Turkey, Pumpkin, and Black Bean Chili

With crisp cold weather blowing in, I crave warm, hearty meals like this chili! I love that this recipe lightens up traditional chili and is packed with important nutrients. So even though it might feel like a yummy fall splurge, it is quite healthy. I thought that pumpkin sounded like a weird addition, but it adds a wonderful depth of flavor and thickens the texture. Plus pumpkin adds Vitamin A, potassium and fiber! 

This is a pretty mild chili on the spicy scale but you can always kick your heat up with a little cayenne pepper.

I used ground turkey in my recipe but this would be fantastic with Thanksgiving leftovers! Just cube up that leftover turkey and you've got a great second (or third or fourth) meal. 

What You'll Need:
(serves 10)

2 tablespoons olive oil 

1 medium onion, chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

2 15 oz cans of black beans, rinsed and drained

1 15 oz can solid-pack pumpkin

1 14.5 oz can  diced tomatoes, undrained

3 cups chicken broth

1 lb ground turkey 

2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes

3 teaspoons chili powder

1-1/2 teaspoons ground cumin

1-1/2 teaspoons dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon salt

Cubed avocado and sour cream or Greek yogurt for topping 

What To Do:

• In a large skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add onion and
• pepper; cook and stir until tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute
• longer. Crumble in ground turkey, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and continue cooking until no longer pink. 
• Transfer to a 5-qt. slow cooker; stir in the remaining ingredients.
• Cook, covered, on low 4-5 hours. Serve warm with avocado and
• sour cream. 

• 
  

Recipe adapted from Taste of Home

Crock Pot Peppermint Mocha

I made a batch of this Peppermint Mocha for a day-long finals study session. I loved that I could whip it up the night before, refrigerate and then keep it warm in the crock pot the next day. I also loved that I had most of these ingredients on hand, saving me some serious money that I could have spent at a coffee shop. I made double this recipe and adjusted flavors by taste. I used instant coffee, 2% milk and heavy cream, and a mix of white and semi-sweet chocolate chips. SO GOOD.

It is creamy and sweet, with a hint of refreshing peppermint. A reminder of this sweet, refreshing season. Christmas in a cup. 

One of my favorite family traditions is our Christmas Eve brunch. We go all out with bacon, sausage, eggs, hashbrowns, scones, quiche, kolaches, French toast, and/or cinnamon rolls. This peppermint mocha would be a fantastic addition to our traditional feast (if any of my other family members would drink it, that is)

It would be great for Christmas mornings too!

What You'll Need:

• 4 cups milk
• Either 4 shots of espresso, 4 rounded teaspoons instant espresso powder plus 1½ cups water, or 2 cups very strong brewed coffee
• ¾ cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
• ¼ cup peppermint syrup
• Whipping cream and shaved chocolate bar for garnish

Peppermint syrup

• 1 cup sugar
• 1 cup water
• 2 teaspoons peppermint extract

What To Do:

1. First prepare the peppermint syrup. In a small saucepan over medium heat, bring the water and sugar to a boil, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Remove from heat and stir in the peppermint extract. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3 months.
2. Make your peppermint mochas: In a 3-quart or larger slow cooker/Crock Pot, stir together the milk, espresso/coffee, chocolate chips, and peppermint syrup.
3. Cook covered on low for about 2 hours, stirring occasionally to help distribute the melting chocolate, until steaming. You can also cook it on high for about an hour and fifteen minutes (depending on your slow cooker), stirring often – just watch it a little more carefully when the slow cooker is on high. Reduce heat to warm and keep covered once the mocha has heated to steaming. Taste and adjust flavors as desired. 
4. Serve in festive mugs, topped with whipped cream and garnish with a candy cane, chocolate shavings or a sprinkle of cocoa. Enjoy your Christmas in a cup.

recipe from Kitchen Treaty

Crock Pot Apple Butter Chicken

This is a fantastic dish for a busy time of year. Between cookie baking, church activities, school parties, and family gatherings, preparing a delicious meal is probably at the bottom of the priority list. Well, this meal is perfect for that! It takes about one minute of prep time, and the crock pot does all the cookin'. Plus, it's one of those flavor combinations that will surprise and delight you. Yes, I said that. Surprise and delight, y'all

I used boneless, skinless chicken breasts because it's what I always have available in my freezer. I'm sure this would also be great with boneless chicken thighs!

What You'll Need:
serves 4
3-4 frozen boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/1/2 cup apple butter 
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup chicken broth 
salt
pepper

What To Do:
Place chicken evenly in crock pot (frozen is totally fine). Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Dollop apple butter over chicken, turning to coat. Add garlic and chicken broth, making sure there is enough liquid to cover the bottom of the pot. Cook on low for 4 hours. 

The key to this dish is to make sure the chicken doesn't dry out. If you plan to leave the crock pot going for more than four hours, consider adding enough liquid, broth or apple juice, to submerge the meat.

Slice chicken and spoon extra apple butter mixture over. Serve with instant brown rice and microwave steamed broccoli for a quick, delicious meal!


original recipe

Crockpot Carnitas

If you follow along with me on Twitter or Instagram, you know that I could eat tacos

every

single 

day

and never tire of their deliciousness. 

This recipe was so low maintenance and I've been eating the leftovers for five days now. Seriously, what is there to not love about tenderized, flavorful pulled pork? This stuff never dries out and pairs well with so many different flavors!

I actually used a 3 lb roast and reduced the cooking time by a couple of hours. It still made enough to feed a small army. You can also substitute broth, ginger ale or cola for the beer.

What You'll Need:

5-6 pounds pork shoulder roast (or butt)

1 tablespoons canola oil

8 ounces of your favorite beer

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/2 tablespoons smoked paprika

1/2 tablespoon cumin

1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder

1 1/2 teaspoons chili powder

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

What To Do:

Combine seasonings together in a bowl and mix until combined. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add oil. Once hot, add pork and sear on all sides until golden brown (about 2 minutes per side).

Add pork to the crockpot and sprinkle seasonings all over. Pour in beer, then cook on low for 10-12 hours. Check once or twice if possible and if needed, add more beer (I did not add any). Before serving, use forks or kitchen tongs to shred pork. Let sit on low or warm for another 20-30 minutes before serving.

Recipe from How Sweet Eats

Top your taco with your favorite toppings! My go to is avocado slices and sour cream but you could also mix and match the following:

• diced onion
• cilantro
• avocado slices
• pico de gallo
• diced mango 
• sour cream/ greek yogurt
• sliced jalapeno
• fresh squeezed lime 
• layer in bowl with rice, pinto beans, meat, and top with any of the above

Italian Beef Stew

It's been pretty warm here lately,

but for cooler evenings this stew is a must.

it's chock full of hearty chunks of vegetables and beef

and the broth is so flavorful from being cooked all day

The pictures really don't do it justice.

It may not be pretty. But it was delicious!

What You'll Need:

2 Tbsp cooking oil, divided

2 lb beef round roast

Salt

Pepper

1 large onion, sliced into thin wedges

2 large carrots, cut into 2 inch pieces (split in half if they

8 oz red potatoes, skin-on, quartered

1 14.5 oz can reduced-fat/sodium chicken broth

6 oz tomato paste

1 cup red wine

4 clove garlic, minced

1 sprig rosemary (or 1 tsp dried)

2 sprigs each thyme, and oregano (or 1/2-1 tsp each dried)

2 Tbsp cornstarch

1 cup spinach leaves, chopped

1 cup basil leaves, chopped

What To Do:

Heat 1 Tbsp oil in a large pan over high heat until very hot. Cut roast into 2-inch chunks and season with salt and pepper. Add half of the meat to the pan, searing for 1-2 minutes, until nicely browned, before flipping or stirring. Sear for another 2 minutes and use a slotted spoon to transfer meat to the crock. Repeat for remaining meat.

Add onion, potatoes, carrots to the crock pot. Add the chicken broth, wine, and tomato paste (I dropped it in by the spoonful and let it distribute while cooking). Top with garlic and herbs. Cook on low for 8 hours. 

At the end of the cooking time, remove 1/4 cup cooking liquid and whisk in cornstarch until smooth.Stir slurry into the crockpot, cover, and let cook for 20 minutes. Stir in the spinach and basil and serve.

From Confections of a Foodie Bride, originally adapted from Better Homes and Gardens

Perfect Pot Roast

My favorite favorite favorite comfort food is pot roast. 

My restaurant reviews are often based on their quality of pot roast.

I even love pot roast-like entrees such as beef tips or carne guisada.

I don't know what it is, there's just something about the savory, 

filling, warm, falling-apart-tender meat that makes everything feel like home.

I love this method because it's super easy to put together on my way out the door if I know there will be little prep time that night. 

And, sometimes, it's totally okay to use a gravy packet. 

You'll need:

1 3 lb center cut chuck roast

1 can french onion soup

2 packets brown gravy mix

1 small onion

carrots

3 red potatoes 

Rinse and pat dry your roast. Salt and pepper both sides generously. On medium heat, brown both sides. Roughly chop potatoes and onion. Put veggies in the bottom of the crock pot. Put browned roast on top. Pour in the soup and gravy mix, and add enough water to cover everything. Mix it up so nothing's clumpy. Cook on low for 6-10 hours, the longer the better! I like to add the carrots for the last hour so that they're still a little crunchy. I had baby carrots on hand, so that's what I used.

To make a brown gravy to top the roast, take 1 cup of the liquid from the crock pot and add two tablespoons of flour over medium heat. Whisk these together. Continue adding flour and liquid until you've achieved the desired consistency.

Serve with mashed potatoes! 

Taco Soup

Taco soup is one of those meals that has so many advantages.

It's super easy to customize to include your favorite ingredients. 

It's a quick meal to throw together. 

It makes enough to feed a crowd.

The leftovers (almost) taste better than the original.

AND it's perfect for warming you up on a cool, rainy day!

That's exactly what I did a couple weeks ago.

I'd been working in the cupcake trailer through an on-again/off-again rainstorm. 

The bottom half of my jeans were soaked and I was ready for a good warm meal.

Thankfully most of these ingredients are staples in the freezer and pantry so it's a snap to throw together! Here's what I use:

Ingredients:

1 pound ground beef

1/2 sweet onion

1 packet taco seasoning

1 can diced tomatoes

1 can whole kernel corn

1 can black beans

1 can pinto beans

1/4 cup diced cilantro

colby jack cheese

sour cream

avocado 

flour tortillas

Instructions:

Brown ground beef with diced onions. Drain and return to stove. 

Add taco seasoning, tomatoes, corn, beans, and 1 can full of water. Add 1/4 cup diced cilantro. Simmer on the stove at medium heat for about fifteen minutes or until heated through. 

Top with shredded cheese, sour cream, and sliced avocado, and serve with warm tortillas. 

You can also add all of your hot ingredients to the crock pot in the morning and let it warm all day!