Leftover Turkey Chili

Do you have a lot of leftover Turkey to use up?! I found a chili recipe on the CrockPotGuys Facebook page that turned out to be awesome!

Ingredients:
About 2 coups of shredded Turkey
1 medium Onion
3 Garlic Cloves (finedly chopped)
1 Yellow Pepper (the store was out of red peppers)
32 oz Stewed Tomatoes
1 15oz can Pinto Beans (drained)
1 15oz can Black Beans (drained)
1 small can Tomato Paste
1/2 cup Chicken Broth
1 tablespoon Chili Powder
1/2 tablespoon Ground Cumin
1/2 teaspoon Ground Red Pepper
1 teaspoon Oregano
1 teaspoon Salt
1 teaspoon Pepper
1/2 teaspoon Sugar

 This is so simple to make.. All you need to do is chop everything up and mix it all together.

Before you leave for work set your slow cooker on low for 8 hours.  I also let it sit on warm for 2 more hours.

It was so nice coming home to such a great smelling house!  I topped it with some cheese and crumbled some Ritz crackers in it.

It was delicious!! I can't wait till I have more Turkey leftovers to "get rid of"!! :)

Chicken and Eggplant Parmesan

I've been exploring my new obsession with Eggplant for a while now.  This recipe was the best Eggplant meal by far!! I can't wait to make it for a dinner party...

Ingredients:
1 lb Boneless Chicken
1 cup Breadcrumbs
Salt and Pepper
2 Eggs
1/2 cup Olive Oil
1 large Eggplant
2 Zucchini's
8 oz Sliced Mushrooms
1 1/2 cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
29 oz can Tomato Sauce
2 cups Mozzarella Cheese

I didn't end up using the Onion or the Butter

You want to begin by battering and frying the chicken.  While you are waiting for the olive oil to heat up you can break both of the eggs and beat them in a bowl and mix the breadcrumbs with about a teaspoon of salt and pepper.  Dip both sides of the chicken in the eggs and then the breadcrumbs and place them in the frying pan.  Cook both sides until they are golden brown.  I didn't worry about the center being cooked because they would be cooking all day in the slow cooker.

After these were finished I took them out and put them on paper towels to try to soak up the extra oil.  Then you can begin your layering.  First make sure to spray your slow cooker with lots of Pam!  Cover the bottom of the Crock with half of the sliced eggplant, zucchini and mushrooms.  Then cover it all with 3/4 cup of parmesan cheese.

Try to cover all of the parmesan cheese with half of the can of tomato sauce.  (This would have been a good time to sprinkle on some Basil if I would have remembered)  Now you can add all of the chicken evenly on top of the sauce.

Repeat the first layer again.

Before I left for work I set this in the slow cooker on low for 6.5 hours and then it was on warm for 3.5 hours.

Cover this with mozzarella cheese and put it in the oven on broil for about 5 minutes.

I loved everything about this meal!! I hope you all enjoy it as well! :)

Italian Sausage Soup

I found a great Italian soup recipe to go with the Italian theme. I modified the recipe though since I did not have a lot of time that morning.

Ingredients:
1lb Mild Italian Sausage
6 cups Chicken Broth
1T Tomato Paste
1 Garlic Clove, minced
1/2c Mini Pasta Shells
10oz Baby Spinach Leaves
Grated Parmesan Cheese
Salt to Taste

I realized I didn't have tomato paste. So I used tomato sauce instead and just used 2T instead of 1T. I also used cavatappi pasta instead of mini shells. My mom actually said smaller noodles would have been better to spread the pasta throughout the meal more.

It would be a light meal if you used Jennie-O Turkey Sausage. Unfortunately, my store was out of it this week.


Combine broth, tomato paste, and garlic in the slow cooker.


Slice Italian sausage

Add Italian sausage to the slow cooker

Cook on Low for 5 to 6 hours.

This is what we found after it cooked all day. It didn't look too pretty, but it tastes so good.

30 minutes before serving, add pasta to the slow cooker. When pasta is tender, clean and stir in spinach leaves.

Ladle into bowls, sprinkle with parmesan cheese and serve immediately.

This soup was sooo yummy!! It was very simple to make. It was interesting how the sausage made the broth taste so great after cooking all day.

I think it would be best served as a starter for a meal. It is not very filling to be a full meal.

The original recipe was actually for sausage meatballs. I was in a rush and didn't have time to make the meatballs and used just Italian sausage instead. It was great with just the sausage. Here is the recipe for the meatballs if you are interested in making them.

Ingredients:

1lb Mild Italian Sausage, casings removed

1/2c Dried Bread Crumbs

1/4c Grated Parmesan Cheese

1/4c Milk

1 Egg

1/2t Dried Basil

1/2t Black Pepper

1/4t Garlic Salt

Combine all of the meatball ingredients. Form into marble sized balls.

Recipe from Disney Family.com

Pork with Apples and Kraut

My family and I were looking for a recipe to use our home canned sauerkraut. This was a good German recipe. :)

Ingredients:

1.5lb Pork, trimmed of fat

1/2t Salt

1/4-1 1/2t Black Pepper, according to your taste

1/2c Water, Apple Juice, or White Wine

2 - 16oz Cans or a 2lb bag of Sauerkraut, undrained

3 Medium-sized Onions

2 - 8oz Cans of Mushrooms, drained

3 Large Apples

1/3c Brown Sugar

Place pork in slow cooker.

Slice onions in rings


Core and slice apples
Put sauerkraut, onions, mushrooms, apple wedges, and brown sugar on top of the pork in the slow cooker

Pour water, apple juice, or white wine over top

The crockpot was a little full. I had to smash it all down a little, but it fit. Haha

Cook on low 7-9 hours or on high 3-4 hours.

Remove pork and let sit for a few minutes. Then slice.

Dinner is served. I served it with some mashed potatoes. It was very yummy. The sauerkraut wasn't bitter at all, and the pork was tender.

Nutrition:

250 Calories

9g Fat

25g Carbs

5g Fiber

18g Protein

6 WW PointsPlus

Cranberry Sauce (Thanksgiving Trial #8)

There are only three more days until Thanksgiving!! I normally only like the Jellied Cranberry Sauce; however, since we are all getting into the Thanksgiving spirit I figured I would try making the Cranberry Sauce in the slow cooker.  This was so easy to make!! I was able to throw it all together and cook it in under three hours.

Ingredients:
12 oz bag of Cranberries
1/2 cup Water
1/2 cup Sugar
1/2 cup Brown Sugar (packed)
1/2 teaspoon Cinnamon
1 tablespoon Orange Zest

I had to run out and get the Orange while it was cooking

Rinse off the cranberries and check them for stems when adding them.  Then mix all of the ingredients (besides the orange zest) together in the slow cooker.

Place the cover on top and cook on high for 2.5 hours.

Take a big spoon and mash up all of the cranberries and mix in the orange zest.

Now you can just let this cool and it will be ready to serve!

It gets really thick after it has cooled to room temperature.  I tried it last night and I really liked it!  It has sooo much flavor!  It will really wake up everyones senses on Thanksgiving.  Plus it looks so much nicer than the standard cranberries that are served with the can rings around the edges. :)

Cube Steak

I decided to change things up a little bit this week. I wanted to cook some beef for a meal. It is higher in fat and calories, but it's good to not eat chicken all the time. You don't want to get bored with your diet and lose motivation.


Ingredients:
3lbs Cube Steak
1/3c Flour
2t Salt
1/2t Black Pepper
2T Canola Oil
1 Large Onion or more
1 Large Bell Pepper or more
14.5oz Can Stewed Tomatoes or 3-4 Chopped Tomatoes
Water


Pound both sides of meat. Mix together flour, salt, and pepper. Dredge each piece of meat on both sides in the flour mixture.

Saute meat in oil over medium heat on top of stove until browned.



Transfer cube steak to slow cooker.



Slice onions and bell peppers



Brown onion and pepper in pan drippings

Stir pan drippings loose. Pour over steak


Pour stewed tomatoes over steak. Add water to completely cover steak


Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours

Dinner is served. We ate the cube steak with the sweet potatoes that I posted earlier this week.

Nutrition:

333 Calories
9g Fat
1g Fiber
51g Protein
9g Carbs
8 WW PointsPlus

Recipe from Fix-It and Forget-It Lightly

Chicken and Stuffing

I've been hearing about a Chicken and Stuffing recipe for a couple weeks now and I was really excited to try it!  I had made the Stuffing in one of the Thanksgiving trials and thought I would try that.  All the recipes that I had come across were saying to use the unprepared stuffing.  I thought I would just try to make it with already prepared stuffing and see what happens.  It tasted delicious but the stuffing kind of disappeared... Next time I will try it the right way and I'm sure that it will turn out a lot different.  If you have extra stuffing after Thanksgiving this is a great way to make a new dish with it!

Ingredients:
1 lb Boneless Chicken
Around 3 cups of Stuffing
1 can Cream of Chicken Soup
1 teaspoon Poultry Seasoning
Salt and Pepper to taste

Spray the Slow Cooker with Olive Oil Pam (I'm thinking about starting to try the Crock Pot Liners...).  Then place the chicken in the bottom of the Crock.  I put it in frozen but it stayed in my fridge for a full day because of plans that came up.  Cover the chicken with the cream of chicken soup to prevent it from drying out and sprinkle it with the seasonings.

Next just spread and even layer of the stuffing on top of it and you are good to go!  I wonder how it would have turned out with a layer of mashed potatoes under the chicken... I may have to try that after the big holiday! :)

I set it on low for 5.5 hours and then it was on warm for another 4 hours.

This looks a little intimidating; however, after you mix everything together it looks a lot better!

I had a friend over for dinner and he seemed to enjoy it just as much as I did!

Sweet Potatoes with Applesauce (Thanksgiving Trial #7)

You need to have sweet potatoes on Thanksgiving. Here's a recipe for your crockpot that is a little healthier than the traditional recipe.

Ingredients: (Serves 12)

6 Medium Sweet Potatoes or yams

1.5c Applesauce

2/3c Packed Brown Sugar

3T Butter or margarine, melted

1t Ground Cinnamon

1/2c Chopped Nuts

Peel and cut potatoes into 1/2 inch cubes

Place sweet potatoes in the slow cooker

Mix remaining ingredients except nuts

Pour over the mixture over the potatoes


Cover and cook on low heat setting 6 to 8 hours
Sprinkle with nuts

This version of sweet potatoes is pretty good. It is a little different than the traditional super sweet yams, but this had a great texture and was sweet.

Nutrition:

180 Calories

5g Fat

4g Fiber

2g Protein

37g Carbs

5 WW PointsPlus

Recipe found at bettycrocker.com