Southwestern Strata

This is a recipe that I didn't really want to try and I kept putting it off until a friend made it and WOW...I was hooked. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do....

Southwestern Strata

1 pound bulk sausage
1 loaf (16 oz) French or Italian Bread
2 cups chunky salsa
3 cups (12 oz) mozzarella cheese, shredded
6 large eggs
2 cups milk

Brown sausage in skillet; drain. Cut bread into cubes. Arrange half the bread cubes in sprayed crockpot. Spoon 1/2 salsa over the bread. Top with 1/2 sausage & then 1/2 the cheese. Repeat. Combine eggs & milk and beat until thoroughly mixed. Pour over the cheese layer. Put the lid on the crock pot and cook on LOW 4-5 hours or until heated through. Makes about 12 servings...

Enjoy and Happy Slow Cooking! Hugs...

Here are more Crock Pot Pork Recipes from Hazel's Crook Pot Kitchen

Easy Ravioli Lasagna

This is a recipe that I enjoy when I don't feel like going to trouble of dirtying up all those pots, pans and bowls to mix up the real thing. It is quick and easy and you can't beat that.

Easy Ravioli Lasagna

1 1/2 pounds lean ground beef
1/2 cup chopped onions, optional
1 Tablespoon packed light brown sugar
1 jar/can (28 oz) spaghetti sauce
1 pkg (25 oz) frozen cheese filled ravioli
1 pkg (20 oz) Mozzarella cheese, shredded

Brown ground beef & onion together. Drain. Add brown sugar & spaghetti sauce, stir. Spray slow cooker with cooking spray. Spoon thin layer of sauce over bottom of crockpot. Add a single layer of frozen ravioli. Cover with half remaining sauce, then half the cheese. Repeat layers. Cover crock pot and cook on HIGH 3 to 4 hours (LOW 1 1/2 - 2 hours) or until very hot and cheese has melted.

Makes 8 to 10 servings...

Serve with garlic bread or bread sticks...

Enjoy and Happy Slow Cooking! Hugs...

Here are more Crock Pot Beef Recipes from Hazel's Crock Pot Kitchen...

Cooked or Dry Pasta?

The Q&A for today is a question I get a lot. Can you use dry pasta in the crock pot? And really the only answer is: It depends on you...

But...I have not had recipes turn out with using dry pasta and letting it cook in the crockpot. If you have, please share with me how you did it...

When I have a recipe that calls for pasta (and many recipes do call for cooking the pasta in the slow cooker) I just omit that step when putting the ingredients into the crockpot.

I choose to cook my pasta (per box directions) in a pot and then add it to the crock pot just before serving (pasta such as: spaghetti, macaroni, etc.)...If it is a recipe where the meat is larger (chicken breast, etc) then I will cook the pasta, put it on a platter and then spoon the slow cooker mixture over the pasta and then serve.

So for me, then answer to Cooked or Dry Pasta would be cooked and added just before eating.

Hope that helps! If you have a question you would like answered about slow cooking, please let me know and I will do my best to find the answer...

Happy Slow Cooking and Hugs...

HIGH or LOW

Every 2nd Saturday of the month, I will be posting a HIGH or LOW review of cookbooks, crock pots, accessories, etc.

A HIGH rating means I liked it...
A LOW rating means I don't...
And I'm throwing in a WARM rating for those items that I just can't make up my mind on...

So my first HIGH or LOW is a cookbook:

Fix-It and Forget-It Cookbook: Feasting with Your Slow Cooker





Pros: The recipes are simple to follow and are very easy to make. No real 'strange' ingredients

Cons: It has a lot of the same recipes throughout the book. Example: In the Beef section it might have a recipe for chili and then in the Soup section it will have the exact same recipe listed.

I don't know why that bugged me...other than I felt like I was getting less for my money...

It does use a lot of creamed soups and cheese, so this is definitely not the cookbook for anyone trying to diet or become healthier...

Final Thoughts: Someone new to slow cooking would probably find this cookbook useful because the recipes are quite easy. A college student could make these recipes even on a budget.

There are other Fix-it and Forget-it cookbooks, but I probably would not buy another one.

Rating: LOW

I guess I should have started on a HIGH note, but I had this cookbook and I know a lot of people buy it because it is inexpensive, so I wanted to share my thoughts...

So do you have this cookbook? What do you think? Do you find it useful?

Happy Slow Cooking and Hugs...

A Cobbler for Your Crockpot

This recipe is a wonderful brunch recipe...I've made it many, many, many times and it has always been a hit.

A Cobbler for Your Crock Pot

Serves 8 - 10 people

• 2 Cans of Pop Biscuits (these are the biscuits you buy in a tube and you 'pop' the tube open to get your biscuits...the store brand does best in this recipe)
• 2 Cans Pie Filling (apple or peach work best)
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon (more if you like)
• 1 cup butter

Bake the biscuits per the tube instructions. The best part is you can cook the biscuits the night before and keep in a Ziploc bag until morning. Once the biscuits have cooled, you will want to tear them into chunks. This can also be done the night before.

When you are ready to make your Cobbler:

• Mix the brown sugar, cinnamon and butter together. I like to use to knives and cut the butter into the cinnamon and sugar. Set aside.
  
• Next, you will want to put half of the biscuits in the crock pot. Making sure to cover the entire bottom of the crock pot, if using an oblong. I like to use a 5 quart upright crockpot for this recipe.
  
• Sprinkle half of the brown sugar mix over the biscuits.
• Spread /Pour one can of pie filling over the biscuits and brown sugar mix.
• Repeat the layers (I like cinnamon, so I do sprinkle a little extra cinnamon on top of everything).
• Put lid on slow cooker and cook on LOW for 1 1/2 - 2 hours.
• Serve warm.

*When served for brunch, you can put cobbler in a bowl and pour a little milk over
**If served as a dessert you can put cobbler in a bowl with a couple scoops of ice cream

Enjoy and Happy Slow Cooking! Hugs...

Cheesy Crockpot Chicken

This is another one of those "I forgot to put something out for dinner" recipes.

Cheesy Crockpot Chicken

1 - 2 lbs of chicken strips (boneless, skinless)
1 can cream of chicken soup
1 can of cheddar cheese soup

Place chicken strips in crockpot. Mix the two soups together and pour over chicken. Cook on LOW 3 to 4 hours. Stir 1 1/2 to 2 hours into cooking, just to mix up and break up any chicken that was frozen together. Put lid back on and let finish cooking.

Serve over rice or egg noodles.

*I like my chicken cheesy, so I do tend to add at least another half can (or more depending on my mood) of cheddar cheese soup, but this is personal taste...You might want to taste the sauce when you are stirring the chicken...you might prefer more chicken soup instead of cheddar soup...

Enjoy and Happy Slow Cooking! Hugs...

Root Beer Ham

Pork is not my favorite type of meat, but I have found a few recipes that I enjoy and it nice to switch things around a little bit. If it were left up to Hubs, we would only eat beef...

Root Beer Ham

2 - 3 pounds pre-cooked ham (sliced)
4 - 6 tablespoons of butter
1 cup of root beer
1/2 cup of brown sugar

This recipe works best in an oval crockpot. Mix butter, root beer and brown sugar together in a sauce pan. Bring your glaze to a boil and then remove from heat. Place a layer of ham slices in crock pot. Pour about 1/4 cup of glaze over ham. Place another layer of ham in slow cooker and pour another 1/4 cup glaze over ham. Repeat until you are out of Ham and glaze (make sure the glaze is the last thing in the crockpot. Cook on LOW 3 to 4 hours...long enough to warm the ham slices.

Place ham slices on a serving plate and drizzle any remaining glaze over the ham.

Enjoy and Happy Slow Cooking! Hugs...