Slow Cooker Caramelized Chicken

Apr 11, 2015

My takeaway from this recipe?  Sure ain’t pretty, and fairly sure mine didn’t “caramelize”, but it sure was delicious!

The pictures of this recipe from Skinny Ms. (see link at the bottom) look beautiful, so not sure what I did wrong to keep it from caramelizing.  However, the flavors are so great that it was a keeper recipe anyway. It’s sweet and salty and layered, with a little kick from the cayenne.  (Well, “little” depending on how much you put in…I’m a baby.)

It also is super fast and easy. The only down side is that cleaning my crockpot was insanely difficult afterward—I have a really old crockpot and it doesn’t have a removable piece. I’ve never used liners but might have to see if they make one for mine, because cleaning that was ridiculous. 

Easy Crockpot Beer Chicken

Oct 21, 2013

I rarely go in for crockpot cooking. Everyone waxes poetic about how easy it is, how much it saves your life, and how it’s basically the best thing since sliced bread. But I guess I just don’t get it.

I mean, I don’t hate crockpots. But I just haven’t had amazing luck with them. I mean, everything’s so…soggy. But every so often I run across a recipe that makes me want to give it another shot. I’d had this recipe bookmarked for a while, and overall I really like it. I do think it would be a little better with a darker beer (I tend toward stouts and darker beers like Negra Modelo), but I used something sitting in my fridge that I wasn’t going to be as likely to drink.

The recipe didn’t call for any veggies, but I added them anyway. If you have the time, it would probably be better to add the zucchini and squash to the slow cooker more like a half-hour before you’re ready to serve, since then they’ll still retain some crunch—as it is, they were practically transparent and fairly mushy. I didn’t mind but I’d probably change that next time. You can add whatever veggies you have around, it’s a super versatile recipe. I also cooked up some farro to use as a base for the recipe. It didn’t call for it, but it seemed a shame to waste all that tasty sauce. You can use anything you have on-hand—rice, quinoa, pasta, whatever.

Balsamic Beef in the Crockpot

Mar 23, 2013

Prepare yourselves, folks. My family came and visited me for a solid week, so we cooked and baked up a storm—so you’ll be inundated with recipes in the next couple weeks. We’ll start with this absolute gem, a flavorful and easy main dish that’s perfect for big groups (provided you make enough of course!).

I’ll let you in on a secret…I’ve never liked roast. I find it weird and kind of blah usually. I do like my mom’s beer roast once in a while and I love barbecue beef, but otherwise it’s just not my thing. I’ll make an exception for this balsamic beef, however. It was moist and chock full o’ flavor, and was way easier than I’d expected. In fact, it was probably the easiest, least time-consuming dish we made all week!