This and that: slow cooker

Showing posts with label slow cooker. Show all posts

Wednesday, November 9, 2016

Caramel Cran-Apple Cider [Slow Cooker Recipe]

Caramel Cran-Apple Cider - A delicious cider made with apples and cranberries in your slow-cooker and sweetened with caramel topping.

A delicious cider made in your slow cooker with apples and cranberries, sweetened with caramel topping.

Foodie Friends Friday Linky Party #115

Two years ago we had a Crocktober Party and it was awesome, so we decided to do it again... I know that you have more crock pot/ slow cooker recipes.... I have seen them floating over the social media. I can't wait to see what you will bring to the party.

Spiced Crock Pot Turkey Breast

Have you used your crock pot to make turkey? When my hubby first came to America I made a whole turkey in the oven.. thinking that I would give him a taste of American cooking. Well, he didn't like it, he thought it was dry and had no flavour. He didn't want to have turkey again. It was a few years later that we decided to try and make it in the crock pot and put in some spices and VOILA it was terrific. Full of flavour and moist. So since that day I have made my turkey in the crock pot.

I know, you are going to say .... everyone does that. This is not new. But what is new is what spices that I use and how I infuse the spices throughout the turkey breast, so that not only the outside has the flavour, every bite has it.

Here is how I do it.

Ingredients:
3 lb turkey breast
1 garlic clove
1 inch fresh ginger
1 tbsp anise
1 tsp grains of paradise (you could use black pepper
1-2 tbsp onion
Salt water

Directions:
Place turkey breast in water to cover and approx 1 tbsp salt. Let sit while you mix your spices.
I use my mortar and pestle and grind together garlic, ginger, anise, grains of paradise and onion. Add a small amount of water to this so it makes a paste.
Take turkey breast out of salt water, remove skin, cut a few slits throughout the turkey.
Rub spices all over the turkey and into the slits that you cut. Cover the breast with the skin and rub some spices over the skin.
Place turkey in crock pot.
Cook on low for 5-6 hours. Remove from crock pot and let sit for at least 10 minutes before slicing.

Cooks notes:
My crock pot is a 6 qt which is probably too big. You could use a smaller one if you have it. I do not add any liquid to my turkey as it has enough already. Most of the time the liquid is covering the turkey breast when it is done.
If you don't have a mortar and pestle, a small food processor would work to grind the spices. I have not tried this recipe with ground spices as I use fresh garlic, ginger and onion and whole anise and grains of paradise.

Saturday, October 5, 2013

Slow Cooker Recipes for every Occasion.

Slow Cooker recipes can be used for any meal or any occasion. You can start your meal the night before or the morning and it will be ready for breakfast or dinner. The worst part about setting your slow cooker the night before is that you keep waking up to those wonderful smells of food.

Slow Cooker Apple and Onion Pork Chops

Apple season is upon us. I haven't gone picking any this year and we will see if I get any done or not. My brother has apple trees on his land and as long as the animals don't get them, I should be able to get a few picked.

The other day I had some Granny Smith Apples in the fridge and also pork chops so decided I wanted to make something with them. This is what I came up with.

Ribs with sauce - Host Favorite Meal

This week I made my host favorite meal... It was so delicious and my husband even ate it two days in a row. He very seldom does that but he asked for it on the second day. I did change some of the ingredients because I either couldn't find them or I didn't have them at home. This recipe originally came from Michelle over at Ms. enPlace and it is called Stick to Ya Ribs. When I made these, I made the same amount of sauce but only used half the meat. Thanks Michelle for a wonderful recipe.

Ribs with Sauce (slow-cooker version)

adapted from Stick to Ya Ribs

2 pounds pork spare ribs (I used boneless ribs)

pepper

garlic

onion powder

2 tbsp creole seasoning (I used this recipe to make mine)

1 tsp paprika

1 6 oz tomato paste

2/3 cups mushrooms diced

1 cup onion diced

2/3 cup sweet peppers diced

4 cloves garlic minced

2 stalks celery diced

1 link smoked sausage diced ( I used Johnsonville Andouile)

1 tbsp olive oil

1 can diced tomatoes (I used Red Gold)

1 maggi cube (chicken flavor)

1/2 tsp paprika

2 tbsp corn starch

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Line a cookie sheet. Sprinkle creole seasoning, pepper, garlic and onion powder, paprika onto ribs, rubbing them into the meat. Spread 3 tbsp tomato paste over ribs on all sides. Bake at 400 degrees for 40 minutes until the tomato paste is sticky and brown in places.

While these are cooking, place oil in pan, brown sausage. Add mushrooms, onions, peppers, garlic and celery. Saute for 8 minutes. Add rest of the tomato paste and saute a few more minutes. Add tomatoes, maggi cube and paprika. Cover and simmer until ribs are done.

Once ribs are done, place half of the tomato sauce into crock pot, add ribs and cover with rest of sauce. Add approximately 2 cups of water, just to cover.

Cook for 4 -5 hours on low. I cooked mine on high for 1 hour and then turned it down to low for 3 more hours. The meat was very tender but I would probably next time cook on low for at least 5 hours.

Serve with pasta or rice.

✻ღϠ₡ღ✻ Marlys

(¯`✻´¯)
`*.¸.*✻✿*.¸.*✻ Enjoy your day....`*.¸.*✻✿*.¸.*✻

Links:

Scrumptious Sunday Link Party!

Thursday, October 25, 2012

Crockpot Italian Pulled Beef Sandwiches..

I love my crockpot and use it often during the year. The only problem about using a crockpot is that you have to think about your meal ahead of time... and that is one thing I don't always do.. I am a spur of the moment type of person, I run down to the freezer and look in and after I see what I have, I figure out what I am going to make. But on rare occasions I will do this in the morning and take out something to put in my crockpot.
This crockpot meal you have to think about it a day before, because ideally it should cook for at least 18 hours. Well, this is the real world and in my world that seldom if ever happens. On occasion I will remember the night before to put it in... but then that causes another problem ~~~ How do you sleep with those wonderful smells waffling into the bedroom, making your stomach growl? Not an easy task and when I do it, I am hungry all night...
The other reason I like my crockpot is that I love the taste of the meat when it comes out and you can use a cheaper cut and it still usually turns out wonderfully.
Last weekend I wanted to make this as I knew that our Foodie Friends Friday was have a Croctober party and I need some crock pot recipes. Also, I was having company and as my husband isn't that keen on sandwiches there wouldn't be so much left over. So, Friday evening I asked my brother when they would be leaving on Saturday and he thought shortly afternoon. Horrors this takes a good 16 -18 hours on low and it is already 10 pm... so if we ate at noon that would only be 15 hours... What to do? Did you know that if you cooked an hour on high, that is an two hours on low? So I put the meat and everything else in and turned it on high for about an hour and half and then turned it on low.. The next day at shortly after one we sat down for Italian Pulled Beef Sandwiches and they got a good review.
This recipe I originally received from a friend and she got it from a Chicago paper, but I never did write it down so this is how I made it this time..

Crockpot Italian Pulled Beef Sandwiches

Ingredients:

5 lbs roast - you can use any kind and this time I only used a 2.5 lb and it worked good

1 envelope Italian dressing mix

1 can beef broth

1 jar Italian Mix Giardiniera

1 jar Golden Peperoncini - I used only 1/2 jar

buns - I used small Italian buns

cheese (optional) - I used tillamook garlic cheese white cheddar cheese.

Place all ingredients into a crock pot and place on low and cook for 18 hours. If you are short on time, you can put it on high for an hour or two and then turn down to low for the rest of the time. For best results cook for at least 16 hours, the longer the better.

Once cooked, shred the beef and vegetables. I took out the peperoncini and put them on the side as I wasn't sure if the children would eat them... Place in open faced buns, I used Italian buns that I melted butter and spread on the top and placed in the oven under the broiler for a few minutes. They were nice and crisp.

Add meat, and cheese if wanted. I also added a small amount of gravy.. direction for what I did are below in the *.

* because I only used a small roast, there was a lot of liquid left over. I place this in a pot on medium heat until it came to a nice rolling boil. Remove approximately 1/4 cup and add 1 -2 tbsp of flour and stir until mixed in. Add to the rest of the sauce slowly, stirring as you are adding the flour mixture in. Continue to boil until you get gravy at the thickness you want. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add more flour if needed. You can either have a thin gravy as an au jus or thicker gravy. I opted for a thicker gravy and place a small amount over the beef in the bun.

Another way of eating this would be over mashed potatoes or with rice.