crock pot

How to Make the Best Chicken Stock

November 13, 2017

This post has everything you-didn’t-even-know-that-you-need-to-know to make homemade chicken stock or broth on the stove, in the slow cooker, or in the Instant Pot pressure cooker. Follow the same guidelines and steps for making turkey stock, too.

Just about every cook knows to keep at least one can or carton of chicken stock on hand. It’s a reliable pantry staple that many of us use on a weekly basis in everything from soups to gravies and stir-frys too.

While store-bought chicken stock work just fine in recipes that don’t call for much of it (or bouillon cubes when you’re in a real pinch), no one can deny there’s nothing like homemade chicken stock for adding the ultimate flavor.

It’s pure liquid gold.

Homemade chicken stocks and broths (and turkey too) lend a richness and complexity to dishes—particularly risottos, soups, stews—that the store-bought stuff simply can’t match. So if you find yourself with some leftover chicken bones from last night’s dinner and a little hands-off cooking time on your side, make a vat of rich, savory stock to stick in the fridge or freeze for later. Pinky swear, you won’t regret it.

Never made chicken stock before? Fret not, it’s actually incredibly easy. In fact, it’s really hard to mess up.

continue to the recipe… about How to Make the Best Chicken Stock

Slow Cooker Teriyaki Chicken and Vegetable Rice Bowls

September 25, 2017

When weeknight dinner making seems like almost too much to add to your already full plate, prep the ingredients for these slow cooker teriyaki chicken and vegetable rice bowls over the weekend and then toss together for a quick and easy answer to your weeknight dinner question.

These days everyone’s talking about meal prep. There’s a reason for that. Because it works.

All it takes are a couple of base recipes and a little extra time over the weekend to partially cook ahead and then whip out a healthy weeknight dinner. Even if you get just one meal prepped ahead and ready to roll, you’ll find yourself feeling surprisingly proud and a little enamored with your forethought and meal-planning ways.

continue to the recipe… about Slow Cooker Teriyaki Chicken and Vegetable Rice Bowls

31 Summer Slow Cooker Recipes to Make in July

July 3, 2017

These 31 fast to pull together slow cooker recipe ideas for chicken, meat, seafood, and vegetables are the secret to easy summer cooking.

For many of us, pulling out the slow cooker for cozy, warming, winter meals is as natural a thing to do as heating up the grill for summer burgers, brats, chicken and fish.

Ah, but alas! You may be missing out on one of the most advantageous qualities of the beloved slow cooker, the fact that this kitchen appliance can actually be your secret weapon in summer, too.

This list of 31 days of recipes is the reason you should pull your Crock Pot, Instant Pot (there’s a new 9-in-1 model!) or slow cooker out of hibernation and get it cookin’ for you. (affiliate links)

So pack up the sunscreen and head to the pool or out for a hike, because just like in winter, summer is the perfect season to put your slow cooker to work for you.

continue to the recipe… about 31 Summer Slow Cooker Recipes to Make in July

Slow Cooker Mexican Pot Roast

December 5, 2016

Mexican spices add to the flavor of this easy crock pot roasted beef recipe that comes out tender, moist and delicious every time.

This post is part of my year long partnership with Reynolds and I’m telling you now…this slow cooker Mexican beef pot roast recipe could set the record for fastest and easiest clean-up of a dinner recipe ever.

My husband and I spent this past weekend with a group of our best friends to celebrate one of my bestest-friends-of-too-many-years birthdays. It was one of those milestone birthdays we all get a little apprehensive about, but once it finally arrives and then quickly drifts by, you wonder what all the hype—and hypertension—was about.

As we will do, we ate, we drank, we got merry, and we compared notes on all of the above. continue to the recipe… about Slow Cooker Mexican Pot Roast

Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore

November 14, 2016

Bone-in, skinless chicken thighs cooked in the slow cooker create the luxe flavor in this savory Italian chicken recipe for an incredibly easy weeknight or weekend meal.

You know how the saying goes. It’s what waiters around the world have used for years to push the daily special.

“This meat is so tender it falls off the bone.”

And then sometimes it is. And sometimes it isn’t.

I’m here to tell you, today, right now, that thanks to this slow cooker Chicken Cacciatore recipe, the meat LITERALLY falls from the bone.

But don’t just take it from me, this is the day you’re going to absolutely want to try it for yourself. And like any good salesperson, I’m going to guarantee your going to love it.

continue to the recipe… about Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore

Slow Cooker Tortellini Soup with Sausage and Kale

October 11, 2016

A clean, herb-infused broth makes this slow cooker soup with Italian sausage and cheese tortellini a favorite to keep in your weekly meal plans.

This post is in partnership with McCormick.

“Oh babe, this is so good. Hey! Don’t eat all the broth! That’s mine.” My husband. He’s usually really good about sharing. “Oh. This is really good.” Until it comes to soup. He LOVES a good soup. And he wants it all for himself.

I’ve said it here before. My man is a soup aficionado. And if you can spell aficionado without having to hit dictionary.com, you are one swell spelling bee winner, because I can’t. But back to the soup…

Not only does the slow cooker create a broth for this soup that tastes flavorful and ultimately craveable, the perfumed scent of sausage, onion, celery and garlic that wafts from the kitchen as it cooks will have you wishing you could give that lid on the slow cooker just a crack to dip a spoon in for juuuuuust a bite for taste testing. Or better yet, dip in a big old slice of sourdough. Fancy that. We’re a family of dippers.continue to the recipe… about Slow Cooker Tortellini Soup with Sausage and Kale

25 Healthy and Comforting Slow Cooker Soups & Stews

January 12, 2016

It’s the most soup-inspiring time of the year!

It’s the season for crackling fires in the fireplace, fuzzy socks and slippers, and warm-you-to-the-bone comfort food. When frigid cold weather rolls in, we love nothing more than hunkering down in our coziest attire (hello loungewear!) over a piping bowl of soul-warming soup. And don’t forget the dipping bread!

It’s even better if that soup is made in a crock pot or slow cooker, because what’s more reassuring than coming home after a long day to a house full of the wonderful aroma of dinner that’s already made?

Slow cookers and crock pots have made amazing improvements over the years. They come in various sizes, they’re programmable, and this one is even made to brown veggies and meats directly on the stove for a true one pot meal.

In fact, I’m adding to my slow cooker collection and gearing up to purchase an Insta Pot for the multi-cooker experience of having a pressure cooker, slow cooker, rice cooker, sauté/browning, yogurt maker, steamer & warmer all-in-one. It looks awesome!

We gladly employ these cookers all year-round, but they definitely get more of a workout during the cooler months. So without further ado, here are 25 healthy and comforting soups and stews you can make in the slow cooker…on your mark…set…grab your spoon!

continue to the recipe… about 25 Healthy and Comforting Slow Cooker Soups & Stews

Slow Cooker Whole Chicken

August 17, 2015

Cooking a whole chicken in the slow cooker or crock pot is an incredibly simple way to cook chicken for a week of easy lunches or dinners.

I love making sexy recipes.

You know the kind. The ones that are ooozing with cheese. Or that are slathered in a decadent sauce. Even those healthy recipes made with totally fresh, vibrant seasonal colors can be totally seductive. The kind that when you set them on the table, people exclaim, “Ahhhh…That looks sooooooo good.”

This is a good recipe. Great even. But it certainly isn’t sexy.

This is a totally utilitarian recipe. One that you keep in your back pocket. The one you pull out when life’s busy schedule is dealing you a mix of 2’s and 3’s but you’re ready to ante up to a full house.

Its true. You can be a winner in the kitchen.

And this is how it’s done.

continue to the recipe… about Slow Cooker Whole Chicken