Crock Pot Season

Well, I know that in a previous post I said that I'd post Buchina family well-received crock-pot dinners we'd had recently. I have a couple to share.

I've made three recently, but will only share two. The third, although seemingly delicious in the recipe book, will die forever in the pages of the book - not a family favorite. It was a Ground Turkey Potato Dinner - main ingredients were ground turkey, potatoes, green beans, and mushrooms. Since we like all of the ingredients, I thought it would be good...but it turned into turkey/potato/green bean mush...so we ate it, but won't try it again.

The winners we had were as follows:

Chicken Tortilla Soup:

Rating - 5 / 5 stars

4 boneless skinless chicken breast halves

2 15 oz. cans black beans, undrained

1 c. chunky salsa (I used mild)

1 can Rotel tomatoes (I used mild)

2 15 oz. cans stewed tomatoes

1 can refried beans (I used fat free)

1 4 oz. can green chilis, undrained

15 oz water (one can)

1 lb frozen corn

1-2 Tbs. authentic Italian tomato paste (if you don't have any from Europe, you can use some from your local grocer...thanks to a wonderful and well travelled friend, I did have some from Europe)

2 c. grated cheese

tortilla chips, to serve with soup, if preferred.

1. Combine all ingredients except chips and cheese in slow cooker.

2. Cover. Cook on low 8 hours.

3. Just before serving, remove chicken breasts and cut into bite sized pieces. Stir into soup.

4. Top with cheese and...Serve! You can put chips in the bottom of soup bowls if you prefer.

Slow Cooker Enchiladas

Rating - 5/5 stars

1 lb lean ground turkey

1 c. chopped onions

1/2 c. chopped green bell pepper

16 oz can kidney beans, rinsed and drained

10 oz. can rotel tomatoes

1 c. water

1 tsp. chili powder

16 oz can black beans

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp black pepper

2 cups colby/monterey jack cheese

6 flour tortillas (6 or 7 inch)

1. Brown turkey, onions, and green pepper.

2. Add remaining ingredients to turkey mixture, except for cheese and tortillas. Bring to a boil.

3. Reduce heat. Cover and simmer for 10 minutes.

4. In slow cooker, layer 3/4 c. turkey mixture, one tortilla, and about 1/4 c. cheese. Repeat until all ingredients are used.

5. Cover. Cook on low 5-7 hours.

note - to serve this one, I cut it into pie shaped 'slices'.

Well, I wish you and your kitchen great adventures. If you make either of these and love them, please let me know - I'll be glad to post more winners from the Buchina house. I see some homemade chicken noodle soup and award winning chili in our future....