Crockpot Recipes for busy families

[annecolorgreen]

Crockpot Recipes...I will start by saying that I do occasionally "break" some SBD rules...check contents against what you know to be acceptable .

Spiced Citrus Chicken

2 Tbsps. olive oil
2 Tbsps. lime juice
2 Tbsps. Crystal Light Sunrise or OJ
2 Tbsps. lemon juice
2 Tbsps. chili powder
2 Tbsps. paprika
1 tsp. cayenne pepper
4-8 pieces chicken

Place chicken in crockpot. Combine remaining ingredients. Salt
and pepper to taste. Pour over chicken. Cover and cook on LOW
for 6-8 hours.

Crockpot Cabbage Rolls

12 large cabbage leaves
1 lb. lean ground beef, browned; drained
1/2 cup cooked rice
6 oz. tomato paste
3/4 cup water
salt and pepper to taste
1/4 tsp. leaf thyme
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
Soak cabbage leaves in HOT water for five minutes; drain and cool. Combine meat, rice, and spices. Place 2 Tbsp. mixture on each leaf and roll firmly. Stack in crockpot.
Combine tomato paste and water; pour over stuffed cabbage. Cover and cook on low setting for 8-10 hours.

French onion soup

3 large onions; thinly sliced
1/2 cup ICBINB
2 Tbsp. beef bouillon
4 cups hot water
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp. salt
4 slices mozzarella cheese
In skillet, cook onions in butter until lightly browned. Pour into crockpot. Add bouillon, 4 cups hot water, Worcestershire sauce and salt. Cover and cook on LOW 4-6 hours.

Note: To serve, ladle into 4 bowls, top with cheese. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan if desired.

Beef and Mushroom Stew

1 1/2 lb. stew beef (or whatever lean choice you would like to use)
10 oz. French onion soup
1/2 cup red wine
1 carrot; sliced
12-16 oz. fresh mushrooms
1 bay leaf
1/8 tsp. dried, crumbled rosemary
14.5 oz. can diced tomatoes
3 Tbsp. flour (I think we could thicken with some cornstarch)

Combine all ingredients, except tomatoes and flour, in crockpot.
Salt and pepper to taste. Cover and cook on LOW for 8 hours.
Add tomatoes and cook another hour. Mix flour with just enough
cold water to make a paste. Thicken liquid in crockpot with
flour paste 20 minutes before serving. Serves 6.

Confetti Crock Soup

2/3 cup uncooked wild rice (I think we could use whole grain)
1/2 cup chopped onion
44 oz. chicken broth
2 medium carrots; thinly sliced
1/2 tsp. dried marjoram leaves
1/8 tsp. pepper
2 boneless chicken breast halves; cut into 1/2" pieces
1 cup frozen broccoli; thawed, drained

Combine all ingredients, except broccoli, in crockpot.
Cover and cook on LOW for 8 hours. Turn heat setting to HIGH
and stir in broccoli 5-10 minutes before serving.
Serves 6.

Hamburger Soup

1 lb. lean ground sirloin; browned, drained
1/4 tsp. pepper
1/4 tsp. oregano
1/4 tsp. basil
1/4 tsp. seasoned salt
1 envelope dry onion soup mix
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
3 cup boiling water
8 oz. tomato sauce
1 Tbsp. soy sauce
1 cup celery; sliced
1 cup carrots; sliced

Combine all ingredients, except Parmesan cheese, in crockpot. Cover and cook on LOW for 6-8 hours. Turn setting to HIGH, stir in Parmesan cheese and cook an additional 10-15 minutes until heated through. Add cooked whole wheat pasta if desired.
Note: Serves 6.

Crockpot Chipotle Pork Tenderloin

1 pork tenderloin, 1.5 to 2 pounds
1 14 oz. can diced tomatoes with green chilies
2 cups Chipotle salsa (Safeway makes a good one)
1/2 cup chopped onion

Place pork in crockpot; sprinkle with onions, add canned tomatoes and chiles, and top with the chipotle salsa. Cook on Low 8 hours. Meat will be extremely tender!

Crockpot Sour Cream Salsa Chicken

4 skinless boneless chicken breast halves
1 package reduced-sodium taco seasoning mix
1 cup salsa
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 cup light sour cream

Spray the crockpot with cooking spray. Add the chicken breasts. Sprinkle with Taco Seasoning. Top with salsa. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.

When ready to serve, remove the chicken from the pot. Place about 2 T cornstach in a small amount of water. Stir well. Stir the cornstarch mixture into salsa sauce. Stir in 1/4 cup of sour cream.

Thai Chicken for the Crockpot

4 (4-oz) boneless skinless chicken breasts
3/4 cup salsa
1/4 cup peanut butter
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon grated ginger root
2 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro

Place chicken breasts in the slow cooker.

Mix the remaining ingredients except the cilantro together in a small bowl and then pour over the chicken.

Cook on low for 8 – 10 hours. Remove chicken with slotted spoon. If sauce is very thin, mix with 1 tablespoon cornstarch. Pour sauce over chicken, sprinkle with cilantro, and serve hot.

CROCK POT ROAST

3 pound round tip roast
1/2 tablespoon cracked black peppercorns
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons worchestershire sauce
2 teaspoons dry mustard

DIRECTIONS:

*Rub cracked pepper and garlic onto roast.
*Put roast into crock pot and make several shallow slits in the top of the roast.
*In a small bowl, combine remaining ingredients and pour over meat.
*Cover and cook on high for 4-5 hours or on low for 8-10 hours.

Portobello mushroom and onion soup

1 pound portobello mushroom -- coarsely chopped
1 cup red wine
2 cloves garlic -- fresh, pressed
1 large onion -- chopped
1 tablespoon worcestershire
2 tablespoons bacon bits-Hormel
3 cups vegetable broth

Spray crock with pam.
Add everything, and cook on low, 8 hours or so.

Deli-Roasted Chicken

1 Chicken (whole)
Pam Olive Oil Spray
Lawry's Seasoned Salt
Aluminum Foil

Clean chicken inside & out & spray w/olive oil spray. Sprinkle w/Lawry's Seasoned Salt. Spray inside of crockpot w/Pam. Do not put any water into crockpot. Roll wads of aluminum foil into balls & put in bottom of crockpot. Put chicken (back side down) on aluminum balls. (This will keep the chicken out of the liquid that it makes while cooking). Cook on high 4-6 hours.

South of the Border Chicken Chili

5 skinless chicken breasts
1 large onion -- chopped
2 garlic cloves -- minced
14 1/2 ounces chicken broth
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon hot sauce
32 ounces canned Great Northern beans drained
3 tablespoons lemon or lime juice
2 tablespoons fresh cilantro or parsley chopped

This spicy, tantalizing Southwesternstyle chili is
great for game-day entertaining. Low-fat chicken offers a heart-healthy
alternative to traditional beef-based chili recipes. Use reduced-fat
chicken broth to trim even more fat without sacrificing flavor.

1. Mix chicken broth, onion, garlic, cumin, salt and hot sauce. Place
in Crockpot. Add chicken breasts. Cover; cook on lowfor 4 to 5 hours.

2. Remove chicken breasts when tender. Dice into small
cubes. Return chicken to Crockpot; add beans, lemon or lime
juice, and cilantro or parsley. Cover; cook on low until all contents are
hot. If you're not counting calories, garnish with a sprinkle of cheese,
a dollop of sour cream

[vickil]

These look great, Anne! It's nice to have so many in one place. I love using my crockpot, too! Thanks for taking the time to post them!

[Dolly-VA]

Thanks Anne! I'm going to make the sour cream chicken today. I'm feeling awful and this will take care of later in the day worries. Sounds delicious!

[Myrealana]

Nice.

I'll add one of my own:

Italian Chicken Chilli:
3 large chicken breasts
1 large can (28oz) crushed tomatoes
1 can white beans
1 medium onion, diced
4 cloves garllic, diced
1 medium green pepper, diced
2 tsp Italian seasoning blend
1 Tb Red Wine vinegar
2 tsp Worstershire sauce
salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in the crock pot on low for 8-10 hours. Shred chicken and serve on whole wheat buns sloppy-joe style, or in bowls.

[annecolorgreen]

Thanks! Most of the recipes I have saved were from my weight watchers days and include pasta. I guess I could change some things and use WW pasta...I'll have to see about that. Maybe I'll post some more.

~~anne

[NFHSLH]

Thanks for all the recipes they sound great. I can't wait to try them.

[annecolorgreen]

Pulled Pork with Diet Coke

1 1/2 - 2 lbs. boneless pork top loin (IMO a lower fat option is fine)
1 c. chopped onion
1 c. diet soda
1 c. barbecue sauce (low carb)

Combine all ingredients in a crockpot. Cook covered on low for 6-8 hours or on high for 5-6 hours or until meat is very tender. One hour before serving, take 2 forks and pull the pork apart. It should be very tender by this time and just fall apart as you separate. Cook for the remaining hour on low setting.

This was the only other one I saw...it looked like the others called for potatoes.

~~anne

[lolo]

I have one too that's really good. I'm not sure though if pork chops are allowed. It's seems like they would be since they're so lean

4 Pork chops/thin sliced
16 oz of saurkraut and juices

Pour saurkraut and juices in crock pot
Put the chops on top
Cook on low for 6 hours.


Also another easy one that makes good chicken to put on top of salads or in chicken salad is:

Lemon pepper chicken

Chicken Breasts
Lemon juice
pepper


Just put in a few chicken breasts
Cover with lemon juice
and crack some pepper on top
Cook on low for 6 hours.

I don't really have measurements, I just guess and it always comes out great.

[NFHSLH]

Thank you Anncolorgreen,

I made the chicken salsa last night and it was great. Not only the taste but the fact i didn't have to heat up the house. I did put it over the spagetti squash and it was great. Thanks for posting these recipes.

[cpblazer]

Take lolo's message above and replace with boneless chicken breasts instead of the pork chops. It is one of the recipes used with Diet Workshop years ago. Tastes like pork vs. chicken.

[shellebelly]

What is ICBINB? It is an ingredient for the french onion soup?

[RedRox]

It's an acronym for "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter". You can likely use any transfat free margarine/butter substitute. Lots of folks like Smart Balance or other "heart-healthy" type spreads as well. ICBINB is just a popular one and one that is often referenced in the SBD book recipes.

[CarrieW]

Crock pot recipes are probably my favorite thing because they're SO easy! They cook while you're at work and you come home and throw a salad together and call it dinner! And some of these sound delicious! Can't wait to try them.

[dollinj]

wow Anne...lots of good looking recipes......but have a ???? is it always good to put the wads of foil in the bottom of the crock, my chicken never seems to come out juicy if it sits in the liquid all that time???

[tuesday89]

I just want to say, YOU ROCK!!!! It's so nice to come to a post that has more than one recipe listed at one time. Thanks!!!