Crockpot cranberry apple herbed pork roast

Hello there! I know, it has been a while. But, I am back with a lot of new recipes waiting to be posted for those who haven't given up on my blog :).

Over the past couple of months, I have been on a hunt for good slow cooker recipes. There are entire blogs dedicated to this topic, but I can be pretty picky when it comes to what I like from a crock pot, so generally try only recipes that have been recommended by friends! Several weeks back, I asked my friends on Facebook what their favorite crock pot recipes are, and I got a lot of responses! I was excited, and saved all of their recipes so I could go through and try them one by one-thank you, friends! My goal has been to do at least one slow cooker meal a week, usually on a day when I am busy and need dinner to be cooking all day long so we can come home and eat without any last minute preparation. Every day that I do this, I think I fall more in love with my crockpot. There is nothing better at the end of the day than driving into my garage and smelling the nice aroma of a meal I don't have to touch until I'm ready to put it on my plate! I am ALL about some easy meals these days! And I also love that this recipe, other than the stuffing, isn't full of processed ingredients, as are so many other slow cooker meals out there. We do eat our share of processed foods, but I try to limit them whenever possible.

A friend of mine raved about this recipe, and it sounded like one that would be perfect for fall. I'm so glad I tried it, because it is really good! And I love that the recipe makes enough for two meals, so as you are preparing it, you simply place half of it in a freezer bag to pull out for another meal. This dinner is very simple, and requires barely any prep time other than making sure you give the pork time to sit with the rub on it. This is a great meal for this time of year, with hints of thanksgiving from the apples, cranberries, and stuffing. And the apples give a hint of sweet and taste like applesauce. If you don't like stuffing, you could always omit this and make a side of potatoes or even cheese grits. MMM...this was a good one! If you are looking for a new slow cooker recipe, give this one a try!

I do not have a picture for this. Sorry! Honestly, it didn't turn out very pretty so a photo wouldn't do it justice!

Crockpot cranberry apple herbed pork roast

From all recipes

I N G R E D I E N T S :

Divided for two dinners (one goes in the freezer)

2 1/2 tsp. sugar

3/4 tsp dried marjoram (I couldn't find any, but you can substitute basil or oregano-I did half of each)

3/4 tsp. rubbed sage

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. celery seed

1/4 tsp. ground mustard

1/8 tsp. pepper

2 pounds boneless pork loin roast divided in two (the pack I bought already had them divided)

4 granny smith apples, each divided in half

1 1/2 cup dried cranberries, such as Craisins (not frozen cranberries, or it will be too tart)

1 pkg stuffing mix, divided in half (I used stovetop for pork)

Celery and cooked sausage are optional additions

D I R E C T  I O N S :

Combine the first seven ingredients, and rub over roast. Cover and refrigerate 4 hours or overnight. 

If roast is not already halved, divide it if you are wanting to save half for another meal.

Place (half) the herbed roast in the crockpot. Surround with half of the apples and half of the dried cranberries. Cook on high for 3 1/2 hours. Do not open during cooking. 

After cooking is finished, put (half) stuffing in the crockpot, allowing it to absorb the juices. Cover, and let sit for 5-10 minutes, or until stuffing is soft. If it does not soften, you may add some boiling water for additional moisture (just about 1/2-3/4 cup should do it).

Reserve half the pork loin, apples, and cranberries. Place all in a freezer bag, remove air, and freeze up to 6 months. It is ready for an easy meal; you just need to thaw, cook, and add the remaining stuffing!

The best whole chicken (and chicken stock), made in a crock pot.

I'm very excited to share this super easy method of cooking a chicken with you!
Back story: Several years ago, I tried making an entire chicken in a crockpot, and it was a total flop! I was not impressed with the 'overcooked chicken in a crockpot' flavor, rubbery texture, and watery mess I had before me, and vowed I would not attempt that one again. I'm not sure what I did, but I must have just cooked it way too long while I was away at work all day and maybe used a not so good recipe (not to mention I was still new to cooking and hadn't even used a crock pot very many times, so who knows what went wrong!). But ever since then, I've steered clear of cooking basically any kind of chicken in a crockpot because I just do not like how it tastes when it's been cooked for way too long.

Then, a few weeks ago, I cooked a whole chicken in the oven. For some reason, it took forever. Maybe it wasn't completely thawed, maybe it was just because it was a big bird...I don't know. The past few times I've roasted a chicken, they've turned out great in the right amount of time, but by the time this one was finished and the thermometer was finally reading the correct temperature in the thickest part of the thigh, it was getting late, and everyone was hungry. I texted my friend to whom I had mentioned what I was cooking for dinner, and told her to remind me not to bake a whole chicken again because it can seem like a lot of work when this sort of thing happens.

And then, a week later, I received a coupon for a free whole chicken at Earth Fare. Oh, the irony! Not wanting a repeat of the previous Monday, I decided to try a recipe I found for cooking a whole chicken in a crockpot on 100 days of real food, which claimed that it was wonderfully delicious and super easy. So, I decided I would attempt cooking a whole chicken in a crock pot again because all of her recipes look  good, and it did sound really simple. I read the comments, and everyone agreed that it is a delicious recipe.

The verdict: I am so glad I tried this! This was extremely easy, and it turned out great. The chicken was falling off the bone, tender, and delicious. It wasn't at all rubbery or overcooked. I served the chicken as the main course of our dinner, but this would also be a wonderful way to cook a chicken to have the meat for a soup, casserole, or other dish.

I went exactly by the directions of the original recipe. My only question was about how long to cook it, because after I placed the chicken in the pot, I realized I had a really big bird-4.75 lbs-and wasn't sure it would be done in 4 hours. I read on one of the comments to cook it an hour for pound, so I cooked it on high for 4 1/2 hours, and it was just right. Like I said, the meat was just falling off the bone but not overcooked.

If you read through her recipe, you'll notice she also talks about using the leftover bones and liquid for chicken broth. I did this, too. All I did was take out the rest of the meat that I could salvage and saved it for making some chicken salad, and then I added some vegetables, extra spices, more water, and let it simmer on low all night long. When I woke up the next morning, I had rich chicken broth waiting for me. I strained it, divided it into batches, let it cool in the fridge, and then froze it. And it was delicious in the potato soup I made last week.

I would definitely recommend making a chicken this way! It's easy, foolproof, delicious, and economical. This will certainly be a way I make a whole chicken and chicken broth in the future.

I'm sorry I do not have a picture but it was dark and would not have been pretty, but I promise it is worth trying! Go to the original recipe if you want a picture! There are also some helpful comments there.

Chicken in a crockpot

Original recipe here from 100 days of real food

I N G R E D I E N T S :

2 teaspoons paprika

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon onion powder

1 teaspoon thyme

½ teaspoon garlic powder

¼ teaspoon cayenne (red) pepper (I just used a pinch)

¼ teaspoon black pepper

1 onion

1 large chicken

D I R E C T I O N S :

Combine the dried spices in a small bowl

Loosely chop the onion and place it in the bottom of the slow cooker

Remove any giblets from the chicken and then rub the spice mixture all over. You can even put some of the spices inside the cavity and under the skin covering the breasts

Put prepared chicken on top of the onions in the slow cooker, cover it, and turn it on to high. There is no need to add any liquid

Cook for 4 – 5 hours (for a 3 or 4 pound chicken) or until the chicken is falling off the bone. 

Don’t forget to make your homemade stock! Homemade stock is very healthy and a wonderful alternative to the store-bought version!

For the stock:

Amounts of each ingredient can vary, depending on what all you have on hand. I figure that the more vegetables you use, the better the flavor will be. And I sprinkled very generous amounts of the herbs and spices and my broth was still very mild tasting. 

I N G R E D I E N T S :

1 large onion, chopped

A few stalks celery, chopped

A few carrots, chopped

A few cloves garlic, chopped
a couple of bay leaves

onion powder

garlic powder

salt

pepper

dried parsley

dried thyme

D I R E C T I O N S :

Remove all meat from crockpot, leaving the parts of the carcass.

Add onion, celery, carrots, garlic, and bay leaves.

Fill pot with water.

Sprinkle generous amounts of remaining ingredients. 

Set crock pot to low for 10-12 hours (I did this overnight).

The next morning, remove carcass parts and vegetables.

Run all of the stock through a mesh strainer. I did this three times to get all of the bits and pieces out.

Divide stock into amounts you want to freeze in ziploc freezer bags or containers. I did a couple of 1-2 cup portions and a few 4 cup portions.
Let divided portions cool in the fridge. 
Label and freeze.

Incredible potato soup

This is by far the best recipe for potato soup I've ever made, and I'll even venture to say it might just be the best potato soup I've ever had- Seriously. It's very easy to make, has a wonderful flavor, and is creamy but not too rich. The new potatoes give a great texture and taste, and it has just the right amount of cheese but not so much that it tastes like a cheese based soup, as many potato soup recipes can tend to end up flavor-wise. Savory herbs are the perfect addition to this wonderful recipe from my friend Kelly. Kelly makes this in the crockpot, and I would love to try that next time. This time, however, I didn't give myself enough time, so I made it on the stove and it was still a very simple, quick soup to throw together. This is definitely going to be the go-to potato soup recipe from now on in my kitchen! I thought we would have plenty of leftovers, but it was so tasty that we kept going back for more and I only managed to scrape enough for a small bowl to savor for lunch tomorrow.

Because I made this on the stovetop, I adapted the instructions, as well as some of the ingredients since I went mainly with what I already had on hand.  Her original recipe and crockpot instructions, as well as some great time saving tips, maybe be found here, and my variation is below.

Easy loaded baked potato soup
Adapted from Kelly's recipe at Carrot Top Mom

I N G R E D I E N T S :

1 yellow onion, chopped

2 cloves garlic, minced

4 cups low sodium chicken broth

2 chicken bouillon cubes

15-20 small red potatoes, scrubbed and cubed (no need to peel!)

2 tablespoons dry ranch mix , or the following ingredients for a make-your-own substitute:

     2 tsp. dried parsley

     1 tsp. black pepper (adjust according to your taste)

     1 tsp. salt (adjust according to your taste)

     1 tsp. garlic powder

     1/2 tsp. onion powder

     1/4 tsp. dried thyme

     

2 cups half & half cream

1/2 pound Velveeta Cheese, chopped in 1 inch squares

Cheddar cheese shredded and green onions or chives as an optional garnish

D I R E C T I O N S :

Saute onion and garlic in soup pot or dutch oven over medium heat until tender.

Add chicken broth, bouillon cubes, and scrubbed, cubed new potatoes to pot. Bring to boil over medium heat and cook until potatoes are fork tender, about 10-15 minutes.

With an immersion blender or potato masher, mash potatoes, leaving about half the chunks (or more, depending on your preference). 

Add ranch seasoning or homemade mixture, half & half, and Velveeta, and let simmer on low for 15 more minutes, stirring cheese to melt. Do not bring to a boil.

Optional: Garnish with cheddar cheese and green onions or chives.

Roast chicken, chicken stock, and leftover chopped & frozen chicken for another meal...all from a single bird!

One thing we are trying to do is eat less meat and poultry so that when do eat it, we can eat better quality meat, To make this more doable, I have been learning to roast chicken and then make stock from the carcass. I also save the leftover meat and either make chicken salad or freeze it to use in soup, a casserole, pot pie, or something else like chicken fajitas or tacos in the future. So, I may pay $8 for a good chicken, but I get several meals out of it because I use the entire bird. Chicken stock is full of nourishment, and roasting a whole bird is much more cost effective than buying chicken breasts. I am sure I'll still buy chicken breasts from time to time, but I'm trying to be more frugal in this area.

I hope this is helpful. For some reason, roasting a chicken was always intimidating to me, and it seems that sometimes in the past I've had to cook it for longer to get the meat to the correct temperature. However, I really liked the directions for how I most recently roasted it where I cooked it on a higher temperature for part of the time before reducing the heat, and I found it cooked more quickly. Cooking chicken stock might sound intimidating or time consuming, but I assure you that it is not. Adding the raw cider vinegar just draws more nutrients out of the bone, and then letting it simmer in water with some vegetables is just an easy thing to have in the crock pot (I've cooked it on the stove before as well, but I feel that I can come and go more safely if it's in the crock pot). Straining it takes very little time, and like I said, I didn't even skim the fat off because I didn't have that much come up. And I love having leftover chicken on hand for some future meals. It's much nicer than having to pay a high price for chicken breasts that are just going to get boiled and chopped up,

So, all that said, here is what I am doing.

First, roast the chicken...

I adapted a recipe from Cooking Light

The nice thing about roasting chicken is that you can add whatever herbs and spices you want. Don't worry about the exact amounts, these are just estimates.

I N G R E D I E N T S :

1 small roasting chicken (3-5 pounds)

Olive oil

2 cloves garlic

juice of one lemon

2-3 Tbsp. XVOO

1/4 cup white cooking wine

1/4 cup fresh parsley (or 2 Tbsp. dried)

1 Tbsp. fresh oregano (or 1-2 tsp. dried)

1 Tbsp. fresh basil (or 1-2 tsp. dried)

3 Tbsp. fresh rosemary (or 2-3 tsp. dried)

1 tsp. fresh thyme  (or 1/4 tsp. dried)

1 tsp. kosher or sea salt

1 tsp. freshly grated black pepper

1 Tbsp. paprika for sprinkling over top before roasting

1 tsp. kosher salt + 1 tsp. black pepper for sprinkling over top before roasting

D I R E C T I O N S :

Preheat oven to 450.

Remove and discard giblets and neck from chicken. Rinse chicken with cold water, pat dry.

Starting at neck cavity, loosen skin from breast and drumsticks by inserting fingers, gently pushing between skin and meat.

Combine all other ingredients (besides the paprika and final amounts of salt and pepper) into a food processor, and blend together for the seasoning. Rub seasoning mixture under loosened skin and drumsticks, then on top of both sides of the entire chicken and inside the cavity.

Place chicken breast side up on a rack in a roasting pan. Lift wing tips up and over back, and if you want, you can also tie the ends of the legs with some cord (I didn't have any cord and it's not necessary, but it does look nice if you want to do the extra step).  Finish by sprinkling paprika, salt, and pepper over the top of the chicken. Pierce chicken several times with a fork.

Insert a meat thermometer into thickest part of thigh, making sure to not touch the bone.

Bake at 450 degrees F for 30 minutes, and then reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F (do not remove chicken from oven) for 45 additional minutes. If chicken is getting too done on top, tent it with foil. Bake until the thermometer registers 165 degrees F in the thickest part of the thigh, but not touching a bone. Cover chicken loosely with foil, let stand 10 minutes. Discard skin (I save it for the broth). Remove chicken from pan; place on a serving platter.

Next, save leftover the leftover meat...

Remove all remaining meat from the bone. You can use this for chicken salad (great for lunch), or you can freeze it and have it on hand for a soup, casserole, or other type dish down the road. I place it in a freezer bag and label it. Sometimes I have a lot, and other times not as much, depending on the size of the chicken and how hungry we were at dinner. But even 1 cup is great to keep for adding to a dish down the road.

Now, for the homemade chicken stock...

Here are two articles on the benefits of homemade bone broth.

Homemade soup broth

Make chicken stock in the crock pot

I make the stock similar to the directions in the above link, first letting it sit covered in cold water with 1 Tbsp. raw cider vinegar for an hour. Then, I add either 1 huge carrot or 2-3 regular ones, 1 onion, and 3 stalks of celery, all chopped up into large chunks. You can also add a clove or two of garlic, but I didn't do that this time. Then, I add 2-3 bay leaves, some parsley, and thyme (I only had dried thyme so I just sprinkled some in). Cook on low in a crockpot for 8-10 hours. Strain in a colander or mesh sieve to remove the gross stuff and chunks of meat, bones, and vegetables, and skim some fat off the top if there is a lot (I didn't really have to do that). Then divide into portions for storing. You can put some in ice cube trays, some in 1-2 cup portions, or even in mason jars or leftover yogurt or other plastic food containers. You can also store them in 1-2 cup portions in freezer bags. Label stock and freeze until you need some for a recipe! I have only done this twice in the past month, and look at all the stock I have. This will be great for soups or adding some into recipes.

beef pot roast

i made this in the slow cooker sunday so that it would be finished after we returned from evening church. i hadn't made a roast in a while, but there's just nothing like one every now and then! so satisfying and a one dish, low-fat, comfort food! and i wanted to make one before it gets too warm outside.

i completely forgot to take a picture, but i also made honey yeast rolls and i do have a picture of those :).

i got this from my trusty better homes and gardens cookbook, which has options for cooking on the stove, in the oven, or in a slow cooker. since i used the slow cooker, i'm only going to take the time to type out those directions for you :).

beef pot roast

from Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook: Celebrating the Promise Limited Edition

I N G R E D I E N T S :

1 2 1/2-3 pound boneless beef chuck pot roast
2 Tbsp. cooking oil
1 Tbsp. worcestershire sauce
1 tsp. instant beef bouillon granules (i used one cube)
1 tsp. dried basil, crushed
1/2 tsp. salt
1 pound tiny new potatoes or 4 medium potatoes or sweet potatoes (I used regular sized new potatoes, left the skin on, and cut them in half)
1 pound carrots or 6 medium parsnips, peeled and cut into 2-inch pieces (i used carrots)
2 small onions, cut into wedges (i forgot these and it still tasted good but i really missed them-so don't forget them!)
2 stalks celery, bias-sliced into 1-inch pieces
1/2 cup cold water
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
black pepper (optional)

Trim fat from meat. In a 4-6 quart Dutch oven brown meat in hot oil. Drain off fat. Combine 3/4 cup water, worcestershire sauce, bouillon granules, basil, and salt. Pour over meat in a slow cooker, and cook for desired time interval, depending on your day. I think I cooked mine for 8 hours on low heat. i did not make gravy, but here are the instructions if you wish to make it:

for gravy, measure juices; skim fat. if necessary, add enough water to juices to equal 1 1/2 cups. return to Dutch oven. in a small bowl stir the 1/2 cup cold water into flour until smooth. stir juices into pan. cook and stir over medium heat until thickened and bubbly. cook and stir for one minute more. if desired, season with pepper. serve gravy with meat and vegetables.

pasta fagioli soup

Have you ever had the pasta fagioli soup from Olive Garden? It's delicious. So when I came upon this recipe, I was very curious as to whether it would be able to compare to the restaurant version. I have to admit that one reason I had reservations was because one of the ingredients it calls for is jarred pasta sauce from the store...I thought that the flavor would really stand out and that it would taste like soup with a jar of pasta sauce and that the flavors wouldn't blend well. However, I went ahead and tried it and was I ever impressed! From what I can remember about how the soup tastes at Olive Garden, this recipe tastes exactly like it! It's hearty, healthy, and super easy.

I found this recipe one day when I stumbled upon a A Year of Crockpotting. This blog is great for those of you looking for slow cooker recipes, because the author tried one recipe a day for an entire year (and she's still going) in her crockpot. She was even featured on the Rachel Ray show! I have found it hard to find good crockpot recipes because I don't love using lots of "cream of this or that" soups and other processed ingredients, but this blog has a huge variety of recipes.

Pasta Fagioli Soup
From A Year of Crockpotting
I N G R E D I E N T S :

1 pound lean ground beef, browned and drained
1/2 large red onion, chopped
1 cup carrots, chopped
2 celery stalks, sliced
2 cans (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes (and juice)
1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 can white beans, drained and rinsed
4 cups beef broth
1 jar (16.5 oz) pasta sauce *
2 tsp oregano
1 T Tabasco sauce **
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 cup dry pasta, to add at end of cooking time


D I R E C T I O N S :

Use a 6 quart or larger crockpot, or cut the recipe in half. This makes a lot. ***

Brown the meat on the stovetop, and drain well. Let it cool a bit.

Chop up the carrots, onion, and celery. Add it to the empty crockpot.
Drain and rinse the beans, and add them. Add the whole cans of tomatoes, and the pasta sauce. Add the beef broth. Add the salt, pepper, oregano, and Tobasco sauce. Stir in your meat.

Cover and cook on low for 8 hours, or high for 4. When the vegetables are tender, stir in the 1/2 cup of dry pasta.

Cover and cook for another hour on low, or until the pasta is tender. It will swell quite a bit.

Serve with a bit of parmesan cheese if you have it.

*I used Kroger Brand Marinara sauce, and the soup had a wonderful flavor.
**I did not use any Tobasco sauce because I don't like things hot, but I'm sure you'd like it if you like things with some heat.
***Of course, you can make this on the stove top rather than in the crockpot. I did make it in the crockpot and it was so nice to dump in the ingredients (I even browned the beef the night before and stuck it in the fridge so it would be ready) and then have a great meal a few hours later.

This is a great meal with some bread and salad!