Crockpotting

Is that a word? Like Facebooking, only about food. Blogging is another new verb, but one close to my heart. My dad said I should take my blog and publish a book. You find me a publisher and an agent and I am there. The frustrated writer in me would love it. But, again, I digress.

We have reduced our evenings out of the house to two. That is such a huge improvement over last year. Four days almost killed me. The kids would drag; I would drag. The days we didn't have to go anywhere were treasured and cherished. The longer we could stay in our pajamas was one more minute we were in heaven. The crockpot has been fantastic.

It has been interesting to say the least. I can definitely say I am out of my cooking rut. It seemed like we always had the same things over and over and over. It seemed like it because we were. We were all bored with dinner and every chance to go out was taken. We have had some really good things and some I will never make this again dishes. I have realized that a stew recipe is a stew recipe and there isn't much difference. I also do not like Lipton Soup Mixes of any kind in a crockpot. Live and learn.

I have a couple of different web sites that I go to for recipes. One is Crockpot365.blogspot.com. It is awesome. A woman crockpotted every day for a year. She has her recipes listed by type, what went right and wrong, what she would change, and a picture of all the ingedients. She was even on GMA this morning promoting the cookbook that she wrote. She has gluten free and vegetarian recipes. I have been looking at some of the vegetarian recipes and trying to decide which ones I want to try and which ones I think my family will eat.

You can also go to About.com. On their search feature type in crockpot or recipes. My friend sent me the link, but I'll be darned if I can remember it now. I also use that website for some of our homeschooling subjects to supplement info. It's pretty good and has a huge list of recipes. I'm going to try the one for crockpot tamales. I love tamales, and this recipe is super simple.

The couple of recipes I want to share are BBQ chicken and Taco Soup. The BBQ chicken is easy, easy, easy. I didn't use a recipe for this one, I just adapted the one I already use. Normally, I make my chicken in a pan on the stove. I took the basic principles and made it crockpot friendly.
You take chicken pieces, any that you like, and put them in a greased or oiled crockpot. Add one bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce. Fill the sauce bottle about 1/3 - 1/2 to the top with water and put the lid back on. Shake, and pour over the chicken. Set on low for 8-9 hours, or high for 5-6. The water keeps the sauce from getting super sticky. You can add veggies if you like them covered in BBQ sauce. You can use any pieces of chicken that you like. I used breasts because that's what I had. You could just as easily use a whole, cut up chicken. It was fall off the bone (literally) delicious. I would suggest you either use fresh or thawed completely chicken. If you use frozen, it adds too much water as the chicken thaws and leaves your sauce very runny. You could just as well use a pork loin and do pulled pork. Or any type of beef if that's what you prefer.

The Taco Soup looks funky, but tastes really good. It got eaten for three days at my house and there was none left. Here's what you do and what you need:

1 lb ground beef, cooked
1 16oz can corn
1 16oz can diced tomatoes
1 large can chili/red beans
1 8oz can tomato sauce
1 packet taco seasoning
1 lb Velveeta, cubed

Dump contents of cans into crockpot. Add beef, cheese, and taco seasoning.Cook on low for 3-4 hours or until cheese melts. Add half a can of water if too thick. Serve with tortilla chips or cornbread. DO NOT cook on high. The cheese will seperate. This can be done in as little as an hour.

I left out the beans. I don't like them and neither does anyone in my family. It was very thick and reminded me more of dip than soup, but it was super-d-delicious. Everybody loved it. I served it with Fritos and warmed, flour tortillas. As is, it would make a great dip for a large party. I used extra beef because my container holds more than 1 lb. I would say cook this on a day that you won't be gone more than a couple of hours because it does cook quick.

I have started stocking some things in my pantry and freezer. Diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, and cream soups being the leaders. They come in very handy. If you have a recipe that calls for whole tomatoes, or stewed, or whatever and you don't have it, substitute the diced. I have started making my own chicken broth as well. It adds more flavor than a canned or boxed kind and I control the ingredients. That is huge since the US will soon be importing chickens from China, but that's my other blog.

I'll post some more about the wonders of the crockpot. I use it three days a week and have gotten better at following our menu. The kids look at the menu now instead of asking 14 times what's for dinner. They have gotten adventurous with dinner as well. They look, take a bite, and usually like it. On the nights we don't like it, cereal or sandwiches are a great substitute. I hope some of this helps my fellow busy families. Enjoy every bite. If you have recipes to share, please do. I'm always looking for good ones.

Have a great day!