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Slow Cooker Turkey Pumpkin Chili

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This Slow Cooker Turkey Pumpkin Chili recipe is amazing! I admit, I was a little leery when I read that it had pumpkin puree in it. I’m not a huge fan of pumpkin (don’t shoot me!) – but I was told it wouldn’t have an overwhelming pumpkin flavor – so I went for it, and I’m so glad I did. It’s a gorgeous, bright chili that feels like you’re serving up a bowll full of fall. And the pumpkin adds a creaminess that I haven’t found with other chili recipes. Not to mention the added nutrients from the pumpkin puree.

I used my homemade pumpkin puree that was super easy to make.

Slow Cooker Turkey Pumpkin Chili
 
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Recipe type: Chili
Ingredients
  • 2 pounds of ground turkey
  • ½ tsp olive oil
  • 1 onion, chopped
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 teaspoon, chili powder
  • 2 bay leaves
  • 2 teaspoon, cumin
  • 1 teaspoon, oregano
  • 2 cans white northern beans or navy beans (15 oz), rinsed and drained
  • 2 cups chicken broth
  • 15 oz pumpkin puree (NOT pumpkin filling) Make your own with a $0.99 Sugar Pumpkin – here’s my tutorial for homemade pumpkin puree. I actually threw my into the crockpot frozen, since I had frozen the puree in 1 cup increments.
  • 4.0 oz – 4.5 oz canned chopped green chili
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • Optional garnishes: chopped cilantro, chives, sour cream, avocados, chips
Instructions
  1. Heat a large saute pan over high heat and lightly spray with oil. Add ground turkey and cook, at least five minutes, until lightly browned.
  2. Add cooked turkey to slow cooker
  3. Add all the other ingredients to the slow cooker.
  4. Cover and cook on high for four (4) hours or low for eight (8) hours
  5. Remove bay leaves, adjust seasoning to taste and serve!

(Source: Skinny Taste)

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Patriotic Ice Cream Sandwiches

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This ice cream sandwich “recipe” could not get any easier. You can change up the sprinkles to work for any holiday or party theme!

Patriotic Ice Cream Sandwiches
 
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Recipe type: Dessert
Ingredients
  • Ice cream sandwiches
  • Colored sprinkles – red and blue for 4th of July
  • Popsicle sticks (optional)
Instructions
  1. Take your frozen ice cream bars and push a popsicle stick through the ice cream. I did this to keep my kids fingers from getting covered in the chocolate from the ice cream bar.
  2. Pour sprinkles onto a plate.
  3. Dip sides of ice cream bars in sprinkles.
  4. Place back in the freezer until you’re ready to use!

You could also use color flaked coconut – to make colored coconut, put plain coconut in a Ziploc bag, add a couple drops of food coloring, close bag and mix it around until color coats coconut. I also tried blueberries and craisins along the side – not as pretty, but tasted awesome.

Have you done this before?  What’s your favorite way to dress up ice cream bars? What desserts do you serve on the 4th of July!? 

(Thanks for the idea, Living Locurto!)

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Mini Cheesecake Bites

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Looking for a little dessert recipe to celebrate the new year with? Here’s an easy mini cheesecake recipe that you can whip up and make ahead.

Mini Cheesecake Bites
 
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Recipe type: Dessert
Serves: 48 mini cheesecakes
Ingredients
  • 1 sleeve of Honey Graham Crackers
  • 4-5 ounces butter
  • 16 ounces cream cheese, softened (two 8 oz packs)
  • ¾ cup of granulated sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest
  • Dash of vanilla
Instructions
  1. Toss the graham crackers into a gallon Ziploc bag, seal it and crush them with a flat bottom of a bowl. Crush them until they are in small pieces.
  2. Place crushed graham crackers in a bowl. Melt butter and mix into crushed graham crackers until it’s moist.
  3. Place liners in a mini muffin pan. Push spoonfuls of crackers into the base of the liners to create a layer of crust for your cheesecakes.
  4. Bake the crusts for about 4-5 minutes, until they start to get golden brown.
  5. In another bowl mix cream cheese, sugar, eggs, lemon zest and vanilla. Mix until it’s creamy and combined.
  6. Put a dollop of cream cheese into each mini crust in the mini muffin pan. About a spoonful. It will expand a little during baking, so don’t overfill.
  7. Bake at 350 degrees F for about 15 minutes
  8. Take out of oven and let cool. Place in fridge for about an hour to cool them down. They can sit in the fridge covered a day or two in advance.
  9. Top with berries or pie filling when you’re ready to serve.

I hope you like them! What’s your favorite kind of cheesecake topping?

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Slow Cooker Ranch Pork Chops

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Pork chops are a really affordable meat option, often going for as low as $1.49/lb  – but they can easily taste too dry or bland. Although not the most photogenic recipe out there, this Slow Cooker Creamy Ranch Pork Chop recipe is delicious – and not at all dry as it simmers in a creamy gravy that goes well with mashed potatoes. It was also extremely easy to throw together.

Slow Cooker Ranch Pork Chops
 
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Recipe type: Pork
Ingredients
  • 4 boneless pork chops
  • 1 can of Campbell’s Cream of Mushroom soup (I used two)
  • ¾ cup of milk
  • 1 package of ranch salad dressing mix
  • ⅛ cup of water
  • I also added 8 ounces of sliced mushrooms I had in the fridge and that I needed to use
Instructions
  1. Put pork chops in slow cooker (mine were frozen).
  2. In a separate bowl mix together milk, ranch dressing mix, mushroom soup and water.
  3. Pour mixture over pork chops in the slow cooker.
  4. Cook on high for 4 hours – although I think I cooked mine for more like 6 hours because my chops were frozen when I tossed them in to the slow cooker. You just want to make sure they aren’t pink inside.

I think this lends itself well to being served with with mashed potatoes!

See Amazon’s best selling slow cookers and Crockpots here.

What’s your favorite way of cooking up pork chops?

 

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Slow Cooker Creamy Tortellini Soup

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If you’re looking for a savory, robust and very filling soup, this Slow Cooker Creamy Tortellini Soup is amazing! My husband loved it – raving all night about how good it was. I like this recipe because I think it would work well without meat, without mushrooms and because it comes together so easily. This recipe will definitely make it into our regular slow cooker rotation.

Slow Cooker Creamy Tortellini Soup
 
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Cuisine: Soup
Ingredients
  • 6 cups of spaghetti sauce - Yyu can use homemade, I used a 24-oz store-bought jarred roasted garlic spaghetti sauce without meat.
  • ½ lb browned ground beef
  • ½ lb browned italian sausage, sliced (about 3-4)
  • 4 cups of chicken broth
  • 8 oz cream cheese - I used regular, not low fat cream cheese. I find that the lower fat cream cheeses can curdle in the slow cooker. The more you stir it the more likely it will all dissolve if you do opt for low fat cream cheese. I’d be interested to try this recipe with just regular half-and-half, eliminating this problem all together?
  • 8 oz sliced fresh baby bella mushrooms
  • 16 oz frozen cheese tortellini
  • ½ cup freshly grated parmesan
  • Handful of fresh spinach leaves (optional), cut into strips
Instructions
  1. If you want to throw it together quickly in the morning I recommend cooking up your meat the night before. Brown your ground beef and Italian sausages (separately). Drain beef. Cut cooked sausages into thin slices. Refrigerate until morning.
  2. In the morning, combine spaghetti sauce and meat, chicken broth, cream cheese and mushrooms to slow cooker. Cook on low for 6 – 8 hours.
  3. About 30 minutes before dinner, turn Crockpot to HIGH and toss in frozen tortellini, fresh spinach and parmesan cheese. Give it a good stir and cover and cook until it’s tender and hot.
  4. Serve it up and slurp it down. Top with parmesan or mozzarella cheese if you prefer more cheese.

(This recipe is adapted from Heather Likes Food blog) 

Need a Slow Cooker? I’ve found the best places to look are Costco and Amazon in terms of price and quality.  See all the current slow cookers available on Amazon at this time.

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Slow Cooker Blueberry French Toast (With Homemade Syrup)

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A week ago Sunday we had this masterpiece for Sunday brunch – Slow Cooker Blueberry French Toast. It not only made the house smell amazing but it was a very delicious breakfast. This would be best made when you have company over – because it makes 12 servings and it is very, very rich, so a little bit goes a long way.

Slow Cooker Blueberry French Toast
 
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Recipe type: Breakfast
Ingredients
  • 8 eggs
  • ½ cup plain yogurt
  • ⅓ cup sour cream
  • 1 teaspoon Vanilla extract
  • ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 cup 2% milk
  • ⅓ cup maple syrup
  • 1 loaf (1 pound) French bread, cubed
  • 1½ cup fresh or frozen blueberries
  • 12 ounces cream cheese, cubed
Instructions
  1. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs, yogurt, sour cream, vanilla and cinnamon together. Gradually whisk in milk and maple syrup until blended.
  2. Place half the bread in a greased 5- or 6-quart slow cooker (we used coconut oil to grease pan), layer with half of the blueberries, cream cheese and egg mixture. Repeat layers. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
  3. Remove from fridge about 30 minutes before cooking. Cover and cook on low for 3-4 hours or until a knife is inserted into French toast and it comes out clean.
  4. Enjoy. We didn’t even put syrup on ours.

Blueberry Syrup
 
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Recipe type: Breakfast
Ingredients
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 2 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 1 cup cold water
  • ¾ cup fresh or frozen blueberries, thawed, divided
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1 tablespoon butter
Instructions
  1. In a small saucepan combine sugar and constarch; stir in water until smooth.
  2. Add ¼ cup blueberries.
  3. Bring to a boil; cook and stir until the berries pop, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in lemon juice, butter and remaining berries.
  4. Serve with french toast!

What’s your favorite kind of french toast? Have you ever made french toast in the  slow cooker before?

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Slow Cooker Refried Beans

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I first made Crockpot Refried Beans last year and it was so easy, I haven’t bought the canned stuff since! I’m the only person in our house who likes them and if I open a can of refried beans on taco or fajita night, at least half of it doesn’t get used. This way I can freeze them in single servings and I think they taste better than the canned stuff any way.

Making homemade refried beans is:

a.) Healthier
b.) Tastier
c.) Cheaper
d.) Easy to freeze in smaller quantities

Slow Cooker Crockpot Refried Beans
 
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Ingredients
  • 3 cups of Pinto beans (Best to buy these in bulk at Winco or local co-op) - this comes out to about 1.25 pounds of beans
  • 5 cups water
  • 4 cups chicken broth (Make your own chicken broth in the slow cooker!)
  • 1 onion, diced finely (I used a food chopper) - I incorporated the onions into the beans with an immersion blender. If you just want some of the flavor – just peel and quarter the onion and then remove the onion pieces before you mash the beans.
  • 3 cloves of minced garlic
  • 1 Tablespoon chili powder
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1½ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon paprika
  • ½ teaspoon black pepper
  • Optional – I’ve seen recipes that add fresh jalapeños or even canned jalapeños but I didn’t want mine too spicy, just in case the kids would eat some.
Instructions
  1. Rinse your beans. Spread them out on a cookie sheet and pull out all the discolored ones. You might find rocks and other random stuff in your beans (especially if you buy the cheaper beans) – so don’t skip this step.
  2. Combine everything in the crockpot. Cook on HIGH for 8 hours. Add more water if you need (I didn’t need to add additional water).
  3. When beans have popped open and are soft, they are done. Reserve a couple cups of the liquid into a separate container.
  4. Strain beans. You can either mash them with a potato masher, use a food processor or use an immersion blender. I used the immersion blender, right in the slow cooker crock and it was a cinch! Add extra water if you need to get the consistency you want.
  5. Wait until it cools. Fill Ziploc bags and freeze. I like to lay mine on a flat cookie sheet or piece of cardboard in the freezer so they freeze completely flat, then I stand them up in a box, so they are easy to find! I would use within 3 months, but they probably won’t kill you if you keep them longer in the freezer.
  6. If needed, you can add more chicken broth when you thaw the beans – they might need a little more liquid when reheated.

If you’re having a fajita or taco night – check out this recipe for Spanish Rice in the rice cooker!

Have you made refried beans before? What is your recipe? 

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Basic Homemade Waffle Mix

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I haven’t made a lot of waffles in my days – I’d much prefer an egg. But this recipe, might just convince me otherwise. I was looking for a basic make-at-home waffle mix, because my kids and my husband love waffles. I didn’t want anything fancy, just something that was good, easy, wholesome and not Bisquick or Eggos. This would be it. I also appreciate that it’s made with real butter and not vegetable oil – I think it makes a huge difference in taste. And when I say it’s made with butter – it’s MADE with butter. In fact there is so much butter, I think they’d be more aptly named buffles. .  .and good buffles they are!

The recipe is courtesy of The Joy of Cooking which you can find over on Amazon!

Basic Homemade Waffle Mix
 
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Recipe type: Breakfast
Ingredients
  • 1¾ cup flour, all-purpose
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 3 eggs
  • ¼ cups to 1 cup (1/2 to 2 sticks) butter, melted - use only ¼ cup if you’re looking for a “reduced-fat” version – and if you’re looking for a crunchier, more flavor-filled waffle go for the gusto with 1 cup. I compromised and used ½ cup (1 stick). Basically – the more butter, the crunchier.
  • 1½ cups milk
Instructions
  1. Preheat your waffle iron. (Waffle iron deals on Amazon)
  2. In one bowl, mix together all the dry ingredients (flour, baking powder, sugar and salt). In another bowl, whisk together eggs, butter and milk.
  3. Make a little well in the dry ingredients. Pour in wet ingredients. Whisk!
  4. Don’t whisk too much. Just enough to combine ingredients. It might look a little lumpy, that’s okay.
  5. Follow the instructions for your waffle iron. I use a measuring cup to scoop batter onto waffle maker. Then it beeps when it’s cooked. It’s pretty easy.
  6. Top with any number of things – more butter, syrup, strawberries, whip cream, blueberries. . .

What is your favorite waffle recipe? What’s your favorite waffle topping?

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Rhubarb Custard Cake

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I had never heard of rhubarb custard cake until last week! Linda left a comment on my Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp recipe, sharing the recipe with me. I was immediately intrigued – it sounded delicious and so very, very easy. And it was full of whipping cream – so I knew it was healthy (wink, wink). She got the recipe from the Oregonian newspaper years ago.

It was not as “pretty” as I expected. But this is definitely NOT a cake you want to judge by it’s cover. All the rhubarb sunk to the bottom of the pan making a custard crust that was full of flavor. It was one of the most moist boxed cakes I’ve ever had. I would bring this to a church potluck in a heartbeat – people will oooh and ahhh.

I also think it would have looked fancier if I would have used a white cake mix instead of a vanilla cake mix. The white would have offset the pink rhubarb better, but the vanilla flavor was fantastic, too.

Rhubarb Custard Cake
 
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Recipe type: Dessert
Ingredients
  • 1 box white cake mix (Duncan Hines or any kind that requires oil as an ingredient)
  • ¼ teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg (optional)
  • 3 cups diced rhubarb, cut in ½-inch pieces
  • 1½ cups granulated sugar
  • 1 pint whipping cream (2 cups)
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to whatever temperature is required by the boxed cake.
  2. Prepare the cake as it’s directed on the package. Add nutmeg to batter. Pour batter into an 11-by-15-inch glass baking pan (a 9-by-13-inch pan won’t work unless the pan is very deep; add five (5) minutes or so to the cooking time.) If you are using a metal plan increase temp 25 degrees.
  3. Right before you put the cake in the oven, toss the rhubarb and sugar together. Sprinkle the sugared rhubarb over the cake batter.
  4. Then you drizzle the entire pint of whipping cream over the batter and fruit; do not mix it in.
  5. Bake 35 minutes or until the cake top turns a light golden brown and begins to leave the sides of the pan. If you stick a wooden toothpick into the middle of the cupcake and it comes out clean, then it’s done.

Thanks for leaving the recipe Linda, I love it when readers share their recipes with me! The best recipes are those you get from your friends. What are your favorite rhubarb recipes?

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Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

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Our sweet neighbor popped her head over the fence this week and said she had a bunch of rhubarb she just harvested. . .and would we like any? Well of course! We gave her a dozen fresh eggs from our flock and she gave us a bag full of fresh rhubarb. I love neighbors, bartering and spring. Ahhhh.

So last night my daughter and I made a Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp. It was perfect timing since the strawberries were very ripe and they needed some love. Some rhubarb love.

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp
 
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Recipe type: Dessert
Ingredients
  • 4 Cups of fresh rhubarb, dice into 1 inch pieces
  • 4 Cups fresh strawberries, washed, hulled, halfed
  • ¾ Cup sugar
  • 1½ teaspoons orange zest
  • 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
  • ½ Cup orange juice – I used fresh squeezed since oranges have been such a good deal lately!
For the crisp on top
  • 1 Cup flour
  • ½ Cup light brown sugar
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 Cup Quick Cooking Oats
  • 12 Tablespoons (1.5 sticks) of cold butter, diced (recommend unsalted butter)
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
  2. For the fruit filling, throw rhubarb, strawberries, ¾ Cup granulated sugar and orange zest into a large bowl.
  3. In a separate bowl, mix the cornstarch into the orange juice until it’s dissolved. Pour into bowl with fruit and mix well. I used fresh squeezed orange juice just because we fresh oranges. I used a lemon juicer, which worked just fine, as long as you don’t mind a little orange juice in your eye.
  4. Pour fruit mixture into a 8-by-11-inch baking dish. Place this on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper (to catch mixture if it bubbles over). Don’t pay any attention to the pan in the photo, it’s the wrong size. It has a higher lip, so I didn’t need to worry about it bubbling over.
  5. For the topping, use an electric mixer with a paddle attachment and combine the flour, ½ cup sugar, brown sugar, salt and oatmeal. With the mixer on low speed, add the cold butter and mix it until it’s moist and starts to “crumble.”
  6. Sprinkle the topping over the fruit, covering it completely.
  7. Bake for one hour, until fruit is bubbling and topping is golden brown.
  8. Serve warm with ice cream. Enjoy!

This recipe is thanks to the Ina Garten, Barefoot Contessa – I can’t take any credit.

I still have some more rhubarb – what should I make with it? I’d love to hear your favorite rhubarb recipes!

And if you like this sort of desert, check out this Rhubarb Pecan Oat Crumble recipe that I made last spring. I don’t know why I called that one a crumble and this one is a crisp – I have no idea the difference. I just know I don’t have to make a pie crust!

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