allrecipes.com is a great source for recipes. The recipes are rated by people who try them and I'll bet they have a slow cooker section...

I bought an electric skillet at K mart and that also helped. Hang in there!

My favorite is a versatile mexi chicken in the crockpot.

*4-5 frozen chicken breasts
*Sprinkle liberally with southwest seasoning or taco seasoning (I like Emerils Southwest Seasoning) or something similar.
*Add a can of black beans, drained
*Cover in salsa (medium to large jar). Make sure there is enough salsa so it doesn't dry out.

Cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 4 hours.

When it's done, use two forks to shred it. Then make burritos with large tortillas, rice, sour cream, cheese, etc.. or make chicken tacos. Or throw the shredded chicken on top of some spanish rice. So many things you can do with it. And this is so easy since you can throw the chicken breasts in frozen!

Good luck on your remodel!

Ok here is one that we love:

1 chuck roast sprinkled with garlic powder and pepper browned in olive oil (if you can't brown it it will still be good).

Toss it in the crockpot with a can of diced tomatoes and a splash of balsamic vinegar.

I usually make frozen mashed potatoes and frozen spinach (I can't believe I could not remember how to spell spinach!! - I had to look it up)with this and use the juice from the crockpot on the potatoes.

If you have a can opener and a crock pot, you're in business with this recipe. It's quick to prpare -- it's been a new favorite of mine for a couple years.

Chicken Tortilla Soup
15 minutes preparation, 8 hours cooking
2 boneless skinless chicken breast halves
2 (15oz.) cans black beans
2 (15 oz.) cans Rotel tomatoes with chilies .
1 (14.5 oz.) can tomato sauce
1 (4 oz.) can chopped green chilies .
1 cup salsa, your preference as to strength (I use medium)
1 can Niblets corn
Rinse meat and set aside. Without draining, place beans, tomatoes, tomato sauce, chilies and salsa (but not the corn!) in crockpot and stir until mixed. Submerge chicken in the mixture. Cook on low for 8 hours. Remove chicken from crockpot and shred with two forks. Return chicken to crockpot and stir in corn. Heat 10 -15 minutes, or just long enough to get corn and chicken hot. Serve topped with crushed tortilla chips, shredded cheese, and a dollop of sour cream.

Using the Rotel tomatoes with chilies will produce a slightly spicy soup  for a less spicy soup, use regular diced tomatoes and mild salsa. This recipe freezes well  itÂs like money in the bank! I have a large cp and double the recipe for freezing.Enjoy! :o)

Arlene

We are in the exact same situation - two weeks in to our remodel and counting. It sure is hard to figure out what to make for dinner every night!

This is one of the most basic crock pot recipes, but it has nice flavor. As a bonus, this recipe makes zero prep dishes to wash!

Put a layer of small (bite size) potatoes in the bottom of the crock. Add a layer of baby carrots, then a layer of boneless chicken breasts or chicken tenders. Quantities to taste/size of your crock. Pour about 3/4 to 1 cup of white wine over the top. Open a can of cream of mushroom soup and spread it over the top of the chicken (my crock is large enough for about 6 chicken breasts so I use a "family size" can) That's it. Cook 8 hours on low. You can serve this over noodles or rice, or not! Good luck!

This is one of our family's favorites. We eat it probably twice a month. :o) It's a nice change of pace from the usual slow cooker meats, soups and stews.

Barley, Black Bean and Corn Burritos

9 servings

15 oz can black beans, rinsed and drained
10 oz can diced tomatoes with green chilies, undrained
1 cup uncooked barley
2 cups chicken broth
3/4 cup frozen whole-kernel corn
1/4 cup chopped green onions
1 tbsp fresh lime juice
1 tsp. ground cumin
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro (which I leave out!)
18 6.5 inch flour tortillas
1 cup plus 2 tbsps shredded sharp cheddar cheese
9 cups thinly sliced curly lettuce
2 1/4 cup salsa
1 cup plus 2 tbsps sour cream

Place first 11 ingredients in slow cooker, stir well. Cover and cook on low for 4-5 hours or until barley is tender and liquid is absorbed. Stir in cilantro (or NOT! Bleh!) ;o)

Heat tortillas according to package directions. Spoon 1/3 cup barley mixture down center of each tortilla, sprinkle each with 1 tbsp of cheese. Roll up. Place one cup of lettuce on each of 9 plates; top each with 2 burritos. Spoon 1/4 cup salsa and 2 tbsp sour cream over each serving. (We actually just put the whole crock on the table and let everyone spoon what they want into their tortillas. It's much easier!)

Here's a blog where a woman used her crockpot every day for a year (2008) and reported hits or misses. I've gotten great recipes from it and she's made me fall in love with my crock pot. Off topic slightly...mine just broke, anyone have a recent crock pot purchase that they love?
http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/

This is one of my favorites:

Look in the old refrigerator and take out some of the things that have not had a chance to grow sweaters yet.

Put them together in a crock pot.

Put in a lot of ketchup and mayonnaise. If you are feeling
continental then throw in some red wine.

Turn the crock pot on and go away for some hours.

Come back, and if it smells alright eat it. If not - see if the dog will eat it.

If he won't eat it then put it back in the fridge in a well-sealed container until garbage day.

Three days after garbage day take the well-sealed container out of the fridge.

Go outside and pour the contents through a manhole grate.

Throw away the container that seals so nicely but has absorbed the most pungent odour imaginable.

When Precious asks you where the container is, disavow any knowledge whatsoever. :)

You can roast a chicken in your slow cooker (size depends on the size of your crock; we've cooked 3-4 lb whole birds with no problem). Season as desired (I always cut a lemon in 1/2, and stuff the cut halves into the cavity after sprinkling some kosher salt in there first).

Haven't cooked one in the slow cooker since our reno was completed (that size chicken takes no more than an hour and a half or less to roast in the oven) but it is very tasty. Very comforting meal to have while your kitchen's out of commission!

If you're willing to eat offal, a beef tongue cooked in the crockpot with some red wine, garlic and Italian seasoning is really fantastic. It's like a very finely grained pot roast. Just a roast is good as well if you won't eat tongue (a tip if you try it- don't mess with the membrane when it's raw, just peel it off once the meat is done).

My mom cooks turkey legs in hers, then add a bag of Vigo yellow rice to the water along with veggies (usually broccoli)- the yellow rice mix is salty/seasoned enough that I'm not completely positive she adds anything else to it.

sailormann, how did you get my recipe?! lol..... I needed that one!

Even before my year without a stove, I loved cooking in my crock pot. The following are just a few ideas:
Chickens in crock pots are wonderful. Throw in some root veggies and you have a whole meal. When you're pretty much done with the meat, throw the carcass / skin/ etc back in said crock pot with some carrots, onions and celery and voila - base for chicken soup.
Chili is a great crock pot standby.
Lentil stew - lentils, carrots, garlic, tomatoes, onions, whatever spices you feel like, water, cook all day and yummy - no need to pre-soak lentils.
Ham and beans - soak beans overnight, throw in crock pot with carrots/celery/onion and either a ham bone or some cut up uncooked bacon. Add water or stock and cook all day.
French onion soup - lots of sliced onions, some garlic, a little sugar, equal parts beef stock and chicken stock, a few splashes of wine, cook all day, toss in some croutons, sprinkle with grated cheese. I love adding herbes de provence but it's not necessary.
All those recipes that say brown first? Fuggedaboutit - not necessary at all.

This site got lots of raves.
Monica

Here is a link that might be useful: QVC Cooking Forum Recommended

My family loves Italian roast beef. It's a crock pot version of the Chicago sandwiches. I found the recipe on allrecipes.

1 3 lb chuck or rump roast
1 packet Good Seasons Italian seasoning (the dressing mix)
1 jar of pepporincini
1 can low sodium beef broth
1 cup water

Throw it all in the crock pot. Cook until meat easily shreds with a fork. Serve on toasted bakery rolls with provolone cheese.

Super easy...no prep, and really good on a cold day.
Two jars of chicken gravy
4 cans of whole potatoes
2 bags of baby carrots
4-6 frozen boneless/skinless chicken breasts.
Put veggies in first, then chicken. Pour gravy over all. If you like, sprinkle on some poultry seasonings (basil, sage, parsley etc.).
Serve and you're done!

I made a yummy beef stew just yesterday!

(all portions are estimates - I just threw it together)
1 lb stewing beef
2 lg potatoes
3 carrots
1 clove garlic, crushed
2 stalks celery
handful of white mushrooms
1 can low sodium beef stock
1/2 cup red wine
1/2 pkg McCormick beef stew seasoning
tablespoon flour

Cut veggies into bit sized portions. Throw all ingredients into crock pot and cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6. I don't think you'd necessarily need the seasoning - I just happened to have it on hand. If not, I would have used salt, pepper and whatever spices (maybe rosemary) that were in my cabinet and I think it would have turned out fine.

It was really delicious and made the whole house smell wonderful during our New England storm yesterday. Hopefully our reno. will be done next week and I can begin cooking for real again!

claire

Oooh, I love this thread!

1) Try Mollie Katzen's gypsy soup (search online) in a crock pot. If your local store has peeled and cubed butternut squash, it's not that much work. The nice thing about this soup is, it's not too heavy, so it goes over well in the summer.

2) After you've had the Mollie Katzen, you can reassert your omnivore self by sticking a pork roast and a bottle of bbq sauce in the crock. Slice/shred when done, and you've got pulled pork barbecue sandwiches.

3) get an electric skillet (can be had for $30, and you can freecycle it to some other poor remodeling soul when you're done). You can make quesadillas, every kind of breakfast food, and even cook rice.

Worldmom, yummmm!
Sailormann, you're a poet and ya don't even know it.

Yum, yum, yum! Thanks so much everyone! These recipe are exactly what I was looking for. I can't wait to try some of one...Except for Sailormann's...I've made that one several times, hence my need to ask for recipes! ;-) Thanks again!

This is soooo easy to throw together~you don't even need to measure anything & you can't really mess it up:

Chicken Reuben Casserole~

Two layers of the following:

Layer the bottom of the crockpot with saurkraut
On top of that, layer 2-3 chicken breasts
Spread the chicken breasts with Dijon mustard
Top it with Thousand Island dressing (abut 1/3 cup)

Cook low about 3-4 hours. About 15 minutes before done, top with shredded swiss cheese and let it melt.

Enjoy.

Boneless pork shoulder (or pork butt!) is my favorite crock pot cut. Line the bottom of the pot with sliced onions, season the pork shoulder with salt and pepper, BBQ seasoning, or I like to use a SW seasoning (preferably Penzey's). Let it cook all day. When it's done, remove the fat and stuff from the meat. Some meat can be eaten in tortillas that night with other taco fixin's. The rest can be shredded to use in BBQ sandwiches the next day. I'll toss any extra in soup, too. -- Best of all, it's an cheap cut of meat for a tough economy.

Our crockpot has got to be the most-used appliance in our house.
Found a website just for crockpot recipes - we use it alot!

Here is a link that might be useful: Crockpot Recipes

This may be one to save for when the kitchen is re-assembled but I just had to share it. It's from W-S so they skew it to fit their tools. Feel free to adapt as desired.

Cassoulet

Ingredients:

4 lb. boneless pork shoulder, cut into 8 pieces and trimmed of excess fat

Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

2 Tbs. canola oil

1 cup panko

4 oz. thick-cut bacon, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch strips

4 cups coarsely chopped yellow onions (about 3 medium onions)

2 cups dry white wine, such as Sauvignon Blanc

1/4 cup tomato paste

1 can (35 oz.) peeled Italian plum tomatoes, drained and
coarsely chopped

2 cups chicken broth

12 cups cooked Great Northern beans or other small white
beans, drained

1 1/2 lb. fresh chorizo sausage, each halved on the bias

1 garlic head, halved crosswise

1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, plus more for garnish

1 lb. baguette, cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices

Extra-virgin olive oil for brushing

Coarse sea salt, such as sel gris, for garnish
Directions:

Season the pork generously with kosher salt and pepper; set aside.

In the stovetop-safe insert of a slow cooker over medium-high heat, combine the canola oil and panko. Cook, stirring constantly, until the panko is toasted and golden, 4 to 6 minutes. Transfer the panko to a baking sheet and season with kosher salt and pepper.

Add the bacon to the insert and cook until crisp on both sides, about 5 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Reserve the bacon fat in the insert.

Add half of the pork to the insert and brown on all sides, 7 to 8 minutes total. Transfer to a platter. Repeat with the remaining pork.

Add the onions and 1 tsp. kosher salt to the insert and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown and softened, about 7 minutes. Add the wine and simmer until reduced by half, about 8 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste, tomatoes and broth. Remove the insert from the heat and add the beans, pork, chorizo and garlic.

Place the insert on the slow-cooker base, cover and cook on low until the pork pulls apart easily with a fork, 9 to 10 hours. Skim off the fat, and remove and discard the garlic. Fold in the panko and the 1/4 cup parsley. Adjust the seasonings with kosher salt and pepper.

Position a rack in the lower third of an oven and preheat the broiler.

Brush the baguette slices with olive oil. Arrange the slices, oiled side up, on top of the cassoulet, overlapping them. Broil until golden brown, 4 to 6 minutes.

Let the cassoulet stand at room temperature for about 30 minutes before serving. Sprinkle each serving with the reserved bacon, sea salt and parsley. Serves 8 to 10.

Here is a link that might be useful: Link to the recipe

ALWAYS USE CROCKPOT LINERS FOR EASY CLEANUP!!!!

Here's another roast beef recipe, but it only calls for two ingredients besides water, the family loves it and we have roast beef sandwiches left over.

Put Roast in pot, sprinkle a pkg. of beefy onion soup mix, pour 1/4 c. water over all, cook on high 5 hours.

If you want veggies with it, lay them on the BOTTOM of the crock pot.
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Roast Chicken: Skin a whole chicken. Place whole chicken in crock pot. Sprinkle with onion soup mix. Add 1/4 c. water. Cook on high 5 hours.

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BBQ Pork chops. Place all pork chops in crock pot. Pour about a half of bottle of BBQ sauce over all. Cook on high 5 hours. The chops are soooo tender.

I am about to be in the same boat. Our cabinets are being dismantled today and the work starts Monday. This is one of my favorite and VERY EASY recipes.

Several pieces of chicken (I use about 6 legs and 6 thighs)
2 cans of DelMonte tomatoes diced--any flavor will do we like garlic.
1 box of fresh mushrooms
1 red and 2 green peppers cut up (not diced)
2 large onions cut up (not diced)
Saute the chicken in hot oil for a few minutes, then pour all the other ingredients on top and let it stew for about 2 hours. You'll have plenty left over for the next day.
And if you have a bottle of opened wine, throw some of that in too. That's it.

Maureen in MA