Italian Meatballs

2 pounds lean ground beef or turkey
2 teaspoons dried oregano
2 tablespoons freshly chopped Italian parsley
1 teaspoon black pepper
Kosher or sea salt to taste
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
2 cups panko crumbs, or bread crumbs
1 cup Parmesan cheese, reduced fat
2 eggs

Combine all ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Shape mixture into (24) 1" meatballs.

When cooking meatballs, add 1 tablespoon olive oil to a large skillet, turn to medium heat and cook until brown on both sides. Brown as instructed but do not cook the whole way through as they will continue cooking while in the crock pot. Cook on low for to 3 hours in your favorite spaghetti sauce.

Read More

Chicken,cheese, and stuffing

3-4 chicken breasts
1 can of cheddar soup( u can use cream of mushroom, celery, or cheese)
2-4 slices of Swiss cheese (or cheese preference, i used provolone :) )
1 box of stove top stuffing
milk
butter

Mix can of soup with can of milk (empty soup can, like if you were just making the soup)
Dump half the soup mixture on bottom of crock pot
Lay chicken breasts in soup mixture
Layer cheese atop chicken
Dump the rest of the soup mixture on top of the cheese/ chicken
Next dump dry stove top on top of the chicken
Place a few tablespoons of butter (to your liking, I usually do 2-4)
Cook on low for 4 hours if chicken thawed, 6 hours if chicken frozen
I prefer frozen chicken, tends to stay more moist. Enjoy, so yummy!

Read More

Apple Butter in a Jar :)

6 1/2 pounds apples - peeled, cored and sliced
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract

Place the apples in a crock pot. In a medium bowl, combine sugars, cinnamon, nutmeg cloves and salt. Pour the mixture over the apples and mix well.Cook in crock pot on low for about 10 hours, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is thickened and dark brown.Uncover, stir in vanilla and continue cooking uncovered on low for about 2 hours.Use an immersion blender to puree the apple butter until smooth.Spoon the mixture into sterile containers, cover and refrigerate for up to two weeks or freeze.Serve on breads, muffins, pork chops or just eat it with a spoon.

Read More

Taco Dip

1 block (8 oz) cream cheese
1 pound Velveeta
2 cups jarred salsa (I like the one with beans and corn)
1 (1.25 oz) envelope taco seasoning mix.

Use a crockpot. Dump everything in. It will not look pretty, and that's okay. Cover and cook on low for about 3 hours, or on high for 90 minutes or until the cheeses have fully melted and are heated through. Stir well and serve with your favorite tortilla chips

Read More

Crockpot Apple Cake Dessert Recipe

6 apples peeled, cored and sliced
sugar ,sprinkle a few
cinnamon,sprinkle a few
8 oz of yellow cake mix
1/4 c melted butter or margarine

Put slices of apples in Crock pot. Pour a package of dry cake mix over apples. Drizzle butter over cake mix. Sprinkle cinnamon and sugar mixture over that and cook on low 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Keep checking and it's done when the apples are soft.

Read More

KNOCK-OFF OLIVE GARDEN ZUPPA TOSCANA RECIPE

1 pound spicy Italian sausage, chopped
1 medium onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 cups chicken stock
2 medium russet potatoes, cubed
1-1/2 cups chopped kale
1/2 cup heavy cream
ADD a cup of bacon

Pour 1 tablespoon of olive oil into a large pot. Add the chopped sausage, diced onion and minced garlic to the pot. Cook over medium-high heat until the onions are tender and sausage is cooked through.
Add in the chicken stock and potatoes, bacon,and bring the mixture to a boil. Boil over medium-high heat until the potatoes are tender.
Reduce the heat and add in the chopped kale. Allow the kale to simmer for 5-7 minutes until tender.
Stir in 1/2 cup of heavy cream and serve.

Read More

Pumpkin Soup

1 tbs butter
1 cup chopped onion
2 tsp minced garlic
2 lbs cubed cooked ham
3 (29 oz) cans pumpkin puree
1 (32 oz) carton chicken broth
2/3 cup cream
1 tsp fresh thyme (I used freeze dried)
1 tsp ground black pepper
1/2 tsp fresh rosemary (freeze dried as well)

1. Melt the butter in a skillet over med. heat. Cook the onion and garlic in the butter until soft.
2. Combine the onion, garlic, ham, pumpkin puree, chicken broth, cream, thyme, pepper and rosemary in the slow cooker. Set to low and cook 8-10 hours.

Read More