Chicken Korma in the slow cooker

A delicous Indian meal in the slow cooker!

1 pound boneless, skinless chicken, cut in chunks (about 3 small thighs)
1 large potato, peeled and cut in 1/2-inch chunks
1 large onion, coarsely chopped
1 (14.5-ounce) can stewed tomatoes and juice
1 garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon curry powder
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cinnamon stick
1/2 cup sour cream or plain yogurt (to add later)
cooked white or brown long grain rice for serving

Directions:
Put the chicken into the bottom of your pot. Add potato and onion. Pour in the tomatoes, and add garlic and all spices. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or high for 3 to 4. Discard the cinnamon stick, and stir in the sour cream or yogurt. Serve over rice.

Ranch dressing powder

I had a giant container of Dan's Ranch from Costco that I really liked, and finally finished it.  I used it for ranch chicken, and recently I've been adding some to taco soup for extra fun flavor.  It is great stirred into some greek yogurt for a veggie dip.  I'm sure there are plenty of good uses for ranch!  Costco doesn't carry it anymore, so I looked up a recipe to make my own.  Ingredients cost barely over $1, and made about 25 servings.

10 saltines
3/4 cup dried parsley flakes
1/4 dried onion
1/4 cup onion powder
1/4 cup garlic powder
1 T dried dillweed

Pules saltines in the food processor until a powder.  Add the rest of the ingredients and mix until blended.  Keep in an airtight container.  1 tablespoon = 1 packet of ranch powder.

(This recipe isn't salted, and ranch seasoning is usually pretty salty, so salt recipes as needed.)

Creamy Tomato Pasta w/ Shrimp

Below is the recipe from the website. I changed from penne to bowtie pasta. I also added sliced bell peppers, which was a great addition!

Ingredients
¾ pounds Penne Pasta
1 pound Shrimp
3 Tablespoons Butter
3 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1 whole Onion (small)
2 cloves Garlic
½ cups White Wine, Or To Taste
1 can Tomato Sauce (8 Oz)
1 cup Heavy Cream
Fresh Parsley, to taste
Fresh Basil - To Taste
Salt To Taste
Pepper To Taste

Preparation Instructions
Cook the penne pasta until tender-firm, also known as al dente.
Peel, devein and rinse (under cool water) 1 pound of extra large shrimp. Heat about 1 tbsp. butter and olive oil in a skillet. Add the shrimp and cook for a couple minutes until just opaque. Do not overcook them. Remove from heat and let cool for a few minutes. Now, put the cooked shrimp on the cutting board and pull off the tails. Chop the shrimp into bite –sized pieces and set aside.
Finely dice one small onion. Mince two cloves of garlic.In a large skillet heat 2 tablespoons of butter and 2 tablespoons olive oil. Add the garlic and onion and sauté, stirring occasionally. After the garlic and onions have cooked a bit add your white wine. Let the wine evaporate for a few minutes, stirring occasionally. If you would rather not use wine, you can use low-sodium chicken broth instead (about ½ cup).
Now add an 8-ounce can of plain tomato sauce. Stir well until combined. Then add 1 cup of heavy cream. Continue stirring. Turn heat down to low and let simmer.
Now chop your herbs, about a tablespoon of chopped parsley and about the same amount of chopped basil, or if you’re feeling very proper, chiffonaded.
Now add your chopped shrimp back into the tomato cream sauce. Give it a stir and add salt and pepper to taste. Throw in your herbs and stir until combined. Finally add your cooked penne pasta and give it a good stir.

Garlic buttered noodles

I served this as a side dish, but it stole the show.  So simple, but garlicy buttery cheesy good.

2 1/4 cups uncooked egg noodles
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella
2 Tbl butter, melted
2 Tbl grated parmesan
2 tsp minced fresh parsley
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp garlic (I was pretty generous with this measurement)
1/8 tsp pepper

Cook noodles according to package directions.  Drain.  Transfer to a serving bowl.  Immediately add other ingredients and toss to coat.

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Chicken Chimichangas

These were really flavorful, and came together really fast.  They aren't spicy at all, the kids all enjoyed them. Nathanael just added more hot sauce as he ate.  We had them along with Spanish Rice.

3 chicken breasts, cooked and shredded
1 cup refried beans
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp hot pepper sauce
6 (or more) 8" flour tortillas, warmed
3/4 cup shredded cheddar

Combine first 6 ingredients and microwave 1 1/2 - 2 minutes, or until heated through.  Scoop 1/3 cup of filling into a tortilla, sprinkle with cheese, fold bottom, side, side, then roll up.  Repeat until your filling is gone.

Heat some oil in a big skillet (we have a deep sided electric skillet that worked perfectly.)  Cook chimichangas until golden brown.  Drain on paper towels.

Serve over lettuce.  Top with cheese and sour cream.

Cream Cheese Chicken

The above are photos of the chicken and sauce separately, before they are combined in the crock pot to cook.

Cream Cheese Crockpot Chicken Recipe

1 frying chicken, cut up (I used about 4 pounds of breast and rib chicken pieces)

2 tbsp melted butter

dash of pepper

1/2 package of dry Italian seasoning mix

1 can cream of chicken soup1

8 oz brick of cream cheese, cut up in cubes

1/2 C chicken broth1 large onion

crushed garlic to taste

Brush chicken with butter and sprinkle with the dry Italian seasoning mix (I did two layers in my crockpot to make sure that the Italian seasoning got on all the chicken and not just those peices on top.) Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours. About 45 minutes before done, brown the onion in the butter and then add the cream cheese, soup, and chicken broth to the saucepan. Add the crushed garlic and stir all ingredients until smooth. Add pepper to taste. Pour sauce mixture over chicken in crockpot and cook an additional 30-45 minutes.

Baked Spaghetti

We just had this one at a friend's house and it was SO delicious! The sauce was amazing. Here's the recipe. I'll have to try making it myself soon:

Ingredients:
2 cups canned diced tomatoes
2 cups tomato sauce
1 cup water
1/2 cup diced onion
1/2 cup diced green bell pepper
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves
1 1/2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
1 1/2 teaspoons House Seasoning, recipe follows
1 1/2 teaspoons seasoning salt
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
2 small bay leaves
1 1/2 pounds ground beef
8 ounces uncooked angel hair pasta
1 cup grated cheddar
1 cup grated Monterey Jack or mozz

Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
In a stockpot, combine the tomatoes, tomato sauce, water, onions, peppers, garlic, parsley, seasoning mixtures, sugar, and bay leaves. Bring to a boil over high heat, and then reduce the heat and let simmer, covered, for 1 hour. Crumble the ground beef in a large skillet. Cook over medium-high heat until fully cooked, with no pink color remaining. Drain the fat from the meat, and then add the ground beef to the stockpot. Simmer for 20 more minutes. Cook the pasta according to the package directions. Cover the bottom of a 13 by 9 by 2-inch pan with sauce. Add a layer of pasta and then a little less than 1/2 of each cheese; repeat the layers, ending with the sauce. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes. Top the casserole with the remaining cheese, return it to the oven, and continue to cook until the cheese is melted and bubbly, about 5 more minutes. Cut into squares before serving.

House Seasoning:
1 cup salt
1/4 cup black pepper
1/4 cup garlic powder
Mix ingredients together and store in an airtight container for up to 6 months.