{MWW} Chicken and Roasted Vegetables Dinner

Today's featured recipe, Chicken and Roasted Vegetables Dinner, is from my trusty Pillsbury Slow Cooker book.  The recipe can be found on the Pillsbury website here or read below for my directions and commentary!

Pillsbury photo documentation of meal:

My photo documentation of meal:

Chicken and Roasted Vegetable Dinner

All information is directly from my Pillsbury Slow Cooker Cook Book except for the sections described as 'my commentary'

Servings: 6

 

Ingredients

1lb unpeeled small potatoes (6-8), cut into 1-inch pieces (3 cups)

2 cups ready-to-eat baby-cut carrots

1 cup frozen small whole onions (from 1lb bag), thawed, drained

I was unable to locate frozen small whole onions so I used frozen chopped onion
6 boneless skinless chicken thighs (1 1/4lb)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1 jar (12oz) chicken gravy

1 1/2 cups Green Giant Valley Fresh Steamers frozen sweet peas, thawed, drained

I did not have any peas in the house so they were omitted

Directions:

Spray 3- to 4-quart slow cooker with cooking spray.  
In cooker, place potatoes, carrots and onions.

 Sprinkle chicken with salt and pepper; place on vegetables in cooker.

 Pour gravy over top.

Cover; cook on Low heat setting 8-10 hours.

 Stir in peas.  Increase heat setting to High.
Cover; cook 15minutes longer or until peas are tender.

 Serve and enjoy!

My commentary regarding the directions:

Very easy to prepare.  Smelled delicious while cooking. The only step I did not follow was adding the peas and increasing heat since I did not have any peas!

I made this meal to bless a friend who was enduring some medical issues with her mother.
Therefore, I transferred the meal components into a foil container and deliver the meal to the family hot and ready to eat.  Definitely and nice warm meal to consume on a frigid day like today!

       

{MWW} Enchilada Soup

The change of seasons and the cooler weather is an invitation for soup to find its way onto the menu in our home.  I must admit that I am picky regarding the soups I consume, but this Enchilada Soup gets a gold star from me! I hope that you will be inspired to make this soup and that it will provide comfort and warmth on a blustery fall or winter day!

This is another tried-and-true recipe from my Pillsbury slow cooker cook book.  Read below for recipe directions and my commentary from preparing the meal for my family.

Pillsbury photo documentation of meal:

 Enchilada Soup

Prep Time:  10 minutes

Start to Finish:  7 hours 20 minutes

Servings: 6

Ingredients:
 {directly taken from the Pillsbury Slow Cooker book I own}

2 cups Progresso chicken broth (from 32oz carton)

1 can (19oz) Old El Paso mild or hot enchilada sauce

1 can (4.5oz) Old El Paso chopped mild green chiles

1 package (20oz) bone-in chicken breasts, skin removed

1 can (15oz) Progresso black beans, drained, rinsed

1 bag (12oz) Green Giant Valley Fresh Steamers Niblets frozen corn, thawed, drained

Shredded Mexican cheese blend, if desired

Chopped fresh cilantro, if desired

Crushed tortilla chips, if desired

My commentary regarding the ingredients:
I substituted the chicken for some turkey breast fillets I needed to use up.  I still used chicken broth with turkey as the meat.  It tasted just fine.  I always purchase the cheapest brand so our chicken broth was Meijer and not Progresso, our corn was from a Green Giant can and our black beans were not Progresso.  Fear not, it all tasted the same!  I did however purchase Old El Paso brand for the mild enchilada sauce and mild green chiles.  I failed to read the amount correctly to realize I needed 19oz so one of my cans was a 10pz can of green enchilada sauce I had in the pantry and one was a 10oz can of regular red enchilada sauce I purchased. I did not use cilantro but definitely added cheese and chips...and sour cream!

Directions:

 {directly taken from the Pillsbury Slow Cooker book I own.  All photos below were taken by me in the preparation process.}

Spray 4-5-quart slow cooker with cooking spray.  In cooker, mix broth, enchilada sauce and chiles.  Place chicken into enchilada sauce mixture; spoon sauce over chicken.

Cover; cook on Low heat setting for 7 to 8 hours.

Remove chicken from cooker with slotted spoon.  
Stir beans and corn into mixture in cooker. 
Increase heat setting to High. Cover; cook 5 to 10 minutes longer.
Meanwhile, shred chicken by pulling apart with 2 forks; return to cooker.
Cook until thoroughly heated.

 

Top each serving with cheese, cilantro and tortilla chips.

My commentary regarding the directions:
I did not alter the directions given.  I can confess that the slow cooker remained on the High setting for a couple hours following dinner while we ran some errands and the juice cooked off and we are now serving the left overs as burritos! So, whatever form you choose to serve this meal in - enjoy!!

 

{MWW} Sweet-and-Sour Pork

Today I am sharing a recipe for Sweet-and-Sour Pork from my Pillsbury Slow Cooker book. 
This meal has been given the 'thumbs up' and made the way into our regular meal rotation.
I hope you'll make it and enjoy it too!

Pillsbury photo documentation of this meal:

 

My photo documentation of this meal:

Continue to read below for my tutorial and commentary on preparing this meal.

Sweet-and-Sour Pork 

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Start to Finish: 5 hours

Servings: 4

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons butter or margarine
1 boneless pork shoulder blade roast (2 lb)
1 jar (10oz) sweet-and-sour sauce
1/2 cup Progresso chicken broth (from 32-oz carton)
I used Meijer brand chicken broth from a carton
1 can (20oz) pineapple chunks in juice, drained
1/4 cup cold water
1 tablespoon cornstarch


Directions:
Directly from my Pillsbury Slow Cooker Cook Book

In 10-inch skillet, melt butter over medium heat. 
Add pork roast; cook 3 to 4 minutes on each side or until browned.

Spray 3.5 to 4-quart slow cooker with cooking spray. 
Into cooker, pour sweet-and-sour sauce.
Add pork, broth and pineapple.

Cover; cook on Low heat setting 4 hours 30 minutes to 5 hours.

About 15minutes before serving, in small bowl, mix water and cornstarch until smooth.Remove pork from cooker; place on cutting board or serving platter. 
Stir cornstarch mixture into liquid in cooker.
Return pork to cooker.
Increase heat setting to High. 
Cover; cook 10minutes longer or until sauce has slight thickened.

Cut pork into slices; serve with sauce.

My commentary on directions:
I do know if spraying the slow cooker is advantageous or not.  Mine still browns and gets icky.  If you try and cook it for a short time period on the High setting, you will dry out the meat.  Plan accordingly to cook on Low for 4.5 hrs.  Be sure to cook the full 10minutes on High after adding the cornstarch or it will have a weird texture.  We serve our pork with rice.

{MWW} Barbequed Pork Chops for Two

Today I am sharing a recipe for Barbecue Pork Chops for Two from my Pillsbury Slow Cooker book.  You can find the recipe on the Pillsbury website by clicking here. Continue to read below for my tutorial and commentary on preparing this meal.

Pillsbury photo documentation of this meal:

My photo documentation of this meal:

Barbecued Pork Chops for Two

Ingredients:

2 boneless pork loin chops
       1 inch thick (about 3/4lb.), trimmed of fat 

2 slices of onion

I cut my onion into chunks instead of round slices as I also used some with my side of potatoes/onions. 
1 clove garlic, finely chopped

1/2 cup barbecue sauce

I use Sweet Baby Ray's original barbecue sauce
1 tablespoon water

1 teaspoon cornstarch

Directions:
{directly from the Pillsbury Slow Cooker book I own}

Spray 3- to 4-quart slow cooker with cooking spray.  In cooker, place pork chops.  Top each with onion slice.  Sprinkle with garlic.  Pour barbecue sauce over pork.

Cover; cook on Low heat setting 5 to 6 hours.

About 5 minutes before serving, remove pork from cooker; place on serving platter.
Top each pork chop with onion slice; cover to keep warm.

In 2-cup glass measuring cup or small microwaveable bowl, stir water and cornstarch until smooth.  Pour juices from cooker into cornstarch mixture; mix well.  Microwave on High 1 to 2 minutes, stirring once halfway through cooking, until mixture boils and thickens slightly.  Serve sauce with pork.

My commentary on directions:
5-6 hours is entirely too long to cook the pork in the crock pot.  At 4.5 hours my pork was already becoming dry. Thankfully the sauce revived it and it still tasted good.  Make sure to allow cornstarch mixture to boil otherwise you will end up with a chalk-like texture to your sauce.  All in all a very good meal that I will make in the future!

{MWW} Greek Chicken Pita Folds

When I was doing our meal planning for the week, I decided to incorporate some new recipes for our family to try as I was beginning to feel like I was making the same things over and over again.  I have an assortment of slow cooker recipe books that have been sitting in my basket of cook books that I finally got out to use for this week's meal inspiration.  I just love my slow cooker!  It makes life so much easier when I can prepare dinner during nap time and put it in the crock pot and have it ready to be served at meal time!

First up for dinner on Monday was Greek Chicken Pita Folds found in my Pillsbury Slow Cooker book.  I did a little research and located the recipe on their website as well. You can find it here:  Pillsbury Greek Chicken Pita Folds  Below you will find my tutorial and commentary on preparing this recipe.

Pillsbury photo documentation of the meal:

My photo documentation of the meal:

 Greek Chicken Pita Folds

Ingredients:
1 medium onion, halved, sliced  
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
1 1/2 teaspoons lemon-pepper seasoning 
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano leaves
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1 lb. boneless skinless chicken thighs 
4 pita bread folds
1/2 cup Yoplait 99% Fat Free plain yogurt {from 2-lb container}
1 plum {Roma} tomato, sliced 
1/2 medium cucumber, chopped {about 1/2 cup}

My commentary on ingredients:
I only used 1/4 of an onion as we are not huge fans of onion but knew it would give it good flavoring. I had never heard of lemon-pepper seasoning so we had to purchase it.  Under $3 in the spice section.  I didn't have chicken thighs so I used 3 chicken breasts instead.  I failed to read the packaging correctly and got pita bread instead of folds.  It still made a pocket to place food in but it was much thinner and a bit tougher I'd say.  Still tasted good though! I cut tomatoes and cucumber in small pieces as this  meals was served to our 1.5 year old.

Directions:
{directly from the Pillsbury Slow Cooker book I own}

 Spray 3- to 4-quart slow cooker with cooking spray.  In cooker, mix onion, garlic, lemon
 pepper seasoning, oregano and allspice.  Add chicken; coat with seasoning mixture.

Cover; cook on Low heat setting for 6 to 8 hours.

About 10 minutes before serving, heat pita bread folds as directed on package.
    

Remove chicken from cooker; place on plate.  Shred chicken by pulling apart with 2 forks.

Stir yogurt into onion mixture remaining in the crock pot.

Spoon chicken onto warm pita breads. 

Spoon onion mixture, using slotted spoon, onto chicken.

Top with tomato and cucumber.

Fold pita breads in half to serve.

Enjoy!



1 1/2 year-old son approved!



My commentary regarding directions:

I already had the mixture in the slow cooker when I reread that I was supposed to spray it.  So I didn't...and I'm sure that is why the edges were 'well done'.  I cooked it closer to 3 - 3.5hours on HIGH and checked to make sure the chicken was cooked before serving.  I find the easiest way to shred chicken is to place it on my 'meat only' cutting board and use a fork and knife.  When creating the sauce questioned why it was recommended to use a slotted spoon.  Maybe to not include the onion slices?  I thought the sauce was good and ate it as described in the original directions for my first serving. I then decided I wanted to try making it thicker {more like the sauce you would have on a gyro} so I added another 1/2 cup of yogurt.  It was very tasty both ways. I believe using 3 chicken breasts instead of the thighs might have yielded more meat as we had our initial meal, ate it as leftovers for a meal and we still have a bit of chicken left.  Maybe we should have used more for each sandwich?
Nonetheless, this recipe was husband and child approved and will be added to our meal rotation!  {score!}