Easy Slow Cooker Taco Pasta

If you own a Crockpot, you know just how convenient and amazing these appliances are; you put everything in the pot the night before (or morning of), turn on your Crockpot before you leave for work, and come home in the evening and voila, dinner is ready to eat!

If you do not own a Crockpot, I highly recommend that you go buy one just based on the sheer convenience alone.

Now that I've gone on about how much I think that Crockpots are the best, here's a simple and delicious Crockpot recipe for Taco Pasta.

http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/slow-cooker-taco-pasta/2eb7a12d-eb18-4f7c-a24f-fe0b2d9edffc

Ingredients:

1 lb lean (at least 80%) ground beef 

1 cup Progresso® beef-flavored broth (from 32-oz carton) 

1 cup water 

1 package (1 oz) Old El Paso® taco seasoning mix 

1 can (14.5 oz) Muir Glen® organic diced tomatoes, undrained 

1/4 cup finely chopped white onion 

1 garlic clove, finely chopped 

1 package (8 oz) Old El Paso® chile and roasted garlic Mexican cooking sauce

 4 oz (half of 8-oz package) cream cheese, soften, cut into 1-inch pieces 

3 cups cooked medium pasta shells

 2 cups shredded Cheddar cheese (8 oz) 

Directions:

In 10-inch skillet, cook beef over medium-high heat 5 to 8 minutes, stirring frequently, until beef is thoroughly cooked; drain.

In 5- to 6-quart slow cooker, place cooked beef and remaining Taco Pasta ingredients except pasta shells and Cheddar cheese; stir until well combined.

Cover; cook on Low heat setting 4 to 5 hours.

About 15 minutes before serving, cook and drain pasta as directed on package. Uncover slow cooker; stir in pasta and shredded Cheddar cheese until well combined.

Cook uncovered on High heat setting 10 to 15 minutes longer or until cheese is melted.

Serve topped with sour cream, salsa and/or shredded cheese.Enjoy!

Take Care,

Leanne.

Homemade Creamy Chicken & Vegetable Soup

Now that the snow has started to fall here in Canada, I am in soup and stew making mode. It is the season for comfort food now.

With that being said, I find that nothing makes a soup/stew better than simmering all day in the Crockpot: the vegetables are perfectly tender and not mushy, and the meat (if you choose to put it in) is so tender that it flakes apart in your mouth. Absolutely delicious!

So this past weekend I made my first ever Crockpot Creamy Chicken & Vegetable soup.

Here's my recipe that literally took me only 15 minutes to put together before walking out the door for work Saturday morning:

http://www.singforyoursupperblog.com/2010/11/03/simple-creamy-chicken-and-vegetable-soup/

Recipe:

Ingredients:

4 cups cold water

4 tbsp chicken boullion powder

1/4 tsp salt

Pepper to taste

3 whole skinless boneless chicken breasts, chopped into 1" chunks

2 large carrots, sliced into "dollars"

4-6 small roasting potatoes

2 stalks of celery, chopped

1/2 medium white cooking onion, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1 cup milk

4 tbsp all-purpose flour

Directions:

1. Pour cold water and boullion powder into Crockpot and stir with a wire whisk until granules appear to be dissolved.
2. Add remaining ingredients and cover and cook in the Crockpot on Low for 6-8 hours.
3. Transfer soup from Crockpot to a large pot and bring to a boil over medium high heat.
4. In a small bowl, whisk together the milk and flour. 
5. Slowly add milk & flour mixture to boiling pot of soup while stirring.
6. Bring to a consistent boil until soup thickens, stirring occasionally.
7. Serve and enjoy!

I hope you will enjoy this soup as much as I know my boyfriend and I did (even our dogs couldn't stop sniffing the air and wanting a taste).

Take Care,

Leanne.

Southwestern Chicken Chili

Now that it's getting cold out I find more and more that the people I know, including myself, are craving warm hearty foods.

I personally love a big bowl of chili in the fall and winter months with a slice of garlic toast for dipping.

With that being said, here's a "clean eating" Southwestern Chicken Chili recipe that will not only keep you nice and full, you'll also be warm and cozy. An added bonus is that  there are only 292 calories in each 1 cup serving...Wow!

http://www.thegraciouspantry.com/clean-eating-slow-cooker-southwestern-2-bean-chicken/

Recipe:

(Makes approximately 10 cups)

Ingredients:

• 4 raw, boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 8 oz. each)
• 1 (15 ounce) can pinto beans (rinsed and drained) or 1 1/3 cup home cooked beans
• 1 (15 ounce) can black beans (rinsed and drained) or 1 1/3 cup home cooked beans
• 1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes in juice, low sodium is best
• 1 pound frozen and thawed organic corn (organic to avoid GMO corn)
• 1 (12 ounce) jar of your favorite salsa, no sugar added
• 
  

Directions:

1. Place the chicken breasts on the bottom of your slow cooker. Pour the tomatoes and salsa over that and then layer on the beans and corn.
2. Cook on low for 5-7 hours, or until the chicken easily falls apart when the pot is stirred.

I'll be making this for dinner tonight. You should try it too!

Take Care,

Leanne.

Crockpot Chicken Noodle Soup

Since I've been nursing a brutal cold and sore throat for the last few days, I felt that it was fitting to post a recipe for a simple and easy chicken noodle soup recipe made conveniently in the crockpot, and ready for you when you get home from work.

Here's the recipe:

http://tipsfromatypicalmom.blogspot.ca/2012/10/crockpot-chicken-noodle-soup-recipe.html

Ingredients:

3 large chicken breasts (fresh or frozen)
1 -49 oz can Swanson Chicken Broth or Stock
1/2 can (of the broth) water
4 Chicken bullion cubes
One package (about 6) large carrots peeled and sliced on an angle
One onion diced
One bunch celery washed and sliced on an angle
1/4 bunch parsley
Salt and Pepper to taste

Instructions:
Add all ingredients to the crockpot and stir.  Cook for about 6 hours on low.  Shred or dice chicken.
1/2 package small egg noodles, cooked separately before you are ready to serve.  Add to the soup when ready to eat! (this keeps the noodles from getting soggy!)

Take Care,

Leanne.