Italian Lemon Chicken

I really wanted tortellini last week, but I needed some chicken to go with it to make the meal more "complete" so I figured I would look in my cabinets and see what I could come up with! I am a big fan of chicken in the crock pot, its quick, easy, and the chicken is always tender and juicy if cooked with the right amount of liquid. So here is what I came up with....

Italian Lemon Chicken

Ingredients: 

3-4 chicken breasts 

1 stick of butter 

2 packets of Italian seasoning 

Juice from 2 large lemons 

Directions: 

Place the stick of butter in the crock pot. Add Chicken to the crock pot, pour the seasoning mix over top of the chicken. Then squeeze the juice from the two lemons on top of that. Cook on low 3-4 hours. You can leave the breasts whole, or stir with a fork to shred the chicken. This was DELICIOUS!! I served it over the top of tortellini and used the sauce from the chicken as sauce for the tortellini! Sprinkle some parm cheese over the top and enjoy! YUMM! 

Chili

Normally I don't make chili in the summer, BUT it has been SO hot here, that turning on my oven seems like an awful idea, and my husband is not up for grilling every night. So crock pot meals are a great back up. I had been craving some spice lately, and both my husband and I love chili, so I figured why not. It's not like its a fall/winter meal only. Although chili while watching a Patriot's game is one of my favorite things about fall :)

As a kid, I HATED beans. I would not touch anything with beans in it, and I am still that way today. My dad always made chili, and it always smelled SO good, but I refused to try it because of the beans. Then being the spoiled child I was, my dad decided to make beanless chili, just for me. So every time he made chili, it was regular chili in the big crock pot, and beanless for me in the small crock pot. So of course I make the beanless chili today :) But I am going to share both recipes for everyone, as I know many people like beans.

Beanless Chili 

Ingredients:

• 1 pound ground beef
• 1 chopped green pepper
• 1/2 of an onion, chopped 
• 1 teaspoon of minced garlic 
• 1 can on tomato sauce (15.8 oz can, regular size) 
• 1 can of petite diced tomatoes 
• 4 tablespoons chili powder
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 box Elbow noodles
• • Sour Cream
  • Shredded Cheddar Cheese 
   

Directions:

Brown the ground beef, drain, then place in the crock pot. Add the green pepper, onion, tomato sauce, diced tomatoes, and all the seasonings. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. I will warn you, this chili packs a good punch. If you aren't a huge spice lover, cut back on the cayenne, cumin and chili powder. You can always start with 1/2 the amount, and as more as it cooks. I usually recommend this to anyone using this recipe for the first time, unless you know you love spicy chili. Also, I often will add a little more than the amounts above, as I cook, but again, I like spicy chili, as does my husband. 

Since the chili doesn't have beans, I serve the chili over elbow noodles, and top with sour cream and cheddar cheese. 

Now...if you like beans, use the same recipe as above but you also need 1/2 cup of dried pinto beans, and 1/2 cup of dried kidney beans. Soak the beans in cold water overnight, the night before. Drain from the water and add into the crock pot with the meat, sauce and seasonings, and still cook the chili on low for 6-8 hours. Also, beans absorb water, so I recommend using an extra small can of tomato sauce (the 8 oz can), or 1/2 cup of water. 

Top with sour cream and cheese and enjoy!! 

Balsamic Brown Sugar Pork with Baked Sliced Sweet Taters

I have been getting very bored with pork lately. My husband likes pork roasts and pork chops a lot, and I find myself making the same marinades, or just making Pork Chops. I have also always had a hard time finding a good crock pot Pork recipe...well, I found a few online, combined them all, changed a lot of things, and came up with a recipe, that turned out to be UNBELIEVABLE! It smelled so good, I kept going to the crock pot throughout the day and tasting it! I decided to make sliced sweet potatoes as a side. Usually I do some type of potato or squash as a side with pork, and my son LOVES sweet potatoes, as does my husband so I went with those tonight. Added some green beans, and topped it off with homemade corn bread (the corn bread will be in a separate post)! Our dinner was awesome!! 

Tonight's Dinner

Balsamic Brown Sugar Pork 

Ingredients:

1 1-2 lb boneless pork loin

1 teaspoon ground sage

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 clove garlic, crushed

1/2 cup water

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

2 tablespoons soy sauce

Directions:

Put everything in the crock pot. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. I recommend a smaller crock pot so the pork is better covered in the liquid. If you are home, turn the pork every few hours to make sure it is well covered in the liquid. Either way, it will be great!

I don't think recipes get much easier! 

Baked Sliced Sweet Potatoes 

Ingredients:

4 large sweet potatoes

1 stick of butter

1/2 cup of brown sugar

Directions:

Line the bottom of a 9x13 pan with tin foil. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. 

Cut half the stick of butter into 8 slices. Place the butter on the bottom of the pan. 

Peel the sweet potatoes, cut them into thin circular slices. Line the pan with the sweet potato. Cut the remainder of the butter into 8 more slices. Place on top of the sweet potatoes. Cover the top with the brown sugar. 

Pan should look like this: 

Place the pan in the oven and baked for 45 mins. The sweet potatoes will be darker in color and very soft, you will easily be able to stick a fork in them. 

Enjoy!!