Slow Cooker Pizza Pasta

Found recipe here, added a lot of additional ingreds to it

INGREDIENTS: (7qt slow cooker)

1.3 lb lean ground beef

4oz pepperoni

1 onion, chopped

8 oz cubed ham

3 oz "real" bacon bits

8oz shredded provel

15 oz alfredo

~15 oz pasta/marinara sauce

3 c milk

1 can sliced olives, drained

16 oz rotini pasta

minced garlic

DIRECTIONS:

Throw ground beef in bottom of slow cooker. Break it up some.

Throw in chopped onion & garlic.

Throw in pepperoni, diced ham, bacon bits.

Dump in the milk, alfredo & pasta sauce. I used maybe a little over half of a 24oz jar of marinara sauce.

Top with half of the shredded cheese.

Cook on high for 2.5 - 3 hrs. (Didn't try cooking this on low yet).

Stir it up, if the gound beef looks cooked then add in the rotini.

Check on it after like 15 min, don't let it go too long or the pasta will overcook.

Add in the rest of the shredded cheese & the olives.

Serve with parmesan if you want.

more photos:

French Onion Hash Brown Casserole

Found this recipe here. It didn't taste very oniony, it was basically like Southwestern Hash Brown Casserole but without any spiciness.

INGREDIENTS: (makes an 8x8" pan)
3 oz "real" bacon bits
~12 oz French onion dip (I used Dean's French Onion & Bacon dip)
1 can cream of chicken soup
8oz shredded sharp cheddar
28 oz frozen hash browns
Cheezits, ziplock sandwich bag full crushed up
slices of butter

DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 350F.
In a bowl combine the french onion dip, cream of chicken, shredded cheddar, bacon bits.
Stir in the hash browns.
Spread in an 8x8" or 9x9" baking dish.
Top with crushed up cheezits.
Placed sliced butter on top.
Bake for 1 hour. (you can cover with foil for half the baking time if you want). Serve warm

more photos:

Fancy Party Spread

This would be good for a holiday party. Sounds gross, looks gross, but tastes really good! It's thicker, like a cheese ball. Found recipe here

INGREDIENTS:
a big shallot, sliced/chopped
pesto (I wanted to make some but didnt have time so bought it)
sundried tomato spread (or use real sun dried tomatoes. I bought spread for time saving purposes)
pine nuts
8oz feta (can use more)
8oz cream cheese (or neufchatel)
vermouth (tiny bit cuz vermouth tastes like balls. can use champagne or vodka etc)
dash of minced garlic
white pepper
stick of butter
crackers etc for spreading the dip on

DIRECTIONS:
Grab a decent size bowl (to layer the dip in) and line with plastic wrap (for easy removal once it solidifies).
In a food processor blend the butter, shallot pieces, feta, cream cheese, vermouth, white pepper, garlic.
In the plastic-lined bowl, layer: tomato spread, pine nuts, pesto, the blended cheese mixture. Repeat another layer of each.
Refrigerate at least an hour, then turn over onto a serving plate & remove the plastic wrap.
Serve w crackers etc.

more photos:

Chicken Crescent Pockets

slightly modded recipe found here













INGREDIENTS: makes 8 total (4 large & 4 small)
2 chicken breasts, shredded. (I cooked in advance in slow cooker along with a can of cream of chicken soup , garlic, & some Italian seasoning)
8oz neufchatel cheese (or cream cheese)
8oz shredded cheese
fresh spinach, chopped
2 tubes of crescent rolls (I had a small tube & a big tube)
cheezits, crushed up
1/2 stick butter, melted
(optional) bacon bits

DIRECTIONS:
Cook/shred the chicken. If using slow cooker it takes like 1.5 hrs on high.
Preheat oven to 350F.
In bowl, mix the cream cheese, chicken, shredded cheese, spinach, (and bacon or any other ingreds you may like).
Grease a baking sheet.
Spread out crescent rolls into squares (2 triangle shapes pinched together).
In the center of each square, scoop a bunch of the chicken filling, then fold it up & seal.
Dip each pocket puff thing in butter, then in the cheezits. Place on baking sheet.
Bake 20-25 min. Serve warm.

more photos:

Cheesy Scalloped Potato Bake

also view my recipe here

Super cheesy potatoes, as close as I could get to replicate the famous Jack Stack restaurant in KC

INGREDIENTS

8"x8" baking dish, greased

3-5 red potatoes, sliced thinly (I leave skin on)

1 c chopped broccoli (optional)

1/2 c heavy cream (or heavy whipping cream)

1 c whole milk

1/2 can cream of cheddar soup

1/2 pkg cream cheese

1 clove minced garlic (or garlic powder)

1/2 t kosher salt

1/2 t white pepper

1/8 t cayenne pepper

1/2 t Weber Garlic&Herb seasoning (or similar)

1 c shredded sharp cheddar

1/4 c parmesan

1 c shredded swiss (or 4 slices). Substitute gruyere if you have it!

DIRECTIONS

Preheat oven to 450°F

Grease baking/caserole dish

In skillet over medium heat, combine milk, cream, cheddar soup, cream cheese, garlic, and spices.

Add sliced potatoes/broccoli and bring to a boil. Stir.

Cover, reduce heat to low and simmer for 8 min.

Layer the potatoes/broccoli with the various cheeses in the dish, top with parmesan.

Cover dish with foil, bake for 15-30min (depending on amount of potatoes).

Remove foil and continue to bake for an additional 10-20 min.

update: took me a little longer to bake the last time I made this. I also omitted broccoli due to laziness.

UPDATE:  I made a simplified version that I thought was great:

no milk, no broccoli, no cream cheese, I just used 1.5 c cream instead. Added in chives. Used provel instead of cheddar on top. Forgot to add in parm. Tasted great, was less work lol. (see bottom photos)

more photos:

BBQ Chicken Quesadillas

yet another awesome recipe I found here

INGREDIENTS: (makes 4)
4 big flour tortillas (1 tortilla = 1 quesadilla)
shredded chicken (I used pulled smoked chicken)
BBQ sauce
"real" bacon bits
shredded monterrey jack / mexican cheeses
any additional fillings that you want
(optional) ranch for dipping

DIRECTIONS:
For each quesadilla, assemble as follows:
Spread some bbq sauce, layer on some cheeses.
Add shredded chicken & bacon to half of the tortilla.
Top with some more cheese.
Fold tortilla in half.
Cook each side of quesadilla on a big skillet over med-hi heat. I sprayed some cooking spray in the skillet each time before I flipped the quesadilla
After I cooked each side I warmed in the over on a backing sheet @ 375F for about 10 min (I wanted to make sure the inside was hot).
Slice into triangles/serve.

more photos:

Smoked Beer Can Chicken

Used tips from my mom and from brinkmann website. I used an electric smoker, if you have a charcoal smoker etc then adapt this recipe as needed.

INGREDIENTS:

whole chicken (I kinda cheated I used a 6lb marinated "roaster" chicken that had the guts/neck pre-removed)

can of beer (I used Busch)

rub (I used weber garlic & herb, poultry seasoning, and garlic salt).

wood chips (I used hickory)

DIRECTIONS:

Prep smoker according to smoker directions. Soak wood chips in advance.

Use can opener to cut top off of beer can, drink 1/3 of it. Add bunch of minced garlic into the remaining beer.

Rub seasonings onto the chicken.

Shove the beercan in the chicken ass (I used a beer can chicken holder thing).

Smoke for 6-7 hrs. Mine was 160F after 6hrs, I let it go a little longer.

Allow chicken to rest for a few min before eating. Also remove the beer can..

Eat or repurpose (I shredded it and made bbq quesadillas)

note: the seasoning on the skin tasted really good, but the skin was pretty chewy, I ended up peeling most of it off then shredded the chicken to make quesadillas with.  I'm not sure how to get the skin crispy using a smoker (I was cooking it for the meat anyway not the skin).

more photos: