Six-Bean Barbecued Beans- Slow Cooker

Fix-it and Forget-it Cookbook (Gladys Longacre, p.213)

1 can kidney beans, drained
1 can pinto beans, drained
1 can Great Northern beans, drained
1 can butter beans, drained
1 can navy/white beans, drained
1 can pork & beans (I used a vegetarian can)
1/4 cup barbecue sauce
1/4 cup mustard
1/3 cup ketchup
1 small onion, chopped
1 small bell pepper, chopped
1/4 cup molasses (or sorghum molasses)
1 cup brown sugar

Mix together all ingredients in slow cooker.
Cook on Low 4-6 hours.

Makes 15-18 servings

(That's the only downside with this recipe- if you only intend on feeding up to 6, you'll have a mountain of beans left over, and as you're emptying out entire cans, I can't see how you could easily cut this recipe in half.  I'm just hoping they freeze well as that's what we ended up doing with our leftovers...)

Sweet Potato Casserole with Gingersnap Streusel

-Parenting Magazine

What can I say? I was hungry while looking through this magazine, and ripped the page out to give it a try. It's more of a Thanksgiving dish, but I love sweet potatoes any time of the year too.

5 lbs sweet potatoes, peeled & diced (about 4 large sweet potatoes)

1 1/4 tsp salt divided, plus more for boiling

15-20 coarsely broken gingersnap cookies

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup butter, melted

1/2 cup maple syrup

1/2 cup half & half (I used milk)

2 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

2 large eggs

Grease a 9x13 baking dish.

Boil potatoes with generous pinch of salt, simmer til tender (14-16 min).

Meanwhile, make the topping by combining gingersnaps, flour, sugar, 1/4 tsp salt, and melted butter. (Should look like a crumble topping.)

Drain potatoes and puree in blender or mash til smooth.

In a large bowl, whisk the maple syrup, half & half, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, eggs, and remaining 1 tsp salt. Add the potato puree and mix. Put in baking dish and sprinkle topping mixture on top.

FROM HERE--

This can be wrapped up and stored in the freezer for up to three weeks (in preparation for Thanksgiving, for example) OR go ahead and bake it for 45 minutes on 350 F.

SO very good.

Honey Sauced Chicken with Brown Rice

(Crock Pot or Oven depending on how much time you have!)

1 1/2 lbs chicken breast cut up small

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 cup honey

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup chopped onion

1/4 cup ketchup

2 tbs vegetable oil

1 clove garlic minced

1/4 tsp red pepper flakes

Spray crock pot with Pam. Season both sides of chicken with salt and pepper, put in crock pot. In a small bowl combine remaining ingredients. Pour over chicken. Cook on low 4 hours or on high 1 1/2 - 2 hours. Serve over brown rice.

To bake chicken:

Follow steps above but place chicken "seasoned with salt and pepper" in a 9 x 13 pan spayed with Pam. Bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes - stir after 15 minutes. Serve over brown rice. (Note: both the chicken and rice take 45 minutes.)

Enjoy - even better the next day!

Lentil Soup (Crockpot)

1 c dry lentils

1 1/2 c carrots, chopped

1 1/2 c celery, chopped

1 1/2 c onions, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp basil (dry)

1 tsp thyme (dry)

1 Tbs parsley (dry)

2 bay leaves

1 can diced tomatoes

3 1/2 c vegetable broth (2 cans)

1 1/2 c water

fresh ground pepper, to taste

Rinse lentils.

Place all ingredients in a 4-6 qt. slow cooker, with bay leaves on top. Cover and cook on low 12+ hours or high 5+ hours. Remove bay leaves before serving.

Serves 4-6.

Spaghetti Squash

-Allrecipes.com


1 Spaghetti Squash, halved lengthwise and seeded
2 Tbs oil
1 onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 1/2 c. tomatoes, chopped
3/4 c. crumbled feta cheese
3 Tbs black olives
2 Tbs basil, chopped (less if you're using dry)

Cook spaghetti squash in oven in tray/dish, cut side up at 350F for 30 min. Let cool a bit.
Saute onion and garlic in oil then add tomatoes til they get warm.
Grate spaghetti squash out with a fork into a medium bowl, add sauteed ingredients and feta, olives, and basil. Toss and serve warm.
Serves 6.

Vegetable Parmesan Quiche

-Heart Healthy Cookbook

The beauty of quiche is that is doesn't really matter what veggies you put in. If your Mr. Picky doesn't like mushrooms, try bell pepper or spinach or ham. The green onions really add to this, so try not to substitute for that.... just don't let your Picky know it's in there....

I WILL recommend though, after trying this recipe, if using canned tomatoes, drain as much juice out as possible, and use a DEEP pie dish- mine was too shallow and it went spilling over the edges. Still good, but not very pretty.

Pie crust (scratch or store bought)

1 c. chopped mushrooms

3/4 c. chopped green onion

1/4 c. flour

1/4 tsp. black pepper

1/4 all-purpose seasoning

6 ripe tomatoes, thickly sliced (I used a can of diced tomatoes)

2 oz. grated parmesan cheese

2 eggs

1 c. milk

Preheat oven to 400F. Bake piecrust alone in 9" dish for 5 minutes. Cool completely and lower oven temp to 350F. (NOTE** My mom's note in here says to skip this step entirely- I didn't, and my pie crust shrank a bit... I'll try her advice next time).

Saute mushrooms and green onions in a tiny bit of water until tender- set aside.

Mix flour, pepper, and seasoning in shallow bowl and "dredge" tomatoes in mixture (learned from this recipe that "dredge" means essentially "coat it"...) Arranged coated tomatoes as bottom layer in pie crust.

Add vegetable mixture- make sure to cover all the tomatoes up. Next layer with cheese, then mix eggs and milk and add as top layer.

Bake 40-45 min or until cooked through middle.

Serves 8 slices. Serve hot or cold.

Tomaattiperunakeitto (Tomato Potato Soup)

-Finnish Cookbook

This is one my mom found when trying to think up a thematic dish for my brother's farewell party to Finland. So darn good, and very simple. I also gained my testimony of immersion blenders from this recipe, as transporting batches of scalding hot soup into my blender wasn't doing it for me anymore. Invest in one if you get the chance- they are heaven sent.

1.5 lb fresh tomatoes, peeled (I left skins on)

6 c. vegetable broth OR water

3 medium potatoes, peeled and cubed (I left peels on)

4 medium onions, peeled and diced

3 tbs. butter

3 tbs. flour

salt pepper

1 c. heavy cream

chopped parsley (I feel it's optional)

In a LARGE pot (a deep stock pot works) combine tomatoes, broth/water, potatoes, and onions. Cook over medium heat til tender. Use immersion blender to blend it all together (or pulverize it in batches in a real blender...) until smooth. Melt butter in separate saucepan and add flour to make a white paste- add to blended veggies and mix again til smooth and dissolved. Cook til thickened, add salt and pepper to taste. Just before serving, add cream and parsley. Serves 6.