Slow Cooker Pork Chops with Mushroom Gravy:
recipe shared with me by Erin Bonsall from the blog, Just Cooking found
HERE
NOTES: I browned the pork chops and follow the recipe to get
them in the crockpot around 10:30 this morning while all the kids were
in school. This gave me plenty of time to cook the pork chops on low in
the crockpot and have dinner ready by 5:30. My chops were pretty thin,
so next time I will probably use a thicker cut as they were falling
apart...really tasty, but I may have liked a little more bite to them. I
also originally thought that the next time I made them, I would
probably make my own gravy with flour, butter, milk, and fresh mushrooms
rather than the cream of mushroom soup, but once it was finished
cooking, the gravy was actually delicious!
SERVE WITH:
Mashed Potatoes:
6 medium russet potatoes, peeled and diced
1/2 to 1 stick butter
1/2 to 1 8oz bar of cream cheese (I use low fat)
salt and pepper to taste
Boil diced potatoes in about 1 quart of water until fork tender. Drain. Add butter and cream cheese and whip with a hand held mixer. Add salt & pepper to taste and whip again.
NOTES: Again, I am sure that you know how to make mashed potatoes, but this is my favorite, simple method. Mashed potatoes are really quick to put together if you cut the
potatoes small enough. Really, just add whatever you like on a baked
potato to the boiled potatoes, mash them up, and you'll have a delicious
side dish.
Asparagus-Mushroom Dish (recipe from Doggone Good, submitted by Judy Goodson.)
1 1/2 to 2 lbs fresh asparagus, trimmed
1 c fresh mushrooms, sliced (I used baby bellas)
1/2 c corn oil (I substituted vegetable oil)
1/4 c white wine vinegar
1/4 c sliced green onions
2 T chopped parsley
1 tsp dried basil
1/4 tsp salt
In a large skillet in a small amount of boiling water, cook asparagus 4 to 5 minutes. Drain. Arrange asparagus and mushrooms in the bottom of a casserole dish. In a jar, shake all other ingredients together. Pour over the asparagus and mushroom mixture. Cover and refrigerate for several hours or overnight.
NOTES: I made the asparagus and mushroom dish this morning as well. It was super easy, and I was not convinced that this was going to be super tasty because it seemed really simple. Well, it WAS super tasty and a great alternative to my usual side of roasted asparagus or broccoli. The mushroom flavor really enhanced the asparagus. My husband LOVED it!! You do have to let it sit, though, so make it either early in the morning or the night before. I tried to get my children to eat it, and they took a few bites but were not huge fans.
Slow Cooker Tortellini Soup (recipe from Doggone Good! submitted by Kristen Zaks)
2 14.5oz cans Italian-style stewed tomatoes
3 c water
2 c frozen cut green beans or Italian green beans
1 10.5oz can condensed French onion soup
8oz smoked turkey sausage, halved lengthwise and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 c packaged coleslaw mix
1 9oz packaged refrigerated cheese-filled tortellini
Shaved Parmesan
In a 4 or 5 quart slow cooker, combined undrained tomatoes, water, frozen green beans, onion soup, and turkey sausage. Cover and cook on low-heat for 8-10 hours or high-heat for 4-5 hours. If using low-heat, turn to high-heat. Stir in cole slaw and tortellini. Cover and cook for 15 minutes more. Top each serving with Parmesan cheese as desired. Makes 10-12 servings.
NOTES: This was so easy and such a hearty, wintertime soup. I made this for me and my husband and took half to a friend as I wasn't certain that the textures of this soup would work for my kiddos...and honestly, I didn't feel like testing those waters that night ;) They had leftover pizza!
Pecan Crusted Tilapia: (recipe from Doggone Good! submitted by Anne Dunn)
1/2 c dry breadcrumbs
2 T finely chopped pecans
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 c low-fat buttermilk
1/2 tsp hot sauce (or more to taste)
3 T all-purpose flour
4 tilapia fillets
1 T vegetable oil, divided
4 lemon wedges
Combine breadcrumbs, pecans, salt, garlic powder, and pepper in a shallow dish. Combine buttermilk and hot sauce in another dish. Place flour in a third dish. Dredge 1 fillet in flour, dip in buttermilk mixture, and dredge in breadcrumb mixture. Repeat procedure for remaining fillets. Heat 1 1/2 tsp oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2 fillets, cook 3 minutes on each side or until fish flakes easily when tested with fork. Repeat procedure with remaining oil and fillets. Serve with lemon wedges.
NOTES: This was a HUGE hit at my house. I do not love fish, so I don't cook a lot of it, but even I thought this was delicious! The baby ate some, the boys gobbled it down, and George LOVED every bite of it. This came together really quickly and was very fast to cook...perfect meal before the Wake Forest basketball game!
SERVE WITH: Edamame and
Cheese Grits Casserole: (recipe from Doggone Good! submitted by Colby Murphy)
3 c water
1 c quick grits
2 c shredded cheddar cheese
3/4 c evaporated milk
1/3 c butter
2 eggs, lightly beaten
12 shakes Texas Pete
1/8 tsp black pepper
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Cook quick grits according to the package. Add 1 1/2 cups cheese, evaporated milk, and butter. Stir until melted. Add eggs, hot sauce, and pepper. Spray an 8x8 inch baking dish with cooking spray and pour in the grits. Top with remaining 1/2 cup of cheese. Bake for 40-45 minutes.
NOTES: This was the perfect accompaniment to the tilapia. Maybe it's from living in Charleston, but I always want to pair fish with grits. I didn't fully read the recipe and ended up dumping all of the cheese in, and it was still so so yummy! Again, this came together super fast, and this dinner was a great, semi-fancy meal (at least in this house!) for a busy weeknight.
Chicken and Wild Rice Soup: recipe from Susan Lawson
6 TBSP margarine (I use butter)
4 TBSP flour
2 cups Half and Half (I use fat free)
3 cups chicken broth
2 cups cooked and diced chicken (cook in the crockpot)
Canned mushrooms
½ cup onion, chopped
½ cup celery, chopped
1 ½ cups cooked wild rice
Thinly blanched sliced carrots (I used about 1/2 cup)
Salt and pepper
In
large pot, melt margarine. Blend in flour and cook 2 minutes without
browning. Slowly add Half and Half and 1 cup chicken broth, whisk
constantly. Bring to a boil and cook a few minutes. Add remaining
broth, chicken, onion, celery, mushrooms, carrots and wild rice. Season
with salt and pepper. Simmer 30-60 minutes.
NOTES: I think this would work great with leftover turkey from Thanksgiving! My mother in law made this for my mama a few years ago when she had pretty major surgery, and it quickly became my mom's favorite meal! This is a hearty soup perfect for a cold day. It's really easy to make and comes together quickly. I threw the chicken in the crockpot and chopped the veggies early in the morning and finished the soup in about 10 minutes (up until the simmering part) later that day. YUM!
