Slow Cooker Stuffing {or Dressing ... or whatever you call it!}

Stuffing in the slow cooker? You bet! This Slow Cooker Stuffing is moist, flavorful, and easy.

My favorite part of our Thanksgiving meal is, by far, the stuffing ... Or dressing, as some call it. And I'm a cook-it-inside-the-bird kinda girl. My Mom has always stuffed our Thanksgiving turkey full of delicious stuffing. And I've always happily gobbled it up {no pun intended} as soon as its hit the table ... and sometimes usually even before its hit the table, picking at clumps of it as Mom spoons it out onto the serving platter. I can't get enough of the stuff.

But I have a confession to make. I have actually never cooked a whole turkey myself. A small turkey breast, yes. But a whole turkey? Nope.

And you want to know the trouble with cooking just a turkey breast? ... There's nowhere to stuff the stuffing! Oh, what's a stuffing-girl to do? Well, I now have the answer ...

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Stuffing in the slow cooker? You bet! This Slow Cooker Stuffing is moist, flavorful, and easy.

My favorite part of our Thanksgiving meal is, by far, the stuffing ... Or dressing, as some call it. And I'm a cook-it-inside-the-bird kinda girl. My Mom has always stuffed our Thanksgiving turkey full of delicious stuffing. And I've always happily gobbled it up {no pun intended} as soon as its hit the table ... and sometimes usually even before its hit the table, picking at clumps of it as Mom spoons it out onto the serving platter. I can't get enough of the stuff.

But I have a confession to make. I have actually never cooked a whole turkey myself. A small turkey breast, yes. But a whole turkey? Nope.

And you want to know the trouble with cooking just a turkey breast? ... There's nowhere to stuff the stuffing! Oh, what's a stuffing-girl to do? Well, I now have the answer ...

Continue Reading >>

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Slow Cooker Apple Pork Loin {with Honey & Cinnamon, too!}

Combine apples, cinnamon, honey, and boneless pork loin in the slow cooker and you'll have one totally delicious, easy meal. Slow Cooker Apple Pork Loin - it's just perfect for Fall.

You've heard of cinnamon and apples. And honey with cinnamon. Right? But cinnamon and pork? Not so much. No, cinnamon and pork isn't a standard flavor combination that pops in your head. But as I recently discovered, pork and cinnamon are really yummy together. Especially ...

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Combine apples, cinnamon, honey, and boneless pork loin in the slow cooker and you'll have one totally delicious, easy meal. Slow Cooker Apple Pork Loin - it's just perfect for Fall.

You've heard of cinnamon and apples. And honey with cinnamon. Right? But cinnamon and pork? Not so much. No, cinnamon and pork isn't a standard flavor combination that pops in your head. But as I recently discovered, pork and cinnamon are really yummy together. Especially ...

Continue Reading >>

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Slow Cooker Meatloaf

With this Slow Cooker Meatloaf, you can whip up the classic comfort of meatloaf with slow cooker convenience.

Wow! ... was it ever a gorgeous fall weekend here in North Carolina! While I did spend some time outdoors to enjoy the beautiful weather, strangely enough the pleasantly cooler weather made me want to be in the kitchen. Oh, who am I kidding? ... pretty much any weather {except high-temperature scorchers} makes me want to be in the kitchen.

So I spent most of Saturday doing initial trial runs of three new recipes {which didn't go so great, by the way} and whipping up a classic comfort food dinner, including this Slow Cooker Meatloaf.

Continue Reading >>

With this Slow Cooker Meatloaf, you can whip up the classic comfort of meatloaf with slow cooker convenience.

Wow! ... was it ever a gorgeous fall weekend here in North Carolina! While I did spend some time outdoors to enjoy the beautiful weather, strangely enough the pleasantly cooler weather made me want to be in the kitchen. Oh, who am I kidding? ... pretty much any weather {except high-temperature scorchers} makes me want to be in the kitchen.

So I spent most of Saturday doing initial trial runs of three new recipes {which didn't go so great, by the way} and whipping up a classic comfort food dinner, including this Slow Cooker Meatloaf.

Continue Reading >>

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Slow Cooker Clam Chowder

My husband doesn't like 'regular' soups ... they've got to be thick and chunky for him. Me? It doesn't matter ... thick or thin ... as long as it tastes good. But I do have to admit, I have a weakness for creamy, hearty chowder. And I especially have a weakness for New England style clam chowder.

So, with creamy, chunky goodness, I'm happy to say this Slow Cooker Clam Chowder absolutely satisfies us both. And there's even an unexpected secret to it's comforting creaminess.

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My husband doesn't like 'regular' soups ... they've got to be thick and chunky for him. Me? It doesn't matter ... thick or thin ... as long as it tastes good. But I do have to admit, I have a weakness for creamy, hearty chowder. And I especially have a weakness for New England style clam chowder.

So, with creamy, chunky goodness, I'm happy to say this Slow Cooker Clam Chowder absolutely satisfies us both. And there's even an unexpected secret to it's comforting creaminess.

Continue Reading >>

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Slow-Cooker Pumpkin Butter - 1st grade's been cookin' again!

Well, 1st grade has been cooking again!  This time, as you've probably already figured out, we made pumpkin butter.  And, oh, was it ever good.

Our vocabulary unit this week was centered around the job of a chef, and included the words 'utensils' and 'ingredients' ... among other words, of course.  I just couldn't resist incorporating a hands-on cooking activity!  And it just so happened that we were also learning about the pumpkin growth life cycle ... ya know, pumpkins start as a seed, then grow into a sprout, which grows into a plant ... remember learning that kind of stuff?

Hmmmm, combine cooking vocabulary with pumpkins?  Could it get any easier??  I mean, really, no challenge at all.  I decided this slow-cooker pumpkin butter would be perfect!

So, my crockpot once again made the journey into school, along with a few other utensils and the ingredients to make this rich, flavorful pumpkin butter.  Then my little helpers and I set about whipping this up.

It's sooooooo easy.  Easy-sneezy, as we'd say in our class.

Put two cans of pumpkin into a slow-cooker and stir in a bunch (quite a big bunch!) of brown sugar ...

In goes the brown sugar

... and some cinnamon and ground cloves.  (Two of my boys did a fantastic job stirring this up.  They really got into it!  Notice the two-handed grips on that spoon??)

In go the spices

Cook it for a while until it's a gorgeous and rich dark brown color ...

... and then slather a big ol' dollop on a biscuit (or other mouth-delivery vehicle of your choice).  We tried it on biscuits and graham crackers, and decided as a class that we liked the biscuit best.  Oh, but rest assured, there was certainly a fair share of us eating it straight up with a spoon!  Fabulously delicious.

Pumpkin Butter

Source:  My nieces (They both made this, along with other recipes, when they were in 1st grade.  Their teacher then compiled a cook book for them that they still have ... so sweet.)

Ingredients

2 (15 oz.) cans 100% pure pumpkin (about 4 c.)

1 (16 oz.) box light brown sugar

1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground cloves

Dash of salt

Directions

1. Combine all ingredients in a slow-cooker.  Cook on low heat for 3 to 4 hours.  Or, combine all ingredients in a large saucepan and cook over medium until the color is dark brown. 

2.  Serve warm or cold with graham crackers, chocolate graham crackers, or biscuits.    

Enjoy! 

(I bet it would also be great on toast, English muffins, bagels, or mild-flavored crackers.  Yum.)

This post is linked with Fat Camp Friday hosted by Mangoes and Chutney, Sweets for a Saturday hosted by Sweet As Sugar Cookies, Sweet Indulgences Sunday hosted by A Well-Seasoned Life, Savory Sunday hosted by The Sweet Details, Sundae Scoop hosted by I {heart} Naptime, Cure for the Common Monday hosted by Lines Across My Face, Sharing Sundays hosted by Everyday Sisters, Crazy Sweet Tuesday hosted by Crazy for Crust, Tasy Tuesday hosted by For the Love of Blogs, Tea Party Tuesday hosted by Sweetology, Tuesday Talent Show hosted by Chef in Training, Tempt My Tummy Tuesday hosted by Blessed with Grace, Wow Me Wednesday hosted by Polka Dots on Parade, Cast Party Wednesday hosted by Lady Behind the Curtain, These Chicks Cooked hosted by This Chick Cooks, It's a Keeper Thursday hosted by It's a Keeper, Sharing Sunday hosted by Everyday Sisters, Foodie Friday hosted by Designs by Gollum, This Week's Cravings hosted by Mom's Crazy Cooking, Countdown to 2012 - Best Crockpot Recipes of 2011 hosted by Finding Joy in My Kitchen, Slow Cooker Thursday.

Well, 1st grade has been cooking again!  This time, as you've probably already figured out, we made pumpkin butter.  And, oh, was it ever good.

Our vocabulary unit this week was centered around the job of a chef, and included the words 'utensils' and 'ingredients' ... among other words, of course.  I just couldn't resist incorporating a hands-on cooking activity!  And it just so happened that we were also learning about the pumpkin growth life cycle ... ya know, pumpkins start as a seed, then grow into a sprout, which grows into a plant ... remember learning that kind of stuff?

Hmmmm, combine cooking vocabulary with pumpkins?  Could it get any easier??  I mean, really, no challenge at all.  I decided this slow-cooker pumpkin butter would be perfect!

So, my crockpot once again made the journey into school, along with a few other utensils and the ingredients to make this rich, flavorful pumpkin butter.  Then my little helpers and I set about whipping this up.

It's sooooooo easy.  Easy-sneezy, as we'd say in our class.

Put two cans of pumpkin into a slow-cooker and stir in a bunch (quite a big bunch!) of brown sugar ...

In goes the brown sugar

... and some cinnamon and ground cloves.  (Two of my boys did a fantastic job stirring this up.  They really got into it!  Notice the two-handed grips on that spoon??)

In go the spices

Cook it for a while until it's a gorgeous and rich dark brown color ...

... and then slather a big ol' dollop on a biscuit (or other mouth-delivery vehicle of your choice).  We tried it on biscuits and graham crackers, and decided as a class that we liked the biscuit best.  Oh, but rest assured, there was certainly a fair share of us eating it straight up with a spoon!  Fabulously delicious.

Pumpkin Butter

Source:  My nieces (They both made this, along with other recipes, when they were in 1st grade.  Their teacher then compiled a cook book for them that they still have ... so sweet.)

Ingredients

2 (15 oz.) cans 100% pure pumpkin (about 4 c.)

1 (16 oz.) box light brown sugar

1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground cloves

Dash of salt

Directions

1. Combine all ingredients in a slow-cooker.  Cook on low heat for 3 to 4 hours.  Or, combine all ingredients in a large saucepan and cook over medium until the color is dark brown. 

2.  Serve warm or cold with graham crackers, chocolate graham crackers, or biscuits.    

Enjoy! 

(I bet it would also be great on toast, English muffins, bagels, or mild-flavored crackers.  Yum.)

This post is linked with Fat Camp Friday hosted by Mangoes and Chutney, Sweets for a Saturday hosted by Sweet As Sugar Cookies, Sweet Indulgences Sunday hosted by A Well-Seasoned Life, Savory Sunday hosted by The Sweet Details, Sundae Scoop hosted by I {heart} Naptime, Cure for the Common Monday hosted by Lines Across My Face, Sharing Sundays hosted by Everyday Sisters, Crazy Sweet Tuesday hosted by Crazy for Crust, Tasy Tuesday hosted by For the Love of Blogs, Tea Party Tuesday hosted by Sweetology, Tuesday Talent Show hosted by Chef in Training, Tempt My Tummy Tuesday hosted by Blessed with Grace, Wow Me Wednesday hosted by Polka Dots on Parade, Cast Party Wednesday hosted by Lady Behind the Curtain, These Chicks Cooked hosted by This Chick Cooks, It's a Keeper Thursday hosted by It's a Keeper, Sharing Sunday hosted by Everyday Sisters, Foodie Friday hosted by Designs by Gollum, This Week's Cravings hosted by Mom's Crazy Cooking, Countdown to 2012 - Best Crockpot Recipes of 2011 hosted by Finding Joy in My Kitchen, Slow Cooker Thursday.

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Slow-Cooker Applesauce ~ so easy 1st graders can make it!

Yes, this slow-cooker apple sauce is so easy, 1st graders could make it. In fact, 1st graders did make it! Well, except for the cutting-up-the-apples part - that part should be (and was) handled by an adult.  But don't let the ease of it fool you into thinking it isn't delicious.  It's absolutely delicious!  Just ask my first graders ... and me.

This past Friday, we took a field trip to an apple orchard.  We heard from Johnny Appleseed, saw how apple cider is made, went on a hay ride, made a life-sized scarecrow (and brought him back to school on the school bus ~~ THAT was interesting!), ate apple donuts, and had a wonderful picnic lunch ... all on an absolutely, perfectly gorgeous fall day.  Oh, and my class named our scarecrow Elvis.  Elvis the scarecrow.  Yup, Elvis.  Do 6-year-olds even know who Elvis is??

To get ready for this trip, we learned all about the apple-growing life cycle, the seasons of the apple tree, and ... of course ... made this apple sauce.  It was the easiest apple sauce ever, thanks to the so-simple method and little helpers.

Start by peeling and chopping up some apples.  We used a mixture of apples I had picked the previous weekend -- mostly Rome (my favorite!) with some Jonigold, Golden Delicious, and Fuji, too.

Check out this enormous Fuji apple - it may be the biggest apple I've ever seen!  Pretty cool that one of our vocabulary words this week was enormous - several students even used that word in their writing to describe the apple.  Love it when that happens.

Throw your chopped apples into a slow-cooker, toss them with some sugar and cinnamon ...

... add a tiny bit of water, and give them a good stir.

Cook them for several hours, and you'll end up with gorgeous and delicious apple sauce ...

... that will be enjoyed by wee ones ...

... and not-so-wee ones, alike.

Slow-Cooker Applesauce
Source:  Adapted from A Year of Slow Cooking

Ingredients
12 c. chopped baking apples (about 4 lbs. of apples)
1/3 to 1/2 c. granulated sugar
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 c. water
2 tsp. vanilla

Directions
1.  Peel and core apples; chop into about 1/2-inch pieces.

2.  Place apples, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla in slow cooker; tossing to coat.  Add water and stir.

3.  Cook until apples are tender and broken down into an applesauce texture (approximately 4 hours on high or 6 hours on low), stirring occasionally.  If needed, add an additional 1/4 - 1/2 cup water part way through the cooking time.  Serve warm or chilled.

Enjoy!

This post is linked with Tasty Tuesday hosted by For the Love of Blogs, Tuesday Talent Show hosted by Chef in Training, Crazy Sweet Tuesday hosted by Crazy for Crust, These Chicks Cooked hosted by This Chick Cooks, Cast Party Wednesday hosted by Lady Behind the Curtain, It's a Keeper Thursday hosted by It's a Keeper, Fat Camp Friday hosted by Mangoes and Chutney, Sweets This Week hosted by Sugar Bananas!, Foodie Friday hosted by Designs by Gollum, Sweets for a Saturday hosted by Sweet as Sugar Cookies, Sweet Indulgences Sunday hosted by A Well-Seasoned Life, and Friday Food hosted by Mom Trends, Countdown to 2012 - Best Crockpot Recipes of 2011 hosted by Finding Joy in My Kitchen, Slow Cooker Thursday.

Yes, this slow-cooker apple sauce is so easy, 1st graders could make it. In fact, 1st graders did make it! Well, except for the cutting-up-the-apples part - that part should be (and was) handled by an adult.  But don't let the ease of it fool you into thinking it isn't delicious.  It's absolutely delicious!  Just ask my first graders ... and me.

This past Friday, we took a field trip to an apple orchard.  We heard from Johnny Appleseed, saw how apple cider is made, went on a hay ride, made a life-sized scarecrow (and brought him back to school on the school bus ~~ THAT was interesting!), ate apple donuts, and had a wonderful picnic lunch ... all on an absolutely, perfectly gorgeous fall day.  Oh, and my class named our scarecrow Elvis.  Elvis the scarecrow.  Yup, Elvis.  Do 6-year-olds even know who Elvis is??

To get ready for this trip, we learned all about the apple-growing life cycle, the seasons of the apple tree, and ... of course ... made this apple sauce.  It was the easiest apple sauce ever, thanks to the so-simple method and little helpers.

Start by peeling and chopping up some apples.  We used a mixture of apples I had picked the previous weekend -- mostly Rome (my favorite!) with some Jonigold, Golden Delicious, and Fuji, too.

Check out this enormous Fuji apple - it may be the biggest apple I've ever seen!  Pretty cool that one of our vocabulary words this week was enormous - several students even used that word in their writing to describe the apple.  Love it when that happens.

Throw your chopped apples into a slow-cooker, toss them with some sugar and cinnamon ...

... add a tiny bit of water, and give them a good stir.

Cook them for several hours, and you'll end up with gorgeous and delicious apple sauce ...

... that will be enjoyed by wee ones ...

... and not-so-wee ones, alike.

Slow-Cooker Applesauce
Source:  Adapted from A Year of Slow Cooking

Ingredients
12 c. chopped baking apples (about 4 lbs. of apples)
1/3 to 1/2 c. granulated sugar
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 c. water
2 tsp. vanilla

Directions
1.  Peel and core apples; chop into about 1/2-inch pieces.

2.  Place apples, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla in slow cooker; tossing to coat.  Add water and stir.

3.  Cook until apples are tender and broken down into an applesauce texture (approximately 4 hours on high or 6 hours on low), stirring occasionally.  If needed, add an additional 1/4 - 1/2 cup water part way through the cooking time.  Serve warm or chilled.

Enjoy!

This post is linked with Tasty Tuesday hosted by For the Love of Blogs, Tuesday Talent Show hosted by Chef in Training, Crazy Sweet Tuesday hosted by Crazy for Crust, These Chicks Cooked hosted by This Chick Cooks, Cast Party Wednesday hosted by Lady Behind the Curtain, It's a Keeper Thursday hosted by It's a Keeper, Fat Camp Friday hosted by Mangoes and Chutney, Sweets This Week hosted by Sugar Bananas!, Foodie Friday hosted by Designs by Gollum, Sweets for a Saturday hosted by Sweet as Sugar Cookies, Sweet Indulgences Sunday hosted by A Well-Seasoned Life, and Friday Food hosted by Mom Trends, Countdown to 2012 - Best Crockpot Recipes of 2011 hosted by Finding Joy in My Kitchen, Slow Cooker Thursday.

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