Slow Cooker Smoky Pulled Pork

This recipe was the best pulled pork I've ever made.  The meat had a wonderful flavor and was so tender.  It only took me about 45 seconds to shred the meat since it was literally falling off the bone.  Yum!  This recipe is going back on the menu again this month.  The liquid smoke was a crucial element as it added a true barbecue flavor that is normally lacking in slow cooker recipes.  (I found liquid smoke in the aisle with the BBQ sauces.)

Also, I couldn't find less than a 9 lb pork shoulder roast at my grocery store, but the butcher was more than happy to cut it down for me.

Slow Cooker Smoky Pulled Pork

recipe from Six Sisters Stuff

3-4 lb pork shoulder butt roast (can be bone-in)
3 T paprika
1 1/2 T kosher salt
1 1/2 T pepper
1 t garlic powder
1 t dry mustard
1/3 c liquid smoke
1 (16-20 oz) bottle of BBQ sauce (I used Stubb's)
buns

Spray the inside of your slow cooker with nonstick spray.  In a small bowl, combine paprika, salt, pepper, garlic powder, mustard and liquid smoke and whisk to combine.  Rub marinade into all sides of pork and place meat into slow cooker.  Cover with lid and cook on low for 8-10 hours.  Remove pork roast from slow cooker and shred meat.  Add meat back into slow cooker and stir in BBQ sauce.  Serve on buns and enjoy!

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Sweet Pork Tacos with Avocado Cream

This is another recipe from The Meal Planner (seriously, I think her website is my new best friend!) and it's another winner.  The sweet pork paired so nicely with the tangy avocado cream and the hard taco shell.  Since it's a crockpot recipe, there's very little time involved and it makes a ton of meat.  I froze half (probably more than half actually) to save for another meal.  Since Andrew's not a big fan of sweet and savory dinners, I cut down on the amount of brown sugar and thought it was the perfect amount of sweetness - sweet enough to satisfy me but not sweet enough for any complaints from the hubster!

Sweet Pork Tacos with Avocado Cream
adapted from The Meal Planner

for the pork:
3 lbs pork loin roast or pork shoulder
2 cups favorite salsa
4 oz can chopped green chilies
2 tablespoon brown sugar
1 onion, peeled and chopped
1 (15-oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed

for the avocado cream:
1 large avocado, mashed
2 green onions, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons low fat sour cream
juice of 1 lime
1/4 cup cilantro leaves, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
salt and pepper, to taste

to serve:
hard taco shells or tortillas
sliced onions, optional
shredded cheese, optional
corn salsa, optional
shredded lettuce, optional

In the bottom of your slow cooker, combine salsa, green chilies, brown sugar, onion and black beans.  Mix well.  Add pork roast and cook on low for 7-9 hours.  Remove the pork and shred with a fork.  (I cooked mine about 9 hours and I shredded the meat in about 30 seconds since it was literally falling apart.  Lovely!)  Return meat to slow cooker and mix meat into the sauce.  Continue to cook another 30 minutes to 1 hour with lid off to thicken the sauce a little bit.

Meanwhile, to prepare the avocado cream, add green onions, sour cream, lime juice, cilantro, garlic, chile powder, salt and pepper to mashed avocado and mix well.

To serve, scoop sweet pork into hard taco shells and top with avocado cream and any other desired toppings.

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Colorful Chicken Salad

You know I love to mix savory with sweet when it comes to dinner. You also probably know that Andrew hates it when I do that. But yesterday I was craving a good ol' homemade chicken salad sandwich. Usually I make a pretty simple recipe with roasted or poached chicken breasts, mayo, celery, and onion, but I was feeling the creative vibe and made a totally different chicken salad. As I was prepping all the ingredients, I was a little worried that Andrew may not like it since I was putting a touch of sweet into the salad. But I had no need to be worried. After Andrew finished his sandwich, he commented on how great it was and promptly fixed himself a second sandwich! At the end of dinner, Finley even remarked that "dinner was really, really good, Mama." Warms my heart!

When I was assembling this chicken salad, I was hoping to create something that was a little tangy (which is why I went heavy on the Dijon and added a little sour cream too) with really bright flavors, as well as colors - orange from dried apricots, bright green from pistachios and deep purple from red onions. I think I succeeded, and I hope you agree!

Colorful Chicken Salad

a Baking and Eggs original

2-4 chicken breasts, about 1.25 lbs, cooked and chopped

1/2 cup dried apricots, chopped

1/2 cup pistachios, shelled and chopped

1/3 cup red onion, finely diced

2 celery ribs, diced

3-4 tablespoons low fat mayonnaise

2 tablespoons creamy Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons low fat sour cream

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste

lettuce and/or good bread, for serving

Combine all ingredients except lettuce and bread in a large bowl and mix well. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour to allow flavors to marry. Serve on lettuce as a salad or on bread (or croissants would be great too!) as a sandwich.

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The Best Artichoke Dip

I absolutely adore artichokes in all forms. I'm pretty sure I've never met an artichoke that I didn't immediately stuff into my mouth. Usually I steam my artichokes, but I saw this pretty picture of an artichoke dip on Pinterest and thought that the corresponding recipe for sounded pretty darn tasty. Plus I had all the ingredients (except for the canned artichokes) already in my kitchen. Sweet!

When I made this dip (and I've made it twice in the last two weeks), I use canned artichoke bottoms rather than artichoke hearts. I've found that the artichoke leaves that are attached to the hearts don't have nearly as good of flavor or texture as the bottom does - so why bring along excess baggage when you can just eat the good stuff?

Two quick notes: the recipe as written doesn't serve more than 8, so if you're serving a crowd, you'll want to double or triple the recipe. Also, you can prepare the dip ahead of time, refrigerate it and then bake it just before serving.

The Best Artichoke Dip

adapted from Picky Cook

1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan

1/4 cup mayonnaise (you can use low fat)

1/4 cup sour cream (you can use low fat)

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1/2 teaspoon paprika, divided

kosher salt and pepper, to taste

1 14-oz can artichoke bottoms, drained and finely chopped

3/4 cup shredded Italian cheese blend

crackers or baguette slices, for serving

In a small mixing bowl, whisk together parmesan cheese, mayo, sour cream, garlic powder, onion powder, 1/4 teaspoon paprika, salt and pepper. Add artichoke and gently stir to combine. Transfer to a 3-cup ramekin or other small baking dish. Sprinkle shredded Italian cheese over the artichoke mixture. Sprinkle on the remaining 1/4 teaspoon paprika.

Bake at 350 for 25 minutes (35 minutes if it has been refrigerated). Turn on broiler and broil for 1-2 minutes or until cheese is browned and bubbly. Let cool for 5 minutes before serving with crackers and/or toasted baguette slices.

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Sloppy Cubano Sandwiches

I'm not sure why I am so enamored by Sloppy Joes, but I am! While I love the original, I also like to spice things up a bit. This recipe popped up on my blog feed this weekend, and I immediately knew I had to try it. I've already professed my love for Sloppy Joes, but I also love a good Cuban sandwich - pork, ham, cheese, mustard and pickles sandwiched between some good, crusty bread. Yum! This recipe is a happy marriage between two great sandwich staples and I could not have been happier with how this turned out. A delicious revision to the Sloppy Joe!

I altered the recipe to have the slow cooker do most of the work for me. With a two-year-old, I always try to do as much work ahead of time (usually while Finley is in preschool or taking her nap) so that I don't have to be slaving over dinner when she's awake and wanting to play. But if you'd like make the recipe on the stovetop, then be sure and look at the original recipes here and here.

Sloppy Cubano Sandwiches

adapted from Taste and Tell and Rachael Ray

6 oz chorizo, casings removed and finely chopped

1 lb ground pork

1/2 white onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 teaspoon ground coriander

2 teaspoons paprika

1 teaspoon allspice

salt and pepper

2 tablespoons brown sugar

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 lime, juice and zest

1 cup chicken broth

1 8-oz can tomato sauce

2-3 tablespoons tomato paste

4 rolls or buns, split in half

4 slices Swiss cheese

dill pickle slices

yellow mustard

In a large saute pan over medium heat, cook chorizo until lightly browned, about 2 minutes. Add the pork and onions and continue to cook another 4-6 minutes or until browned. If there is a lot of grease, drain the fat. (Mine didn't render much fat so I skipped this step.)

Meanwhile, in the pot of your slow cooker, stir together garlic, paprika, ground coriander, allspice, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, lime juice, lime zest, chicken broth, tomato sauce and salt and pepper (to taste). Add the meat and onion mixture and stir to combine. Cook on low 3-4 hours. Stir in tomato paste just before serving.

When you're ready to eat, preheat your oven's broiler. Toast the split buns. Divide the meat mixture between the buns and place a slice of cheese on each. Broil until the cheese melts, about 30 seconds. Top with lots of pickles, spread a liberal dollop of mustard on the top half of the bun and enjoy!

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Creamy Chicken Taquitos

Originally I had planned to make these taquitos and make a few changes to the recipe. But the more I thought about it, I realized how ambivalent I was feeling about them. While I love bacon, I was a little on the fence about whether or not I wanted bacon in my taquitos...So I decided to use the taquito recipe that I've used several times in the past and always enjoyed. Why mess with a good thing, right?

These taquitos are nothing like the fried-minuscule-virtually-tasteless-things-that-more-closely-resemble-cardboard-than-food you can find in the frozen foods section of your grocery store. These are creamy, crunchy, tasty bites of deliciousness that everyone - including Finley - loves!

It's also important to note that unbaked these freeze really well!

Creamy Chicken Taquitos

adapted from Our Best Bites

3 oz cream cheese, softened

4 oz sharp cheddar cheese, freshly grated

4 oz sour cream

1/4 cup chipotle salsa (feel free to substitute your favorite salsa)

1/4 cup cilantro leaves, chopped

2 green onions, sliced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1/2 teaspoon Mexican oregano

1 teaspoon chili powder

2 large chicken breasts, cooked and shredded

12 flour tortillas

cooking spray

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, mix together cream cheese, cheddar cheese, sour cream, salsa, cilantro, green onions, garlic,cumin, onion powder, oregano and chili powder. Stir until well combined and then stir in chicken.

Spoon 2-3 tablespoons of the chicken mixture on each tortilla and roll up as tightly as you can. Place seam side down on a cookie sheet and repeat with remaining tortillas. Lightly spray each tortilla with nonstick cooking spray. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the ends of the tortillas turn golden brown.

Serve with extra salsa, guacamole or this dipping sauce. (I made a simple sauce of equal parts guacamole and sour cream plus a squeeze of lime juice, a dash of chili powder, and a dash of cumin.)

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Breakfast Egg Muffins

I love the idea of having a big family breakfast together on the weekends, but since I'm not a morning person, it rarely happens. Usually by the time I stumble out of bed, Andrew and Finley have been up and around long enough to have already eaten. But this weekend I really wanted to give it the old college try.

These are really more like individual sized breakfast casseroles than muffins, but you get the idea. I made them last night (like you would with a breakfast casserole) and then just popped them in the oven this morning. And then I got to sit down and enjoy my coffee knowing I was about to serve me family a great homemade breakfast - without any work to do in the morning! These would make a great addition to any breakfast or brunch buffet and I think they might make an appearance on our table Christmas morning!

Not only are they tasty and portable, they are a complete meal - protein from the sausage, eggs and cheese; vegetables from the onions, red bell pepper, spinach and potatoes (okay, that last one's a stretch since I used tater tots!); and dairy from the milk and cheese. Feel free to switch up the proteins, cheeses and veggies to create something that your family will love!

Breakfast Egg Muffins

adapted from Snacking in the Kitchen

27 tater tots

1/3 pound breakfast sausage (any kind or flavor you like)

1/4 onion, chopped

1/2 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped

1 cup fresh baby spinach, roughly chopped

6 extra large eggs

1/3 cup milk

1/4 cup sharp cheddar cheese, freshly grated

salt and pepper, to taste

Bake tater tots according to package directions. Set aside to cool completely

Meanwhile, cook breakfast sausage, onion and bell pepper in a saute pan over medium heat, breaking up any large clumps of meat, until sausage is cooked through and no longer pink. Drain any grease. Set aside to cool completely.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together eggs and milk. Add cheese, salt and pepper.

Using non-stick spray, grease 9 cavities of a 12-muffin pan. Gently press three tater tots down into the bottom of each well to create a "crust". Spoon a large spoonful of the meat and vegetable mixture over the crushed tater tots. Pour just enough egg mixture over to cover the meat and vegetables. Make sure the tater tots and meat mixture are cooled before pouring the egg mixture over top.

Cover the muffin tin and refrigerate. The next morning, preheat oven to 375 degrees and bake 15-20 minutes.

Makes 9 muffins.

* While the quality of the camera is much higher, sadly the quality of the photographer remains the same. Bare with me as I'm learning the ropes!

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Chicken Pot Pie

Recently, my friends and I had a freezer meal swap and the meal we received from Erika was Chicken Pot Pie. It was such a warm and comforting meal and I loved having leftovers for lunch the next few days. On a whim (and totally ignoring my carefully made meal plan), I decided to make a CPP for dinner last night. Unfortunately I didn't have Erika's recipe so I just winged it and it came out great. And it was exactly what the doctor ordered - Andrew and I both had second helpings and sweet Finley had thirds! Hopefully your family will enjoy it as much as my family did. It also got me to thinking about when CPP first came into our family...

Growing up, my mom made Chicken and Dumplings, which I didn't like because I had an unfair aversion to soggy/mushy food, but I don't remember her ever making Pot Pie. In my mind Chicken Pot Pie and Chicken and Dumplings were similar enough to one another that I just assumed I wouldn't like either of them. But you know what they say when you assume...Anyway, fast forward to when I was newly married and I realized that Andrew would buy frozen pot pies whenever he went to the grocery store. Poor guy! I decided to remedy that and make him homemade CPP.

Andrew was so excited that he volunteered to head to the store for me. I made out the list and gave it to him. I've learned over the years that I have to be very specific on the grocery list or else I'll end up with something weird. I usually include notes, brand names and location within the store to ensure he comes home with the right ingredients. But this little trip was early into our marriage and I hadn't yet learned this trick. When I unpacked the grocery bags, I found that Andrew had bought a graham cracker pie crust! Bug-eyed, I queried him, and he admitted he thought it was weird but it was the only pie crust he knew of. Ah, funny memories!

Chicken Pot Pie

a Baking & Eggs original

2 tablespoons butter

1/2 white onion, chopped

3 carrots, peeled and thinly sliced

2 ribs celery, thinly sliced

1 potato, peeled and diced small

1 egg

4 tablespoons butter

1/2 cup flour

1 1/4 cups chicken broth

1 1/4 cups whole milk

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon celery seed

1 tablespoon fresh parsley, minced

1-2 cloves garlic, minced

2-3 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed

1 cup frozen peas

2 pie crusts (homemade or store bought)

1 egg, beaten

Preheat oven to 375 degree.s

In a large saute pan over medium heat, melt butter and saute onion, carrots and celery, until veggies are softened, about 10-15 minutes.

Meanwhile, add potatoes and egg to a small saucepan filled with water. Bring to a boil and then lower to a simmer until potatoes are fork tender, about 10-15 minutes. Drain and set potatoes aside. Peel and chop egg. Set aside.

In the saute pan with the veggies, melt butter. Stir in flour. Slowly stir in chicken broth and milk until the mixture is smooth and thickened. Stir in salt, pepper, celery seed, parsley, garlic, chicken, frozen peas, cooked potatoes and hardboiled egg. Take pan off heat.

Roll out pie crust in deep-dish pie plate. Carefully pour chicken mixture into dish. (You may have a little filling left-over. I ate it for lunch!) Top with second pie crust. Crimp edges and cut a few steam vents on the top. Brush with egg wash. Bake for 30-40 minutes, or until crust is golden.

(I made my pot pie during Finley's nap time, refrigerated it and then baked it for about an hour. You can also double the recipe and freeze one since they freeze great.)

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Scooter's Spaghetti Pie

As a self-proclaimed lover of anything pasta, I knew I had to make this recipe when I first spotted it on Pinterest. It looks like a simple, classic spaghetti casserole with a fun layer of cream cheese and veggies thrown in to spice things up a bit. Oh, and it's topped with French Fried Onions!

While I'm sure the original recipe is to die for, I wanted to try to 'healthify' it a little bit. I substituted whole wheat pasta, low fat cream cheese, replaced butter with olive oil and added a shredded zucchini. Also, I've never cooked with Fried Onions before - I didn't even know where they were located in the store! I was pleasantly surprised that my grocery store sold an all natural French Fried Onion option, so I didn't have to feel guilty about serving my family something packed with tons of preservatives. Bonus! But of course, they are still fried...but every little bit helps, right?!

Also, this recipe made enough for two pies, one to eat for dinner and one to freeze for later. Double bonus!

Sccoter's Spaghetti Pie

adapted from Salad in a Jar

16 oz whole wheat spaghetti

1 tablespoon olive oil

1/2 small white onion, chopped

1 green bell pepper, seeded and chopped

1 zucchini, shredded

1 8-oz package low fat cream cheese

1 lb ground turkey, bison, or beef

1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

1 large jar (26.25 oz) of spaghetti sauce

1/3 cup parmesan cheese, grated

1 6-oz can French Fried Onions

Cook pasta one or two minutes shy of al dente. Drain.

Spray two deep dish 9-inch pie plates (or one 9-x-13-inch pan) with nonstick spray. Divide the pasta evenly between the two plates.

Meanwhile, in a saute pan over medium heat, add olive oil. Add onions and bell peppers, stirring occasionally, and cook until softened and translucent. Add zucchini and cook 1 more minute. Lower heat and stir in cream cheese until just melted. Spread cream cheese mixture evenly over the noodles.

In a large pan, cook meat over medium heat. Drain grease. Stir in Italian seasoning and cook 1 minute. Add spaghetti sauce and parmesan cheese and let cook for a few minutes. Pour sauce evenly over the cream cheese mixture.

Bake at 350 for 25 minutes. Remove pan and sprinkle with French Fried Onions. Return to oven and bake 5 more minutes, being careful not to let them burn.

* If you're freezing half, let the casserole cool completely (do not bake or top with Fried Onions), wrap tightly with foil and freeze. If the casserole is defrosted, bake at 350 for 60-75 minutes, or until heated through. If it is still frozen, bake at 350 degrees for about 2 hours. Sprinkle Fried Onions on top and cook 5 more minutes.

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Crockpot Baby Back Ribs

In celebration of the second weekend of college football, we decided to try yet another ribs recipe and serve them with sausage, potato salad, baked beans, cauliflower with cheese sauce, and banana pudding. Don't worry, we had friends over to share in the feast - there was no way we could haven eaten that much food on our own!

I spotted this recipe on Pinterest and it caught my eye. Ribs...in a crockpot? Say, what?!?We've previously tried smoking them (great flavor but not tender enough) and oven roasting them (again, great flavor but not tender enough), so I thought, "what the heck, why not try cooking them in the Crockpot?!". It could not have been easier and I knew they were going to be tender enough when I cut them to separate the ribs and the meat just fell off the bones. Ah, heaven - meat falling off a bone! At the end of the meal, there was lots of sausage, beans, and potato salad left over but nary a rib in sight!

Crockpot Baby Back Ribs

Adapted from Free Motion Quilting

3 lb rack of pork baby back ribs

1/3 cup dark brown sugar

1 tablespoon paprika

1 1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1/2 teaspoon oregano

1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper (I omitted this since kids were going to be eating with us)

Bottle of your favorite BBQ sauce (I used Stubb's)

Mix all the dry seasonings in a small bowl, being careful to break up any lumps of brown sugar. Rub seasoning all over both sides of the ribs, ensuring every surface of ribs is covered.

Place rack of ribs on edge of crockpot, meat side out. I curved the ribs into a circle, the ends touching, so that the ribs are standing upright in the crockpot.

Cook on low heat for a minimum of 7 hours or on high for 5 hours. Remove ribs to a large cutting board and baste with your favorite BBQ sauce. Let rest 15 minutes before separating the ribs. Baste one more time and then serve the ribs with extra BBQ sauce on the side.

*It's important not to lift the lid of the crockpot as they ribs cook because they are essentially steaming in their own juices.

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The Ultimate Berry Trifle

{it would look much prettier if I could have found my trifle dish!}

I had the opportunity to see Tyler Florence do a cooking demonstration at a Wine and Food Festival a few years ago and he's been one of my favorite chefs ever since. This is a recipe I've had my eye on for quite awhile. Since berries are in season and we were serving a fairly light and healthy dinner, Jennie and I decided to make this for our dessert. What sets this recipe apart from other ordinary berry trifles is that it has lemon curd in it, whose flavor goes wonderfully with the berries. And you know I'm a sucker for anything citrus (I'm beginning to sound like a broken record, aren't i?!?)! It was a delicious dessert - everyone had seconds and Andrew and I couldn't wait to eat the leftovers the following day.

Like the Summer Rolls, this recipe can be made ahead of time, which makes it great for entertaining. And since it makes use of store-bought pound cake and lemon curd, it's pretty quick to put together too.

The Ultimate Berry Trifle

recipe from Tyler Florence's Tyler's Ultimate cookbook

for the berries

1 pint blueberries

1 pint strawberries, hulled and cut into thick slices

1 pint raspberries

1/4 c sugar

1 1/2 t cornstarch

Juice on 1 lemon

for the lemon cream

1 c heavy cream

1 T sugar

1/2 t vanilla extract

1 c lemon curd

1 pound cake, sliced 1/2-inch thick

Combine the berries, sugar, cornstarch and lemon juice in a saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a simmer and cook just until the berries begin to break down and give up their juices, about 3 minutes. Take the berries off the heat and let cool; the mixture should thicken up as it cools.

In a clean bowl, whip the cream with the sugar and vanilla to soft peaks. Put the lemon curd into a second bowl and stir in a little of the whipped cream to loosen it. Then fold in the rest of the cream.

To assemble the trifle, spoon a layer of the lemon cream into a large glass bowl. Add a layer of pound cake, breaking the slices into pieces to fit. Then soak the cake with a layer of berries and their juices. Keep going to make 3 or 4 layers, depending on the size of the bowl, finishing with a layer of lemon cream. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

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