Cashew Chicken in the Crockpot

 A nice quick and easy meal. 

Slow Cooker Cashew Chicken

Ingredients:

2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thigh tenders or chicken breast tenders*

1/4 cup soy sauce
2 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
2 Tbsp ketchup
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1 garlic clove, minced
1/2 tsp grated fresh ginger
1/4 tsp red pepper flakes
1/2 cup cashews
Directions:
Place chicken in slow cooker. Combine soy sauce, vinegar, ketchup, sugar, garlic, ginger, and pepper flakes in small bowl; pour over chicken. Cook on LOW for 3 to 4 hours. Add cashews and stir. Serve over rice. Makes 4-6 servings.
If you want like sauce and want to have some to pour over the chicken and the rice, double the sauce ingredients.
http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2011/10/slow-cooker-cashew-chicken.html

Crockpot chicken chili

Fall is here and that means cooler temperatures and a busy schedule for me (its soccer coaching season).  So I try to use my crockpot more often.  This was an easy meal that i found online and had my husband throw together.  It was delicious.  We talked about trying to reduce the amount of cream cheese next time to make it a little healthier. 

Recipe

1 can black beans
1 can corn, undrained
1 can Rotel, undrained
1 package ranch dressing mix
1 tsp cumin
1 Tbsp chili powder
1 tsp onion powder
1 8 oz package light cream cheese
2 chicken breasts

Drain and rinse black beans. Place chicken at bottom of pot, then pour out whole can of corn (undrained), rotel, and black beans. Top with seasonings and ranch mix. Stir together. Place cream cheese on top. Cover with lid and cook on low for 6-8 hours. Stir cream cheese into chili. Use 2 forks to shred chicken. Stir together and serve.

Crockpot Lemon Chicken

During soccer season I work in the mornings and have soccer in the afternoon or evenings.  Which means no time to cook a good dinner.  I try to freeze some meals but didn't do that much this year.  So crockpot meals are a good alternative.  We made this one and it turned out good.  I served it over rice and with some broccolli.  Much better then gross quick meals my kids have been eating lately.


Recipe:

1 lb chicken breasts
1 packet Italian dressing mix
2 Tbsp butter
1/4 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup chicken stock
egg noodles or rice

Place chicken breasts, Italian dressing mix, butter, lemon juice & chicken broth in the crockpot. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. When finished cooking, shred chicken with 2 forks. Serve chicken over egg noodles or rice and top with juices from crockpot.

Slow Cooker Beef Stew

Here is a quick easy beef stew recipe. Its nice to have hot stew on a cold day. And nice warm homemade bread :)

I love using my crockpot. With physical therapy, I am not home all of the time so its nice to put food in and go. And its always nice to not be preparing dinner all day with 2 young kids.

You can add whatever vegetables you want in here. Next time I will add some more.

Ingredients:
2 pounds beef stew meat, cut into 1 inch cubes
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
1 bay leaf

1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1 onion, chopped
1 1/2 cups beef broth
3 potatoes, diced
4 carrots, sliced
1 stalk celery, chopped
Directions:
1. Place meat in slow cooker. In a small bowl mix together the flour, salt, and pepper; pour over meat, and stir to coat meat with flour mixture. Stir in the garlic, bay leaf, paprika, Worcestershire sauce, onion, beef broth, potatoes, carrots, and celery.
2. Cover, and cook on Low setting for 10 to 12 hours, or on High setting for 4 to 6 hours.

http://allrecipes.com/recipe/slow-cooker-beef-stew-i/

Chicken Stuffing in the Crockpot

I made homemade stuffing for the first time last week. It turned out pretty good. I love using the crockpot... esp during soccer season when I am so busy.
Ingredients:
5 skinless, boneless chicken breast
halves
1 (9x9 inch) pan cornbread, cooled and
crumbled
8 slices day-old bread, torn into small
pieces
4 eggs, beaten
1 onion, chopped

1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
2 teaspoons dried sage
2 (14.5 ounce) cans chicken broth
2 (10.75 ounce) cans condensed cream
of chicken soup
2 tablespoons margarine
Directions:
1. Place chicken in a pot with water to cover, and bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil 20 minutes, or until cooked through. Cool, and cut into pieces.
2. In a slow cooker, stir together chicken, cornbread, bread, eggs, onion, salt, pepper, sage, chicken broth, and chicken soup. Stir until well blended. Dot with margarine.
3. Cover, and cook on Low for 3 to 4 hours. Remove lid, and fluff with fork. Let rest 15 minutes before serving.

recipe from allrecipes.com

Crockpot Chicken and Dumplings

It is a super cold day here...man I miss Florida. This recipe hit the spot. I just got back from our vacation and have lots of unpacking to do. This is an easy one. And did I mention it is freezing. This is definitely comfort food.

Ingredients

* 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
* 2 tablespoons butter
* 2 (10.75 ounce) cans condensed cream of chicken soup
* 1 onion, finely diced
* 1 (10 ounce) packages refrigerated biscuit dough, torn into pieces

Directions

1. Place the chicken, butter, soup, and onion in a slow cooker, and fill with enough water to cover.
2. Cover, and cook for 5 to 6 hours on High. About 30 minutes before serving, place the torn biscuit dough in the slow cooker. Cook until the dough is no longer raw in the center.

I got the recipe from all recipes. I add some garlic and other seasonings. Sometimes I add some veggies too.

Chocolate Pudding Crock Pot Cake

This is a great cake served warm with whipped cream or ice cream.

Ingredients:

* 1 pkg. two layer chocolate cake mix
* 3 oz. pkg. instant chocolate pudding mix
* 4 eggs
* 1 cup water
* 2 cups sour cream
* 3/4 cup vegetable oil
* 3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
* 1/4 cup milk chocolate chips

Preparation:
Spray a 4 quart crockpot with non-stick cooking spray and set aside. In a large bowl, combine the cake mix and pudding mix. In a medium bowl, beat the eggs with the water, then add the sour cream and oil and beat until smooth. Add to the dry ingredients and beat well. Stir in the chocolate chips.

Pour into crockpot. Cover slow cooker and cook on low for 6-8 hours, until top springs back when touched very lightly with finger. 8-10 servings

Crockpot Dump Cake

On Labor Day we had 2 cakes...both made in the crockpot. One was a chocolate cake that I will post later. One was this one. Both are delicious. Feel free to try with other types of pie fillings.

Crockpot Cherry Dump Cake

1 (21 oz) can cherry pie filling
1 package yellow or white cake mix
8 tablespoons butter, cut up


Rub the slow cooker generously with some of the butter. Place pie filling in the slow cooker. Mix dry cake mix and remaining butter until crumbly, sprinkle over filling. Cover and cook on low for 2 – 3 hours. Serve warm in bowls.

Serve with ice cream or whipped cream.

Italain Crockpot Chicken

I found this recipe on a scrapbooking message board a few years ago. This is one of Mike's favorite meals. He likes the sauce that it makes. It is creamy but not heavy like alfredo. (Although it is not any healthier then alfredo). Hayden also eats it so we keep it on rotation (every other month or 2 months).

Recipe:
4-5 pieces of chicken breasts
1 bottle of Italian dressing
8 oz cream cheese
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 tsp basil
1/2 tsp thyme

cook chicken in crockpot with italian dressing on low until done (approx 5 hours). When it is is finished drain most of the liquid and shred the chicken.
Add the rest of the ingredients, stir. Cook on low 1 more hour.
Serve with pasta or rice.

We enjoy it with rice. Sometimes I make broccoli with it also.

Crockpot Chicken Tacos

I love using my crockpot. Sometimes with work, soccer, and Hayden, it is just so nice to not have to "cook".

This recipe is the easiest recipe ever and very yummy. It was a hit on our family beach vacation. And Hayden devoured it last week. (He didn't like in a tortilla though, just plain)

Recipe:
For every 1 lb of chicken breast
use 1 cup of chicken broth
3 tbsp taco seasoning

Cook low in crockpot 6-8 hours.

The chicken will shred if you just touch it with a fork. It is so tender and juicy.
Use it to fill tacos with your favorite fixings, make nachos, use for enchiladas, or taco salad.

P.S. I didn't find a picture of this recipe on line. I don't really plan on taking my own pictures of meals. Hayden barely lets me cook let alone take pictures of a meal. He is too busy climbing up on the kitchen table, trying to get into the fridge, or open the oven.