APPLE DUMPLINGS

Well I lost a good friend this week. It was a little sad but not totally unexpected. My friend, the best I could decide was a 1970'S model. It was one of the older models where you had to carefully wash the inside out without getting the cord and heating element wet. No easy clean up like removing the stoneware and putting it the dishwasher. The knob was super glued together at one time and only has settings of Low and High. Nonetheless it has served me well; just being a 4 quart I used it mainly for small meals and desserts. I can clearly remember the last meal we shared together. Well really it was a dessert that was really awesome. What a way to go out still delivering hot delicious food. The inner stoneware ware is cracked and has begun to split so I think that retirement is in order. I really hate to get rid of it. I will probably just take it out back and plant a pineapple top in it or something so that when I look out my kitchen window I can remember the good times we had. Anyway I am going to post for my weekly recipe this awesome apple dumpling dessert. I couldn't believe that the crescent rolls on top had some crunch to them and the dumplings on bottom were covered with a cinnamon glaze that was finger licking good.  The smell that permeated throughout my kitchen and den was just heavenly. It really overshadowed my chicken cordon bleu I had in the other crock pot. We wanted to eat dessert before dinner. So here is my latest great find. I really think you will enjoy these dumplings especially served hot with a little ice cream on top. You could even substitute pears or peaches for the apples and it would be just as wonderful. I’m going to try that soon. I'll let you know how it turns out.

INGREDIENTS:

2 cans of crescent rolls

2 granny smith apples

1 stick of butter

1 cup of white sugar

1 tsp. of cinnamon

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup of Mountain Dew or lemon – lime soda

DIRECTIONS:

I would really recommend using a cooking liner for easier clean up or just really spray your stoneware good with PAM. Next cut your apples into 8 slices a piece. Wrap a crescent triangle around each slice of apple and place in the crock pot. Just pile them up. Melt the butter and add the sugar, cinnamon and vanilla. Pour over the dumplings and be sure and get down to the dumplings on the bottom. Then take your cup of soda and pour all over the top. Then cover but prop open the lid with a wooden spoon during cooking. This will let the water evaporate and make your house smell wonderful. Cook on high for 4 hours or until the dough is brown and cooked. Serve while hot with a scoop of ice cream or cool whip if you're watching calories. We reheated them the next day and they we really good and gooey. 

SWEET AND SPICY SALMON IN FOIL PACKETS

Another busy week has gone by and like usual I didn't get everything accomplished I wanted to. I did however get to try several new things in the crock pot. One of them was this sweet and spicy salmon in foil packets. Now this was real quick and easy to make but I think I cooked it a little too long so I adjusted the cooking time by a half an hour. I really enjoyed the salmon it had good flavor. It was sweet but not very spicy and just a little dry.  I will have to increase the red pepper next time and add a marinade to the dry rub to help with the dryness. My plans are to revamp the recipe soon and try a few more with tilapia. Cooking in foil packets made the clean up so easy and the usual fish smell was minimized by the crock pot.The fishy odor didn't seem to linger near as long as they would of in the hot oven. I also had enough room left in the crock pot to throw in some foil wrapped corn on the cob. I added a toss salad and my low cal meal was complete. Now yes my dinner took about 3 hours to cook, but you have to remember it only took about 10 minutes to prepare it and then I walked away with some free time to myself. Next week I have several new ideas to try like apple butter rolls and green chili cheesy chicken. 

INGREDIENTS:

12 oz. of salmon

2 tbs. of brown sugar

½ tsp. of crushed garlic

½ tsp. of oregano

½ tsp. of kosher salt

1 tsp. of cumin

1 tsp. of paprika

½ tsp. of red pepper

Aluminum foil

DIRECTIONS:

Spread a piece a foil on the counter and place the salmon in the center. Mix all the other ingredients together in a bow. Rub the top of the salmon with the mixture. Go ahead and pour the rest of it on top of the salmon. Fold up the foil to make a packet. Place in a dry crock pot. Cover and cook on high for 2-1/2 hours or on low for 3-4 1/2 hours until the fish flakes easily with a fork.

BARBECUED SHRIMP

OMG! These are so good! They are so good that I have to admit I was standing at the kitchen sink peeling and eating them before the 2 hours were up. I know the recipe says cook for 2 hours but it also said to stir every half hour until done. So they looked done. They were pink and I couldn't resist them. I am so glad that I made a full recipe and that it is only me and my mother here for dinner tonight. I know I ate more than my share. These shrimp would be great for an easy appetizer at a barbecue or just by themselves with a cold beer out by the pool.  Now I remember my mother used to do a BBQ shrimp where she would boil them first and then broil them with BBQ sauce for a minute. These were good too, but they seemed like a lot of trouble. This recipe was so quick and easy and tasted so much better than just the regular shrimp boil that I will be doing this again real soon. Check back next week for more seafood recipes. My daughter, who doesn't like seafood, is out of town so this is a perfect opportunity for me to try several new recipes. I am looking at a tilapia in a foil packet and salmon on a cedar grilling plank. Can't wait for my days off.

OOPS! I forgot the Worcestershire sauce.

INGREDIENTS:

2 lbs. of fresh thawed shell on shrimp

1 stick of butter

¼ cup of Worcestershire sauce

¼ cup of olive oil

1-2 Tbs. of Tabasco sauce

1 tsp. of kosher salt

1 tsp. of pepper

3 juiced lemons

1 tbs. of fresh basil

DIRECTIONS:

Spray your crock pot with PAM. Rinse the shrimp with cold water then place in the crock pot. Add the rest of the ingredients and gently stir. The butter will melt later. Cook on high for 2 hours. Gently stir every half hour until done. Serve with a spicy cajun tartar sauce, BBQ sauce, or your favorite red sauce.

MACARONI AND CHEESE

I love cooking in my crock pots! They are wonderful. They do a job that I don't want to do. I just dump in my ingredients and after a few hours I have a delicious meal or at least a piece of a meal. This week I was really busy trying new dessert recipes for the 4th of July. I made some red, white, and blue meringues that were very tasty and some baked s’mores that were awesome! Unfortunately neither of these could be cooked in the crock pot. Maybe I'll try the s’mores in the crock pot next week. So my recipe of the week is an old favorite of mine macaroni and cheese. I have made it before in the crock pot but never with uncooked noodles so I decided to give it a try. My results were mixed. The mac and cheese initially gave me that warm fuzzy feeling that makes you think hmmmm! This is really good! But then it left much to be desired as leftovers. When it was reheated the noodles became tough and the cheesy sauce disappeared.  I think it would be great if you could eat it all in one setting like for a potluck dinners or large family gatherings. Here is the recipe in case you want to try it. I will be making it again but I will cut the recipe in half so as not to have leftovers.

                                                  

 INGREDIENTS:

2 cups of uncooked macaroni

2 cups of skim milk

1  12oz. can of evaporated milk

1 egg

1 tsp. of salt

¼ tsp. of pepper

1 ½ cups of grated sharp cheddar cheese

DIRECTIONS:

Spray the crock pot with Pam. Place the uncooked noodles in the crock pot. Whisk together the milk, egg, salt and pepper and pour over the noodles. Add the cheese and mix gently. Cover and cook on low for about 3 ½ hours or until the noodle are soft. Serve immediately.

                

Here are my other desserts that went over real well for the 4th of July. I'll be happy to post the recipes if anyone is interested. Have a great week. 

Red, White, and Blue Meringues   

Baked S'mores