Crockpot Round Up

During the school year I cook in the crockpot a lot.  It is not fun to come home with a little one that I've missed all day and have to put her down so I can cook.  Not to mention, I am beat by the time I get home usually and the last thing I want to do is cook sometimes.  One of my friends and co-workers asked me about 3 months ago to put together a list of all my crockpot meals… so, I hurried to put one together!  I'll try to update with pictures as I make the recipes again, but don't hold your breath!

Beef Meals

Pasta Soup (I modified this recipe)
1 lb of browned ground beef
1/2 an onion
1 can of diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can of red kidney beans, undrained
2 cups of beef stock OR 1.5 cups of water + beef bouillon cube
3 tsp. oregano
2 tsp. pepper
5 tsp. parsley
1 tsp hot sauce
1 jar of traditional pasta sauce

Put everything in the crockpot and cook on low for 7-8 hours OR on high for 4-5 hours.

Chili
1 lb of browned ground beef

1 packet of chili seasoning

1 tsp of chili powder

1 tsp of garlic powder

1 can of red kidney beans, undrained

1 can of diced tomatoes, undrained

2/3 cup of ketchup

hot sauce, salt, pepper to taste

Put everything in the crockpot and cook on low for 7-8 hours OR on high for 4-5 hours.  Serve with your favorite chili toppings like cheese and corn chips!

Beef Tips & Rice
1 lb beef tips
2 cups of water
2 brown gravy packets

Put everything in the crockpot and cook on low for 7-8 hours OR on high for 4-5 hours.

Pot Roast (I use this recipe from Joyously Domestic)

1-2 lb roast

Olive oil

Carrots

Potatoes (you can use a can of potatoes if you don't have time to prep)

1 cup beef broth OR 1 cup of water + beef bouillon cube 

1 tbsp corn starch

2 tbsp steak seasoning

1 tbsp salt

1 tbsp dried thyme

1 tbsp rosemary

You can put everything in the crockpot, or you can put the seasoning on the roast and brown it first.  I just put everything in the crockpot on low for 7-8 hours OR on high for 4-5 hours.

Chicken Meals

Fajitas (I modified this recipe from Allrecipes.com)
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1.5 cups chunky salsa
2 packages of fajita seasoning mix

Put everything in the crockpot on low for 7-8 hours OR on high for 4-5 hours.  Then, serve with flour tortillas, shredded cheese, and whatever other toppings you love.

Tex Mex Chicken
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 can of diced tomatoes, undrained
1 can of black beans, undrained
1 can of corn, undrained

Put everything in the crockpot on low for 7-8 hours OR on high for 4-5 hours.  Thirty minutes before serving, cook 1.5 cups of rice separately.  Then, mix it in with the Tex Mex chicken and serve with cheese and tortilla chips.

Zesty Italian Chicken & Pasta (I modified this recipe from JamieCooksItUp)
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast
1 packet of Italian dressing seasoning
8 oz cream cheese
2 cans of cream of chicken soup
Pasta noodles (I use the spiral or penne pasta)

Put everything in the crockpot on low for 7-8 hours OR on high for 4-5 hours.  Thirty minutes before serving, cook pasta noodles separately.  Then, serve together.

Cranberry Chicken
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast

1 bottle of barbecue sauce (something sweet)

1 cup of cranberries

Put everything in the crockpot on low for 7-8 hours OR on high for 4-5 hours.

Crockpot Chicken & Stuffing (I modified this recipe from iSaveA2Z.com)
1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast

1 box of stuffing

2 cans cream of chicken soup

1 bag of frozen green beans

Put everything in the crockpot on low for 7-8 hours OR on high for 4-5 hours.

Chicken & Rice

1 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast

Enough chicken broth to cover the chicken in the crockpot

Salt and pepper to taste

Put everything in the crockpot on low for 7-8 hours OR on high for 4-5 hours.  Thirty minutes before serving, cook 2 cups of rice separately.  Then, mix it in with the chicken and serve.  It's even better as left overs! :)

Other

Sweet Pork Tenderloin
1 pork tenderloin
1 cup of brown sugar
Enough white vinegar to dissolve the sugar (it won't take much!)
2 tbs molasses
2 tsp mustard
3 good squirts of ketchup

Put everything in the crockpot and cook on low for 7-8 hours OR on high for 4-5 hours.  This can also be cooked in the oven at 350* for and hour and 15 minutes.

Slow Cooker Spiral Ham (I use this recipe from Blissfully Domestic)
1 small spiral ham
2 cups of honey
1 cup of Dijon mustard
1/4 cup of Worcestershire sauce
2 tbsp of garlic powder

Pour the ingredients over the ham in the crockpot and cook on low for 7-8 hours OR on high for 4-5 hours.

To learn how to cook your sides in your crockpot at the same time, check out this post I wrote a while back!