CROCK POT BBQ BRISKET

Well the rodeo is gone and I guess I didn't get enough BBQ on my potato because I have been craving it. Lately I have been buying precooked briskets instead of smoking them outside because of the time factor but they just haven’t been as good. I used to cook them in the oven overnight but I stopped that a long time ago when I had to have the fire department come out when I woke up one morning and found my oven on fire. My brisket was cooked but I was a little unnerved by the experience. So I thought I would try it in a crock pot. I was really pleased with the results. The brisket was so tender and juicy that we only had leftovers once! I should have doubled the recipe. If you have any leftovers it would be good chopped up for BBQ sandwiches or on baked potatoes.

CROCK POT BBQ BRISKET

                                                                                

INGREDIENTS:

3 ½  lb.  Brisket for a 5 qt. crock pot

1 ½ cup of Barbecue sauce

2 tbs. Worcestershire sauce

½ tsp. of liquid smoke

Brisket Rub or Dry Rub

DRY RUB INGREDIENTS:

1 tbs. dried thyme leaves

1 tbs. paprika

2 tsp. freshly ground pepper

2 tsp. of salt

1 tsp. onion powder

½ tsp. garlic powder

½ tsp. cayenne pepper

½ tsp. ground cumin

DIRECTIONS:

Rub the brisket with the liquid smoke. Then rub the spice mix all over the brisket and wrap in foil or plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.  This is one step I would not omit unless you are lucky enough to find a trimmed marinated brisket that can just be thrown into the crock pot. It helps tenderize the meat and give it that smokey flavor. Next morning spray the crock pot with PAM. Then mix up the BBQ sauce and Worcestershire sauce together and place in the bottom of the pot.Place brisket on top with the fat side up. Cover and cook on low for 8 -10 hours. 

PEPPERONI AND CHICKEN

We love pizza! So when I found this recipe on www.recipes.com  I knew I had to try it. Well we loved it so much that I have made it several times already. The chicken comes out moist with a hint of pizza flavoring without all the carbs attached. The second time I made this I substituted pizza sauce for the tomato sauce and chicken broth and it was even better. I’m sure you can even add mushrooms, bell peppers  and onions and it would be awesome. It smells wonderful cooking and even reheating in the microwave. 

  

 PEPPERONI AND CHICKEN

INGREDIENTS:

2 – 3 lbs. of boneless, skinless chicken

2 oz. of pepperoni

¼ cup of pitted ripe olives

1 cup of chicken broth

2 tbs. of tomato paste ( or 1 cup of pizza sauce and no chicken broth) 

2 tsp. dried Italian seasoning

½ cup of mozzarella cheese (part-skim)

Salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

Spray the crock pot with PAM. Place the chicken in the crock pot and salt and pepper it. Then add the pepperoni and olives. Next mix together the tomato paste, chicken broth, and Italian seasoning in a small bowl. Pour it over the chicken and cover. Then cook on low for 6-7 hours or on high for 3 ½ hours. After cooking remove from crock pot and sprinkle with the cheese. Let stand until cheese melts. Serve with a side salad and garlic bread or bread sticks.  

CROCK POT ITALIAN MEATBALL AND TORTELLINI SOUP

We celebrated a co- worker’s 70^th birthday this week at work by throwing her a surprise luncheon. The theme this time was Italian food. So of course we had several different red sauces, white sauces,meatballs, pastas, and grilled chicken. We had salad, bread sticks, fruit, and a very large birthday cake. I had wanted to make something in the crock pot,so I decided this soup looked interesting. Since everything was already cooked I put it in the crock pot at work about 7:00 am and it was ready for our luncheon at noon.Everyone else seemed to have the same idea as me. We had several crock pots setup throughout the unit heating up the different sauces. Can you just imagine what our unit smelled like? Our visitors wanted to stay for lunch it smelled so good! Since we were expecting a large crowd, I decided to make a recipe and a half of the soup. It was so good that unfortunately there was none left to take home. So this is one recipe I know that will be great for large crowds or for a quick and easy family dinner with leftovers!

 

 CROCK POT MEATBALL AND TORTELLINI SOUP

INGREDIENTS:
16 oz. Bag of Italian Meatballs

16 oz. Bag of cheese Tortellini

32. oz. beef broth

1 15.5 oz can of Cannellini Beans

1 can of Italian diced tomatoes

1 small yellow onion diced

2 stalks of celery diced

2-3 cloves of minced garlic

½ tsp. of Italian Seasoning

Salt and pepper to taste

Grated Parmesan cheese

 DIRECTIONS:

Pour the broth in the crock pot. Then add the beans,onions, celery, garlic, diced tomatoes, Italian seasoning, and meatballs. I quartered my meatballs because they were so large. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours on low or on high for 4 hours. About 45 minutes before eating, add the tortellini and cook until done. Add salt and pepper to taste. Then spoon into bowls and top with parmesan cheese.

 

 

 

BEEF POT ROAST

Here is the winner for this week. I have seen this recipe a lot lately on Pinterest and on other food sites. My interest was piqued by how easy it looked with only 3 ingredients and the blending of the seasoning mixes. So I had to give it a try. I mixed it up one morning before going to work. When I walked in after work my dinner was cooked and my house smelled heavenly. I wonder why Glade hasn't made a room fresher in roast yet? The roast was very tender and the gravy was awesome over my homemade mashed potatoes. The next day for lunch I took ciabatta rolls and made warm Italian sandwiches with shredded roast, gravy and mozzarella cheese. My family and I loved it! I would love to give credit where credit is due, but I don’t know who or where this originated from but it is by far my favorite and easiest recipe for a pot roast.

BEEF POT ROAST

INGREDIENTS:

1  3 1/2 – 5 LB. Beef   

1 pkg. of Brown Gravy mix

1 pkg. of Ranch Salad Dressing mix

1 pkg. of Italian Salad dressing mix

½ cup of water.

DIRECTIONS:

Spray crock pot with PAM. Place the roast in the bottom of the crock pot. Then mix up the 3 mixes with the water. Pour over the roast. Cover and cook on low for 8- 10 hours.    

CROCK POT SPARE RIBS

 

It’s rodeo time here and everyone has been talking about BBQ this and BBQ that. So that got me craving some BBQ spare ribs. Then I had one of those ahha moments when I thought could this be done in the crockpot? After a thorough google search I found a recipe from Robin Miller on the Food Network. It looked so easy I decided to give it a try.The ribs did come out very tasty and the meat just feel off of the bones. My only thing is they didn't have that BBQ flavor because of the tomato sauce so I just had extra BBQ sauce and dunked the meat in it. I think next time I will try a different homemade BBQ sauce, maybe the one from my BBQ pulled pork recipe would be good. Overall I was very pleased with the ribs and my house smelled wonderful!



"OOP! I forgot the brown sugar and red wine vinegar in the picture"

 

INGREDIENTS:

6 lbs. of spare ribs

28 oz. can of tomato sauce

1/3 cup of brown sugar

2 tbs. of red wine vinegar 

1 tbs. of Worcestershire sauce 

1 tbs.  of soy sauce

1 tbs. of chili powder

2 tsp. of cumin

1 tsp. paprika

2 tsp. of garlic

½ tsp. of salt

Pinch of cayenne (optional)

 

DIRECTIONS:
Spray the crock pot with PAM. Cut spare ribs up and place in crock pot. Then in a large bowl mix all the other ingredients together. Pour over the ribs and cover. Cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 4 hours. How easy is that?

I was so excited about my BBQ spare ribs that I invited my friend Katie who is a rib connoisseur to try them out and give me a second opinion. I think the empty plate and the smile on her face says it all.



 

 

 "I love ribs and these ribs were very tender with delicious flavor.Some of the best I have had."

QUICK AND EASY CHICKEN CACCIATORE

This week I had a few days off so I tried a few new recipes. My kitchen turned into an experimental test lab and I become the mad crockologist! There were at times several crock pots going at once. I tried out a few dinners, a dessert and even a bad breakfast casserole. As much as I hate to admit it I had my first true failure! My breakfast casserole was so awful that even my dog threw it up. So to keep everything in order I have created files labeled “the good, the bad,and the ugly”. This recipe was clearly placed in my good file. Now I have tried this recipe several times with a homemade tomato based sauce, and a marinara sauce, but the premade cacciatore sauce seems to be the quickest, easiest and my favorite.   

 

QUICK AND EASY CHICKEN CACCIATORE

INGREDIENTS:

1-11/2 lbs. of boneless chicken breasts

4 slices of mozzarella cheese

1 cup of bread crumbs

2 tbs. of olive oil

2 tsp. minced garlic and parsley flakes

¼ cup of grated parmesan cheese

1 egg

1  28 oz. jar of prepared cacciatore sauce (I like the kind with chunks of onion, bell pepper and mushrooms in it)

(optional: If you like more sauce add 1  8 oz. can of Italian diced tomatoes)

Directions:

Drizzle the olive oil in the bottom of the crock pot. Next scramble the egg in a small bowl and set aside.Then take the bread crumbs, salt and pepper, garlic and parsley flakes, and parmesan cheese and mix together in a bowl. Dip the chicken breast in the egg, and then roll them in the bread crumbs. Place in the bottom of the crock pot. Next cover them with the mozzarella cheese. Then pour the cacciatore sauce in and cover. Cook on low for 8-10 hours. I like to serve this over penne pasta but any pasta will do.

 

 

NO PEEK CASSEROLE

This has always been one my family’s favorite dishes. It is called No Peek Casserole because you would put it in the oven for several hours and not be allowed to stir it. The meat gets really tender the longer it cook, so I thought it would be a good recipe to adapt to the crock pot. I serve this over noodles or rice. Add a side salad and rolls and everybody is happy. This would also make a great Valentine’s Day dinner because it calls for a half a cup of wine and then you can finish the bottle with dinner.

INGREDIENTS:
2lbs. of stew meat

1   10.5 oz. can of cream of mushroom soup

1 envelope of dried onion soup mix or beefy onion soup mix

1   7 oz. can of mushrooms or fresh mushrooms

½ cup of a red wine such as a Cabernet Sauvignon or a Merlot  (Sutter Home has wine in 187ml bottles which are perfect for this dish, it usually takes about 2/3 of the bottle and then just a few sips are left.)

DIRECTIONS:
Spray the crock pot with PAM. Then I cut the stew meat in to bite size pieces and put in the crock pot. Then I add all the other ingredients and stir well. Cover and let cook on slow for 8 – 10 hours. Don’t worry about tasting the alcohol. It cooks down and helps to tenderize the meat and gives this dish a nice gravy. Serve over noodles or rice.