Roated Potatoes and Carrots in the Crock Pot

This recipe is a hit at every party I bring them to!  They are easy and very flavorful.  The crock pot does all the work for you.  I hope you enjoy this delicious side dish.

13-15 small russet potatoes, washed, cubed
4 lg carrots, washed, peeled, sliced
1 medium onion, minced
4-5 garlic cloves, minced

1/4 C olive oil
Juice from one lemon
1 1/2 tsp basil
2 1/2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper
few dashes of paprika

Place chopped potatoes in the crock pot.

Next, add sliced carrots, minced onion, and minced garlic.

Mix together olive oil, lemon juice, basil, salt, pepper, and paprika.

Pour over veggies and mix well.

Place lid on crock pot and cook on low for 5-6 hours.

I forgot to take a final picture...we must have been starving that night at dinner!  I will add one the next time I make this.

Enjoy!

Homemade Chicken Stock in a CrockPot

This is one essential thing that you should make for your family.  We now make all our sauces from scratch, which means that many sauces require a "base" of chicken or beef broth or stock.  I prefer chicken stock or vegetable broth.  The name "stock" is used when the bones are used to make the liquid, and not just vegetables and meat.  Today, I'll show you how I make my chicken stock in a crockpot!  This is amazing because the crockpot does most of the work!

The type of whole chicken you buy is important.  At first, I just bought any brand, whatever was on sale, but then one day I bought this organic brand, and WOW!  The stock was so much better!  So I highly recommend buying an organic brand like this one.  I purchased it at Wal-mart for not too much.

 Ingredients:

4-5 carrots, chopped in chunks
2 celery stalks, chopped in chunks
1 small onion, chopped in chunks
1/2-1 TBSP peppercorns, depending on how much you like
1 tsp Real Salt
1 TBSP parsley, dried
3-4 dashes of poultry seasoning
1 whole organic chicken, rinsed
7-8 C water



Day 1
Chop vegetables and place in bottom of crockpot.  Place seasonings on top.

 

 Then place rinsed chicken on top of veggies and seasonings.  Pour water slowly on top until it reaches about 1 inch below lid.  Put lid on, and cook on high for 1 hour, then turn down to low for 4-5 hours.  Remove chicken carefully into a 9x13 pan.  Cover with foil and let rest for about 10 minutes.  Seperate skin and meat from bones.


 Save the meat(works great for soups or a shredded chicken recipe where you are adding some flavor-a lot of the flavor of the meat is lost in the cooking phase), discard the fat/skin, and put the bones back into the crockpot.

 

 Continue cooking the bones with the broth overnight.


 Day 2
The next morning, turn off the crockpot, and strain the veggies and bones from the stock into a large glass bowl--preferably with a lid.

 

 After straining, place stock in refrigerator for at least 12 hours.  I usually leave it in all that day and take it out the next morning(day 3).  Placing it in the refrigerator will solidify the fat, thus making a nearly fat-free stock.


Day3
Take bowl of stock out of refrigerator.  You will now see the fat solidified at the top.

Simply remove this with a spoon(I always use a grapefruit spoon, but any should work), and place the fat into a small bowl.  When you have scrapped off as much as you can, stir the stock.  It should be somewhat gelatinous.  You want it to be gelatinous.  That means it has lots of good nutrients in it.

Then simply divide the stock into canning pint jars.  Use within one week in the fridge, or I like to store them in my stand alone freezer door.  Then when ready, I simply microwave the jar(with lid off) on the "fish" setting for about .6 lbs. or until it is thawed.

I use this broth for many recipes!  Keep checking back for more great recipes!

Homemade Taco Seasoning

One of the things I had to figure out right away when my son was diagnosed with his food allergies was how to make a taco seasoning that we liked.  You have to be so careful which brands of spices you purchase because many contain soy or are made in a factory with other allergens.  We have been very happy with McCormick brand and many organic brands.

It amazed me how it took several tries to get the recipe flavor to our liking.  I hope you will enjoy the recipe that I have come up with as I have adapted to our family's taste buds!  Happy cooking!

2 TBSP chili powder
1 TBSP cumin
1 TBSP paprika

1 TBSP oregano
1 TBSP onion powder
1 TBSP garlic powder
1 TBSP regular salt or "Real Salt"
1/2 TBSP pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Pour all spices into a canning 1/2 pt jar.  Put lid on tightly and shake well until all spices are well combined.  You can make it in bigger batches, of course, just use a larger jar. 

Homemade Chicken Broth

 This recipe was a little intimidating to me because I had never before bought a whole chicken and cooked it, let alone make homemade broth.  But this was surprisingly easy(crock pot does most of the work) and very delicious!





















1 5-6 lb whole chicken(organic/hormone free is best)
7-8 cups of hot water(I do 8)

2 stalks of celery, rinsed and cut into chunks

3 carrots, peeled and chopped into chunks
1/2 onion, chopped in chunks
1 TBSP parsley
1/2-3/4 TBSP peppercorns
1 tsp Real Salt
3-4 dashes poultry seasoning

1. Chop all vegetables and place in bottom of crock pot.
2. Sprinkle all seasonings over vegetables.
3. Rinse chicken and place on top of vegetables.
4. Pour hot water into crockpot.
5. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.
6. Take out chicken, be careful because it is so tender it falls apart(Use it for soup or any recipe that calls for chicken).  Take all the meat off the bones and then put the bones back into the crockpot with the broth.
7.  Continue to cook the broth and bones another 12+ hours(I just continue to cook all night and process in the morning.
8. Turn crockpot off and ladle broth, veggies and bones into a strainer over a large glass bowl(I prefer one that has a matching lid).  You want a strainer with very small holes.  When broth is all strained into the large bowl, cover the bowl with its lid and put it in the refrigerator for 12-24 hours.
9. When the fat solidify's you can easily scoop it off with a spoon.  Then your almost fat-free broth is ready for you to use in any recipe.  It is very delicious!

Yield:  All the meat from the chicken, plus approximately 6 cups of chicken broth.

You can use the broth right away, or freeze it for later use. I put my broth in pint canning jars and freeze them(I have an upright freezer in my basement & I keep it in the door; the type of freezer you have makes a difference as to how long you can store it for).  Then I put it in the fridge the night before or thaw in the microwave on the "fish" defrost setting for a couple minutes.

Pizza Sauce

2- 8oz cans tomato sauce
1/2 C chopped onion
1 TBSP dried basil
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp dried oregano
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1/4 tsp pepper

1. Put all ingredients in a medium sized sauce pan.  Bring to a boil.
2. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes or until the onion is soft.

*This makes enough sauce for four pizzas
*I just freeze this in containers and it thaws nicely.
*This is from Better Homes and Gardens and altered only slightly(no canned tomatoes)