Slow Cooker BBQ Chicken Sandwiches

After this week I think we all could use a little comfort food. I don't really have much to say about what happened in Boston because it makes no sense to me at all. I will just try to provide some comfort through food instead. I always go to my slow cooker when I want something warm, simple, and delicious. I am sharing this recipe from Taste of Home for BBQ Chicken Sliders.


I cut this recipe in half.


This recipe has you brine the chicken first, which I have never done before. Here is what you need for the brine. Liquid smoke, thyme, water, salt, brown sugar and some garlic.


Mix it all together and stir to dissolve the salt and sugar.


Reserve some brine for later, put a lid on it and get it in the fridge.


Pour the brine over the chicken in a resealable bag. Put it in the fridge for about 18-24 hours.


When you are ready to put everything in the crock pot grab your reserved brine and your liquid smoke and add it with the chicken. Discard the brine the chicken was in. Put the crock pot on low for 3-4 hours.


Pull your chicken out, it should be falling apart at this point. I tasted the chicken and it was full of flavor even before adding the sauce.


Grab some buns and your favorite BBQ sauce.


Shred the chicken and get it back in the crock pot.


Stir in the sauce and let it heat through, about 20 minutes on high. While it heated I just made a quick side of some peas with salt and olive oil.


This is a great and easy comfort food dish that really has a lot of flavor. I will make this one again for sure, hopefully during a less crazy week.

Crock Pot Pork Roast with Sauerkraut

Tom and I have been trying to eat more of what we have in our fridge and freezer and buy less groceries every week. I was digging around and found a pork roast and some leftover sauerkraut and came up with a dinner plan that took about 5 minutes to prep.


All you need is a crock pot, preferably a cute one with owls on it, a pork roast, sliced onion, sauerkraut, and whatever meat seasoning you prefer. One thing I have been doing since I heard Michael Symon talk about it is seasoning the meat the night before cooking. I did that with a seasoning blend and I really think it makes a difference in the final flavor of the meat.


Layer in the onions, if you want you can also add some potatoes in.


Put the roast on top of the onions.


Top all of that with the sauerkraut and pop it on low for 8-10 hours.


I sauteed up some broccoli to go on the side and dinner was ready with no fuss and hardly any dishes to do!

I hope you all have a great week!!

Crock Pot Baby Back Ribs

I have made these ribs a couple of times and I cannot tell you how easy they are. This is not a single portion meal but that is just because I love the leftovers too. Preheat your oven to 400 and lets get started.


You just need the ribs, some grill seasoning, salt and whatever sauce you like. I love Sweet Baby Ray's sauce.


Rub the meat with your grill seasoning and salt.


Put it on some nonstick foil and get it in the oven. Let it cook for about 20 minutes, then give it a flip and leave it in for another 20 minutes.


Let the rack rest for about 5-10 minutes and then we make the cuts!


Chop it into individual servings.


Get the ribs in the crock pot and drown in the sauce. Pop on the lid and put it on low for about 6-8 hours.


I served them up with some couscous salad which didn't turn out that great, but the ribs were DELICIOUS! I hope you give them a try and that you like them as much as I do.

Slow Cooker Chili Mac

This recipe comes from the book, Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Recipes for Two. I got the most adorable new slow cooker...


Isn't it awesome? It was an exclusive at my local Fry's grocery store. I didn't have one in this size so I snatched it up.


This is comfort food without a ton of guilt.


You need some ground turkey or chicken, corn, pasta, onion, olive, chili powder, cumin, tomatoes, garlic and some cheese.


Mince up the garlic.

]
Chop up the onion and we are ready to cook!


Get the onion and garlic in a pan and cook until its softened.


Add in the chicken and brown it.


Spray the inside of your crockpot with non stick cooking spray and then drop the meat and onions in the crock pot with the tomatoes, spices, salt and pepper. Give it a good stir and set the crock pot on low for 4 hours.


When the four hours are nearly done, boil some water and cook your pasta about halfway done. I am using adorable dog pasta.


Put the pasta in the crock pot with the olives and corn and give it a stir. Let it cook for another hour or so and then top it with some cheese. I told you this was easy.


This was so tasty, and perfect comfort food. I think it also tasted better because it came out of the cutest owl crock pot.

Enchilada Casserole

This is a slow cooker meal that I will be making often, it was delicious and very easy to switch up depending on what you like or have on hand.

Ingredients

3 tablespoons diced green chiles, divided
1/2 cup salsa
1/4 cup chopped green onions
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 (15-ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 (11-ounce) can corn with red and green peppers, drained
1 (10-ounce) can enchilada sauce
1/2 cup egg substitute
1 (8 1/2 ounce) package corn muffin mix
2 tablespoons chopped bottled roasted red bell peppers
1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) shredded reduced-fat Mexican blend or cheddar cheese
6 tablespoons low-fat sour cream
1 1/2 teaspoons thinly sliced fresh cilantro

Preparation

1. Place 2 tablespoons green chiles and next 6 ingredients (through enchilada sauce) in a 3 1/2-quart electric slow cooker; stir well. Cover with lid; cook on low-heat setting 4 hours.
2. Combine remaining 1 tablespoon green chiles, egg substitute, muffin mix, and roasted bell peppers in a bowl. Spoon batter evenly over bean mixture in slow cooker. Cover and cook 1 hour or until corn bread is done.
3. Sprinkle cheese over corn bread. Cover and cook 5 minutes or until cheese melts. Top each serving with sour cream; sprinkle with cilantro.


You will need some sour cream, cornbread mix, green chiles, roasted red peppers, black beans, green onion, enchilada sauce, salsa, mexicorn, eggs or egg substitute and cheese. Sounds like a winning combo already.


Drain your beans.


Set aside a tablespoon of the chiles.


Chop up your green onion.


Throw everything in except the cornbread mix, cheese, eggs, reserved chiles, peppers and sour cream.


Looking delicious already!


Say goodbye for about 4 hours, put your slow cooker on low setting.


Mix the ingredients for the cornbread.


Spread it over the top, this is a little tricky but it doesn't have to be absolutely perfect.


Say goodbye again for about 20 minutes, then you want to sprinkle the cheese over the top and cover for a few minutes. I was so excited to try this that I forgot this step!


I managed to get the cheese on before serving with a nice dollop of sour cream on top. This was SO tasty, I cannot wait to make it again. You can add chicken, pork, beef, whatever else you may like to change it up.

Slow Cooker Greek Chicken

I love using my slow cooker as often as I can and finding a cook book that is specifically geared toward meals for 2 was very excited. This recipe comes from Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Recipes For Two.

Cooker: 1 1/2 - 3 quart
Cook: LOW 6-8 hours; cheese added last 15 minutes

One 3oz block feta cheese
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 bone-in chicken legs with thighs skinned
1 medium-size yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, minced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/2 of a 14.5oz can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 Tbsp tomato paste
Pinch of Greek oregano

Heat the olive oil in a medium-size skillet and brown the chicken on both sides. While the chicken is browning, spray the inside of the crock with nonstick cooking spray and lay the onion and garlic in the bottom. Place the browned chicken on top, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and add the tomatoes in juice, tomato paste, and oregano. Cover and cook on LOW 6-8 hours, until the chicken is tender and cooked through.
Remove the feta from the water, cut in slices, and arrange the slices over the top of the chicken. Cover and cook for 15 minutes to melt the cheese. Serve immediately.




To get started you will need your chicken, tomato paste, diced tomatoes, onion, garlic, pepper and oregano.




Remove the skin from the chicken.




Heat some oil in a pan.




Brown the chicken on both sides.




While it is browning, chop up your garlic and slice the onions. I normally don't like to start cooking until the prep is done, but in this case the meal is so easy I am not worried about timing.




Layer the onions and garlic in a greased crockpot.




When the chicken is browned put it on top of the onion and garlic.




Add the tomatoes, paste and seasoning and pop the lid on. Let it cook on low for 6-8 hours. Get ready for your house to smell really good while this cooks.




About 15 minutes before you are ready to eat, open the crock pot and layer on the feta cheese.



Put the lid back on and make a quick side dish. I just cooked up some frozen veggies with a little salt and butter.




The chicken was juicy and tender and tasted great with the veggies that had been cooking along with it. I will be making a lot more dishes from this great cookbook for 2 or just 1.