Sunday's Recipe: Overnight Oatmeal

Weekday mornings in our house are anything but typical.  As many of you know my youngest son is 14 (soon to be 15...my leap year baby!) and is affected by mild Autism.  He has no concept and time whatsoever and moves quickly for no one!  His bus is scheduled to pick him up at 7 am....we have to get up at 5 am and on most days, I'm still rushing to get him out the door at the last minute.  So, in my attempt to make my mornings as stress-free as possible and allowing myself time to work with him, I've finally mastered "overnight oatmeal" in the crock pot. My first few attempts were a gooey mess but after realizing my slow cooker gets pretty hot even on low, I've made some necessary adjustments and this recipe is incredible!  And I place the left overs in small cup size containers and the boys have nutritious and filling snacks during the week as well!

Ingredients:

• 1 cup old-fashioned quick cooking oats (steel cut oats work well also)
• 2 cups milk or water ( I prefer to use water)
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon butter, melted (optional)
• 1/4 teaspoon salt (optional)
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 cup finely chopped apple
• 1/2 cup raisins and/or dates
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts or almonds ( pecans can also be used)

Directions:

Spray the inside of the crock pot with an non-stick spray.  Throw all ingredients inside and mix well.  Cover and cook on "warm" for 8-9 hours.  30 minutes prior to serving, turn crock pot to "low". Stir before serving. Makes approximately 7 servings.

*Originally, I tried this recipe on "low" for 8-9 hours only to discover my crock pot was just too hot.

And, you can always experiment with different fruits as well. I recently used dried blueberries instead of raisins and it was delicious!

Itialian Chicken and Potatoes

 Here's another one of my favorite crock pot recipes...perfect for yet another cold, snow weekend:

Italian Chicken and Potatoes

Ingredients:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves

1/2 cup Italian Salad Dressing

1 teaspoon Italian Seasoning

1/2 cup grated Parmesan or Romano cheese

4 to 6 medium red potatoes, cut into wedges

Preparation:

Place chicken in bottom of Crock Pot. Sprinkle with half of the Italian dressing, seasoning, and grated cheese. Place potatoes around the chicken. Sprinkle with remaining ingredients.

Cook on low for about 6-8 hours, or until the chicken is done and potatoes are tender.

Serve with steamed green beans sprinkled with Italian seasoning and Ta..da...

 

Burgundy Beef Stew with Herb Dumplings

With the forecast here calling for more snow, this is another great recipe to chase away the winter chills!

And it's another slow cooker recipe...time-saving, yet delicious!

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds beef boneless bottom or top round, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 4 medium carrots, cut into 1/4 inch slices (about 2 cups)
• 2 medium stalks of celery, sliced (1 cup)
• 2 medium onions, sliced
• 1 can (14-1/2 ounces) diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1 can (8 ounces) sliced mushrooms, drained
• 3/4 cup dry red wine or beef broth
• 1-1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
• 1 teaspoon ground mustard (dry)
• 1/4 teaspoon pepper
• 1/4 cup water
• 3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
• Herb Dumplings (Below)

Directions:

1.  Mix all ingredients except water, flour, and Herb Dumplings in 3-1/2 to 6-quart slow cooker.
2. Cover and cook on low heat setting 8-10 hours (or high heat setting 4-5 hours) or until vegetables and beef are tender.  Mix water and flour; gradually stir into beef mixture.
3. Prepare Herb Dumplings.  Drop dough by spoonfuls onto hot beef mixture.  Cover and cook on high heat setting 25 to 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center of dumplings comes out clean.

Herb Dumplings:

Mix 1-1/2 cups Bisquick Original baking mix, 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves, and 1/4 teaspoon dried sage leaves, crumbled.  Stir in 1/2 cup milk just until baking mix is moistened.

Stay warm and Enjoy!

Chicken And Corn Chowder

Well, we're bracing for another snow storm! You know when the weather forecasters talk about snow in "feet" rather than "inches" it's not a good sign! Another Lake Effect Snow Warning is in effect for our area from tomorrow night until Tuesday...or so.  But, I'm ready, I went to the grocery store and stocked up on the necessities and I have a list of snow day activities planned.  So bring it on Old Man Winter, we're ready for ya!
It's the perfect weather for our favorite Chicken and Corn Chowder recipe, so I thought I'd share with you as well.

This recipe is so easy and simple...and as an added bonus it cooks in the slowcooker! Easy, delicious, and time-saving...what more can you ask for?

CROCKPOT CHICKEN AND CORN CHOWDER

Ingredients

2 Cups Lumpy Mashed Potatos (Yes, that's right lumpy...it's ok this time)

1 can (10-3/4 oz) Cream of Chicken Soup

1Cup diced chicken

1 can whole kernel corn

1 cup chicken broth

1/4 cup diced red bell pepper

1 can chopped mild green chiles

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 teaspoon dried thyme

1 cup milk

Directions

Combine the soups, chicken, corn,potatos, chicken broth, bell pepper, chiles, salt, pepper and thyme in a 4- to 6- quart crockpot. Cover and cook on LOW for 4 to 5 hours. Add milk and cook for about 30 minutes longer, or until hot. Serves 4 to 6, and can easily be doubled for a larger crowd.