Slow Cooker Buffalo Wing Sandwiches

Tom claims that I should be able to win some sort of contest with this combination. Needless to say it was a huge success. It is not kid-friendly - way too spicy! Here's the plan: slow cooker buffalo wing sandwiches with homemade ranch dressing and french fried onions.

Boneless chicken breasts
Frank's RedHot buffalo wing sauce

Put chicken in the slow cooker and cover with wing sauce. Cook on low for 3 hours or until done. Remove chicken and shred with two forks. Pour remaining sauce through a sieve to separate out any leftover chicken fat or other drippings from the sauce. Return "clean" sauce to the slow cooker along with the shredded chicken. Keep warm until time to serve.

1/2 T Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing Mix
1/2 c mayonnaise
1/4 c buttermilk
1/8 t cracked black pepper
1/16 t paprika
1/16 t garlic powder

Combine ingredients to make ranch dressing.

To make sandwiches, put the chicken on rolls, then top with extra hot sauce, ranch dressing, and French's Fried Onions. Yummy!

Pot Roast with Vegetables

I made this about a month ago for the first time. At the time, Tom was out of town, so my parents came over for dinner. My Dad proclaimed this the best pot roast he'd ever eaten. We'll see what Tom says when he tries it tonight! If he's lucky, I'll make some rosemary focaccia to go with it.

1 (3 to 4 pound) piece beef chuck roast
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 can crushed tomatoes
2 yellow onion, halved
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 bunch baby carrots
2 celery stalks, sliced
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
4 sprigs fresh thyme
2 bay leaves

Season all sides of the beef with a fair amount of salt and pepper. In a large Dutch oven or other heavy pot; heat the oil over moderately high heat. Brown the meat on all sides, taking the time to get a nice crust on the outside.

Meanwhile, pour the tomatoes in your crock pot. Add the vegetables and herbs around the sides of the pot. Once your meat is browned, transfer it to the crock pot. Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.

Crockpot BBQ Chicken

A few months ago, my friend Jessica made me dinner. It was spectacular - crockpot BBQ chicken sandwiches. When I asked her for the recipe, she said she was a little embarrassed to share it because it was so easy. Well, sorry Jessica - it was sooooo good, I have to share it with the world! I hope you don't mind! :)

This is the BBQ chicken I used on yesterday's BBQ chicken-crusted smoked macaroni and cheese.

Chicken breasts
1 bottle of BBQ sauce - choose your favorite (ours is good old Kraft Original)

Place the chicken breasts in the crockpot and cover with BBQ sauce. Turn on low for 4 hours.

VOILA!

Shred the chicken with two forks. Put the chicken on buns and make chicken sandwiches or use the chicken for some other use: macaroni and cheese, BBQ chicken pizza, BBQ chicken salad... Yummy! Thanks so much, Jessica!

Slow-Cooked Asian Chuck Roast

This was really, really good. Not too spicy, but plenty of zip!

1 (2 1/2 - 3 lbs) Boneless beef chuck roast

Flour

2 Tbsp Olive oil
1 bottle (20 oz) Wegmans Asian-style BBQ sauce
2 cups Wegmans Food You Feel Good About Thai culinary stock
2 pkgs (8 oz each) Fresh baby corns, cut to 1-inch rounds
1 pkg (16 oz) Frozen broccoli cuts, thawed
2 pkgs (16 oz each) Wegmans Asian Classics Udon noodles, thawed per package directions

Dust meat with pan-searing flour; pat off excess. Heat oil in large braising pan on MEDIUM-HIGH, until oil faintly smokes. Add meat. Brown, turning to brown all sides, 3-4 min per side. Transfer meat to slow cooker. Stir in BBQ sauce and stock.

Cook meat in slow-cooker 4-5 hours on HIGH or 7-9 hours on LOW. Remove just the meat from slow-cooker; transfer to clean platter.

Add corn, broccoli, and noodles to slow-cooker on HIGH; stir to combine. Cover; cook 5-15 min, or until vegetables are thoroughly heated. Stir before transferring to serving platter and topping with meat.

Slow Cooker Asian Chicken

I got this recipe from my mommy friend, Lisa. It was delicious. This time, I served it with plain rice. Next time around, I think I'll stir fry some carrots and baby corns to serve with the rice.

4-6 boneless, skinless chicken breasts2/3 c soy sauce1/4 c brown sugar1/4 c water2 cloves garlic, minced2 t ground ginger2 cans sliced water chestnuts1 bunch green onions, chopped

Place chicken in slow cooker. Mix together soy sauce, brown sugar, water, garlic and ginger. Spread water chestnuts and green onions over chicken and pour soy sauce mixture over the top. Cook on low for approx. 5 hours.

Slow Cooked Green Chili Pork Tacos with Fresh Corn and Olive Salsa

There's a lot of preparation that goes into this meal - at least for the salsa - but it is totally worth it. These tacos were out of this world! Definitely a new addition to the regular rotation!

Tacos
2 pork tenderloins
2 T Worcestershire sauce
1 T salt
1 t pepper
1/2 t garlic salt with parsley
3/4 can of green salsa

Place all but the salsa in the crockpot. Cook on low for 8 hours. When the meat is cooked, remove the liquid, shred the meat, and add the salsa. Cook on warm until ready to serve.

Salsa
3 ears of corn, corn removed
1/2 c sliced black olives
1/4 c fresh cilantro, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
2 T diced red onion
salt
pepper

Combine all ingredients and serve with tacos.

Avocado Mash
2 avocados
1 T lime juice

Combine and serve with tacos.

Original recipe source: http://www.picky-palate.com/

Crockpot Apricot Pork Tenderloin

This was incredibly easy to make and delicious!

1 package of Lipton Onion Soup mix
1 18-ounce jar of apricot preserves
2 pork tenderloins

Place the tenderloins in the crockpot. Combine the soup mix and preserves. Pour the mixture over the meat. Cook on low for 8 to 10 hours or on high for 4 to 6 hours.

Crock Pot Chicken Sandwiches

My friend Shannon recently made these sandwiches for us. They were spectacular, and I can't wait to make them myself!

1/2 c chicken stock
1/4 c brown sugar
1/4 c vinegar
1 T soy sauce
1/2 c ketchup
Sliced onion
Black pepper
Enough chicken to feed your family- boneless skinless breasts or thighs work best

Place chicken in crock pot. Sprinkle with pepper and top with as many onion slices as desired. Combine rest of ingredients and pour over onions. Cook on low 6 to 8 hours.

Serve on a potato roll with a slice of cheddar cheese.

Crockpot Beef-and-Bean Burritos

Served this to the Bergemans tonight. Everyone seemed to enjoy it! It was pretty easy, so this will likely go into our regular rotation. In fact, I think I'll add a new Regular Rotation label.

1 (2-pound) London broil
1 (1.25-ounce) package taco seasoning mix
Cooking spray
1 cup chopped onion
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1 (4.5-ounce) can chopped green chiles
1 (16-ounce) can fat-free refried beans
12 (8-inch) fat-free flour tortillas
1 1/2 cups (6 ounces) shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1 1/2 cups chopped plum tomato
3/4 cup fat-free sour cream

Trim fat from meat; rub seasoning mix over both sides of meat. Place meat in an electric slow cooker coated with cooking spray; add onion, vinegar, and green chiles. Cover with lid; cook on low-heat setting for 9 hours. Remove meat from slow cooker, reserving cooking liquid; shred meat with two forks. Combine meat and reserved cooking liquid; stir well.

Warm beans and tortillas according to package directions. Spread 2 tablespoons beans down the center of each tortilla. Spoon a heaping 1/3 cup meat mixture on top of beans. Top each with 2 tablespoons cheese, 2 tablespoons tomato, and 1 tablespoon sour cream; roll up.

Original source: Cooking Light

Carolina Barbecue

This is a fabulous Carolina barbecue recipe - especially if you like it spicy! Removing the fat from the meat can be tedious, but it's totally worth it. I'll post the cole slaw recipe that I serve with this momentarily. Stay tuned.

1 5-lb pork roast (butt or shoulder)
1 T salt
Ground pepper
1 1/2 c cider vinegar
2 T brown sugar
1/2 T Tabasco
2 t cayenne pepper
2 t crushed red pepper

Place pork in crock pot. Season with salt and pepper. Pour vinegar around pork. Cook on low for 8 to 10 hours.

Remove pork from crock pot. Remove bones and excess fat. Shred pork.

Strain liquid and reserve 2 cups. Toss the rest. Add sugar, Tabasco, cayenne, and red pepper to liquid. Add to meat (to your liking) and serve on sandwich rolls (I use potato rolls).

Spicy Beef Roast

This is a family favorite! I believe Jodi originally found the recipe, and it's something that appears on the dinner table many times during fall and winter!

3 lb rount tip roast
1 T peppercorn
1 1/2 t garlic
3 T balsamic vinegar
1/4 c soy sauce
2 T worchestire sauce
2 T dry mustard

Rub meat with peppercorn and garlic. Cut meat so that there are four slices about an inch deep each. Mix all other ingredients. Pour mixture over meat. Cook meat in crockpot 4 to 6 hours on high or 8 to 10 hours on low.

Original source: Jodi Bergeman