The Best Crockpot Chili

This is our favorite traditional chili recipe. It's easy and tastes better than anything from a can. My mother-in-law got the original recipe from a family she baby-sits for; we all love this recipe and have modified it somewhat to fit our individual families.

3 lbs ground beef
salt, pepper to taste
garlic (couple cloves) or garlic powder (couple teaspoons)
good size onion chopped
1 - 15oz can of tomato sauce
2 - 30oz cans of chili beans in chili sauce - undrained
3 (or 4) 15oz cans of dark red kidney beans - drained and rinsed
1/4 to 1/2 cup cumin
1/8 cup chili powder

Brown ground beef in a large skillet with salt & pepper, drain; add garlic after browning. Dump ground beef and all remaining ingredients in a LARGE crock pot, give it a stir and cook on low 8-10 hours. Enjoy. Sometimes, instead of a 15oz can of tomato sauce, I use an 8oz can of tomato sauce with a 10oz can (undrained) of Rotel tomatoes (or any brand of diced tomatoes with green chilies) for a little 'kick'. Serve with fresh chopped onion & grated cheese. If using a smaller traditional sized crock pot - cut this recipe in half.

Breakfast Casserole with Bacon (shown above with breakfast sausage)

I made this for my son's football breakfast potluck and it was really delicious. I think we will use for a dinner once in awhile too. It's my mother-in-law's recipe, her secret? She greases the pan with bacon grease! It really gives a great overall flavor to the dish. You can also make it with sausage or ham.

6 eggs, beaten
1 (12 oz) can evaporated milk
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
30oz bag of shredded hash browns (frozen)
2 Cups shredded chedder cheese
1 onion, diced
1/2 bell pepper (green or red or combination) finely diced
1 lb bacon, chopped & cooked (I chop it, then fry it - it seems faster)

Preheat oven to 350. Mix all ingredients in a large bowl, pour into a well greased (use the bacon grease generously) pan. Bake for 60-65 mins.

Magnificent Casserole

2lbs ground beef
8oz cream cheese
1 tbsp minced green pepper
1/2 C sour cream
1/2 C grated swiss cheese
8oz egg noodles
1 lb cottage cheese
1/3 C chopped green onions
2 C tomato sauce

In a large pan cook noodles boiling salted water to aldente. Drain & set aside. In a large bowl, mix together cream cheese, cottage cheese and sour cream. Add onion & peppers. Set aside. Brown ground beef & drain fat. Add tomato sauce to ground beef. Grease 9x13 pan and arrange in the following layers: Noodles, cheese mixture, meat mixture - repeat. Top with grated swiss cheese. Bake at 375 for 30mins.

School starts in less than 2 weeks. Schedules are already hectic with football practice starting and getting 2 highs choolers and one college age kid ready. Monday night I didn't get home until 6:30 without a clue what I was going to make for dinner. Unusual, but a sign of the busy fall season gearing up. Tuesday morning (yesterday) I threw some chicken breast, balsalmic, soy sauce, and garlic in the crock pot. It was palatable but not very good. The chicken will make decent quesadillas for tomorrow but to stay ahead of the game I'm going to test some new and use some tnt (tried and true) crock pot recipes to keep these hungry men fed!

Sausage Breakfast Puffs
We like to eat breakfast for dinner once in awhile. It's an inexpensive meal that everyone loves. This recipe is a great way to stretch breakfast sausage!

1/2 lb breakfast sausage
3/4 C baking mix
1 C Shredded chedder cheese
3 tbsp water
2 tbsp diced green chiles

Brown sausage in a skillet. Add remaining ingredients and mix together, shape in to 2" balls, place on greased baking sheet. Bake at 400 12-15 mins.

"Summer" Rubber Chicken
Adapted from Leanne Ely
for a family of 5

Place 12 chicken breasts in2 large ziplocks (6 ea)
split a bottle of italian salad dressing (1/2 the bottle in each bag)
marinate 6 hours or overnight

grill all 12 breasts on your outdoor grill (or bake in 400 degree oven 40 mins)

Day 1: serve 6 breasts on first night, with salad, veggie, potatoes

Day 2: Chicken Quesadillas. Take 3 of the remaining chicken breasts and cube/shred. Place on 1/2 of a flour tortilla, sprinkle cheese (Monterey jack, cheddar or other), add a few diced green chiles (or jalapenos) dash some tabasco sauce or salsa (for heat). Fold in half and grill on both sides in a nonstick skillet or cast iron skillet (use cooking spray on either) until blistered and cheese is melted. Keep warm in oven while cooking the others. I get 6 quesadillas out of this. Serve with chopped lettuce, tomatos, sour cream and guacamole.

Day 3: Take the remaining 3 breasts, dice/chop for chicken salad. I use mayo, rosemary, chopped egg, onion, finely chopped celery, salt & pepper. Serve with a salad and/or fries or chips.