Better than Dragon King Beef and Broccoli

SERVES 6 to 8
COOKING TIME: 5 hours

INGREDIENTS

• 1 cup low-sodium beef broth
• 1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce
• 1/2 cup oyster sauce
• 1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 pounds flank or sirloin steak, thinly sliced across the grain and cut into 3-inch pieces (Used sliced for stir-fry sirloin and it was tender in 3 hours)
• 3 medium carrots, peeled and cut crosswise into 1/4 inch thick coins
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/4 cup cornstarch
• 2 large heads broccoli, cut into 1-inch pieces (about 1 pound chopped florets)
• 6 cups hot cooked rice, for serving

INSTRUCTIONS
Make the sauce and preheat the slow cooker. Combine the broth, soy sauce, oyster sauce, brown sugar, sesame oil, and garlic in the crock of a 6-quart or larger slow cooker. Stir to dissolve the sugar and set the slow cooker to the HIGH setting.

Add the beef and carrots, cover, and cook on high for 4 to 5 hours. Add the sliced beef and carrots and use tongs to coat with the soy mixture. Cover and cook until the beef is cooked through and tender, 3 1/2 to 5 hours on the HIGH setting. Start checking at 3 1/2 to 4 hours, as flank steak tends to cook faster and may be tender at 4 hours.

Add the slurry and broccoli and cook for 30 minutes more. Whisk the water and cornstarch in a small bowl until smooth (this is your "slurry"). Add to the slow cooker and stir to combine. Add the chopped broccoli and stir to coat the broccoli in the sauce. Cover and cook until the sauce is thickened and the broccoli is tender, about 30 minutes more.

Serve the finished beef and broccoli over hot cooked rice.

Peach Pineapple Pork Picante

Ingredients

(4 servings)
1 lb. boneless lean pork (cubed) or pork chops
1 package taco seasoning mix
8 oz jar salsa
8 oz jar peach preserves
8 oz pineapple chunks, drained

Directions

Add all to crock pot.  Cook on low 6 hours or high 3-4 hours.   Serve over rice.

Crockpot Tomato Vegetable Soup with Tortellini

We love soup... its perfect for a quick dinner on a chilly night.
Tonight we have Cub Scouts and then basketball practice, so I wanted something hearty and filling... and also with a decent amount of protein.

This is my version of a recipe I found online

1 28oz can of whole plum tomatoes in tomato sauce
1 14oz can of tomato sauce
1 32 oz box of chicken or vegetable stock
1 small onion, minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 heaping tbsp Italian seasoning
pinch of kosher salt
pinch of pepper
1 1/2 cups mixed vegetables (frozen carrots, green beans and corn mix)
2 big handfuls of baby spinach
1 bag of Trader Joe's Party Sized Meatballs
Parmesan cheese rind
1 package of fresh cheese toretllini

Combine all ingredients except tortellini in Crockpot.  Cook on low for 6 hours.  30 minutes before serving, add toretllini, stir and cook.  Serve.

Taco Soup

1 ½ # Ground Beef,  uncooked and  broken up

1 envelope Ranch dressing (dry)

1 envelope taco seasoning

1 (16 oz) can corn

1   “       can Ranch bean

1  “        can Pinto  beans

1 (10 oz) can Rotel

2 (16 oz) cans Italian stewed tomatoes

Combine all in a crock pot and cook on Low for 8 hours

Top with:

Corn chips

Sour cream

Grated cheese

Chili- St. Paul Style

A good basic chili with which the Jansens grew up. 

---Meat---
1 lb. ground beef
2 onions, chopped
salt, pepper
---Beans---
1 can chili beans
2 can kidney beans
1 large can tomatoes (whole) - I used fire roasted and it was good.
---Spices---
1 T sugar
2 t chili powder
2 T chipotle powder
1/4 t ground oregano
1 t cumin
1 t basil
---Bonus Item---
1 T dried epazote (herb that reduces flatulence) - available at Penzey's


Brown meat and put in crock pot.  Add all the other items.  Low for all day.  Note that a double recipe does not fit in a large crock pot.  Also, I added the chipotle powder (and changed to fire roasted tomatoes) from my Mom's original recipe.  I have had good luck with Penzey's Chili 3000, 6000 and 9000 instead of all of the spices, but the spices are the original version per Mom.

Crock Pot Reuben

·         8 oz. cooked corned beef, coarsely chopped.  A bit more beef is better!

·         1 small package sauerkraut, rinsed, drained, chopped (Boar’s Head is best)

·         8 oz. pkg. cream cheese

·         2 cups Swiss cheese (cut up block okay)

·         1/2 cup Thousand Island salad dressing (or look for small packet in Deli)

Mix all ingredients in 1-1/2 - 3 quart crockpot. Cover and cook on LOW for 4 hours. Stir often to combine and scrape down sides. Dip will hold for 2 hours on LOW. Serve with party rye bread slices, pretzels, pickles, and french bread cubes.

Serves 10-12

Stay-A-Bed Stew on Thursday

Yes, I'm back with another recipe that is circa 1971, Church of St. Leo's parish cookbook....
This actually is my own mom's recipe.  I remember her making it when I was a kid.  It's delicious!
It's Simple and the biggest bonus, my kids LOVED it! 
Louie asked if we could have this again on Thursday; that is his stamp of approval.  He doesn't remember all 7 days of the week, for some reason if he really likes something we need to have it for dinner on Thursday or "can we go there on Thursday?"


Stay-A-Bed Stew

2 lbs. stew meat
lots of carrots, peeled and cut into big chunks
several onions, cut into big chunks
several celery stalks, chopped
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can of peas (don't drain them!)
1 bay leaf

Combine the first 5 ingredients in a CrockPot or a dutch oven.  Gently stir in the can of peas and the liquid and the bay leaf. 
Cook on low for 6-8 hours (if using a crockpot).  If you're going the oven route, bake at 275 for 6 hours. 

Simple, delicious and easy on the wallet! Enjoy!

Split Pea Soup with Smoked Ham

I love split pea soup. I grew up eating split pea soup that my mom made and it was delicious! She made hers in one of those Romertopf clay cookers. I had one for several years and used it often, but realized when we moved in here, we really didn't have room for something like that anymore. I had to adapt my recipe for preparation in the Crockpot.
A very important ingredient for this soup is a smoked ham shank or smoked ham hock. I stop at Widmer's and pick one up, the butcher will always saw it in half so that the marrow will release into the soup. The flavor from a smoked ham shank is delicious. Much better than a ham bone left from Easter.
Let's make Split Pea Soup. Start with a large Crockpot. Dump in one bag of dried green peas, add the smoked ham shank, a large chopped onion, chopped carrot and chopped celery. I always throw in a couple stalks of leafy topped celery stalks for the flavor. I had a bag of matchstick carrots in the fridge that needed to be used, so into the pot they went.
I also gave it a couple turns of fresh ground pepper. Don't add any salt at this time, the ham shank is pretty salty so hold off on that until serving. Add some chopped parsley, Widmer's only had curley and I prefer flat leaf, so I used dried parsley flakes.
Once all that is in the pot, add water. I used 2 quarts of water to fill my Crockpot.
Turn it on and let it cook on low overnight.
My method for this is to start it the night before you want to eat it. It will end up cooking on low for about 24 hours; seems like a long time, but it's not! You'll want to check it in the morning and add more water.
Tune in tomorrow for photos of the cooking process....


Split Pea with Smoked Ham Soup

1 smoked ham shank or ham hock
1 bag of dried green split peas
2-3 chopped carrots
1 onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 stalk of leafy green celery
chopped parsley
fresh ground pepper
2 quarts water

Add it all to the crockpot and cook for 24 hours on low. Add more water as needed.
Here's the finished product, I ended up cooking this a little longer. After 24 hours, the soup wasn't thick and hadn't lost the bright green color. I prefer it cooked long enough to thicken up and turn a darker green, with a hint of brown in it.
Yum!

Key West Ribs

I found this recipe a few years ago. We've updated it and made it our own. These ribs are so moist and delicious. It's a great meal when you've got the winter blahs, the citrus is so refreshing!

2 1/2 lb. country-style pork spareribs (either bone-in or boneless will work)
1/4 cup onion, chopped fine
1/4 cup barbecue sauce (a thick flavorful sauce is great in here)
1 tsp grated orange peel (I use the zest from one orange)
1 tsp grated lime peel (I use the zest from one lime)
2 cloves of minced garlic
1/2 tsp salt
juice from the zested orange
juice from the zested lime

Place ribs in the crockpot. Combine the remaining ingredients in a bowl and mix well. Pour over the ribs.
Cover; cook on low for 7-9 hours. Remove ribs from crockpot, cover with foil, set aside. 
Pour sauce in a sauce pan and over med/high heat, reduce the sauce by 1/3.  Spoon sauce over ribs when serving.
We love this with some rice and a side of black beans; serve these with the sauce too.

Cheesy Ravioli Casserole

We always keep a couple bags of cheese or beef ravioli in the freezer, so this can be thrown in the crock pot for a quick meal....by quick, I mean not a lot of prep work and easy to put together.

Cheesy Ravioli Casserole

1 tbsp oil
1 onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cans of Hunts Spaghetti Sauce, we use the Herb and Garlic flavor
1-14 oz can of diced tomatoes
1 tsp Italian seasoning
2 bags of frozen ravioli, beef or cheese filled
2 cups mozzarella cheese, grated (1 large bag grated)
1/4 cup flat leaf parsley, chopped

Spray crock pot with non-stick cooking spray. Heat oil in dutch oven, add onion, cook about 4 minutes. Add garlic, cook another 30 seconds, until fragrant. Stir in pasta sauce, diced tomaotes and Italian seasoning.
Put 1 cup of sauce in crock pot. Add 1 package frozen ravioli; top with 1 cup of cheese. Top with second package of ravioli and 1 cup of cheese. Pour the remaining sauce over the top.
Cover; cook on low setting for 5 1/2 to 6 1/2 hours. Sprinkle with parsley before serving.
This recipe will serve a crowd or you can have lots of leftovers for lunches the rest of the week!

Crock Pot Lasagna

UPDATE: Dan made this for dinner on Wednesday night. It is delicious. Oval crockpot is recommended. He used the no-boil whole wheat Archer Farms lasagna noodles. Really delicious. Highly recommended.

So, the St. Paul Pioneer Press had this deal a while back to sign up and get a crock pot recipe a week until the end of April. Well, it has been a total bust in my book. The recipes have not appealed to me at all . . . and I'm not a picky eater!
Yesterday, this recipe arrived in my mailbox and it actually is something that we'll try. My family loves lasagna. The invention of the no-boil noodles sealed the deal for me. We have lasagna a few times a year and it's made from scratch. I'm not a fan of Simek's (eccchhhhhh!) and the other frozen varieties (except the frozen stuff from Morrelli's!!).
Give it a try and let us know how it turns out . . . . maybe we'll make it here next week???
I'll talk to the chef.

Easy Lasagna

1 pound ground beef
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 jar (about 26 ounces) of marinara sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
1 pound whole-milk ricotta (such as Crystal Farms)
1/4 cup milk
1 egg
1 pound shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese
8 ounces no-boil lasagna noodles
To prepare crockpot: Spray crockpot with cooking spray or grease with vegetable shortening.To prepare meat sauce: In large saute pan, brown ground beef, onion and garlic. Drain off any grease. Add marinara sauce. Stir well. Season with salt and pepper to taste. To prepare cheese mixture: Meanwhile, in medium bowl, combine ricotta, milk and egg. Mix until smooth. Add mozzarella and parmesan. Mix until combined. To assemble lasagna: Spread 2 tablespoons meat sauce in bottom of crockpot. Arrange 3 noodles on top of sauce (break them if necessary). Spread 1/3 cup cheese mixture on top of noodles. Top with 1/4 cup meat sauce. Add another layer of noodles. Repeat layering (2 or 3 more layers of meat sauce, noodles and cheese, depending on size of crockpot). Top with meat sauce. Cover. Cook on low for 4 to 6 hours or until noodles are tender.

Beef Pot Roast with Root Vegetables

This recipe is from my friend Mary Owen (aka: Ted's step-mother). I have not made it, but it sounds delicious. We really like sweet potatoes at our house and they are so much better for you than just a regular potato.
It sounds delicious!

½ cup chopped onion
2 large sweet potatos, cut into 2-inch pieces
2 parsnips, peeled and chopped
1 celery root (celeriac), peeled and chopped
1 (5 lb) boneless beef roast, trimmed of fat
Sea salt and ground black pepper
3 tbsp. flour
1 (14 oz.) can diced tomatoes
1/3 cup real maple syrup
2 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp. garlic powder
1 tsp. onion powder
*I like to add a small handful of chopped parsley*

Arrange onion, sweet potatoes, parsnips, and celery root in bottom of crock pot. Season beef all over with sea salt and black pepper. Rub flour all over beef. Place roast on top of vegetables. Whisk together tomatoes, maple syrup, and seasonings. Pour mixture over beef.
Cover and cook on LOW for 12 hours or HIGH or 8 hours.

Shredded chicken tacos- super easy meal.

This is so simple and delicious! It's great on a salad the next day and also served with lime and cilantro rice (think Chipotle!). We also will use the leftovers for Chicken Enchiladas (roll filling with cheese in corn tortillas, lay in pan, pour a can of red or green enchilada sauce over it, smother with more cheese and bake for 30 minutes, YUM)

1 package Trader Joe's frozen roasted corn (or any frozen corn will do...) (left over grilled corn from the summer works too)
1 can black beans, drained
3-4 frozen chicken breasts (depending on leftovers, use 1 or 2 more)
1 jar salsa
1 package taco seasoning (I used either Penzey's Taco Seasoning or Chi Chi's)

Pour the bag of corn in the bottom of crockpot. Add the black beans. Put the chicken on top of beans and sprinkle with the taco seasoning. Pour the jar of salsa over the top.
Cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 3-4. Shred the chicken and then toss with the remaining ingredients, serve in tortillas with your regularly scheduled taco fixin's.

Also really good with lime and cilantro rice:

1 tbsp butter
1 cup white basmati rice
1 1/2 cups water
juice of 1 lime
lime zest
2 tbsp chopped cilantro
salt

Melt butter in a heavy sauce pan. Add rice and saute until you reach your desired nutty flavor (america's test kitchen technique, yummy!) 2-4 minutes. Add water and salt. Bring to a boil, turn down the heat to low, cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Add lime juice and fluff with a fork. Remove from heat and let sit for another 15 minutes. Add cilantro and fluff with a fork. Serve.