Baked Potatoes Slow Cooker

Baked Potatoes

4 baking potatoes

wash your unpeeled potatoes
DO NOT DRY
prick the potatoes with a fork and wrap individually in aluminum foil.
place the potatoes in a 4-6 quart slow cooker, cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.

Easy right?!?!?

Eat them how ever you want.  I just diced some onions, tomatoes, a little bit of lemon juice, as much cilantro as you want, salt and pepper.

Before serving, steam some veggies to tie it all together.

Sweet potatoes

Yay to autumn! So many vegetables and fruits in season.
Fire up the slow cooker and get some vegetables. Make it a side dish or a meal. I love it as a meal with Earth Balance buttery spread.

Slow cooked sweet potatoes

Scrub 4-5 sweet potatoes
Do not dry
Throw it in the slow cooker for 4-5 hours (or until done) on low.
Stick a fork in and if it sinks, it's done.

Are you really prepared?

Yesterday the lights went out for about 5 minutes.  I panicked!  I am not prepared in case of an emergency.
I am prepared food wise.
Plenty of snacks and boxed drinks.  Flashlight and extra batteries.  Extra battery for my cell phone.
What I am not prepared is mentally.
I freak out if we have a tiny shake.
Okay not tiny for me.  They are all HUGE to me.
I'm a New Yawker.  The most shaking we ever get is in a train.  I do remember one in 1986 (?).  I remember not being able to sleep at all.  The birds, cats and dogs were especially noisy hours before the quake.  I thought I was going to die.
Mentally I am not prepared for anything disastrous.  I scream and cry.
I really need to get my shit together.  Two out of three of my kids still living at home and they do not need to see me losing my shit because the lights went out or if we have a little shaking going on.
Or if the a/c decides not to turn on.
Seriously.
So, I am going to start calming myself down.
That means not on the verge of tears when the phone rings after 10pm (casting directors, producers, directors?  Please call me early when you need my kids on set.  You will give me a heart attack. :-)   )
Or if I hear rumbling because of an earthquake or if a truck is going by and I think it's an earthquake.  True story.
Staying calm is something I need to practice. Maybe yoga breathing and not hyperventilating breathing.
~~~~~
Over the weekend I decided to tweak my bean stew in the crockpot.  I usually just cook it over the stove but we were really busy this weekend and I wanted to come home to food.  All I had to do was make the rice and dinner was ready 20 minutes after walking in through the door.

2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp minced garlic (use less if you're not a fan)
1/4 cup sofrito
1 cup tomato sauce
2 cups vegetable stock
1/2 cup alcaparrado
2 cans beans (any will do.  I made mine with red kidney beans)
1 tsp adobo

Heat the oil in a saute pan.
Add the sofrito and tomato sauce and cook over medium heat for about 5 minutes.
Add the garlic and saute for 2 minutes.
Transfer to a slow cooker and the rest of the ingredients and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
You can totally double this recipe and freeze half.

Enjoy!

Barley, Kamut, and Oats....Oh My!

I'm giving my slow cooker a break from making us dinners and making it work overnight for breakfast.
I've made only oatmeal in it.  Sometimes fruit and agave or brown sugar and maple syrup.
Trying new things is my goal for 2012 and hoping to open the door to other tastes for the family to enjoy.
This recipe is from the Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker using ingredients I've never used.  Looking for them in the store was a challenge.  Most were found in our local Ralph's Supermarket.
I had it this morning and it took 3 spoonfuls to "get it".
The 1st spoonful was interesting.  I've never had this before so it was a little meh.
The 2nd spoonful left me thinking it can be a little bit better.  So I added a bit more maple syrup.
The 3rd spoonful and I was HOOKED.
You can adjust it to how sweet you like your morning hot cereal.
I used my small 4 qt. slow cooker which was THE PERFECT SIZE.
Having 2 slow cookers (4 & 6 qt) had me thinking....
Why am I not using one for breakfast and the other for dinner?

Barley and Kamut Breakfast Pilaf

1/3 cup kamut, soaked in water 6-8 hours
1/2 cup pearl barley
2 tbsps cornmeal
1/2 cup chopped mixed dried fruit (I used a 1/2 cup of a bag marked "mixed dried fruit" you can probably just purchase whatever dried fruit that tickles your fancy)
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt
4 cups water
1 tsp vanilla extract
maple syrup for serving (when I say maple syrup, I don't mean Aunt Jemima.  Buy the good grade A quality.  It is so much better for you and the taste is out of this world)

in the slow cooker, combine the kamut, barley, oats, and cornmeal.
stir in the dried fruit, cinnamon, and salt.
stir in the water and vanilla.
cover and cook 6-8 hours on low.
stir then spoon into bowls and drizzle, to taste, with maple syrup.

*Side note: The prices to the unusual ingredients were a bit more than what I would have wanted but you don't use much of it so it will last a long time.  So looking at the price and dividing it per serving size and it was a lot more settling.

Enjoy!

A Break From Cooking? Yes Indeed!

I was ready, this morning, to get my shopping list together for next week's dinners when I decided to check the freezer first.
I am happy to say that my freezer was full of leftovers from the past couple of weeks that I think I can pull off NOT cooking this week.
Yay for me!
Or maybe I'll try some breakfasts/lunches in the slow cooker.

Teen's 1st Public School Year

Is not going very well.
Don't get me wrong.  She has A's and B's and is one of the top 10 students in her class, but she has been sick twice within the first 100 days of school!  I don't know about you but I really don't like sick kids.  They are whiny and demanding.  They are not functional.  Today we are going to our friendly neighborhood family doctor to see what's wrong.
So today, for the second day in a row, dinner is in the slow cooker.

Three-Bean Chili with Chive-Flecked Cornmeal Dumplings
from the Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker

Chili:
1 tbsp olive oil
1 large sweet yellow onion, chopped
1/2 small green bell pepper, seeded and chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 tbsps tomato paste
1 tbsp chili powder
1 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
1 15.5 oz can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 15.5 oz can pinto beans, drained and rinsed
1 15.5 oz can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 1/2 cups water
1 tsp salt
1/4 black pepper

Dumplings
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup yellow cornmeal
2 tsps baking powder
1 tsp minced fresh chives
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 cup fresh or thawed frozen corn kernels
1/2 cup soy milk
2 tbsps olive oil

to make the chili, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
add the onion, bell pepper, and garlic, cover and cook until softened about 5 minutes.
stir in the tomato paste and chili powder and cook about 30 seconds longer.
transfer the mixture to a 4-6 quart slow cooker.
add the tomatoes, beans and water, season with salt and pepper, cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
to make the dumplings, combine the flour, cornmeal, baking powder, chives and salt in a medium size bowl about 45 minutes before serving time.
stir in the corn, milk, and oil until just combines.
do not over mix.
turn the slow cooker to high and drop the batter by the spoonful onto the hot chili.
cover and cook on high until the dumplings are cooked through 30-40 minutes.
serve immediately and
ENJOY!

P.S. notice the absence of meat?  not needed with all the protein the beans carry and not an overwhelming amount of veggies that carnivores won't turn their nose.

from my soapbox to yours

Treat those the way you want to be treated is something that I have been trying to follow for a few years.
In my 40 years, I didn't exactly follow this rule but with age comes wisdom.  It is amazing how just a smile can make someone's day a little brighter.  A little better. The light at the end of the tunnel.  Or just listening to what troubles them instead of criticizing.  They'll figure it out themselves.  They usually do when they hear themselves talk about their troubles.
I've had to distance myself from many people who have entered into my life.  I do a pretty bang up job putting myself down so I don't feel the need to include you in my life.
I've heard it all.  From homeschooling to eliminating animal products to health,  EVERYONE has an opinion.  Always when it's not called for and usually to put you down to lift themselves up.
I'm not perfect but I recognize my faults and own up to it.
Can you?
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I made this last week and it was so good.  The recipe is pulled from the Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker by  Robin Robertson.  It says it serves 4 but it was filling and wholesome that if you live in a family of 4, don't be surprised if there is still so much more left.  Freeze it or save it for lunch.

Veggie Jambalaya

use a large slow cooker 4-6 quart is good.

2 tbsps olive oil
1 large chopped yellow onion
1 medium seeded and chopped green bell pepper
1 chopped celery rib
2 minced garlic cloves
1 1/2 cups slow cooked dark red kidney beans or 1 15.5 oz can, drained and rinsed
1 1/2 cups slow cooked black-eyed peas or 1 15.5 can, drained and rinsed
1 15 oz can crushed tomatoes
1 14.5 can drained diced tomatoes
1 cup water
3/4 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp old bay seasoning
salt and black pepper
8 ozs vegetarian sausage links cut into 1 inch pieces
tabasco sauce

heat 1 tbsp of the oil in a large skillet over medium heat.
add the onion, bell pepper, celery and garlic
cover and cook until softened, about 5 minutes.
transfer to the slow cooker.
add the beans, tomatoes, water, thyme and old bay seasoning.
season with salt and pepper
cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours.
just before serving, reuse the large skillet and heat the remaining oil over medium heat
add the sausage link pieces and cook until browned, then add to the jambalaya along with tabasco sauce to taste.

Enjoy!

LOL I just realized I posted this recipe some time ago.  I think I need to try new things......

It's About To Get Crazy Up in Here!

Ready to fire up your crock pot/slow cooker?  
Starting next week the Glendale YMCA Performing Arts Academy opens!  
I am very excited for this new program.  
Mondays & Wednesdays kids will be dancing Latin Fusion with the awesome Ani Hovhannisyan from 4:30pm to 5:30pm and then learn to Jazz Funk from 5:30pm to 6:30pm.
Tuesdays and Wednesdays your children will learn and understand the art of Acting and Improvisation with the very cool Jonaton Wynne from 4:00pm to 5:00pm.
Also on Tuesdays and Wednesdays the world renowned Solid Gold dancer, Darcel Wynne-Leonard will be teaching Dance and Motion. 5:30pm to 6:30pm.
Fridays the talented Karl Melero will be guiding the children through Creative and Expressive Art from 4:30pm to 5:30pm.
We are so excited to be a part of this program!
So, because of our packed days, (not only the above mentioned activities but also gymnastics, AWANA, homework, schoolwork, auditions, callbacks, and filming) I will be dusting off my crock pot (I haven't used it for about 2 weeks to cook da beans) and experimenting with new and not so new vegetarian/vegan recipes.  Take advantage of  the fall fruits and vegetables from your local farmer's market and in your local supermarket chose your produce that are grown locally!
My teen (former home schooler) really likes school.  I think she enjoys competing with other students to get that A and she is such a social butterfly.   So far all A's in her class!
Her drama class are doing a fundraiser selling chocolates bars for $1.  I will have them with me starting this weekend.  The goal, to start off, will be 50 bars.  Maybe we will try for 100 if it goes well. So, if you would like to help out Celina and her fellow drama queens and kings buy one.  Sorry I can't ship out.  That defeats the purpose of raising funds for the drama class. 
Money goes towards field trips.