Favorite Slow Cooker Meals

Granny’s Slow Cooker Taters

32 oz pkg frozen hash browns

1 lb kielbasa, chopped

1 onion, diced

10-3/4 oz can cheese soup

1 soup can milk

Place all ingredients into a greased 6 qt slow cooker.  Stir to mix.  Cover and cook on high for 3 hours or on low 8-10 hours.

Crockpot Orient Chicken

6-8 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce

In a medium bowl combine soy sauce, brown sugar, garlic and tomato sauce, stir well.  Place chicken in crockpot, pour sauce over chicken.  Cover and cook on low for 6-8 minutes or until chicken is tender.  Serve with rice.

Baked Beans with sausage

1 lb Great Northern Beans (1 large jar)

1 cup sugar (white, brown or half and half)

1 onion, minced

1 lb sausage, cooked

Combine all ingredients in the crockpot and cook for several hours.

Slow Cooker Potato Soup

6 cups coarsely chopped potatoes

1/2 lb cooked chopped bacon

1 small onion, chopped

3 (14 oz each) cans chicken broth

1 (10-3/4 oz) can cream of chicken soup

1 (8 oz) pkg cream cheese, softened

1/4 tsp pepper

In a 4 qt crockpot, stir together potatoes, bacon and onion.  In a large mixing bowl, combine chicken broth, cream of chicken soup, cream cheese and pepper.  Add to the crockpot.  Cover and cook on low for 8-10 hours.  Also good if you replace the bacon with ham.  Bacon gives it more of a smokey taste though.

Slow Cooker White Chili

3/4 lb boneless, skinless chicken breast, cubed

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp olive oil

2 cups chicken broth

1 lg jar of northern beans - or two cans

1 cup frozen corn or one can of corn

1 can (4 oz) chopped green chilis

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp chili powder

In a skillet, saute chicken, onion and garlic in olive oil until onion is tender.  Transfer to a slow cooker and stir in remaining ingredients.  Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours or until chicken juices run clear and flavors blend.  It is really important to saute the chicken, onion and garlic - the flavor is not the same if you don’t!

Chicken Chop Suey

2-4 large chicken breasts - frozen (or use several chicken tenders -not breaded)

1 large can of chinese veggies

1 can cream of chicken soup

1-2 tbsp soy sauce

Stick all into a crockpot and cook for 8-10 hours on low.  Serve with rice, crunchy noodles and soy sauce.

What I learned in 2011 part 2

Thinking back over 2011 has been interesting- and has reminded me of a lot I had forgotten about!

Here goes part 2 of what I learned this year--

1. Witch Hazel is wonderful-- Use it to clean your face and you will be amazed at all the dirt it lifts off, it worked wonders on my cold sore and it never made it sting and it even cleans pug wrinkles!

2.  Lemon juice, lemon peel, olive oil, salt and pepper makes a glorious dressing- it's great on pasta salad but my all time favorite way to use it is on fresh from the garden cucumbers and tomatoes.  Cut up the veggies, drizzle on the dressing and dig in.  Great lunch or anytime snack....yummm.  Now I am drooling and wishing for summer.

3. No matter how much lavender vinegar I make, it never lasts the winter- I love using lavender vinegar for cleaning.  It is so easy to make and it takes off the tang of the vinegar smell.  A few drops of lemon oil is nice in the vinegar but it just cannot hold a candle to the lavender vinegar.  I made 5 batches this year and its gone already....and it's only December.

4.  Sometimes conflict cannot be avoided- standing up for what you believe in sometimes requires you to do things that make you uncomfortable or places you in situations where you must argue your point of view.  I have learned to keep calm, speak clearly and concisely, and to hold your ground regardless of what the other party does.  Some things just cannot be compromised on and while the conflict may make you uncomfortable, in the end you will feel far better about the situation if you stand by your morales and convictions.

While this definitely is not all I learned this year, I have attempted to focus on those things that really were important this year.  Next up--- goals for 2012!

What I have learned in 2011- part 1

2011 has been full of ups and downs for me and while looking back I see that I have learned a great deal so here is part 1 of what I learned in 2011:

1. It does matter what you put into your body- I always believed in attempting to eat a healthy diet but I never gave much thought as to what was going into me.  If it was on the super market shelf, it must be safe for me.  Well let's just say with all the health issues I have had over the past three years, I have learned that there are many things on the shelf that really are not good for you.  And it is much more difficult to cut out processed and preservatives from your diet than you think.

2. Artificial Sweetener really can play havoc on your body- I was a die-hard diet coke fan.  I wasn't just a lover of diet coke, I was an addict.  I was positive that the artificial sweeteners and whatnot in it could NOT have a negative affect on me (see above again for you reasoning).  I have not had a diet coke or any artificial sweeteners in over 10 months.  It took me several months to get over the withdrawals and I would still love to savor a full 2 liter all to myself.  But I do feel better, I drink more water and the biggest difference- I no longer crave sweets half as much as I did before.  Things taste too sweet for me (something that never happened before) and I find some sweets too rich and too much.  What a change.

3. Prescribed medications can have the absolute opposite effect on your body and the doctor doesn't always know best- Sometimes medications given to you to make you feel better can actually make you feel worse and no matter how much you argue with a doctor they may chose not to believe you.  I know this isn't necessarily for everyone, however you know your body best.  If something you are taking is making your life horrible, find something else that doesn't make you feel that way- bug the doctor if you need to until you find something that works.  After taking some medication for fibromyalgia for 10 months I realized that it was making things far worse.  I went from being able to function most days to spending 99% of my days in bed, unable to move without pain, unable to walk the grocery store without complete exhaustion and being unable to work.  Without the medications, I am not back to normal, but I can walk, function, do housework and live a halfway normal life.  My doctor argued that I would need that medication to function.  I have proved that I do not need the medication to function and not only that- that without the medication I can function at a much higher level.

4. It is okay to not be able to do everything and to not be the person you once were- In 2010 I was diagnosed with fibromyalgia.  It took me a very long time to come to terms not only with the diagnoses (and I still question what else is going on) but also that I no longer am the person I was before.  I have found that it is okay to have slow or quiet days where I don't accomplish much.  It is okay that I no longer can walk as fast as I used to, that I am not able to garden for as long as I used to, that I get tired more often.  I am not going to go back to what I was, however I am happy with what I can do.  I take pride and joy in my accomplishments, no matter how big or small.  I am not saying I don't get frustrated by my limitations but I have learned to move forward.

Have the Happiest of Holidays

The presents are wrapped, the cookies are in the oven baking, the ham has been bought and I am enjoying some Christmas music on the radio with my feet up enjoying some peace and quiet before the big day.

I was everyone the happiest of holiday seasons.  I hope everyone has the opportunity to spend some time with those they love to eat, drink and be merry!

I plan on taking a look back at 2011 and talking a bit about all I have learned as well as looking towards 2012 and what I still would like to learn....stay tuned.

Getting back to that Holiday feeling

Due to a warmer than normal November and a fairly warm December we are still looking at brown grass instead of white snow!  It certainly does make it difficult to get into the Christmas spirit as a nice dusting would make looking at those lights and listening to that music even more special.  I was in the Christmas spirit earlier in December but after some personal issues that needed to be addressed and dealt with, I have been left feeling frustrated and not very festive.

Hopefully after this week the personal issues can be set aside until after the Christmas holidays and will be completely resolved the middle of January.  Thankfully I have 2 holiday parties to participate in this week and one next week.  I am hoping the lightness, the joy along with good friends and family will help alleviate the stress and help bring back the holiday feeling.

Please Mother Nature, bring on some snow at least through the holiday season and I will work on the rest.  What do you do to try to get into that holiday spirit, especially when it feels as though everything is working against you?

Favorite Christmas Time Traditions

A few more favorite things to add-- my favorite holiday traditions

- sugar cookies with frosting and sprinkles.  They make a great breakfast with a cup of coffee, really!

- watching snow fall from my back windows.  I live on a fairly large hill and our back windows look out over the hill with some grassy fields in back.  But you can see even further, over the river valley to the other side of town- I love watching it snow softly over the earth.

- listening to holiday music, with the tree lights on, oohh while eating cookies.

It's the small things that bring me the most pleasure during the holidays.  It took me several years to realize this but since then I try to focus more on the simple things and enjoy the little things.