Love crock pot meals!

This meal was a winner all around.  I got to use up some cream of chicken sauce I had in the fridge and we got to eat the other white meat!  It has the added bonus of automatic gravy for the spuds.  Definitely a keeper.

Slow Cooker Creamy Ranch Pork Chops and Potatoes

Ingredients:
4-6 pork chops
6-8 medium potatoes, chopped into large pieces
2 cans fat-free cream of chicken soup*
2 packages dry Ranch dressing mix*
1 cup milk
Dried parsley to sprinkle on top (optional)

Directions:
Spray your slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray and put potatoes on the bottom. Place the pork chops on top of the potatoes. Mix together the condensed soups, Ranch dressing mix and milk. Pour on top of the pork chops and cook on LOW for 6-7 hours or on HIGH for 4 hours.
Use the extra sauce in the slow cooker as a gravy for the potatoes and the pork chops. Sprinkle with dried parsley if you want.


If you don't want to use canned soup or premade ranch dressing mix here are their recipes for the homemade substitutions.



Homemade Condensed Cream of Chicken Soup
Source: Tammy's Recipes
(Yields 3 cups of soup, which is equal to about 2 cans, so it's the perfect amount for this recipe)

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups chicken broth
1/2 teaspoon poultry seasoning
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt (or less; taste to test)
1/4 teaspoon parsley
dash of paprika
1 1/2 cups milk
3/4 cup flour (can substitute gluten free flour)

Directions:

1. In medium-sized saucepan, boil chicken broth, 1/2 cup of the milk, and the seasonings for a minute or two (longer if using fresh onions or garlic).
2. In a bowl, whisk together the remaining 1 cup of milk and flour. Add to boiling mixture and continue whisking briskly until mixture boils and thickens.

Homemade Ranch Dressing Recipe
Source: $5 Dinners 
(equal to one packet of dry dressing mix, so for the above recipe, double this!)

Ingredients:
2 Tbsp dried parsley
1 tsp dried dill
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp pepper

Add each of the dried spices to a bowl and mix carefully. Store in a canning jar or Ziploc bag.

http://www.sixsistersstuff.com/2012/02/slow-cooker-creamy-ranch-pork-chops-and.html

Thank you six sisters!

Now this was yummy!

This was a great choice for our side dish tonight.  It was easy to prepare and oh so tasty.  The only thing I changed was that I added some broccoli to the dish.

Cauliflower with Cheddar Mustard Cream Sauce

Ingredients

• 1 large head cauliflower, cut into 1 inch florets
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 4 ounces cheddar cheese, shredded (about 1 1/3 cups)
• 1 tablespoon whole grain mustard
• 1 pinch cayenne pepper
• 1 Salt and ground black pepper

Directions

1. Fit a large saucepan with a steamer basket. Fill the pan with enough water to reach just below the bottom of the basket. Cover and bring the water to a boil over high heat. Add the florets to the basket, reduce heat to medium, cover, and allow the cauliflower to steam until tender but firm, about 7 minutes. Remove the cauliflower from the basket.
2. While cauliflower is cooking, place the cream in a small saucepan and bring to a bare simmer over medium heat. When the cream is steaming and just starting to bubble around the edges of the pan, turn off the heat and add the cheese, mustard and cayenne. Whisk together until smooth. Season with salt and pepper to taste. 
3. Toss the cauliflower gently with the sauce in a serving bowl. Adjust the seasonings and serve immediately. (Note: Since the sauce isn't thickened with flour or any other thickening agent, a lot of it will run off the cauliflower even after tossing. Don't worry - it's rich enough that it will still flavor the cauliflower. You could probably increase the amount of cauliflower if the wasted sauce bothers you. I always like to make sure there is excess so I know each floret is coated.) 

Prep Time: 5 min Cook Time: 7 min Serves: 4-6

http://www.heatovento350.blogspot.com/2012/02/cauliflower-in-cheddar-mustard-cream.html
Thank you heatovento

Candy to die for!

I made this candy as part of my Christmas Neighbor handout basket and boy was it hard not to eat it all myself.  This was very simple--crock pot--and if you are a chocolate and nut lover then this is for you.  The blend of the different chocolate flavors was nice.

Debbie Sue's Crockpot Candy

1 (16 oz.) jar unsalted peanuts

1 (16 oz.) jar salted peanuts

1 (12 oz.) bag semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 (12 oz.) bag milk chocolate chips

2 (12 oz.) bags peanut butter chips

2 (1 lb.) packages White Almond Bark, broken in pieces

(You'll sometimes find this called Vanilla Candy Coating)

Layer ingredients, in order listed, into (4 quart or larger) crockpot. Turn the pot on low, cover it with a lid, and walk away for two hours. After two hours, remove lid and stir to combine. Replace lid and walk away for another 30 minutes. Check to see if almond bark is melted, and if so, stir and spoon mixture onto wax paper. (Decorate, if you wish, with holiday sprinkles or additional chopped peanuts.) Allow to harden - 1 hour or so - before enjoying. Then hide it until ready to serve and go order yourself the Pilates Powerhouse Collection. You'll need it, trust me.

http://messythrillinglife.blogspot.com/2007/12/debbie-sues-christmas-crockpot-candy.html
Thanks messy thrilling life!

Oh so delicious mini apple cakes!

These were so hard to stop eating!  They were just right for a small treat, were easy to make and the flavor was great!  I didn't put the cherries in because I actually forgot, but they were still really good without them.  They would only add to the deliciousness!

Individual Apple Cakes
(Adapted from Cooking light)


INGREDIENTS:

• 1 cup sugar + 2 tbsp 
• 3/4 cup  (6 ounces) light cream cheese, softened 
• 1/2 cup butter, softened
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 2 large eggs
• 1 1/2 cups unbleached all purpose flour
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 3 cups chopped,  peeled apples 
• 1/2 cup skor bits
• 1/2 cup dried cherries, chopped.  

INSTRUCTIONS:

1)) Preheat oven to 350F. Mix together 2 tbsp of the granulated sugar with 1 tsp cinnamon and sprinkle over the apples and mix together.  

2)  In a large bowl or your mixer bowl, beat together the remaining sugar, cream cheese, butter and vanilla on medium speed until well blended.  Add eggs one at a time and set aside. 

3)  In a medium bowl, whisk together the remaining dry ingredients and add to creamed mixture on low speed.
4) Stir in apples, dried cherries and skor bits into the batter until just mixed. 
5) Spray mini cheesecake pans with non stick spray. Pour 1/4 cup batter into each hole.   Bake for 20-25 minutes until at toothpick comes out clean.

http://sweettwistoffate.blogspot.com/2012/01/apple-cakes-with-toffee-dried-cherries.html
Thank you sweet twist of fate!