple recipe. I've never had Indian Curry before so I don't know how this compares to the real thing, but I was willing to give it a try!

Slow Cooker Indian Curry-shared from A Year of Slow Cooking
1 can coconut milk
1 tbsp tomato paste
2 tbsp curry powder
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
1 inch peeled ginger, grated
few dashes of hot sauce
1 onion, chopped
2-3 cloves minced garlic
1 sweet pepper, chopped
2 sweet potatoes, peeled chopped
1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed/drained
1 lb chicken breast(optional)

Place milk, paste, spices, garlic, hot sauce, and ginger in bottom of crock pot. Stir well. Place chicken in sauce and flip a couple of times to coat well. Add in veggies and beans. Cook on low for 7-9 hours or high for 4-6 hours. (I did stir in my veggies to get them coated in the sauce, but you don't have to.) Right before serving, remove chicken and shred, add back in and coat with sauce. Serve over your favorite rice.

**Like I mentioned before I am not sure how authentic the spices are, but it was still pretty good and curbed my curry craving! It was a touch spicy but not hot. I didn't think my boys would like it so I offered them something else. Little did I know they LOVED it, mostly the beans. This could easily be adapted to vegetarian by omitting the chicken and adding in more beans and veggies.

Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup

I've never actually had or made a tortilla soup before, but I do see the recipes. I had some leftover chicken and it was a cool cold, rainy day. I remembered I had this recipe in my Tasty Tuesday and had almost all the ingredients. I had to run to the store to get the last two, but it was very worth the trip!

Creamy Chicken Tortilla Soup-shared from Mennonite Girls Can Cook
2 cups chopped, cooked chicken(or 1 lb raw chicken breast)
1/2 cup of your favorite salsa
1-2 cups black beans(or one 1-2 cans, rinsed, drained)
1.5 cups cream of chicken soup(or 1 can)
1-2 cups chicken broth*
1 pkg frozen corn
1 can diced tomatoes with jalepenos
4 corn tortillas cut in strips

Place all ingredients in slow cooker except tortillas, turn on and cook on low for 5 hours or high for 2. About 15 mins before serving, stir in tortillas. Garnish with sour cream, cheese, cilantro, etc.

*The original recipe called for 2 cans of cream of chicken soup, I only had enough for one can. So I added in enough broth to make it soupier.

**This was so good and easy to make! It had just the right amount of kick to it. Q loved it, but he loves beans, corn, and chicken. This is definitely a keeper! The tortillas do act like noodles in the soup and it had a great texture.

For more great soup and stew ideas check out Finding Joy in my Kitchen's 2010 Soup Round Up!

Sweet and Sour Kielbasa

This is one of the meals we made during out cooking day. This was something my mom always made growing up, mostly for potlucks or a get together. It only involves five ingredients and is super quick to put together and it even cooks itself!  This does make a lot of sauce so I serve it over rice or stir minute rice in about 30 mins-1 hr before we eat it! You can also adapt to how much you need as well. I used 2 pkgs and split it between two of us, but you can use up to 4.

Sweet and Sour Kielbasa
3-4 pkg of your favorite kielbasa(I use butterball turkey)
1 jar pasta sauce
1 12 oz jar salsa
1-2 tbsp grape jelly
1-2 tbsp brown sugar

Slice kielbasa and place into a slow cooker. Add remaining ingredients and stir well. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. You can add more or less of the jelly/sugar depending on how you like it!

**This is one of our family favorites and is generally ALWAYS gone at potlucks!

Meatball Minestrone Soup

I saw this recipe in one of the magazines I get. I can't remember if it was Parents or Parenting...maybe it was even Family Fun! But I thought it looked delicious! So I tried to give credit where credit was due and now on to the recipe!

I did adapt this to a slow cooker.

Meatball Minestrone Soup
1/2 recipe of The Best meatballs
1 onion, diced
2 minced garlic cloves
1 cup diced carrots
4-6 cups chicken broth
2 cans white beans, rinsed drained
1 can diced tomatoes, undrained
2 tsp itlalian seasoning
1 cup orzo pasta

Toss everything into a slow cooker, except for orzo. Cook on high for 2 hours. About 30 mins before you are ready to eat, stir in the orzo and cover tightly.

**This soup was really good and easy to make. Mine didn't have many carrots in it and no garlic...I was out of both! The orzo did continue to keep on cooking so it ended up more like a casserole as leftovers the next day, but it was still quite tasty! I did have to add some extra salt and pepper as the broth was homemade.

Apple Braised Chicken Breast

A friend on Facebook wrote she was making this for dinner...and in honor of having a billion apples I decided to try it! The original recipe did call for turkey thighs and I used bone in chicken breast, if I liked dark meat, I would probably go with that next time!

And speaking of facebook...did you know you can now find me there? check it out and become a fan...er like me!

Apple Braised Chicken Breast-shared from Food&Wine
1 tbsp olive oil
2 turkey thighs(I did use 4 chicken breast)
salt and pepper
2 large shallots, thinly sliced OR 1 small onion and 2 tsp minced garlic
4 apples, peeled, quartered, cored
2 cups apple cidek
2 cups of broth
2 tsp cider vinegar(optional)

Preheat oven to 350. In an oven proof pot, heat oil.Season both sides of the meat. Add in chicken/turkey skin side down into pot. Cook for about 8 mins until skin is golden and crisp. Remove meat from pan. Add in shallots or garlic/onion. Cook for about 5 mins or until tender.

Add in apples, meat, broth, and cider. Bring to a boil, cover and place in oven for 1.5 hours. Uncover and cook for 30 more minutes.

Remove meat from pan. Skim fat and add in vinegar. Slice meat and serve with apples and pan sauce.

**You can cook the apples for a bit before adding in the broth. I did not as I didn't want mush apples and they cooked fine. I think by using the breast it did dry out, I would highly recommend using a dark piece of meat. It did smell amazing!! K really enjoyed it and the flavors were great, just the meat seemed a bit dry to me. Although my friend did like it and she used the dark meat. The recipe does say it will taste better the next day, and it did! I used the leftover sauce/apples to make an apple cheddar soup, which will be posted soon! This can easily be finished off in the slow cooker!

Maple Apple Pork Roast

It's that time of year again in New England...Apple picking time!! We are headed out this weekend to go with some friends of ours, but I wanted to use up some apples I already had in the fridge. I saw this recipe and had to try it! It sounded perfect for a fall day! It was easy too!

Now knowing my crock pot the way I do I knew if I put in the apples at the beginning I'd get mush...so I held off a couple of hours before I added in the carrots and apples. This crock pot tends to cook my food REALLY fast even on low and the other one just got recalled, so I worked with what I had.

Maple Apple Pork Roast-shared from Finding Joy in My Kitchen
2-4 lb pork roast
1/2 cup apple juice
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1 lb bag baby carrots
3-4 apples, sliced
1/2 tsp ginger
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp salt

Place roast in crock pot. Mix together juice and syrup, pour over roast. Combine together spices and sprinkle over roast. Set on low for 6 hours.

*Snowhite originally put in the carrots first and then the apples, topped with the pork. I put in the pork, waited about 2-3 hours then pulled the roast out, put in the carrots and apples and put the pork back on top for the remainder of the time.

**This smelled very good while it cooked! The meat was juicy and tender and pretty flavorful. Next time I will rotate the meat half way through as the bottom half you could really taste the apple/syrup, but the top half not so much ,but it got lots of flavor from the seasoning. The apples like I suspected, turned to mush...ick. But the carrots were perfectly cooked for us, and very sweet and tasty from the juice mix. The apples could have gone to mush b/c of the kind I used, but it was all still tasty! Q loved the carrots!

Curried Beef and Dumplings

I found this in the Taste of Home Recipe Collection...I can't remember if it was 2009 or 2010 but I thought it sounded different!

Curried Beef and Dumplings-shared from Taste of Home
1 3 lb rump roast
6 carrots cut into chunks, or baby carrots
1 onion sliced
1 14 oz can of diced tomatoes
2 tsp curry powder
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt

Dumplings:
1 tsp salt
1 2/3 cups flour
3 tsp baking powder
2 tbsp cold butter
3/4 cup milk

1 cup water(may need more)

Brown meat in pan, place in crock pot. Mix together tomaotes, curry, sauce, sugar, and salt. Pour over meat, add in onions and carrots. Cook on low for 6-8 hours until meat is tender.

Pour juice into pan, add in hot water and bring to a boil.

Mix together flour, salt, baking powder. Cut in butter until crumbly. Stir in milk until just moistened. Drop dumplings into simmering liquid, cover, and steam for 15 mins. Remove dumplings for sauce and serve with meat and carrots.

**So far this smells a lot like beef stew....it was just ok the first night we had it. I found it needed gravy as the meat was a bit dry. I did add another cup of water to the juices for the dumplings as I just didn't have enough to cook them in. I then took that thickened "gravy" and dumped it over the leftover meat. It was so much better the next day! It was a nice and different take on pot roast and I LOVE curry! The dumplings were delicious too!

Raspberry Chicken

I had play around with this recipe a bit...I realized when I went to make it tonight that I didn't have instant rice that the recipe originally called for. I ended up cooking the chicken in the crock pot(which I think I added to much mustard) and cooked the rice the good ol' fashioned way on the stove.

Raspberry Chicken-shared from What a Crock
3 cups instant rice
6 cups chicken broth
12 oz jar raspberry preserves
1/4 cup dijon mustard
1 tsp ground ginger
1 lb chicken breast
1 cup pineapple chunks drained

Place rice, broth, ginger in bottom of slow cooker. Stir. Mix together perserves and mustard and stir into the rice. Add chicken and pineapple. Cover and cook on low for 3 hours or until liquid is absorbed and chicken is cooked through.

WHAT I DID: I mixed the preserves and mustard together along with some pureed pineapple. Place the chicken in the slow cooker and covered it with the mix. Cooked on high for 3 hrs...this may have been too much but I needed it cooked in that time. And YES I forgot the ginger...then I strained some of the juice from the chicken and used it to make the rice. (2 cups water, 2 cups juices, 2 cups rice, cooked on the stove for 40 mins until tender)

**This was just ok...nothing to write home about. I only used a small jar of the raspberry and I think I used too much mustard(that's what I get for not measuring!) But there was hardly ANY flavor in the chicken...it was pretty moist and fell apart while I was cutting it so it was more like shredded by the time I was done. I do encourage you to try it and let me know how it comes out! Perhaps you will have better luck!

And because I've been in a food funk...and because I had JUST watched Oprah and she was talking Food Inc and about Chipotle, I pulled out my burrito size flour tortillas and yes I made a burrito with it. I seasoned it up with salt and pepper....it was edible but not a favorite. K did really like it!

Pineapple Salsa Chicken

This was another easy to make meal perfect for a hot summer day...except today was rainy and cooler than it has been in weeks! I was originally going to make beef empanadas but realized I was missing an ingredient so this came into play!

Pineapple Salsa Chicken-shared from What a Crock!
1 lb chicken breast
1 jar salsa
1 20 oz can pineapple tidbits(although I did used crushed)
2-3 cups black beans
rice

Place chicken in crock pot. Cover with black beans, salsa, and pineapple. Cook on low for 6-8 hours, or high for 4 hours. Once chicken is done, you can shred or chop and add it back to the sauce. Serve over rice.

**This was just ok...the pineapple didn't seem to stand out as much, it could have been because it was crushed and not the tidbits.(I just used what I had on hand). The original recipe says to drain the pineapple, but leave the liquid in the canned beans. I decided I didn't need the extra salt(plus my beans were cooked by me) so I left the juice in the pineapple. We have enough for leftovers for at least 2 meals, plus I froze some to make burritos, tacos, or whatever with it! I think the addition of corn work work very well at the end.

Rootbeer BBQ Beef

This is another recipe from Hallee. I had made it before using pork and it works well, but I did want to try it with beef. I don't know my cuts of beef well AT ALL as we very rarely eat it and when we do its either ground or in steak form. I asked Hallee what I should use and she said anything was fine. I ended up buying a 6 lb round roast(or something like that). It was really the cheapest per lb that I could find. It worked out well because it cooks for a long time!

I made this for a get together at my inlaws house, they are really liked it. Even my mom liked it, even though she didn't think she would.

Root beer BBQ Beef
4-6 lb beef roast
1 12 oz can organic root beer
1-2 bottles of your favorite bbq sauce(or homemade)
Honey Wheat Rolls


Brown meat in skillet until all sides are done. Place in slow cooker. Place 2 tbsp of root beer in pan and scrape up the tiny bits from the browning. Dump into slow cooker.  Add in the rest of the root beer. Cover roast with sauce, turn slow cooker on low and cook for 8-10 hours. *I had a LOT of liquid when mine was done, so I dumped it out and shredded the meat. I then added more bbq sauce, another half a can of rootbeer and mixed it all in. Then I set it on low until warmed through.

Serve on rolls with more sauce if you wish.

**I did add some ketchup to my bbq sauce as it had a bit of a kick and knowing who I was serving it too, I was trying to cut it back. It worked out great! I had enough for a small army, this fed 7 adults, plus I sent some home with his brothers and we still have enough for at least 1 or 2 more dinners! Sorry it is not the best picture, but it still tasty!

This has been linked to Finding Joy in my Kitchen

Spanish Rice Casserole

This was another meal made on cooking day. I had taken it out on Wednesday night and it was still frozen solid when I went to bake it on Thursday.

So we ended up heading to a Taste Of festival. I decided to be adventurous and tried Indian food, I LOVED the chicken Tika Masala, K thought it was ok. The boys had french fries, and K had a steak fajita. I know they aren't too adventurous. We also had a triple berry shortcake that was better than I expected it to be. I love going to things like this as you only pay $3-4 dollars for a serving and you can try all kinds of food. This way I'm not waisting $12 on a meal I won't like. I also love trying new dishes so I can figure out how to make them at home, I love a challenge!

So back to the rice....it was FINALLY thawed and we were home for dinner so I popped it out of the zip top bag and into the slow cooker. Amy's directions do say to cook it in the oven, but it was a little warm for that. It worked out great in the slow cooker. I cooked it on low for 4 hours, which I'm sure was probably a bit long, but it still tasted great!

Both boys loved it! It is also a great way to use up your surplus of summer veggies! I would definitely add more veggies in next time. A liked the "cucumbers" in it....aka zucchini. I told him it was zucchini and he informed me he didn't like it, so I told him it was a cucumber and he ate it with no problem!

Spanish Rice Casserole courtesy of A Foodie Fairytale

Beef Stroganoff

In the pursue of cleaning out my freezer I decided to make beef stroganoff. I love this stuff...I used hamburger this time and we both decided we prefer it with steak. But its a cheap and easy meal none the less! This was also the first time I made it with my homemade cream of chicken soup and it worked out great!

Beef Stroganoff
1 lb ground beef, or cubed beef
1 pt mushrooms, diced
1-2 cups cream of chicken soup
1 onion sliced
1 cup beef broth
1 cup sour cream

Brown meat and drain. Place in slow cooker. Add in mushrooms, soup, broth, and onion. Place on low 6-8 hours. Stir in sour cream right before serving. Serve over egg noodles, season with salt and pepper!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake

I don't remember how I found this recipe...it could be that I subscribe to the blog and get her updates, but I think another blog I frequent mentioned it. Either way, I found it and couldn't wait to try it. K's birthday was yesterday and he isn't usually a chocolate fan, but has lately been requesting choc/pb so I made this. It's cooking right now and smells wonderful...and its in the crock pot so no heating the house up!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake-shared from A Year of Slow Cooking
1 cup flour
1 cup sugar(divided)
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/2 cup milk
1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tbsp oil
1 cup boiling water
3 tbsp cocoa powder

Combine flour, powder, salt, and 1/2 cup sugar. Mix well. Soften peanut butter in microwave for 30 secs. Add to flour along with milk, vanilla, and oil. Stir well. Spread into bottom of greased slow cooker. Whisk together water, 1/2 cup sugar, and cocoa. Pour on top of batter. Cook on high for 2-4 hours until cake is cooked through.Start checking at 2 hours.

**I won't lie...I doubled this recipe. So we will see how long it takes to cook. It was delicous and so easy to make! Our dinner guest loved it and my mom did too. K couldn't really taste it due to his allergies, but rest assured it is good! Picture to come.