Slow Cooker Chicken Taco Bowls

Ingredients

• 1½ lbs. chicken breasts $2.90
• 1 (16 oz.) jar salsa $1.99
• 1 (15 oz.) can black beans, drained $1.19
• ½ lb. (8 oz.) frozen corn $0.57
• 1 Tbsp chili powder $0.15
• ½ Tbsp cumin $0.07
• ½ Tbsp minced garlic $0.10
• ½ tsp dried oregano $0.03
• ¼ tsp cayenne pepper $0.02
• ¼ tsp salt $0.02
• to taste cracked pepper $0.02
• 2 cups dry rice $0.66
• 8 oz. shredded cheddar $2.49
• ½ bunch cilantro (optional) $0.45

Instructions

1. Add everything except the rice, cheese, and cilantro to the slow cooker along with ¼ cup of water (for good measure). Give everything a good stir and make sure the chicken is covered in the mixture.
2. Secure the lid on your slow cooker and cook on low for 8 hrs.
3. Near the end of the cooking time, cook the two cups of rice according to the package directions (Bring the rice and 3 cups of water to a boil in a medium pot with a lid in place, as soon as it reaches a boil, reduced the heat to low and let simmer for 20 minutes. Fluff with a fork before serving).
4. After 8 hours of cooking, carefully remove the lid of the slow cooker. Stir with a fork to shred the chicken (it should be super tender and will shred easily). Build the taco bowls by placing rice on the bottom, then the taco chicken mix, shredded cheese and fresh cilantro.

This was from Budget Bytes (one of my new fave food blogs!) and I loved these and it was super easy. Delicious!

10 crockpot freezer meals

So I've been wondering how I can be better at planning meals, and thinking of ways to make meals for when the baby comes. I found this blog post on Pinterest, and it's pretty easy to do! More crockpot freezer meals.
http://ashleynoelbarnes.blogspot.com/2013/05/10-freezer-to-crockpot-meals.html

Slow Cooker Chicken Verde

Ingredients:

2 lbs tomatillos husked, washed and dried, and cut in half
10 medium Anaheim peppers, cut in half, seeds removed
1 jalapeño pepper
1 cup diced onion
4 garlic cloves
2 cups roughly chopped cilantro
1 tablespoon cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
Zest of 1 lime
Juice of 1 lime
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 cups chicken broth
2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breast
Tortilla, beans, and rice for serving, optional

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. Place tomatillos and Anaheim peppers on two large greased baking sheets. Roast until tomatillos are golden brown about 5-7 minutes, and until peppers are charred.

2. Place peppers in a brown paper bag to sweat for about ten minutes. Remove the peppers from the bag and peel.

3. In a blender or food processor, combine 6 peppers (12 pepper halves), tomatillos, jalapeños, onion, garlic, cilantro, cumin, paprika, lime zest and juice, sugar, and salt and pepper to taste. Blend until smooth.

4. Dice the remaining Anaheim peppers. Pour salsa verde, chicken broth, diced Anaheim peppers, and chicken into the slow cooker. Add salt and pepper.

5. Cook on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 6-8 hours or untill chicken is at least 165 degrees in center of meat.

6. Once chicken is cooked using a slotted spoon remove chunks of chicken to a cutting board and shred and return to crock pot with chile verde sauce. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Serve warm with tortillas, beans, and rice.

Slow Cooker Tomato Basil Soup

Slow Cooker Tomato Basil Soup

Yield: Serves 6-8

Note: You can use regular diced tomatoes if you don't have or can't find petite diced, but if you have the option, go for the petite diced. The smaller size of the tomatoes meshes better with the finely diced vegetables.

Ingredients

• 2 (14-ounce each) cans petite diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1 cup finely diced celery
• 1 cup finely diced carrots
• 1 cup finely diced onions
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 tablespoon dried basil
• 4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/4 (4 tablespoons) butter
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 cups fat free half-and-half, warm
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
• Croutons for serving (homemade version here)

Directions

1. In a 5-quart slow cooker, combine the tomatoes, celery, carrots, onions, oregano, basil, broth, and bay leaf. Cover and cook on low for 5-7 hours until the vegetables are tender.
2. About 45 minutes before serving, melt the butter over low heat in a medium saucepan. Add the flour and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture is golden, about 3 minutes. The mixture will be crumbly, but that's ok.
3. Whisking constantly, slowly ladle in 1 cup (or a ladleful) of the hot soup from the slow cooker. Whisk until smooth and bubbly. Add another cup or ladleful and stir again until smooth. Add another cup or two and stir until smooth.
4. Stir the creamy, hot mixture back into the slow cooker. Add the Parmesan cheese, half-and-half, salt and pepper, adding more salt and pepper if needed.
5. Cover and cook on low for 30 minutes until ready to serve. Serve with homemade croutons, if desired (and trust me, you'll want to desire it).

Crock Pot Picante Chicken Black Bean Soup

I love easy Crock Pot recipes like this so I'm trying to save a bunch of good recipes I've found.

Ingredients:

• 2 (15 oz) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
• 3 1/2 cups low sodium chicken broth
• 2 (10 oz) cans Rotel tomatoes with green chilies
• 1 red bell pepper, minced
• 4 oz can diced green chiles
• 1 tbsp ground cumin
• 1 tsp ancho chile powder
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 1/4 tsp oregano
• 16 oz (2) skinless chicken breast
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro, divided
• 2 medium scallions, diced
• cut limes, for serving 
• 1 medium haas avocado, sliced
• sour cream, for serving (optional)

Instructions:

Take one can of beans and place in the blender along with 2 cups of the chicken broth; puree then add to your slow cooker. Add the remainder of the beans and chicken broth into the slow cooker along with tomatoes, bell pepper, diced green chiles, cumin, chile powder, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, chicken breast, and 1/4 cup of the cilantro. Set slow cooker to HIGH 4 hours or LOW 6 to 8 hours.

Slow Cooker lemon garlic chicken

Ingredients

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (thawed)

2 tsp dried oregano

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp pepper

1 tbsp + 1 tsp butter

2 tbs + 2 tsp chicken broth (or water)

2 tbsp fresh lemon juice

1 1/4 cloves garlic, minced

Instructions

Mix oregano and salt and pepper together in a small bowl. Rub seasoning on both sides of chicken breasts.

Melt butter in a skillet over medium high heat. Brown both sides of the chicken breasts then place in the crock pot.

In a small bowl whisk chicken broth (or water), lemon juice and minced garlic together and pour mixture over chicken.

Cook on high for 3-4 hours or low 4-6 hours until chicken is cooked through.

links to easy freezer meals!

http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2012/09/slow-cooker-freezer-meals-make-8-meals.html

http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2011/12/fresh-food-friday-20-tried-and-true.html

http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2013/02/10-slow-cooker-freezer-meals-in-less.html

These are really quick and easy--a good way to stock up the freezer with ready-made food.

Honey Lime Chicken Enchiladas

1 small, onion, peeled & diced (use a sweet onion if you can find it)
3 chicken breast halves
1/2 c. chicken broth
1 Tbsp. chili powder
1 tsp. garlic, minced (2-3 cloves)
salt & pepper (to taste)
6 tablespoons honey
5 tablespoons lime juice (1 large lime)
8-10 flour tortillas
1 lb. Monterey jack cheese, shredded
16 ounces green enchilada sauce (we like Las Palmas brand, but any brand is great)
1/2 c. heavy cream

Saute onion in a little butter until it becomes transparent and soft. In a crock pot* add chicken, chicken broth, sauteed onion, chili powder, garlic, and salt & pepper. Cook on low for about 8 hours (or high for 3-4) adding more broth if needed (you don't want it to cook out completely). Remove chicken from crock pot and shred, then return to crock pot and simmer another 5 min. Drain out some of the juices (but not all of it... keep about 1/4 c.) and add honey and lime. Place seasoned, shredded chicken in a Ziploc bag and seal tightly, pressing out as much air as you can. Marinate at least 30-40 minutes.. longer if you can (I did about an hour). While chicken is marinating spray a 9x13 pan with cooking spray, then pour about 1/2 c. of enchilada sauce over the bottom. Fill tortillas with chicken mixture and shredded cheese, saving about 1 c. of cheese to sprinkle on top of enchiladas. Mix the remaining enchilada sauce with heavy cream. Pour sauce on top of the enchiladas and sprinkle with cheese. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes until brown and crispy on top. Serve hot and top with your favorite enchilada toppings.

slow cooker turkey chili

Here is another slow cooker recipe to add to your repertoire. I know everyone has a favorite chili recipe, but this one I like, because it tastes like the real thing,but with turkey meat, so much lower in fat.

2 lb ground turkey
1 large onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 large can diced, or stewed, tomatoes
1 can tomato sauce
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 teaspoon cumin (adjust to taste)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained, to add at the end

In a skillet, brown the skillet, cooker meat over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until brown. In your slow cooker, mix turkey meat and remaining ingredients except beans. Cover and cook on low heat setting 6-8 hours. Stir in beans. Increase heat setting to high. Cover and cook 15-20 minutes or until slightly thickened.
Top with cheese and/or sour cream. Dad likes his with chips; I like to make corn bread.

Slow Cooker Oatmeal

I was speaking to Camille about healthy breakfast and said this would be a good idea. Steel-cut oats or regular oats were much better than quick oats. Your kitchen will smell super yummy when you walk into it in the morning.

1 1/2 cups steel-cut or old-fashioned oats
3 cups water
2 cups peeled and chopped apples
1/4 cup sliced almonds
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Spray crockpot with pam. Combine oats, water, apples, almonds and cinnamon in a slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours. Makes 6 servings.

Slow Cooker Beef Stew

1- 1 1/2 stew meat, cubed (I buy it at Costco in a 6-lb pack, then refreeze in smaller portions)
3-ish large potatoes
1/2 cup carrots, sliced
1 chopped onion
2 stocks celery, chopped
Salt and pepper
1-2 bay leaves
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can tomato sauce (14-oz)
1/2 bag frozen peas (reserved, for the end)

Chop up vegetables and put in bottom of crock pot (potatoes and carrots are good to go in first). Mix soup and tomato sauce recipe and pour over the top. Add your spices to your taste and turn on for 6-8 hours. Add the frozen peas at the end and leave in for 15 or so minutes.

Slow Cooker Tamale Pie

1 lb. ground beef
1 tsp. ground cumin
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1/4 tsp. pepper
1 can (15 oz.) black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can (14 oz). diced tomatoes with mild green chilies, undrained
1 can corn, drained
1 can (10 oz). enchilada sauce
2 green onions(chopped)
1/4 cup minced cilantro
1 pack (8 oz) corn bread/muffin mix
2 eggs
1 cup shredded Mexican cheese blend
sour cream, optional

In a large skillet, cook beef over medium heat until no longer pink, drain. Stir in the cumin, salt, chili powder and pepper. Transfer to a 4-qt. slow cooker; stir in the beans, tomatoes, corn, enchilada sauce, onions and cilantro. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or until heated through.
In a small bowl, combine muffin mix and eggs; spoon over meat mixture. Cover and cook 1 hour longer or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.
Sprinkle with cheese; cover and let stand for 5 minutes. SErve wtih sour cream and additional cilantro if desired.