Crock Pot Chicken Taco Chili- GF

Ingredients: 

• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 16-oz can black beans
• 1 16-oz can kidney beans
• 1 8-oz can tomato sauce
• 10 oz package frozen corn kernels
• 2 14.5-oz cans diced tomatoes w/chilies
• 1 packet taco seasoning
• 1 tbsp cumin
• 1 tbsp chili powder
• 24 oz (3-4) boneless skinless chicken breasts
• chili peppers, chopped (optional)
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Directions: 

Combine beans, onion, chili peppers, corn, tomato sauce, cumin, chili powder and taco seasoning in a slow cooker. Place chicken on top and cover. Cook on low for 10 hours or on high for 6 hours. Half hour before serving, remove chicken and shred. Return chicken to slow cooker and stir in. Top with fresh cilantro. Also try it with low fat cheese and sour cream 

Roasted Tomato Soup with fresh mozzarella-GF

OVEN ROASTED TOMATO SOUP WITH MOZZARELLA

Ingredients (serves 4, makes roughly one liter of soup):
2.5 lbs ripe tomatoes
1 big white onion
3 cloves of garlic
2.5 cups vegetable broth
3 sprigs fresh thyme
1 bay leaf
1 ball fresh mozzarella
Salt, pepper
Some olive oil

(I would add some cream and/or extra broth to not make it as thick)

Preparation:
1) Line baking sheet with parchment paper. Preheat oven to 400` F.
2) Wash tomatoes and cut into eight pieces. Place them skin down on the baking sheet. Peel onions, cut in pieces and put on baking sheet. Skin garlic cloves, halve and distribute on the tomatoes. Sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Put the baking sheet in the middle of the oven and roast the vegetables at 400 ºF for 35-40 minutes.
3) Transfer roasted vegetables together with the roasting juices into a pot and add vegetable broth. Add thyme twigs and bay leave. Bring to boil and simmer for roughly 20 minutes.
4) While the soup simmers, cut the mozzarella into thin pieces.
5) Remove bay leave and thyme twigs from the soup. Puree soup. Add seasoning if necessary.

(I did let it sit on low heat till we were ready to eat).
6) Immediately serve the soup and add mozzarella pieces. Alternatively heat the soup once again, add mozzarella and stir until mozzarella is melted.
7) Serve & enjoy.

Bacon and Potato Breakfast Bake-GF

Bacon and Potato Breakfast Bake

Ingredients*This is assembled the night before you plan on serving it. It sits in the refrigerator 8 hours or overnight. For a shortcut, you can use thawed country-style frozen potatoes and skip the browning step.

• 1 (12oz) package bacon (I prefer nitrate-free)
• 4c diced potatoes (about 4 medium-small potatoes)--
• 3 green onions
• 1c pepper jack cheese (can replace with cheddar if not wanting spice)
• 1c cheddar cheese (I prefer sharp)
• ½ tsp dry mustard powder
• ½ tsp salt (used seasoning salt)
• ¼ tsp black pepper
• 3 eggs
• 1c milk
• olive oil
• salt and pepper

Instructions

1. Cook bacon and crumble it. (I cooked mine in the a saute pan on stove, drained most of the grease and then used the left over grease to cook potatoes in) 
2. While the bacon is cooking, cook potatoes in a large saute pan with olive oil and a little salt and pepper over medium heat until golden brown. Alternatively, you could roast them in the oven or use leftover cooked potatoes.
3. Spray an 8×8″ baking dish with nonstick spray. Place potatoes in the bottom. Sprinkle with pepper jack and cheddar cheese. Sprinkle with green onions.
4. In a small bowl, whisk together milk, eggs, mustard powder, salt, and pepper. Pour egg mixture gently over the potatoes, cheese, and green onions. Sprinkle bacon over top of all.
5. Cover and refrigerate 8 hours or overnight.
6. When ready to cook, bake at 350 degrees 45-50 minutes, or until the center is set. Allow to stand 15 minutes before cutting.
7. Makes one 8×8″ baking dish.

Potato Au Gratin Casserole -GF

Ingredients

Butter, at room temperature (or PAM spray)
2 shallots, minced
2 cups heavy cream
2 cloves garlic, minced
Kosher salt (I used seasoning salt) and freshly ground pepper
3 medium russet potatoes (about 2 1/4 pounds), peeled and sliced 1/8-inch thick(I used golden yukon and did not peel)
2 cups grated sharp white Cheddar cheese (I used sharp cheddar and Monterey jack)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan

1 or 2 bay leafs
1 or two twigs thyme


DirectionsHeat oven to 375 degrees F. Butter (or spray) a 1 1/2 to 2-quart baking dish and sprinkle with just a bit of the shallot.

Add the heavy cream to a medium saucepan along with the remaining shallot, garlic, salt and pepper, bay leafs and thyme). Place over medium heat and bring to a simmer while stirring. Let simmer until you see the liquid begin to thicken, 2 to 3 minutes.  Take out bay leafs and thyme with tongs.  

Layer 1/3 of the sliced potatoes in the baking dish, cover with some Cheddar and a sprinkling of Parmesan; repeat the layering 2 more times.

Pour the hot liquid over the potatoes. Add the remaining cheese, cover with foil, and bake for 1 hour, then remove the foil to bake until the cheese is golden and brown, 15 to 20 minutes. 

Let rest for 10 minutes before slicing so it can settle.

homemade sloppy joes

1 pound lean ground beef 1/4 cup chopped onion 1/4 cup chopped green bell pepper 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder 1 teaspoon prepared yellow mustard

3/4 cup ketchup 3 teaspoons brown sugar salt to taste ground black pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1.	In a medium skillet over medium heat, brown the ground beef, onion, and green pepper; drain off liquids.
2.	Stir in the garlic powder, mustard, ketchup, and brown sugar; mix thoroughly. Reduce heat, and simmer for 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Refrigerator Pickles

Cucumbers from the garden?! Perfect recipe for you!

Slice 6 cups unpeeled cucumbers as thin as you like (or as much as your container holds)
OPTIONAL: 1 cup thinly sliced onion and 1 cup thinly slice green pepper

Boil 1 cup vinegar, 1 tbls salt, 2 cups sugar.  Boil and stir until all is dissolved.  Pour over the cucumber (onion and peppers if using).  Refrigerate.  Can keep for up to 6 weeks.

Banana Pancakes

Original recipe makes 12 pancakes

 1 cup all-purpose flour
 1 tablespoon white sugar
 2 teaspoons baking powder
 1/4 teaspoon salt
 1 egg, beaten
 1 cup milk
 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
 2 ripe bananas, mashed
(I added some lemon juice to the milk and let it sit for 5min. essientially making buttermilk to make them a bit more fluffy and some vanilla extract)

Directions

Combine flour, white sugar, baking powder and salt. In a separate bowl, mix together egg, milk, vegetable oil and bananas.

Stir flour mixture into banana mixture; batter will be slightly lumpy.

Heat a lightly oiled griddle or frying pan over medium high heat. Pour or scoop the batter onto the griddle, using approximately 1/4 cup for each pancake. Cook until pancakes are golden brown on both sides; serve hot.