This posting will conclude the 2021 Recipe Reviews. Hard to believe another year has gone by! Lots of great recipes this year, new cook books explored (I HEART Milk Street!), and so many new cooking gizmos tried out (smoker, sous vide machine, instant pot...)!
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| Dundee, OR, 2018 |
The Meal Plan 12/13
Sat (L) leftover fennel, tomato and wildrice soup (S) Sausage and squash
Sun (L) leftovers (S) Veggie pot pie
Mon (yoga) leftovers
Tues - leftovers
Wed (yoga) - leftovers
Thurs (snowstorm!) left for Mankato
Fri - Mankato
Lunches - Quinoa Chili with cornbread muffins
The Meal Plan 12/20
Sat - Mankato
Sun - Mankato
Mon (yoga)- Eastern Carolina Fish Stew
Tues - leftovers
Wed (yoga) leftovers
Thurs - take n bake pizza
Fri - leftovers
Lunches - sandwiches
I made three recipes out of this cook book: The Great American Slow Cooker (Goodreads link). My dharma must have been off because I managed to goof up one thing in each recipe, two things in the pot pie dish. Frustrating.
Vegetable Pot Pie
This recipe was a disaster of my own making. I used my instant pot slow cooker - which I KNOW tends to cook significantly cooler than my regular slow cooker - and I realized at the 4 hour mark that it was NOT going to be done in 5 hours per the recipe. Even when on high. I switched everything to a dutch oven on the stove, where the sauce mixed proceeded to burn to the bottom of my pot. Argh.
I *thought* that I might be able to sub filo for the puff pastry as I had half a box languishing in the freezer. I thawed, buttered, sprinkled with Parmesan and baked. It was a very meh substitution.
Then I forgot to add the green beans, my pea substitute.
This has the potential to be good and I think I would try it again when I am perhaps not quite as distracted as I was.
Serves about 6
(4-5 1/2 qt slow cooker)
1 1/4 lbs fennel, trimmed and chopped (I cut into slices)
1 lb carrots, cut into 1/2 inch thick rounds (I used baby carrots, chopped)
1 lb Yukon gold potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
3 celery ribs, thinly sliced
1/2 tbsp dill
1/2 tbsp thyme
3/4 tsp salt
3/4 tsp pepper
1 1/2 cups (12 oz) can evaporated milk
3/4 cup dry white wine
6 tbsp all-purpose flour (or gf substitute)
3/4 cup green peas
4" frozen puff pastry squares, thawed
Combine fennel, carrots, potatoes, onion, dill, thyme and salt and pepper in slow cooker.
In a medium bowl, mix with a whisk evaporated milk, wine and flour until flour is completely dissolved.
Cook on low for 5 hours or until potatoes are tender. Add the peas.
Bake puff pastry squares according to directions on the package.
Serve, topping bowls with puff pastry.
Sausage and Winter Squash
I realized as I was typing this that I forgot the raisins. They would have been a nice addition - a hit of sweet against the spicy sausage and a counterpoint to the squash.
This is a chop, plop, and walk away dish. You could serve it alone or over rice. I served over rice. Recommended!
Serves about 4-6 (definitely 6 with rice)
(4-5 1/2 qt slow cooker)
2 tbsp butter
2 lb sausage cut into 2" lengths (I used andoullie)
1 lb winter squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1" cube (I used butternut)
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1/2 cup raisins (oops, forgot these...)
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp cayenne
1/4 tsp saffron
4" cinnamon stick
1 3/4 low sodium chicken broth
Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the sausage pieces and brown, turning occasionally, about 6 minutes. Transfer to the slow cooker. Cook in batches if necessary.
Add the squash, onion, raisins, coriander, ginger, cayenne, saffron, and cinnamon stick to the slow cooker. Toss everything together and add the broth.
Cover and cook on low for 5 hours or until the squash is tender.
Black Bean and Quinoa chili
In this recipe, I forgot to add the tomatoes. This cooked up beautifully, I did have to add some more broth at the end to make it more "sauce-y" and that's when I looked over to the counter and saw the unopened can of tomatoes. Argh.
This still came out very good - good texture, good flavors, super easy to make (chop and plop) and I absolutely would make it again. I made it for my lunches for the week and had enough left for one lunch for two on the weekend. Serve with some warm cornbread.
Serves about 6 - 8
(4-5 1/2 qt slow cooker)
2 (14.5 oz black beans, drained and rinsed (I used cranberry beans)
3 cups low sodium chicken or vegetable broth
1 1/2 cup quinoa, uncooked and rinsed (recipe called for black quinoa, I used red)
1 (14.5 oz) can no-salt added crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup yellow onion, chopped
1/2 cup red pepper, cored and chopped
1/4 cup celery
2 tbsp jalapeno chili, stemmed, seeded and diced
2 tbsp chili powder
2 tbsp molasses (unsulfured)
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp salt
Cilantro (optional)
Combine beans, broth, quinoa, tomatoes, onion, bell pepper, celery, jalapeno, chili powder, molasses, cumin, coriander, oregano and salt in the slow cooker.
Cover and cook on low for 6 hours or until the quinoa is cooked.
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