Tender and Moist BBQ Pork Ribs in the Instant Pot (from frozen meat!)

I've mentioned before how much I'm enjoying my Instant Pot that Dustin gave me for Christmas.  The more I use it, the more I am amazed with it!  The other night I knew that I had some frozen pork ribs, but the only thing I really felt like doing with them was BBQ.  And the only way I knew to do that was to slow cook them all day.  But all these thoughts happened at 4:00 in the afternoon.  I started looking for recipes using the Instant Pot and dealing with frozen meat.  I had cooked some chicken from frozen in my Instant Pot and it hadn't worked as well as I had hoped, so I was looking specifically for tips to be successful with frozen meat.  I came upon a website, www.hippressurecooking.com, and there were great tips for cooking frozen meat, as well as cook times.  I decided to give it another try, and I'm so glad I did!  After 20 minutes in the Instant Pot (plus pressurizing time), My ribs came out tender, moist and so delicious!  I was totally amazed!  Total prep, cook and de-pressurizing time was less than an hour--less time than my sweet potatoes took to bake in the oven.  I am loving this new kitchen gadget.  If you don't have an Instant Pot, but do have all day, I'm sure this would also be delicious in your slow cooker.

BBQ Pork Ribs (in the Instant Pot)
by: Carolyn

2 Tbsp. oil
1 onion, sliced
1 tsp. minced garlic
6-8 frozen pork ribs (if yours aren't frozen, adjust cook time accordingly)
1 tsp. kosher salt
3/4 tsp. fresh ground pepper
1 c. barbecue sauce

In saute mode, heat the oil in your Instant Pot.  Saute the onions until they are translucent.  Add the minced garlic and stir for 30 seconds.  Brown the frozen pork ribs in the Pot (as best as you can, with them being frozen and probably stuck together).  Add the salt, pepper and barbecue sauce and then pour enough water in to cover the ribs.  Set the Instant Pot to the Meat setting, high pressure, and 20 minutes cook time.  You can let it naturally depressurize, or do a quick depressurize, if you need to.

Slow Cooker Creamy Tortellini Soup

I had a New Year's Resolution this year to try one new recipe a week.  I used to cook new foods regularly, but my busy life kind of took over and I didn't take the time to find new things to make for my family.  I actually love to cook, but had found that I was bored with my old stand by recipes, and starting to dread dinner time every night.  My husband encouraged me to set a goal to try a new recipe once a week, and I have pretty much stuck to it.  It has made all the difference in how I feel about mealtime preparation for my family!  I love trying new recipes!  I saw this recipe on facebook and tried it out right away and my family loved it.  I used the frozen cheese tortellini from Costco and it tasted perfect with the soup.  

Slow Cooker Creamy Tortellini Soup

slightly adapted from: cafedelites.com

1/2 pound ground Italian sausage, browned

1 onion, chopped (I used my dehydrated chopped onion)

2 large carrots, chopped

2 stalks celery, chopped (I omitted because I was out of celery)

2 tsp minced garlic

1 Tbsp. Italian seasoning

2 tsp. beef or chicken bouillon powder

1/2 tsp. salt

4 c. beef or chicken broth

1/4 c. cornstarch mixed and dissolved in 1/4 c. water

3 cans evaporated milk

1 12 ounce package of frozen tortellini

2 1/2 c. fresh baby spinach

1 c. milk

Place the browned sausage, onion, carrots, celery, garlic, Italian seasoning, bouillon powder, salt and broth in a slow cooker.  Cook on high for 4 hours, or low for 7 hours.  Stir in the cornstarch mixture and the evaporated milk.  Add the tortellini and stir it together.  Cook it on high for 45 more minutes, or until the tortellini is cooked through and the soup has thickened.  Gently stir in the spinach and cook for another 5-10 minutes.  Pour in the milk, a little at a time, until the soup has your desired consistency.  Add more salt to taste.  I actually forgot to add the milk at the end, and our flavor and consistency were just right.  The recipe says that extra milk may be needed when reheating leftovers because the soup absorbs a lot of liquid as it cools.  We didn't have the problem because we had nothing leftover!

Creamy Ranch Chicken Bake

The other day I needed something new that I could prepare and bake while I worked on other things.  I thought that something creamy and ranchy and chicken-y sounded good, so I googled those three words and found all sorts of recipes titled "Creamy Ranch Chicken".  I guess there are many other people that also thought that sounded good.  I looked at a couple of the recipes, and they were all about the same as what was going on in my head, except for being cooked in a crockpot instead of baked.  So, my guess is that in the future, if I want to make this same recipe in the crockpot, it would work out just fine.

Creamy Ranch Chicken Bake
by: Carolyn

1/2 c. sour cream
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 ranch packet
bacon bits
salt and pepper
chicken breasts

Preheat your oven to 450 degrees.  Spray a 9X13 dish with cooking spray.  In a small bowl, stir together the sour cream, cream of chicken soup, ranch packet and bacon bits.  Lightly sprinkle salt and pepper on your chicken breasts and place them in the pan (the ranch and bacon make this a salty recipe already, so you could omit this if you wanted).  Spread the creamy mixture over the top of your chicken.  Cover it with tinfoil and bake it for 20 minutes.  Remove the tinfoil and bake it another 5 minutes, or until it is no longer pink in the center.  I served it with baked potatoes and steamed carrots.

Easy Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup

Now that we are in the full swing of Fall, I am really loving things like soup, for dinner.  I have made this recipe a couple of times now, and we loved it both times.  I use the egg noodles from Costco, and cook it in my slow cooker, so that makes it especially easy.  One of the times I made it I got ambitious and also made my easy rolls to go with it.  It was a super delicious, cozy Fall meal!

Easy Homemade Chicken Noodle Soup
by: Carolyn

2 tsp. minced garlic
1 onion, sliced
4 c. chicken broth
4 c. water
1 c. chopped celery
1 c. chopped carrots
3 potatoes, cut into bite sized pieces
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. fresh ground pepper
1/2 tsp. garlic powder
1 chicken breast
3-4 handfuls of uncooked, wide egg noodles (or as many as you want-just be aware that they will swell as they soak up the water, and if it doesn't seem like you have enough in there, you probably really do)

In your slow cooker, combine all of the ingredients, except the egg noodles.  Cook it on high for 4-6 hours, or on low for 8 hours.  Remove the chicken breast, shred it, and put it back in the crock pot.  Add the egg noodles, recover the crock pot, and cook for 15-20 minutes more, or until the noodles are tender.  

Slow Cooker Tangy Pork Chops

There is nothing like a picture of a big slab of meat to make you want to use this recipe, right?  Here was the other option:

Is it any better surrounded by delicious food, if it is half eaten?  Oh well.  Just trust me, this was a great recipe for pork chops.  I had pork chops in my freezer, but I am a little tired of the cream of mushroom soup version that I usually use.  So I found a new recipe on allrecipes, and I was so happy with the way this turned out!  The flavor was a little different, which was refreshing.  It was still very easy to prepare, and my house smelled delicious when we got home from church.  We ate ours with baked potatoes and green veggies and it worked really well together.  I doubled the sauce, which was totally unnecessary, but if you decide to do that, you could serve this over rice and there would be a lot of the sauce for your rice.

Slow Cooker Tangy Pork Chops
adapted from: allrecipes.com

1/4 c. olive oil (I'm out, so I used Canola)
1 c. chicken broth
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. paprika
1 Tbsp. garlic powder
1/2 Tbsp. chicken boullion
1 tsp. oregano
1 tsp. basil
1 Tbsp. dried, chopped onion
salt and pepper
4 pork chops

In your slow cooker, combine the oil, chicken broth, minced garlic, paprika, garlic powder, chicken boullion, oregano, basil and onion and stir it all together.  With a sharp knife, cut slits into the top of each pork chop and sprinkle them with salt and pepper.  Place the pork chops in the slow cooker and spoon some of the sauce over the top.  Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or on high for 4 hours.  Occasionally baste your pork chops with the sauce while they are cooking.

Slow Cooker Brown Sugar Ham

This year, I made a Christmas ham twice.  Once for our Christmas party at church, and once for my family's Christmas party.  Both times I used this recipe and the flavor came out delicious!  It is also such an easy way to cook your ham for a big meal, like Christmas or Easter.  You can put it in a few hours before and then forget about it and focus on everything else you are cooking!


Slow Cooker Brown Sugar Ham
slightly adapted from: fivehearthome.com

7-8 pound spiral sliced ham (fully cooked)
2 c. pineapple juice
2 c. brown sugar
4 tsp. Dijon mustard
4 tsp. balsamic vinegar
4 tsp. honey

In your crock pot, stir together the pineapple juice, brown sugar, Dijon mustard, balsamic vinegar and honey, until the sugar is dissolved.  Slice your ham off the bone, and lay it in your crock pot.  Using a basting brush, gently baste the sauce over all your ham.  Do this occasionally while it is cooking.  Cook on low for about 4 hours, or until ham is hot (it should be 140 degrees).  Be careful not to over cook your ham.  I did this the second time, and it came out in tiny shreds.  But it still tasted great, and it was easier to chew, right?!

Slow Cooker Zesty BBQ Chicken Sandwiches

It has been so long since I have cooked anything new!  Life has been a little too crazy for anything but quick and easy around here.  Earlier this week, I needed a slow cooker menu item and wasn't in the mood for my usual recipes.  I found this one on Allrecipes.com, and it turned out great!

Slow Cooker Zesty BBQ Chicken Sandwiches
from: allrecipes.com

6 frozen chicken breasts (I halved this whole recipe and it was perfect for my family)
12 oz. barbecue sauce (a tip here: use a good quality sauce. I used Sweet Baby Rays)
1/2 c. italian dressing
1/4 c. brown sugar
2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

In a bowl, stir together the barbecue sauce, italian dressing, brown sugar and worcestershire sauce.  Place your frozen chicken breasts in your slow cooker and pour the sauce over the top.  Cook on high for 3-4 hours, or on low for 6-8 hours.  When the chicken is cooked, shred it and stir it well before serving.

Kalua Pork (Gluten Free)

My mother-in-law is in town again.  That means that I have to think Gluten Free in my cooking.  Which is actually pretty hard for me to do.  My friend, Jacque, was also in town and told me to try this recipe, given to her from her sis-in-law, who does all gluten free cooking.  She actually has a great website: www.eatingglutenfree.com.  Anyway, this recipe was super easy (in fact, it was ridiculously easy) and very tasty.  And, of course, gluten free.

Kalua Pork (or is it Khalua?)
from: Jacque

1 2-3 lb. pork roast
1/2 Tbsp. salt
4 Tbsp. liquid smoke
1 c. water

In a crockpot, pour the salt, liquid smoke and water over the pork roast.  Cook it on high for 6-8 hours.  When it is done, shred it with a fork and serve it over rice.  You can add pineapple to the top of it, which I thought added so much to the taste.  But I do love sweet with salty.  You could also get creative with veggies, or cheese, or whatever you wanted to spice it up a bit.  But it was delicious simple, too!

Slow Cooker Three Cheese Chicken and Noodles

I have a slow cooker cook book that I have used a few times lately, and have been happy each time.  This one was an easy, macaroni type recipe, with a little bit of a twist.  Peppers and chicken give it a more adult taste, and also a little bit of spice.  I really enjoyed it!

Three Cheese Chicken and Noodles
adapted from: Crock Pot brand cookbook

1 chicken breast
8 oz. cream cheese, softened
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 c. diced green or red bell pepper
1 c. shredded Monterey jack cheese
1/2 c. Parmesan cheese
1/2 c. diced onion
1/2 c. chicken broth
1 can sliced mushrooms, drained
2 Tbsp. butter, melted
1/2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 (8 oz.) package of egg noodles

Combine all of the ingredients in your slow cooker, except the egg noodles, and stir.  Cook for 6 hours on low, or 3-4 hours on high.  Take your chicken breast out and shred it and then add it back in.  Cook the egg noodles according to the package directions, and the add them to your slow cooker and stir gently until they are coated evenly.  (The recipe actually says to cook them, then add them to the crock pot at the beginning and cook it all together.  I was afraid of super soft noodles falling apart, so I did it this way.  But it might be worth trying the other way to save a few minutes at dinner time.)  Enjoy!  

Creamy Potato Crock Pot Soup

There is something about a month of below freezing temperatures that makes me want to eat homemade soup.  One of the great things about doing it in a crock pot is that my house smells delicious all day long.  I made this on a day that we were having a blizzard.  I couldn't go to the store and this recipe didn't require very many ingredients.  It is flavorful as is, but it would also be great with ground up sausage, or bits of bacon in it.  But if all you have is potatoes and celery (like I did), you still won't be disappointed with this soup!

Creamy Potato Soup
adapted from: allrecipes.com

8 c. diced potatoes (I didn't even peel mine)
3 stalks of celery, diced
1 c. chopped onion
3 cans (14.5 oz) chicken broth (I used chicken bouillon and water)
4 cubes of beef bouillon
1/2 tsp. pepper
4 c. milk
1/4 c. butter
1/4 c. flour

In the slow cooker, add the potatoes, celery, onion, chicken broth, beef bouillon and pepper.  Cook it on high for 3 hours.  After three hours, in a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter.  Add the flour and stir it together to make a paste.  Slowly pour in the milk and whisk it constantly until it begins to boil and thicken.  Pour it in to the slow cooker and gently stir it to combine.  Cook it for one more hour on high.

Slow Cooker Lemon Basil Soup

If you love lemons and having food ready for you when you come home at night, you will love this soup!  Any time that I put something in the slow cooker, I am so happy the rest of the day.  Any time I use up the lemons in my fridge without them rotting, I am also happy the rest of the day. 

Slow Cooker Lemon Basil Soup
by: Carolyn 

1 chicken breast
fresh basil leaves (around 10 small leaves)
fresh ground salt and pepper, to taste
5 c. water
3 boullion cubes
1/2 onion, sliced
2 large potatoes, chopped (or you can use a cup of cooked rice)
1 c. chopped carrots
2 juiced lemons 
zest from one lemon

Combine all the ingredients in your slow cooker.  Cook it on high for 5 hours.  Shred the chicken breast before serving.

Easy Slow Cooker Philly Cheese steak #2

We have a great philly cheese steak recipe on here already, but this one was just as easy, and I didn't have to go back to the store to get forgotten items.  Necessity is the mother of new recipes.  

Easy Slow Cooker Philly Cheese Steak
adapted from: www.sixsistersstuff.com

1 roast, thinly sliced against the grain (I had the meat guy do this for me)
1 (14 oz.) can of beef broth (or use a couple of boullion cubes and water)
1 envelope italian dressing mix
1 green pepper, sliced
1 onion, sliced
mushrooms, sliced
canola oil
provolone cheese slices
bread or buns

Pour the beef broth and italian dressing mix in your slow cooker and stir it to combine.  Place your sliced roast in the slow cooker and spoon the liquid over the top of it.  Cook it on low for 6-8 hours.  Don't over cook it.  When your meat is done, saute' your onions, peppers and mushrooms in a large frying pan, until tender.  Layer it all on your roll and top with provolone cheese. 

Brazilian Beans And Rice (Feijoada)

My hubby served a mission for our church for two years in Brazil.  That was 16 years ago.  And for the first time in our 12 years of marriage, I made him some Brazilian food.  I thought it was going to be harder than it was, and so I never did it.  And maybe if I had made this totally authentic, it would have been harder.  But I made it with what I had, and in the slow cooker, and it was actually really easy and really tasty.  If you ever buy a big spiral ham around Christmas time and don't know what to do with the ham bone, here is your answer!  If you've ever had a bag of dried beans sitting in your food storage for about 10 years and didn't know what to do with it, here is your answer!  This is the recipe you need to use up random food items that you don't really know what to do with.  Yay!

Brazilian Beans and Rice (Feijoada)
adapted from: honestcooking.com

1 lb. dry black beans
3 Tbsp. olive oil
2 onions
1 ham bone (or any of your spiral ham that is leftover-I had a ham bone and also some ends of the ham that weren't sliced and I didn't know how to use them)
5 cloves garlic, minced (2 1/2 tsp. already minced)
1/2 lb. bacon
2 beef bouillon cubes
1/2 tsp. pepper
fresh ground salt to taste (you don't need much, the ham and bacon will make it salty)

Dump your black beans into your crock pot and then fill up the crock pot with water until it covers the beans.  In the morning, drain the water from the crock pot.  Then add six cups more water to the crock pot (just to get fresh water).  Thinly slice your onions.  In a frying pan, pour your olive oil and saute' your onions until they are translucent.  In the same frying pan, caramelize the edges of your ham bone, then add the onions and ham bone to the crock pot.  In the same frying pan, cook your minced garlic for one minute, then add to the crock pot.  Add your bacon to the frying pan and cook it until it is almost crispy, then throw it in the crock pot, too.  Add the beef bouillon cubes, pepper and salt to the crock pot and gently stir it all together.  Cook it on high for 1 hour, then turn it down to low for 5-6 hours.  At the last hour of cooking, remove the ham and bone,discard the bone and shred the ham, and then return the shredded ham to the crock pot.  You may want to cut the bacon into chunks (if you have little kids like I do).  The original recipe called for a couple of different kinds of sausage as well.  I think you can basically add any pork item that you have on hand and you won't go wrong.  I served mine with brown rice, orange slices and a salad, and it was delicious.

Slow Cooker Beef Stew (Or Not, You Choose!)

I know this picture looks like a big pile of mash, but it actually was really delicious beef stew.  I made it two weeks in a row.  The first time, I made it in the slow cooker.  The meat was very tender, but the potatoes kind of turned in to mush.  The second time, I didn't remember to do the slow cooker and made it on the stove.  I cooked it for about an hour, and the potatoes weren't at all mush.  However, the meat was not as tender as it had been in the slow cooker.  So I guess it is a toss up which is the best way to cook it.  Either way, it is a hearty, easy to prepare stew for a cold winter day.

Beef Stew
adapted from: allrecipes.com

2 pounds beef stew meat, cut into one inch chunks
1/4 c. flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
1/2 tsp. minced garlic
1 tsp. chopped bay leaves (or one bay leaf)
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 onion, chopped
2 c. beef broth
3 potatoes, diced
4 carrots, sliced

For the slow cooker:
Place the meat in the slow cooker.  In a small bowl, combine the flour, salt and pepper and pour it over the meat.  Stir until all the meat is coated.  Stir in the garlic, bay leaves, Worcestershire sauce and beef broth.  Add the onion, carrots and potatoes.  Cook on low for 10-12 hours, or on high for 4-6 hours.

For the stove top:
In a large Ziploc bag, pour the flour, salt and pepper and shake to stir.  Add the stew meat and shake it until it is all coated with the flour mixture.  Brown the beef in 1-2 tablespoons of oil.  In a large pot, add the beef, garlic, bay leaves, Worcestershire, onion, potatoes, carrots and beef broth.  Bring to a boil and then turn it down to low and simmer for as long as you need to, stirring occasionally.  I did mine an hour.  You could add more water if needed.

Slow Cooker Lemon Rosemary Pork Roast

This week, I finally cashed in on a Christmas present that my hubby got me this year.  It was a cooking class called "Cooking Without a Recipe" at a local cooking school.  Lynnette came with me and we had so much fun!  Our teacher talked a lot about being bold, and being willing to try making food based on what we think will be good.  Since then, I have made some amazing grilled cheese sandwiches, and today I tried this Lemon Rosemary Pork Roast.  It turned out great!  It is a lot of fun to look through my cupboards and fridge and try to imagine what I can make with what I have.

Slow Cooker Lemon Rosemary Pork Roast
by: Carolyn

1 three pound pork roast
1/4-1/2 c. lemon juice
1 c. water
1 tsp. dried rosemary
freshly ground salt and pepper, to taste
1/2 tsp. minced garlic
3 carrots, cut into 1/2 inch slices
2 potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch slices
1 onion, cut into 1/2 inch slices

In a frying pan, braise the pork roast.  I coated my pan in olive oil first.  In your slow cooker, combine the water, lemon juice, rosemary, salt and pepper and garlic.  Place your roast in the slow cooker and then cover it with the carrots, potatoes and onion slices.  Cook it on high for 4-5 hours, or until the roast reaches 160 degrees.

Slow Cooker Sun Dried Tomato Basil Chicken

 

One day I was searching for a good slow cooker chicken recipe.  I read a number of recipes, but nothing sounded like what I wanted.  I finally decided that I could make up my own recipe using what I had available.  So I did.  And it turned out great!  The funny thing is, I thought I was so original, but in the end, it was very similar to one of my favorite recipes, chicken milano.  It was a Freudian Slip, I guess.  I couldn't get away from that flavor combination in my mind.  However, this recipe was done in the slow cooker, which is always lovely for the easiness.  I served it with garlic mashed potatoes, sprinkled with Parmesan cheese, and it was delicious!

Slow Cooker Sun Dried Tomato Basil Chicken
by: Carolyn

2 chicken breasts
1/2 c. sundried tomatoes
1 can reduced sodium chicken broth
1 tsp. dried basil (fresh would be great if you had it on hand-I did not)
1/2 tsp. pepper
a few grinds of sea salt
1/2 c. whipping cream

Place the chicken breasts in your crock pot.  Add the sundried tomatoes (I chop mine up first), chicken broth, basil, pepper and salt.  Cook for 4-5 hours on high.  Add the whipping cream for the last 30 minutes of cooking.  Serve it with garlic mashed potatoes and Parmesan cheese.

Slow Cooker Pork Chops and Potatoes

Is it gross how I tend to post pictures of my half eaten food?  Just know-it is a good sign because it means that it was so yummy that I forgot to take a picture until it was almost too late!  That was definitely the case with this meal.  This is an easy twist on a regular pork chop slow cooker meal.  It had more zing than your usual cream of mushroom soup pork chops and I may never go back to the old way.  It was also nice to have the potatoes in with the pork.  Not only did they taste amazing, but it was a one pot meal.

Slow Cooker Pork Chops and Potatoes
adapted slightly from:  allrecipes.com

2 cans cream of mushroom soup
1 package dry onion soup mix
2 Tbsp brown sugar
1 Tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1/2 c. water
1 onion, sliced
1 can sliced mushrooms
4 potatoes, cut into chunks
4 pork chops

In your crock pot, mix together the mushroom soup, onion soup mix, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce and water.  Add the onion, mushrooms and potatoes.  Then add the pork chops and stir it all together.  Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours.

Slow Cooker Honey Chicken

I know this picture is terrible.  But that is because the food was so good!  It was so good, that I forgot to take a picture until there was nothing left in the slow cooker but the dregs.  And it was so good that I still wanted to take a picture so that I would be sure and post it.  Just imagine it, surrounded with fluffy white rice and healthy veggies and a piece or two of chicken that doesn't look like there is seaweed hanging off the bottom of it.  That's how yummy it was.   It was also very easy and actually very fast, considering it was done in a slow cooker.  The recipe said 1 1/2 hours on high or 3 hours on low and I didn't believe it.  You should believe it.  


Slow Cooker Honey Chicken
adapted from: www.sixsistersstuff.com


4 chicken breasts (cut them into thirds, or you can use chicken fingers, like I did)
1 c. honey
1/2 c. soy sauce
1/4 c. ketchup
1 1/2 Tbsp. dried, chopped onion
1 tsp. minced garlic
1/4 tsp. red pepper flakes


Combine all the ingredients in a crock pot and stir it until it is mixed well.  Add the chicken and cook it on high for 1 1/2 hours or on low for 3-4 hours, or until the chicken is cooked through.  Serve it with rice and make sure to take a picture before it looks un-appetizing!

Slow Cooker Taco Soup

This is a great version of taco soup.  I found it on allrecipes.com and switched it up a bit, based on some of the comments I read, and personal preference.  The original recipe called for lemon, but I switched it to lime because I love the flavor that lime adds to Mexican food.  I also turned it into a slow cooker recipe, because for some reason, even if it still takes a lot of preparation, if I prepare it at 10 AM instead of 5 PM, I feel so good about my dinner!  This turned out to be a really delicious soup.  I even got a thumbs up from Jen, who has her own great taco soup recipe.  Not bad!


Slow Cooker Taco Soup
adapted from: allrecipes.com


2 chicken breasts
1/2 tsp. olive oil
1/2 tsp. minced garlic
1/4 tsp. ground cumin
2 (14.5) cans chicken broth
1 c. chopped onion
1/2 tsp. chili powder
1 Tbsp. lime juice (or a little more if you love lime, like I do. I juiced one whole lime)
1 c. chunky salsa
1 can black beans
1 c. frozen corn kernels
corn tortilla chips
shredded cheddar cheese 
sour cream


In your slow cooker, combine the olive oil, garlic, cumin, chicken broth, onion, chili powder, lime juice, salsa and beans and stir it well.  Add the chicken breasts and cook it on low for 6-8 hours.  When the chicken is cooked through, remove it from the slow cooker, shred it, and add it back to the soup.  Add the frozen corn and let it cook for about 7 minutes before serving.  Serve it with corn tortilla chips (I used Frito chips), sour cream and cheese.  Enjoy!

Easy Slow Cooker Philly Cheese Steak

This is my sister Lynnette's recipe.  It is such an easy way to do a Philly Cheese Steak Sandwich.  Plus, my house smelled great all day long as this cooked.  This is so easy, if it weren't for the slicing of the veggies later on, it would be ridiculously easy.  Initially, all it has is two ingredients: roast and A-1.  

I had the grocery store meat department man slice my roast for me, so all I had to do was put it in the slow cooker with the sauce and cook it.  Saute' some peppers, onions and mushrooms right before and you are ready to eat!   


Philly Cheese Steak Sandwiches
by: Lynnette     


1 roast, thinly sliced against the grain (have your meat guy do this!!)
1 bottle of A-1 marinade, any variety
swiss cheese
hard rolls or subway sandwich buns
1 green bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/2 onion, thinly sliced
1 can of sliced mushrooms (or use fresh, if your disgusted by the sliminess of canned)
1 Tbsp. butter


In the morning, combine the roast and the A-1 marinade in your slow cooker and cook on low for 6-8 hours.  When your roast is cooked, saute' your thinly sliced veggies in the butter until they are tender.  Meanwhile, slice your buns (he he) and place them face up on a baking sheet.  Line one side with swiss cheese and broil them for a minute or so, until the cheese is melted and they are slightly toasted.  Layer the meat and then the veggies on the sandwich.  And enjoy!