Crockpot Loaded Baked Potato Soup

3 1/2 pounds potatoes, peeled and cut into 3/4 inch pieces
1 tsp red pepper flakes
1 package frozen chopped broccoli
1/4 -1/2 white onion, chopped
4 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup milk
1/3 cup sour cream, plus more for garnish if desired
1 Tbsp cornstarch
1 1/4 tsp salt
4 green onions, trimmed and thinly sliced
4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
shredded cheddar cheese

1. Combine potatoes, pepper flakes, broccoli, and white onion in crockpot. Pour broth over top; cover and cook 6 hours on low or until potatoes are tender.
2. In a small bowl, stir together milk, 1/3 cup sour cream, cornstarch, and salt. Remove cover and mash potatoes (if you want a chunkier soup pull some potatoes out before mashing). Stir in milk mixture and green onions. Put potatoes chunks back in. Spoon soup into bowls.
3. Divide bacon between bowls, add sour cream to each bowl if desired. Sprinkle with cheddar cheese.

Pork Burritos

Sweet Shredded Pork Burritos

Meat: (This recipe makes 45-50 burritos)
10 lbs boneless pork roast
4 cans tomato sauce
3 C brown sugar
2 cans coke or Dr. Pepper
2 cloves garlic, diced
1/2 C or 1 bunch of finely minced cilantro

Put meat in crock pot. Add tomato sauce, sugar and garlic. Add soda and cilantro. Cook on medium heat 4 hours or more. shred when tender.

The following ingredients are based off 1 serving of about 15 burritoes
I used converted rice with a conversion of 2:1, we used 2 cups.
2 C of cheese
2 cans of black beans drained

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl. fill burrito tortillas with 1/4 C to 1/3 C mixture. Roll and freeze.  Cook at 350* for 12-15 minutes each side. No need to thaw prior to cooking.  Or microwave for 2-3 minutes.

Top with your favorite burrito toppings!

Tasty Pulled Beef

3-4 lb roast
1 bottle Italian dressing ( I just made mine from a packet)
1 pkg onion soup mix
2-3 cloves garlic, minced

Trim fat off roast, place in crockpot.
Combine dressing and soup mix. Once well combine add minced garlic.
Pour dressing over roast, turning roast to coat with dressing mixture.
Cook on low 8-10 hours. Turning once during cooking time.
Take roast out, and strain juices, reserving juice. ( I even stuck my "juice" in the freezer for a few minutes to get the fat to separate after I strained it) Shred roast with forks and return meat to crockpot. Pour desired amount of juice over meat, I used about a 1 1/2 cups. More or less depending on how juicy you want your meat.

We served it on buns with all the regular condiments. The next day I enjoyed it over rice with tomatoes.

Crockpot Spanish Chicken

• 1 1/3 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts
• 1 lb turkey Italian sausage cut into 1 inch pieces
• 1 cup onion chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 28 oz can diced tomatoes- undrained
• 1 can tomato paste
• 1 can artichoke hearts, quartered and drained
• 4 oz can sliced olives, drained
• 3 cups hot cooked rice or couscous

Put everything but the artichoke hearts, olives and rice in crockpot and cook on low 6-8 hours. When chicken is cooked take out and shred. After returning shredded chicken to crockpot add artichoke hearts and olives. Serve over rice.

This was really good and so so easy. Next time I make it though I will be using regular sausage or no sausage at all. The turkey sausage was a little too sweet for me and didn't quite flow with the rest of the tastes, Jeremy thought the same thing. But other than that it was SO good.

Crockpot Italian Chicken Lentil Soup

• 1 lb chicken thighs
• 2 cup rinsed and sorted lentils
• 2 (14 oz) cans diced tomatoes - or 1 can stewed and 1 can diced
• 2 cups chopped carrots
• 1 med chopped zucchini (or you can use spinach)
• 1/2 cup chopped onions - diced
• 4 1/2 - 5 cups chicken broth
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 tsp basil
• 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 cup mushrooms (optional)

Cook on high for 5-6 hours

A friend gave me this recipe and it was tasty and easy!

Crockpot Lasagna

• 1 (26 oz) jar pasta sauce
• 1 (10 oz) box lasagna noodles
• 1 (11 oz) container pesto
• 1 (15 oz) container ricotta cheese
• 1 (12 oz) bag baby spinach
• 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 16 oz mozzarella cheese, sliced
• 1/4 cup water

Use a 4 quart slow cooker. Put a spoonful of pasta sauce (about 1/4 cup) into the bottom of your cooker and spread it around. Add a layer of uncooked lasagna noodles (you'll have to break them to make a layer. Smear some ricotta cheese and pesto onto the noodles. Add a handful or two of baby spinach, and top with a layer of Parmesan and sliced mozzarella cheeses. Repeat layers until you've run out of ingredients. The spinach is fluffy so you'll have to swish it to make it all fit.

Before closing the pot, put 1/4 cup water into empty pasta sauce jar and shake. Pour this saucy water over the top of everything . Cover and cook on low for 6 hours or on high for about 3-4. You'll know when it is done with the top layer begins to brow and the cheese is melted and bubble. It will also pull a bit away from the sides. Taste test a noodle to check texture. Uncover and let it sit for 10-15 minutes before serving.

I got this recipe off of crockpot365.blogspot. I did make a few changes to it, but it turned out great! I used a box of no boil lasagna noodles, because I have never had a successful crockpot lasagna and thought it was worth a try and for me it paid off! I also used 6 oz of spinach because that is all I had. And I used shredded mozzarella cheese except for the last layer and I used sliced there. And I also added a layer of 2 cups cooked, cubed and still frozen chicken, near the top of the layers. And I increased the water to 1/3 cup. It was pretty easy to put together and really yummy! It was a bit expensive with the pesto and all, but next time I make it I might try to make my own pesto, still worth the price though!

Crock Pot Chicken Pot Pie

4-5 C diced potatoes
3-4 C baby carrots
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 tsp garlic salt and pepper
2 Tbs dry onions
2 can cream of chicken
1 1/2 C frozen peas
1 pkg refrigerated Pillsbury biscuits
1 C shredded cheddar cheese

Fill crock pot 2/3 full with veggies. Place chicken on top and sprinkle with seasons. Spread cream of chicken on top. Cook on high for 4-5 hours or low 6-7 hours. Shred chicken using two forks. Add peas. Replace lid and cook for 20 minutes. Bake biscuits according to package directions. Break biscuits in half, top with crock pot mixture and shredded cheese.

Dijon Pork Roast

• 3 pounds pork or beef roast
• 1/3 cup molasses
• 1/3 cup Dijon mustard
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 2 Tbsp white or apple cider vinegar

Mix all ingredients except meat together. Then pour over meat in 4 quart crockpot. Turn meat over until it is coated on all sides. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for about 4.
I got this recipe from crockpot365.blogspot.com she put her roast in totally frozen, mine was thawed so I could trim the fat. I also turned my roast a few times to keep it evenly basted. The meat was SO tender and tasty but you really couldn't taste any of the specific ingredients, it is a keeper!

Taco Soup

I got this yummy recipe from a good friend of mine and it's SO simple and fast that I have to share it. It also freezes really well.

Taco Soup:

1 lb. ground beef
2 (15 oz) cans kidney beans - drained
1 (15 oz) can black beans - drained
1 qt. tomato juice
1 (4-7 oz) can chopped green chilis
1 pkg. taco seasoning
1 can sweet corn - drained
1 med. onion - chopped
1 c. pace picante or any chunky salsa (We use our homemade fresh salsa and it's delicious!)

Brown beef, drain. Combine all ingredients in large pot and bring to simmer for 5-10 minutes, just to heat through. Serve with tortilla chips, sour cream and cheese! You can also put all ingredients in a crockpot on low heat until heated when you have guests.

Enjoy!!

Salsa Chicken

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 24 ox jar salsa
1 8 oz pkg cream cheese
1 pkg. tortillas

Cook chicke and salsa in a slow cooker on high for 3 hours. Shred chicken and add cream cheese. cook until cream cheese is melted. ***Freeze in freezer bag. Otherwise, spray a frying pan with cooking spray and fry tortillas until browned. put mixture on tortilla and roll up.

Salisbury Steaks

2 lbs ground beef
1/2 C crushed saltine crackers
2 eggs, slightly beaten
1/4 C milk
1 Tbsp cream of mushroom soup
2 Envelopes beef gravy mix

Combing ground beef, cracker crumbs, eggs, milk and soup mix. Mix thoroughly. Shape into patties (6-8). If freezing, place wax paper between each patty. Place in freezer bag.

Slow cooker method: put patties in a slow cooker. Mix gravy according to the package directions and pour over patties. Cook on medium for 4-6 hours.

Cafe Rio Sweet Pork

Don't let all the ingredients scare you away from trying this recipe. My mom made it when we visited them last and it was wonderful! She didn't have the ingredients for the rice or dressing so she just made the sweet pork, put it onto tortillas and my kids loved it!

Sweet Pork
-1 pork roast
-1 can of Coke
-1 bottle of red taco sauce
-1 C of Brown sugar

Put the roast in the crock pot and fill the crock pot 1/3 full of water. Put on low overnight. In the morning the roast should be tender and you should be able to shred it with a fork. In a bowl blend ingredients and pour over roast. Let it simmer all day, to thicken the sauce leave the lid off the crock pot.

Cilantro Lime Rice
-1 bag of rice
-3 cans of Chicken Broth
-Zest and juice of 2 limes
-Cilantro

Cook rice with the lime juice and zest and the broth instead of water. After the rice is cooked chop up some cilantro and mix through.

Dressing
-1 C Mayo
-1 pkg. of dry buttermilk ranch dressing
-2 tomatillos
-1 jalapeno
-1 bunch of cilantro or to taste
-A dash of lime juice

Mix it together in your blender or food processor and enjoy. Chill before serving.

Put the pork mixture, rice and dressing on a tortilla and eat until your heart is content. You won't be sorry that you tried this recipe! For those of you that don't know what tomatillos look like I have included a picture below.

Pulled Pork Sandwiches

This is going to be part of our Superbowl cuisine....just thought some of you might enjoy it as well!!

• 2 1/2 Tbsp dark brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp Paprika
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp black pepper
• 1 boneless pork butt or shoulder (about 2 1/2 lbs) , trimmed
• 1 cup chicken broth (low sodium if possible)
• 2 Tbsp cider vinegar
• 2 Tbsp ketchup

1. In a small bowl, stir together 1 Tbsp of the the sugar, the paprika, chili powder, cumin and pepper; set aside
2. Lay pork on work surface and sprinkle all side with spice rub; rub well into meat. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or overnight if there is time!
3. Unwrap pork and place in slow cooker with chicken broth. Cover and cook on High for 6 hours or Low for 8 hours. Remove pork from slow cooker and cute into large chunks; let stand for 20 minutes or until cool enough to handle.
4. While pork is cooling, pour cooking liquid into fat separator. Pour defatted liquid into small saucepan. Heat over medium-high heat. Whisk in vinegar, ketchup, and remaining 1 1/2 Tbsp brown sugar. Cook until sugar has dissolved, about 2 minutes; set aside.
5. Using forks or your hands pull meat into shreds, disguarding excess fat, and place in bowl. Stir in sauce. Place on buns and enjoy!!!

Orange Apricot Pork Chops

6 pork chops
1 cup apricot jam
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon cloves
1 (11-ounce) can mandarin oranges (and juice!)

The Directions.Use a 4-6 quart crockpot. Put pork chops into your crockpot. In a small bowl, combine jam, brown sugar, and spices. Spoon over pork chops. Add the entire can of mandarin oranges evenly over the top. Cover and cook on low for about 8 hours, or on high for about 4. Serve with rice to soak up the yummy juice.

Crock Pot Chicken Tortilla Soup

1 can black beans, drained
1 can corn, drained
1 can diced tomatoes (southwest style, if possible I used petite diced tomatoes w/ sweet onion)
1 packet enchilada sauce mix (or if you can't find this, mild taco seasoning works well too, this is what I used)
1 1/2 C water
1 can tomato sauce
1 can cream of chicken soup
2 C milk
3-4 boneless chicken breasts (I only used 2 chicken breasts)

In crock pot, mix the enchilada packet together with the water and tomato sauce. Add cream of chicken soup and milk and whisk together until smooth. Add chicken. Pour drained black beans, drained corn and diced tomatoes on top of that.Cook on low 6-8 hours.Before serving, take out chicken and shred or dice, then put back and stir it all together.

Serve with sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese, lime, avocado, or tortilla chips.

Crockpot Sweet Potatoes

6 medium (2 pounds) sweet potatoes or yams, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 1/2 cups applesauce
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
3 tablespoons butter or margarine, melted
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 cup chopped nuts, toasted

1.Place sweet potatoes in 2- to 3 1/2-quart slow cooker. Mix remaining ingredients except nuts; spoon over potatoes.
2. Cover and cook on low heat setting 6 to 8 hours or until potatoes are very tender.
3. Sprinkle with nuts.

White Chilli

This is yummy and easy! It is one of my favorites!

Saute:
1 lg onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tb olive oil

4 cups cooked chicken, diced
4 cans (15 oz) white kidney beans or canolini beans, rinsed and drained
1 can garbanzo beans
2 cans chicken broth
1 can chopped green chillies
2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Add all other ingredients to saute mixture. Cook on low in crockpot for 7 hrs and high for last hr.
Serve with monteray jack cheese and tortilla chips. Sprinkle with fresh cilantro.

Chicken Soup with Spinach and Wild Rice

WHAT YOU NEED:

• 3 cup water
• 14 floz low sodium chicken broth
• 10 3/4 floz Soup, cream of chicken, condensed, canned
• 2/3 cup wild rice , rinsed and drained
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 3 cup cooked chicken breast, diced (or turkey)
• 2 cup fresh chopped spinach , shredded

WHAT YOU DO:

• In a 3 1/2 or 4 quart slow cooker combine water, chicken broth, chicken soup, wild rice, thyme and pepper.
• Cover and cook on low heat setting for 7 to 8 hours or on high heat setting for 3 1/2 to 4 hours.
• Just before serving, stir in chicken and spinach. Enjoy! (MAKES 6 SERVINGS)

Hawaiian Chicken

Hawaiian Chicken (can be done in the crockpot as well)

Chicken breasts (4-6)
mix well:
1 1/2 c salad dressing (the kind that is like mayo)
1 pkg. Lipton Onion Soup Mix
1 c. apricot jam (preserves)
1/2 c. chili sauce

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Pour 1/2 mixture over chicken & cook 45 minutes. Turn chicken over & add rest of mixture. Cook another 20-30 minutes (depending on how runny sauce is). Add pineapple chunks for last 10 minutes. Serve over rice.

For crockpot: Just pour all the sauce in with the chicken. Add pineapple chunks for last 30 minutes. Serve over rice.

So easy & yummy!!

Slow-Cooker Enchiladas

1 pd. ground beef
1 c. chopped onion
1/2 c. chopped green pepper
1 can (16 oz.) pinto or kidney beans, rinsed & drained
1 can (15 oz.) black beans, rinsed & drained
1 can (10 oz.) diced tomatoes & green chilies, undrained
1/3 c. water
1 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 c. shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 c. shredded Monterey Jack cheese
6 flour tortillas (6 or 7 in.)

In a skillet, cook beef, onion and green pepper until beef is browned and vegetables are tender;drain. Add the next eight ingredients; bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer for 10 minutes. Combine cheeses. In a 5-qt. slow cooker, layer about 3/4 c. beef mixture, one tortilla and about 1/3 c. cheese. Repeat layers. Cover and cook on low for 5-7 hours or until heated through. Yield: 4 servings.