A dessert to remember.

Some friends of ours (Hi Tim and Samantha!) invited us over to their house for a Memorial Day feast. When asked what I could bring, a dessert was requested. So...I did what any normal crocker would do. I Googled "Memorial Day Crock Pot Dessert Recipes" and found this little gem. We even somehow had all of the ingredients in the house already. Bonus!

"Mixed Berry Pudding Cake" (6 quart pot) The original recipe is HERE.

~1 1/2 c fresh blueberries

~1 1/2 c fresh red raspberries

~1/2 c fresh cranberries

~1 c flour

~2/3 c sugar

~1 1/2 t baking powder

~1/2 t cinnamon

~1/4 t salt

~2 T butter, melted

~1 t vanilla extract

~3/4 c boiling water

~1/3 c sugar

~cool whip or vanilla ice cream

Spray crock pot with PAM.

Combine all berries in crock pot and set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, 2/3 c sugar, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.

Stir in milk, butter, and vanilla until just combined. (I sorta kinda almost forgot to do this step. I had to improvise...slightly.)

Spoon and carefully spread mixture over berries.

In a small bowl, combine boiling water and 1/3 c sugar; stir to dissolve sugar.

Pour mixture evenly over mixture in the crock pot.

Cover and cook on high for 3 hours.

Turn off crock pot and let cool for an hour. (I forgot to uncover it like the original recipe said.)

Serve with cool whip or vanilla ice cream.

8 servings.

Oh. My. Goodness. Amazing. (Even with my mini hiccups/adjustments.) It's awesome that the kiddos were too scared to try this because it meant that all 4 of the adults could have a second serving. Oh, and I *might've* licked the crock pot clean. Maybe. 

T'is the season!

Our awesome neighbors planned to a potluck grilling get together today. I crocked something. A dessert. Because...why not? I Googled strawberry crock pot dessert (because it's strawberry season) and voila!, I found a winner.

"Strawberry Cobbler" (6 quart pot) Original recipe is found HERE.

~3 lbs fresh strawberries, sliced
~1/2 c sugar
~2 T cornstarch
~2 T water
~3/4 c brown sugar
~3/4 c quick oats
~1/2 c flour
~1/2 c butter

In a saucepan, combine strawberries and sugar. Let sit for 30 minutes. (Sample a strawberry.*)
After 30 minutes, cook over medium heat for 5 minutes. (Sample a strawberry.*)
In a bowl, combine cornstarch and water. Stir into berry mixture. Bring mixture to boil.
Boil for 1 minute or until mixture is thickened. (Carefully sample a strawberry.*)
Spoon mixture into crock pot.
In a bowl, combine brown sugar, oats, and flour.
Cut in butter to form crumbly mixture.
Spread evenly over strawberry mixture.
Cover and cook on low for 3 hours.
Serve warm with cool whip. (or ice cream if you prefer.)

(* optional)

8 servings.

Go make this. Now. Everyone told me that it was delicious and by the amount that we came home with (see above), I'd say they weren't just saying it to be nice. You're welcome.

Orange you glad I crock?

I crocked this a few days ago. Silly work has me behind in my blogging again. Shame on me.

"Clean Out The Kitchen Acorn Squash" (6 quart pot)

~2 acorn squash, halved and seeded
~16 fresh cranberries
~4 t orange marmelade
~4 t butter
~1 t brown sugar
~1/4 c water

Place 4 cranberries, 1 t marmelade, and 1 t butter in each squash half.
Sprinkle each half with 1/4 t brown sugar.
Pour water into crock pot.
Place squash flat side up in crock pot, stacking as needed.
Cover and cook on low for 4 hours.

4 servings.

Yum! This *might* be our favorite acorn squash crock yet!

It's time.

A sudden sickness/death in the family (My father in-law for those unaware), added several weeks to my already unusually long crocking hiatus. We spent most of December home in Philly. Crocking still managed to be a blip on my radar, though. I gifted one to my mother in-law (to replace the one she had that didn't have a "keep warm" setting *gasp!*) and one to my brother (because he's nearly 30 and didn't own one. *double gasp*) We have nearly no food in the house, so I crocked what we had that wasn't frozen or trying to...walk away.

"Apple-y Acorn Squash" (6 quart pot)

~1 acorn squash, halved and gutted
~1/2 c water
~1 granny smith apple, chopped
~2 t buter
~2 t brown sugar
~1 t cinnamon
~1/2 t nutmeg
~1/4 t ground cloves

Place squash flat side up into crock pot.
Pour 1/2 c water into crock pot.
Place 1/2 apple chunks, 1 t butter, 1 t sugar, 1/2 t cinnamon, 1/2 t nutmeg, and 1/8 t cloves into each squash.
Cover and cook on low for 4 hours on low.

2 servings.

Mmm... We do love us some crocked acorn squash.

Happy (delicious) birthday to me!

Today is my birthday. For my birthday, I wanted a my other half to grill us some amazing Costco filet mignon and I wanted to crock some delicious sweet potatoes. And that's EXACTLY what I got. I didn't have a recipe in mind, so I just Googled "crock pot sweet potatoes" and picked one of the first ones I saw.

"Caramel Glazed Sweet Potatoes" The original recipe is HERE.

~6 small (tiny) weet potatoes, peeled and sliced (From the CSA.)
~1 cup brown sugar
~3 tablespoons cornstarch
~1 teaspoon cinnamon
~1/2 teaspoon salt
~1 to 2 tablespoons butter or margarine


Lightly butter crock pot.
Add sliced sweet potatoes and sprinkle with salt.
Combine sugar, cornstarch and cinnamon; sprinkle over the sweet potatoes.
Dot with butter; cover and cook on low for 7 hours.

4 servings.

Go make these.

Now.

Yesterday.

For Thanksgiving.

Triple the recipe if you want. Or quadruple. I won't judge.

Thank me later.

Happy birthday to me!

You're the oates to my hall.

Since my other half is out of work and I'm "The Best Wife Ever", I thought it'd be nice to crock him breakfast. (Thanks for the recipe, Ruth!)

"Raspberry Mango Oatmeal" (6 quart pot) The original recipe is HERE.

Oatmeal:
~1 1/2 c steel cut oats
~1/2 t ground ginger
~1/2 t cinnamon
~1/2 t sea salt
~1/4 t nutmeg
~2 c almond milk
~4 c coconut milk
~2 c frozen mango
~1 c fresh raspberries
~1/4 c coconut flakes
~1/2 c brown sugar

Sauce:
~2 c frozen raspberries
~sugar to taste
~water

*Topping:
~walnuts

Add all of the oatmeal ingredients to crock pot and mix well.
Cover and cook on low overnight. (Mine was 9 hours, I think.)
Add sauce ingredients to pan and bring to boil.
Serve sauce over oatmeal.
*Top with walnuts.

8 servings.

*Ok, so...for some reason the website was down this morning I had to put the sauce and topping together. I remembered the ingredients, mostly, but not what to do with them. AND then, of course, I forgot to add the walnuts altogether.

Mmm...not overly sweet. Slightly on the liquidy side of oatmeals, so if you're more of a fan of firm oats, this is probably not your bag. We dug it. Well...the big kids did. My little helper refused to even try it.

Back to work.

I'm back. Back from vacation and back to crocking. I took a few additional days off because I was determined to potty train my little helper and I was not willing/able to take my eyes off of him for even a second. All of the dinners since our return involved the oven (I used it more in the last 3 days than I have in the ~year we've lived here. No joke.) or the grill and were started after my other half was home from work. (Hooray for tag teaming!) Today was the first day I felt confident enough to whip together a crock without needing eyeballs in the back of my head. There's also a fabulous harvest moon happening at the moment.

"Harvest Moon Acorn Squash" (6 quart pot)

~1/2 c water
~1 acorn squash, halved and gutted (From the CSA.)
~1 apple, chopped (From the CSA. They gave us three different kinds. I *think* the one I used was a pink lady.)
~2 t butter, divided
~2 t brown sugar, divided
~1 t allspice, divided
~1 t cinnamon, divided

Pour water into crock pot.
Shove apple chunks into squash.
Top with butter, brown sugar, allspice, and cinnamon.
Place squash in crock pot, innards up.
Cover and cook on low for 4 hours.

2 servings.

Mmm. Love me some acorn squash. I liked this more than my other half did, but he's kind of weird when it comes to apples, so maybe(?) that was it.

Carbmonkey.

Yet another recipe I found while searching for the illusive balsamic chicken recipe.

"Crock Pot Tortellini" (6 quart pot)

~1 (1 lb) pkg frozen tortellini
~1 (16 oz) bag of fresh spinach
~2 (14 oz) cans Italian style diced tomatoes
~1 brick of Philly cream cheese, cut into chunks
~1 carton (4 c) veggie broth

Add all ingredients to crock pot.
Cover and cook on low for 6 hours.

6 servings.

This was yummy. REALLY yummy. We spent about an hour trying to convince my little helper to try a bite, but Mr. Carbmonkey wouldn't have it. Grr. More for us!

When I have too much of a good thing.

I hadn't made it to the grocery store, so I decided that today would be a clean out the kitchen because I have too much CSA stuff piling up crock. Patent pending.

"Clean Out The Kitchen Curried Veggies" (6 quart pot)

~1 eggplant cut into bite-sized pieces (From the CSA.)
~1 (14 oz) can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
~1 onion, chopped
~1 garlic clove, chopped
~2 perfectly ripened tomatoes, chopped (From the CSA.)
~1 green pepper, chopped (From the CSA.)
~1 c water
~2 t curry powder
~1/2 t salt
~1/4 t pepper

Add all ingredients to crock pot.
Mix well.
Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.

4 servings.

This was good. I quite liked it. My other half wanted comfort food (and wasn't able to tell me ahead of time), so he wasn't "in the mood" for something like this. However, he did thank me for thinking about his waste line. My little helper wouldn't touch it. More for me!

Failure is not an option.

I was excited to try this one because crocked acorn squash is delicious. It has not failed me yet.

"Spiced Acorn Squash" (6 quart pot)

~2 acorn squash, halved and seeded (The recipe said 3, but I've crocked enough acorn squash to know that there is NO way 3 would fit in my pot. 2 fit and only just barely. Also, I'm pretty sure it's a typo because the author didn't allow enough butter for 6 halves.)
~3/4 c brown sugar, packed
~1 t cinnamon
~1 t nutmeg
~1/4 c golden raisins (Only because I had them. The recipe said "1 small box of raisins".
~4 T butter (The recipe said 4. )
~1/2 c water
~aluminum foil* (optional)

Combine cinnamon, nutmeg, and brown sugar.
Spoon mixture into squash.
Top with raisins.
Add 1 T butter to each. (Notice...3 x 2 is 6. NOT 4. Right? Right.)
Wrap each squash separately in aluminum foil. (optional)
Pour water into crock pot.
Put squash, cut side up, in crock pot. Stacking is okay.
Cover and cook on high for 4 hours or until tender.
Open foil carefully, allowing steam to escape/

4 servings.

I have crocked enough acorn squash to know a few things. First, you do NOT need to use foil. I tested my theory today (because...why not?). 2 were wrapped and 2 were not. They tasted exactly the same. Also, crocked acorn squash is delicious.

Little Miss Scatterbrain.

This is the last recipe I'm doing from the second E-book. I crocked this yesterday, but life got in the way and I wasn't able to sit down and share it with you.

"Zucchini and Black Bean Chili" (6 quart pot)

~1 t extra-virgin olive oil
~2 T chili powder
~1/4 c mustard seeds
~1 t ground cardamom
~2 t ground cumin
~4 garlic cloves, minced
~1 large onion, chopped (The recipe said 2, but I decided it needed only one.)
~1 c frozen corn (The recipe said 1 can, drained.)
 ~1 can mushroom pieces, drained (The recipe said 1 lb any variety.)
~1 large zucchini, chopped (From the CSA!)
~2 jalapeños, seeded and finely chopped
~8 oz tomatillos, husked, rinsed, and chopped
~5 1/2 veggie broth
~1 (6 oz) can tomato paste
~2 T lime juice
~2 T chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, minced
~` t salt
~2 (15 oz) cans black beans, rinsed and drained
~1/2 t black pepper
~1/2 c fresh cilantro (I forgot to add this. Oops.)
~1/2 c diced tomatoes (This, too.)

The recipe called for using a Dutch oven. I don't have one, I used a big ass pot. (Patent pending.)

Mix olive oil, chili powder, mustard seeds, cardamom, and cumin and pour mixture into your big ass pot.
Over high heat, stir until spiced begin to sizzle.
Add garlic, onions, corn, mushrooms, zucchini, jalapeños, and tomatillos.
Stir until veggies become soft and juicy.
Cook for about 10 minutes, uncovered, to allow juices to evaporate.
Pour veggie broth, tomato paste, lime juice, and chipotles. Mix well.
Season with salt and pepper.
Put beans in crock pot.
Pour veggie mixture on top.
Cover and set on high for 6 hours.*
Garnish with cilantro and tomatoes.*

10 servings.

*So...4pm rolled around and I realized I never hit start. Since I wasn't really a fan of eating at 10pm, I cooked it for 3 hours and hoped for the best. And then I forgot to do the last step.

This was a good chili. It had a nice Mexican flavor to it which was kind of refreshing. It probably would have been even better if I actually paid attention to what I was doing for once.

I could write a book.

This recipe. Man. I just. I just don't know. The author of this E-book said to use your imagination and experiment and put whatever veggies you have, but...man. There's experimenting and there's what I did.

"Low-Fat Spinach Lasagna" (6 quart pot)

~1 (15 oz) container fat-free ricotta

~spinach, chopped (The recipe said 5 oz. I used whatever the last CSA loot game me.)

~2 electric yellow squash (The recipe said eggplant and mushrooms. I improvised with more CSA loot.)

~1 egg (The recipe said 1/2 c egg substitute. I forgot to buy some and we had only 1 egg, so...)

~1 t dried oregano

~1/2 t salt

~1/2 t pepper

~1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes

~2 PERFECTLY ripened tomatoes (The recipe said 28 oz can diced tomatoes, but the CSA loot had tomatoes and I had to use them for something because they were PERFECTLY ripened. Did I tell you that they were perfect?)

~5 garlic cloves, minced

~14 uncooked lasagna noodles

~1 3/4 c mozzarella (Because I misread the recipe when it said 3 c.)

Grease crock pot.

Place ricotta, spinach, squash, egg, oregano, salt, and pepper in a large bowl.

In a separate bowl, mix tomatoes, garlic, and basil.

Layer things as you do in ALL lasagnas. 

Noodles, veggie/cheese, tomato, repeat.

If you follow the recipe as it's written in the E-book, you will have no ricotta mixture in your lasagna. The recipe makes slightly more sense if you substitute the word ricotta for the word mozzarella. But only slightly because there is actually mozzarella in it.  *sigh*

Make sure the last layer is tomatoes.

Cover and cook on low for 2 hours.

Sprinkle mozzarella on top and let melt for ~15 minutes.

8 servings.

This had a nice flavor, but had a bit too much liquid in it at the end. Unfortunately, with all of the adjustments I had to make, I have no idea how I could've made it better. 

A beautiful day for a neighbor.

We hosted a small neighborhood potluck 4th of July BBQ/playgroup yesterday (Hi Annie, Valerie, Paul, Angela, and Josh!) I volunteered my other half to man the grill while I volunteered to crock a dessert. A friend sent me this dessert recipe a while ago and I knew that it was going to be awesome. I also knew that I could probably eat the whole thing in one sitting, so I was happy to have neighbors coming over to help a sista' out.

"Turtle Monkey Bread" (6 quart pot) The original recipe is HERE.

~2/3 c packed brown sugar
~1/2 c butter
~1/4 c granulated sugar
~1 (16.3 oz) can Pillsbury Grands Homestyle buttermilk biscuits
~3/4 c pecan halves
~2 T whipping cream
~1/3 c milk chocolate chips

In a microwavable bowl, mix brown sugar and butter.
Microwave for 1-2 minutes, stirring every 30 seconds, until mixture is boiling and smooth.
Grease crock pot.
Place granulated sugar in a resealable plastic bag.
Separate dough in to 8 biscuits and cut each one into fourths.
Add the biscuit pieces to the bag and shake to coat.
Sprinkle 1/4 cup of the pecans in the crock pot.
Top with half of the biscuit mixture. Pour 1/3 of the butter mixture over biscuits.
Repeat with 1/4 c pecans and remaining biscuit mixture.
Pour remaining butter mixture over biscuits.
Sprinkle with remaining 1/4 c pecans.
Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 hours or until knife comes out cleanly and biscuits are no l onger doughy.
Turn off crock pot.
Let stand for 10 minutes.
Run knife around the endges and turn bread upside down onto a serving plate.
In a small saucepan, heat cream over medium heat until just boiling.
Remove from heat and add chocolate chips.
Stir until melted and smooth.
Drizzle over monkey bread.

12 servings.

Oh. My. Goodness. Everyone agreed that it was delicious (AND they helped make it completely disappear.) Yum!

Trending now.

Another vegetarian curry. This is the last one this week. I promise.

"Vegetable Curry" (6 quart pot)

The original recipe is HERE.

~4 carrots, sliced
~2 potatoes, cut into chunks
~1 (15 oz) can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
~8 oz green beans, cut into 1-inch pieces (From the CSA.)
~1 onion, chopped
~3 garlic cloves, minced
~1 T tapioca
~2 t curry powder
~1 t coriander
~1/2 t crushed red pepper
~1/4 t salt
~1/8 t cinnamon
~1 (14 oz) can vegetable broth
~1 (14 oz) can diced tomatoes, undrained
~brown rice, cooked

Add all ingredients, minus tomatos and rice to crock pot and mix well.
Cover and cook on low for 7 hours.
Stir in tomatoes.
Cover and let stand for 5 minutes.
Serve with rice.

4 servings.

This was good, but not as good as I thought it was going to be. It also loses points for breaking my rice AND potatoes in the same dish rule. I'm making it sound terrible, aren't I? It really wasn't! It just...wasn't what I was expecting. Or I built it up in my mind. Or something. My other half said that it was good, but he liked yesterday's better. My little helper wouldn't touch it. (Are we noticing a trend?)

Naan negotiable.

Way back when I didn't crock on a daily-ish basis, one of our go-to meals was microwaveable Indian pouches (Palak panner, chickpea curry, and the like...) and garlic naan from Trader Joe's. Quick. Easy. Yummy.

"Indian Chole" AKA Chickpea curry (6 quart pot)

The recipe is HERE.

~2 c chickpeas, soaked overnight
~3 garlic cloves, minced
~1 onion, minced
~1 red bell pepper, minces
~1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
~1 inch piece ginger, minced
~1 (14 oz) can coconut milk
~1/2 t cayenne pepper
~1 t coriander powder
~1/2 t turmeric
~1/2 t ground cardamom
~1/4 t ground cloves
~1 T vegetable oil
~1 t garam masala
~1 t ground mustard (I thought I had seeds, but I improvised when I realized I'd misremembered.)
~1/2 t salt

Puree all ingredients except chickpeas. (I had to do it in batches in our Magic Bullet.)
Place chick peas in crock pot.
Pour blended mixture on top.
Cover and cook on low for 7 hours.

This was pretty darn good. Spicy and BURSTING with Indian curry flavor. It could've been fabulous if I'd though/planned ahead and bought some of Trader Joe's garlic naan. Oh man. Yum. That would've been awesome. Next time!

"Happy Fodder's Day, daddy!"

Since it's Father's Day, I gave my other half the recipe names of the next three planned crocks and asked him to pick dinner. He chose door number 1.

"Vegetarian Tamale Pie" (6 quart pot)

The original recipe is HERE.

~1 onion, chopped

~2 Morningstar prime griller patties, ripped into pieces

~1 (15 oz) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained

~1 (10 oz) can enchilada sauce

~1 (8 oz) box corn muffin mix

~1/3 c milk

~2 T butter, melted

~1 egg

~1/2 c shredded Colby Jack cheese blend

~1 (4.5 oz) can diced green chilies, undrained

~1/4 c sour cream

~green onions, chopped (

Spray skillet with Pam.

Add onion; cook over medium until crisp tender.

In crock pot, mix patties, onions, beams, and enchilada sauce.

In a medium bowl, stir corn bread mix, milk, butter, and egg until just moistened.

Stir in cheese and chilies.

Spoon mixture over mixture in crock pot.

Cover and cook on low for 5 1/2 hours or until toothpick inserted in the center comes out cleanly.

Serve with sour cream and green onions.

6 servings.

Some friends (unexpectedly) joined us for dinner (Hi Forrest and Brittany!) and LUCKILY, this made enough for all of us. All of us thought that it  was really good! My favorite part was the little kick from the chilies in the cornbread. I know...you're shocked. My little helper wouldn't touch it. Boo.

Small victory.

Yup. Another lasagna recipe. The original recipe is HERE. I made some adjustments based on this week's CSA loot.

"Vegetarian Lasagna" (6 quart pot)

~1 egg
~1 (15 oz) container part-skim ricotta cheese
~2 handfuls of fresh spinach, chopped (From the CSA.)
~1 small summer squash, quartered lengthwise and thinly sliced (From the CSA.)
~2 pattypan squash, VERY carefully cut into vertical slices (From the CSA.)
~1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes
~1 (28 oz) can diced tomatoes
~3 garlic cloves, minced
~pinch of crushed red pepper
~12 lasagna noodles, uncooked
~3 c shredded mozzarella

Combine egg, ricotta, spinach, and squash in a large bowl.
Combine crushed and diced tomatoes and their juice, garlic, and crushed red pepper in a medium bowl.
Spray crock pot with PAM.
Spread 1 1/2 c tomato mixture on the bottom of the crock pot.
Arrange 4 noodles over the sauce.
Spread half of the veggie mixture over the noodles.
Spoon 1 1/2 c sauce and sprinkle with 1 c mozzarella.
Top with another layer of noodles and press down into tomato sauce.
Spread second layer of veggie mixture.
Spoon 1 1/2 c sauce and sprinkle 1 c mozzarella.
Add another layer of noodles.
Spread remaining tomato sauce mixture evenly on noodles.
Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 hours.
Turn off crock pot.
Sprinkle remaining mozzarella on top.
Cover and let stand for 10 minutes.

8 servings.

The noodles were cooked. Hooray! It wasn't the best lasagna ever, but it was good. I feel like it was missing something, but I have no idea what. More importantly...the noodles were cooked! Hooray!

Lasagn-ya.

I must be going insane because this is the second lasagna I've crocked in the last week. It's like I'm starting to actually like ricotta cheese or something.

"Squash & Spinach Lasagna" ( 6 quart pot) The original recipe is HERE.

~9 uncooked lasagna noodles
~2 c pureed squash (I used summer squash from the CSA. I roasted it as she said to do, but then realized that it was probably not necessary for summer squash because it's kind of soft already. Oops.)
~1/2 t dried sage
~15 oz part skim ricotta
~1/2 c milk
~1/4 c parmesan
~1/2 c shredded mozzarella
~2 handfulls of fresh spinach (From the CSA.)

In a bowl, combine squash and sage.
In another bowl, combine ricotta, milk, and parmesan.
Grease crock pot.
Place a layer of noodles on the bottom of the crock pot.
Spread half of squash mixture evenly on top of noodles.
Place another layer of noodle son top.
Place a layer of spinach on top.
Spread half of the ricotta mixture on top.
Repeat layers, ending with ricotta.
Sprinkle mozzarella on top.
Cover and cook on low for 4 hours or until noodles are tender.

4 servings.

I like that you can do lasagna in a crock pot. I like that this one doesn't have tomato sauce in it. I don't (particularly) like ricotta cheese and I don't like that, for some reason, the last two lasagnas I've made have had crunchy noodles. I've had better lasagnas. That's not to say that this was bad. It was actually good. AND it definitely gets points for being "different". I just think it could've been so. much. better. Maybe using a fall/winter quash is the key? I have no idea.

Massive attack.

Between the leftovers from our housewarming party and the summer season of our CSA starting this week, we have a massive amount of produce in our house at the moment. I didn't follow a recipe for this...I just kind of threw the things that were looking the "saddest" in the pot and hit GO.

"Clean Out The Kitchen Veggie Lasagna" (6 quart pot)

~6 uncooked lasagna noodles
~ 1 eggplant, sliced (From the CSA.)
~12 oz ricotta cheese
~1 c cherry tomatoes (From the housewarming veggie tray.)
~8 oz pasta sauce (Mine was a generic basil tomato.)
~1 bunch swiss chard, chopped (From the CSA.)
~1/2 c shredded Mexican blend cheese
~grated parmesan cheese

Line bottom of crock pot with 3 noodles.
Arrange eggplant on top.
Spoon ricotta on top of eggplant.
Arrange tomatoes on top of ricotta.
Pour pasta sauce on top.
Create second layer of noodles.
Place swiss chard on top of pasta sauce.
Sprinkle shredded cheese on top.
Pour water into pot.
Cover and cook on low for 3 hours.
Sprinkle with grated parmesan.

4 servings.

This was good, but it didn't wow our socks off. It needed more liquid because some of the upper level noodles weren't cooked all of the way. Other than that small issue, I'll call it a success.

Come together.

We had a small housewarming/impromptu birthday party yesterday, so I decided it was worthy of a double crock.

In one pot, I crocked my infamous "Buffalo Chicken Mac & Cheese". The only difference was that I used regular buffalo sauce instead of Xtra hot.

It was demolished. I guess people liked it. Imagine that.

The guests didn't know it, but I had a dessert in the other pot. Playing hostess, chasing around a toddler, and trying to get in the pool on a sunny 90° day is HARD work!

"Strawberry Raspberry Cobbler (6 quart pot)

The original recipe is HERE. Someone sent me the link awhile ago.

~1 1/4 c flour, divided
~2 T plus 1 c sugar, divided
~1 t baking powder
~1/4 t cinnamon
~1 egg, lightly beaten
~1/4 c milk (I used whole because we keep it in the house for the kiddo.)
~2 T coconut oil (Because we have a ton of it and it says it's good for baking...)
~1/8 t salt
~2 c fresf raspberries
~2 c fresh strawberries (I used strawberries because t'is the season!)
~vanilla ice cream (I bought to go with my other half's birthday cake...and then forgot to serve. Gah!)

In a large bowl, combine 1 c flour, 2 T sugar, baking powder and cinnamon. 
Combine the egg, milk and oil; stir into dry ingredients just until moistened (batter will be thick). 
Spread batter evenly into greased crock pot. 
In a large bowl, combine the salt and remaining flour and sugar; add berries and toss to coat. 
Spread over batter.
Cover and cook on high 2 1/2 hours or until a toothpick inserted into cobbler comes out clean. 
Serve with frozen yogurt/ice cream if desired.

8 servings.

I'm so mad at myself for forgetting to serve this. You have no idea. So...by the time we were hungry enough for a sample, it wasn't warm anymore. It was still AMAZING. 

Clearly, we need to have more get togethers so I can get some practice remembering how to play hostess. (It's been awhile.)