Slow Cooker Recipes

      Slow Cooker Recipe Exchange

   March 7, 2013

 

This year is named the year of the slow cooker by Kim Reagan because of the ward attendance hours.  We all want to come home to a ready cooked meal!  The slow cooker recipe exchange was a great success.  We had a great turn out and the best selection of slow cooked dishes!

Vickie Burke gave a small talk on avoiding foods with trans fats or partially hydrogenated oils.  She spoke of the damaging effects on the brain from consuming this type of fat; brain deterioration that could eventually contribute to dementia or Alzheimer’s.  Vickie spoke of her personal experience with brain deterioration and was inspired through prayer to make a change.  Trans fats have also been known to cause high blood pressure, artery blockage, and stroke.  Good news is that you can stop the damages by avoiding trans-fat foods now!

Slow Cooker Bread

Made by Cat Martin

Cat is known for her gourmet cooking, just ask any missionary. She is also very experimental.  She compiled and experimented with several recipes to present us with this fabulous French bread.  Oh right! Cat also does not own a microwave!  I think that every meal at the Martin’s is made with love.

Coming soon…

Fruity Salad

Made by Amy Noble

Just a quick salad made with any fruit in your refrigerator!

Dressing:

1 part vinegar

1 part honey

2 parts olive oil

1 Tbsp any Italian dressing

(Use dressing as you desire)

Salad:

Mix Greens

Strawberries diced

Navel orange deveined and diced

Fuji apples diced and covered with some lemon juice

Candied pecans-Heat up 1/2 cup sugar with 1-2  Tbsp of water, then add 2 cups of chopped

Pecans, stir until covered

 Veggie Lasagna

Made by Kim Reagan

Is there anything that Kim cannot do?  She does it again with this great recipe.  She has also provided some valuable information on converting any recipe to slow cooker recipe!  (Please see bottom of post)

2 small zucchini, thinly sliced

1 8 oz pkg sliced mushrooms

1 sweet red pepper, seeded and diced

1 15 oz container ricotta cheese

1 8oz pkg shredded mozzarella or Italian blend cheese

1/4 C packed parsley leaves, chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 26 oz jar roasted garlic pasta sauce

8 traditional lasagna noodles (uncooked), broken in half

1/4 C grated Parmesan cheese

1.  Coat slow cooker with nonstick cooking spray

2.  Combine zucchini, mushrooms and red pepper in one bowl and ricotta, 1C shredded cheese, parsley, garlic and black pepper in another.

3.  Spread 1/2 C pasta sauce over bottom of slow cooker.   Top with 2 noodles (4 halves), overlapping as needed.  Blend 3/4C pasta sauce with 1/2C water and set aside.  Stir remaining sauce and 2T parmesan cheese into zucchini mixture.  Layer half of the zucchini mixture over the noodles.  Top with 2 more noodles (4 halves).  Spread ricotta cheese mixture and top with 2 more noodles.  Finish layering with remaining zucchini mixture and remaining 2 noodles.  Spread with reserved sauce-water mixture

4.  Cover and cook on HIGH for 4.5 hours or LOW for 6.5 hours, adding remaining 1C of shredded cheese and 2 T grated Parmesan for the last 10 minutes.  Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Swiss Beef Birds

Made by Vickie Burke

Everything Vickie makes is with love. So tender and delicious!  I love uniqueness of the dill pickle flavor! Vickie also suggests visiting the Six Sisters Stuff website for more great slow cooker recipes.  http://sixsistersstuff.com/

Ingredients:

1 1/2 to 2 pounds round steak, about 1/2-inch thick

2 medium carrots, cut into thin sticks

1 large dill pickle, cut into 6 sticks

2 tablespoons four

1 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 can (8 ounces) tomato sauce

1/4 cup chopped onion

2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley, optional

Preparation:

With meat mallet, pound steak to 1/4-inch thick; cut into 6 serving portions. Place several carrot sticks and one pickle stick on each piece of meat. Beginning at narrow end, roll beef up, securing with toothpicks or skewers. Mix flour with salt, pepper and garlic powder; coat the beef rolls, reserving remaining flour mixture. In large skillet, brown meat rolls in hot oil. Place browned meat in slow cooker. Mix tomato sauce with reserved flour; stir in chopped onion. Pour over meat. Cover and simmer on LOW for 7 to 9 hours or until beef rolls are tender. Sprinkle with parsley, if desired.
Serves 6.

Last Minute Pork Roast

Made by Jeanette Silva

Sister Silva threw this delicious roast pork in the slow cooker at the last minute in the morning before rushing out the door!  She is actually not sure what temperature (probably low) because after the linger longer the burner part of her slow cooker was accidentally switch with one with a broken temperature knob!

5 lb pork butt roast

Worstershire sause

Salt

Black pepper

A little barbeque sause

Man-Pleasing Chicken Thigh

Made by Sarah Latchaw

Definitely a women pleasing recipe as well! And  with just a few ingredients.  Sarah tells of when she had baby Jackson, a friend had made this for her and her family.  She so pleased and grateful of this meal and that was inspired to share it with everyone.

1.5 lb package of chicken thighs

1/2 cup Dijon mustard

¼ cup maple syrup

1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar

Preheat your oven to 450ºF. Then, mix together dijon mustard,  maple syrup, and rice wine vinegar. 

Put a 1.5 pound package of chicken thighs into a foil-lined, oven-proof baking dish.Then, salt and pepper the thighs. Pour your maple mustard mixture over them, turning the thighs in the mixture so they are fully coated. 

Put the chicken thighs into the oven, and let them bake for 40 minutes or until a meat thermometer reads 165ºF. 

Baste the tops of the chicken with more sauce half way through

Let the chicken rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Plate the chicken, making sure to spoon some extra sauce over the top. Sprinkle over some fresh rosemary.

New Potato, Ham, and Beans

Made by Ginger Heaton

This well balanced southern dish could be a meal or served as a side dish.  It is satisfying and refreshing!  And typically we have these ingredients in the freezer or cabinet, so it makes it super convenient.  Serve it with some sweet southern corn bread, Yum!

8 red potatoes, scrubbed and halved
1 (16 ounce) package frozen green beans (or fresh)
1 large onion, cut into about eight wedges
2 cups ham, cut into bite sized pieces
1 -2 can vegetable broth or 1 -2 can chicken broth
salt and pepper

Directions:

I cook this in a crockpot all day, but may be cooked in a dutch oven on the stove, also.

Add all the ingredients and cover, cook on low for 8 to 10 hours.

If cooking on the stove you may need more broth, but the crockpot makes broth as it

cooks, so you shouldn't need any more.

Use your own judgement on the amount of broth.

Serve with fresh, sliced tomatoes and corn bread for a great Southern meal.

French Vegetable Ratatouille

Made by Maeve Lynch

Such a healthy blend of vegetables lightly seasoned, so we can taste the natural flavor of the vegetable!  How refreshing!  Maeve said that she was meant to make this dish because when she went to the store, all the vegetable in this dish was on sale.  How much better can that get! 

This vegetable medley, known as ratatouille, has long been a favorite in southern Grance, especially during the summer harvest  season.  Create a one-dish meal by serving ragout over cooked pasta.  Sprinkle with grated Romano cheese, and accompany with French Bread.

1 small eggplant (1 pound) peeled and cut into ½ inch cubes (about 5 cups)

4 medium tomatoes, cut into fourths

1 medium zucchini, sliced

1 medium green bell pepper, cut into strips

1 medium onion, sliced

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

¼ cup chopped fresh parsley

2 tablespoons olive or vegetable oil

1 tsp salt

1 tsp dried basit leaves

¼ teaspoon pepper

1.        Mix all ingredients in 3 ½ to 6 quart slow cooker

2.      Cover and cook on low heat setting 6 to 8 hours or until vegetables are tender.

Molten Chocolate Lava Crock Pot Cake Recipe 

Made by Neicy Frandsen

What better way to finish our meal, than with this delicious, rich, satisfying, gooey,  choc lately (should I go on?) dessert?  Neicy says that she was originally going to use a cake mix until she was persuaded by Vickie to make it from scratch; and it wasn’t as hard or time consuming as she thought.

1 cup all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

6 tablespoons butter

2 ounces chocolate (or 1/3 cup chocolate chips)

1 cup sugar (2/3 cup & 1/3 cup, added separately)

3 tablespoons plus 1/3 cup Dutch-processed cocoa

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup milk

1 egg yolk

1/3 cup brown sugar

11/2 cups hot water

Coat the inside of a 2.5 to 5 quart crock with cooking spray.  Mix the flour and baking powder in a medium bowl and set aside.  In a large bowl, melt the chocolate and butter in the microwave. Mix well. Stir in the 2/3 cup of white sugar, 3 tablespoons of cocoa, vanilla extract, salt, milk, and egg yolk. Add the flour mixture and stir until well combined. Spread the batter in the slow cooker.

Now mix the remaining white sugar, the brown sugar, cocoa, and hot water until the sugar is dissolved. I just stuck the sugar and water in the microwave for a minute or two and then added the cocoa. I used the same bowl from earlier. Less dishes :)  Pour the water mixture over your batter in the crock pot.

Cook on high for 1-2 hours. You will know when the cake is done because it will be pulling away from the edges and it will look mostly set (cooked). It will still be floating on its chocolate sauce. When you check the cake try not to let the moisture from the lid drip on it.  Serve with ice cream or whipped topping.

Convert Your Favorites

You can adapt many conventional recipes for the slow cooker. Any oven or stovetop recipe that has some moisture in it--whether from water, broth, wine, sauce, or canned soup--should work beautifully in your favorite appliance. Just keep these things in mind:

• Cut all liquid amounts in half when adjusting for the slow cooker.
• The low heat setting is approximately 200 degrees F (95 degrees C) and high heat is about 300 degrees F (150 degrees C). 
• For every hour you'd cook something in the oven or on the stove, allow 8 hours on low or 4 hours on high. (When in doubt, turn it on low and leave it all day or overnight.)

Meat Matters

While you can cook just about any kind of meat in the slow cooker, some are better candidates than others. Chicken on the bone and cheaper, tougher cuts of beef, pork, and lamb turn succulent and fork-tender under the gentle, moist heat of the slow cooker.

Hint: for maximum flavor and a more appetizing color in the finished product, remove skin from poultry and trim visible fat from all meats, then coat meat lightly in flour and brown in a hot skillet before adding to slow cooker.

The Finishing Touches

As your dish nears the end of its cooking time, it's time to add the finishing touches.

• If there seems to be too much liquid, remove the lid and turn the pot up to high, allowing some of the water to cook out.
• If you'd like to thicken or enrich the sauce, now is the time to stir in cream, sour cream, shredded cheese, or a slurry of cornstarch and cool liquid.
• Brighten up the flavors with salt and pepper, lemon juice, or vinegar, and maybe a handful of fresh chopped parsley, basil, or cilantro.