Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Soup

Here's another crockpot winner, chicken dinner! I threw this together in the morning before leaving for work. It took me all of 5 minutes...the hardest part was rinising all the cans before putting them in the recycling bin!

When I got home, I shredded the chicken while Brian made some cheese quesadilas to serve as a side. Ole!

Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Soup

Ingredients
1 onion, chopped
1 (16 ounce) can chili beans
1 (15 ounce) can black beans
1 (15 ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
1 (8 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (12 fluid ounce) can or bottle beer
2 (10 ounce) cans diced tomatoes with green chilies, undrained
1 (1.25 ounce) package taco seasoning
3 whole skinless, boneless chicken breasts (Mine were still frozen and came out perfectly!)
shredded Cheddar cheese (optional)
sour cream (optional)
crushed tortilla chips (optional)

Directions
Place the onion, chili beans, black beans, corn, tomato sauce, beer, and diced tomatoes in a slow cooker. Add taco seasoning, and stir to blend. Lay chicken breasts on top of the mixture, pressing down slightly until just covered by the other ingredients. Set slow cooker for low heat, cover, and cook for 6 hours.
Remove chicken breasts from the soup, and allow to cool long enough to be handled. Stir the shredded chicken back into the soup, and continue cooking for 2 hours. Serve topped with shredded Cheddar cheese, a dollop of sour cream, and crushed tortilla chips, if desired.

Source: AllRecipes

Split Pea Soup

A perfect winter soup, filling and flavorful! We had ham for Christmas dinner, so I whipped up a batch of split pea soup to make use of the ham bone. While the picture might be the most appetizing, the soup was fantastic! It was super easy and made the house smell great as it cooked all day.

Split Pea Soup
Ingredients
1 (16-oz) package dried green split peas, rinsed
1 meaty ham bone, 2 ham hocks or 2 cups diced ham (I used the bone)
1 cup sliced baby carrots
1 cup chopped yellow onion
2 ribs celery plus leaves, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Salt and pepper to taste
6 cups chicken broth

Directions:
Layer ingredients in slow cooker in the order given, adding the broth last. Do not stir ingredients. Cover and cook on high 4—5 hours or on low 8—10 hours until peas are very soft and ham falls off the bone.

Source: Whole Foods Market

Crock Pot 3 Bean Turkey Chili

Once again, the crockpot saved dinner! I whipped this up the night before and then let it cook all day at work. I love cornbread with chili, but I was too lazy to make it once I got home from work. So, I popped a few potatoes in the oven and have chili stuffed potatoes. Yummy!
I think the leftovers got even better over the next several days as all the favors have a chance to meld.

Crock Pot 3 Bean Turkey Chili

Ingredients
1.3 lb (20 oz) ground turkey breast
1 small onion, chopped
1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 (16 oz) can tomato sauce
1 (4.5 oz) can chopped chilies, drained
1 (15 oz) can chickpeas, undrained
1 (15.5 oz) can black beans, undrained
1 (15.5 oz) can small red beans, undrained
2 tbsp chili powder

1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp Kosher salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Topping:
•1/2 cup chopped red onion
•1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro for topping
•shredded cheddar to top

Directions:
Brown turkey and onion in a medium skillet over medium high heat until cooked through.
Drain any fat remaining and transfer to crock pot. Add the beans, chilies, chickpeas tomatoes, tomato sauce and chili powder mixing well.
Cook on high 6-8 hours.
Garnish with onions, cilantro and cheese and enjoy!

Source: Gina's WW recipes

Beef Stew in the Crockpot

It's been really foggy and cold here lately. Plus, I've been way too tired to do much of anything in the kitchen after work. So, when I stumbled across this recipe on AllRecipes.com, I knew I had to try it.

I was instantly intrigued because the recipe called for no browning of the meat before adding it to the crockpot. I like to get everything ready the night before, so I can simply slip the insert into the cooker on my way out the door in the morning. There is something about doing this with 1/2 cooked meat that grossed me out. Sorry....it just does. It was easy to put together and tasted delicious. I came home to a great smelling dinner that I served with crusty bread to soak up the sauce. Delicious!

Slow Cooker Beef Stew

Ingredients
4 carrots, chopped
2 potatoes, peeled and cubed
1 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
1 onion, chopped
3 stalks celery, chopped
3 pounds cubed stew meat
1 packet dry onion soup mix
1 (10.75 ounce) can condensed golden mushroom soup (I used regular cream of mushroom)
1 3/4 cups water

Directions
1. Place the carrots, potatoes, mushrooms, onion and celery in the slow cooker. Place the stew meat over the vegetables.
2. In a medium bowl, combine the soup mix with the can of soup. Add the water and mix together well. Pour this in the slow cooker over the meat and vegetables.
3. Add water as needed so that the liquid comes just to the bottom of the meat.
4. Cook on low setting overnight, adding more water as necessary in the morning. Allow to cook all day. (I cooked mine for 8 hours on low and I thought everything came out perfect)

Creole Black Beans and Rice

I love black beans! I love my Crockpot! So, this recipe had to be tried! It was pretty good. I'm going to play with the spices a bit more next time, because I thought the flavor was a bit bland, but overall I think this is a great recipe...super easy too!

Creole-Style Black Beans in the Crockpot

Ingredients:
1 pound low-fat smoked sausage, cut into 1" slices
1-1/2 cups chopped onion
1-1/2 cups chopped green pepper
1-1/2 cups chopped celery
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons dried thyme
1-/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1-1/2 teaspoons white pepper
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
3 bay leaves
1 can (8 oz) no salt added tomato sauce
1 cup low sodium chicken broth
3 cans (15 oz) black beans, drained and rinsed or 1 bag of dried, soaked overnight

Directions:
Brown sausage in a skillet over medium heat. Drain fat and transfer to crockpot. Combine remaining ingredients with sausage in the crockpot. Cover and cook on LOW for 7 to 9 hours, or on HIGH for 3-1/2 to 4-1/2 hours. Remove bay leaves before serving. Serve with hot cooked rice. This recipe serves 8.

Pasta Fagioli Soup in a Crockpot

We had a huge rain storm last week. It was cool, rainy, and really windy. It really felt like Fall and I was craving soup. So, I made a crockpot of Pasta Fagioli soup and it was the perfect meal for a stormy night.

I found this recipe of Recipe Zaar and supposedly it's a copy-cat version of the Olive Garden's Pasta Fagioli. I've never had this soup at the Olive Garden, so I can't judge the similarity of it. However, I can vouch that it was darn good. The leftovers were even better the next day! I 1/2 the recipe, since the one listed below serves 12-14.

I prepped everything the night before and simply slipped the crock into the cooker and turned the cooker on before heading out the door. I served it with garlic bread and it was delish!

Pasta Fagioli Soup in a Crockpot

Ingredients:

2 lbs ground beef
1 onion, chopped
3 carrots, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
2 (28 ounce) cans diced tomatoes, undrained
1 (16 ounce) can red kidney beans, drained
1 (16 ounce) can white kidney beans, drained
3 (10 ounce) cans beef stock
3 teaspoons oregano
2 teaspoons pepper
6 teaspoons parsley
1 (20 ounce) jar spaghetti sauce
8 ounces pasta

Directions:
1. Brown beef in a skillet
2. Drain fat from beef and add to crock pot with everything except pasta.
4. Cook on low 7-8 hours or high 4-5 hours.
5. During last 30 minutes on high or 1 hour on low add pasta.

Slow-Cooked Italian Chicken

I love my Crockpot! I use it with pride on a regular basis. There is just something about coming home after a long day to the smell of dinner cooking! I use my crockpot year round, but I tend to use it more in the Fall and Winter time because soups and stews come out awesome when done in the crockpot.

My crockpot has a timer, so I don't have to worry about cooking our meals dry....Yes, it's happened on several occasions! I have found with the timer, if I reduce the cooking time by 1 hour or so, things come out perfectly. The timer switches to warm after the allotted time, but I think things do still cook. So, this seems to work for me!

I don't remember where I stumbled across this gem of a recipe, but it's a great one! The chicken is nicely seasoned with a tomato sauce and it's especially good over pasta. I like to serve it with a green salad and garlic bread for a complete meal.

Slow-Cooked Italian Chicken

Ingredients:
4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves (4 ounces each)
1 can (14-1/2 ounces) chicken broth
1 can (14-1/2 ounces) stewed tomatoes, cut up
1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce
1 medium green pepper, chopped
2 medium zucchini
1 green onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
3 teaspoons chili powder
1 teaspoon ground mustard
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt or garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon onion salt or onion powder
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup cold water
Hot cooked pasta
Parmesan Cheese for garnish

Directions:
Place chicken in a slow cooker. In a bowl, combine the broth, tomatoes, tomato sauce, green pepper, onion, zucchini, garlic and seasonings; pour over chicken. Cover and cook on low for 4-5 hours or until a meat thermometer reads 170°.
Remove chicken and keep warm. Pour cooking juice into a large saucepan; skim fat. Combine flour and cold water until smooth; stir into juices. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Serve over chicken and pasta. Yield: 4 servings.