crock pot meal #2

Another hugely successful meal.

Biggest lesson learned this meal: A slow cooker is extremely slow when you neglect to plug it in for the first two hours of cooking.

Thankfully Rory found it in the kitchen, realized nothing was smelling yet and put the cord into the socket. Things went better after that.

We loved this meal. Easy as pie (took 8 minutes to assemble in the morning) and very tasty.

Pulled Pork Tacos from this crock pot cookbook

2 pounds boneless pork roast

1 cup salsa

1 can (4 ounces) chopped green chilies (use them all! Don't be afraid of flavor!)

1/2 teaspoon garlic salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

flour or corn tortillas

shredded cheddar, sour cream, salsa, sour cream

1. Place roast, salsa, chilies, garlic salt and pepper into crock pot. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours (I cooked mine for five hours)

2. Remove pork from crock pot and shred with two forks. (After shredding I put it all back into those yummy juices) Serve on tortillas. Top as desired.

This was really good. And I'm not going to say that about every recipe. Because the wild rice casserole I made tonight was terrible. Except that Rory and Ivar had seconds and thirds and loved it. But believe me, it was not delicious. More on that "meal" another time...

crock pot week

Becca, did you actually take your sandwich outside to be photographed? Well yes I did. And I'd like to thank the sun for it's lovely natural light.

Monday began with a bang. After reading some helpful tips on proper crock potting, I realized I had too big of a crock pot. If I ever want to do an Easter Ham, I am set. The one I have is huge. But for the best results for the recipes I was trying, I just needed standard size crock pot.
Target sells a red 3 quart Hamilton Beach slow cooker for $14.99. Sold. Bought mine Monday morning.

Monday was Philly Cheese Steak Sandwiches and they were fantastic. This first recipe is a keeper. The steak was tender, the whole sandwich super flavorful and the bread and cheese all broiled together gave a bit of crunch that any crock pot recipe so desperately needs.

All of my recipes are from the Rival Crock Pot Best-Loved Slow Cooker Recipes cookbook. We just ate our second meal from this cookbook and it was also a winner. So far, two for two.

Philly Cheese Steak Sandwiches:
2 lbs round steak, sliced
2 tablespoons butter, melted (I never added this. Just forgot, I think.)
4 onions sliced (I used 3 small ones)
2 green peppers sliced
1 tablespoon garlic-pepper blend (I did 1/2 T garlic powder and 1/2 T pepper)
salt, to taste (I left this out because of the bouillon)
1/2 cup water
2 tsp beef bouillon granules (I used five cubes and melted them in the water in the micro)

6 crusty Italian or French rolls, sliced in half
8 slices Cheddar cheese (we used Havarti)

1. Combine steak, butter, onions, bell peppers, garlic-pepper blend and salt in crock pot. Stir to mix.
2. Whisk water and bouillon and pour over meat and veggies.
3. Cover; cook on LOW 6-8 hours (I cooked ours on LOW for 4.5 hours)
4. Preheat oven to broil (move rack to the top). Cut rolls, (we put mayonaise on ours), pile high with meat and veggies, cover with cheese, place on tray and WATCH CAREFULLY as they toast to perfection.

We liked this meal a lot. Hearty, tasty and our house smelled homey all day. A serious perk of the slow cooker.

free ice cream!

It is days like today when I know why Rory is the one who works from home and I am the stay at home mom. I asked him this afternoon if he'd like to come along for a free ice cream cone and he obediently declined saying he needed to work. Man, to be your own boss. I don't know if I could do it. But me? I busted over to Ben and Jerry's with Ivar like it was my job. Because it sort of is.

This was Ivar's first ice cream cone and he did not understand the concept one bit. He wouldn't hold the cone, he grabbed at the ice cream and when I put it to his lips he was offended by how cold it was. So guess who got TWO free ice cream cones?!! Hooray for free cone day!

Thanks to my former youth director, Dawn and her blog for the heads up on Free Cone Day! You can click here to find your nearest Ben and Jerry's. The deal goes until 8 pm tonight. And the lines weren't bad...no one pays and everyone is getting a single scoop. The trickiest part is deciding what flavor to get!

25 weeks

I'm 25 weeks and loving it. The baby is so active and has been very accommodating to kick when someone special is around to feel it. Sunday at church I sat next to a dear friend, Ethel, and the baby started boxing and high kicking during the sermon. I loved grabbing Ethel's hand and putting it on my belly. I could tell for a moment she wondered what on earth I was doing, but then she lit up.

I have had some awesome cravings over the last month. One night I got back out of bed at 11 pm, made Tuna salad, and then assembled a tuna melt loaded with pickles and cheddar cheese on toast. I brought it out to the couch where Rory was watching tv and he laughed hard. It was almost too cliche.

And yesterday I got the supplies to make those pickle rolls with a sweet pickle, wrapped in salami and cream cheese. My grandma bredberg used to make these and once I started thinking about them, I couldn't let it go. And let me tell you, they did not disappoint.

Check out this blog post of me at 24 weeks with Ivar. It's hard to tell with different clothes, but I think I'm showing pretty much the same...

growth spurt

Ivar slept last night from 7 pm to 9:21 am. A new record! Wondered if he was still alive, but not enough to risk the lovely, quiet morning we had here at the Groves House. And then he went back down at 1:00 for another 2 1/2 hours.

And guess who was nearly his equal for hours in bed?  Me! I think the little baby in me must be growing a whole lot too. And now it's nearly 8 pm, and with all the outdoor time wiping me out, I think it's time to hit the pillow again.