I have recently lost my marriage and have become a lonely bachelor. Any good crockpot recipes out there so that I can still smell that good homecookin when I come through my door?

I'll get back to you later, got to get to church! But I have a great beef barley soup/stew that works great in the crock. You may sub chicken or burger or leave the meat out if your veggin'. So sad about your marriage though, unless it's an improvemnt.

I'd better have some more coffee. I thought it said crackpots. So sorry about your change in circumstances, stu. I don't have a crockpot and don't cook, but listen to Beth. She would never steer you wrong.

Crock pot roast beef

2-3 pound beef roast
3 beef bullion cubes
1 bay leaf
1 can of beer (can use water)
1 pack Good Seasonings garlic & herb dressing mix

Put all ingredients in crockpot. Cook on low for 10-12 hours.
Put it apart / shred it. (so it would look like pulled BBQ)
Eat in steak bun with horseradich sauce or cheese or whatever you like.
I've also put it ontop of potatoes.

This is a favorite with the "boys".

Roast beef is always a good one to just toss in. I just put it in, add some onions and sprinkle with whatever kind of mixed seasoning I have in the front of the cupboard. You can also add potatoes. After years of getting the "roast" cut, we have finally figured out that DH likes the "london broil". Weis sometimes has them on sale bogo free. I will have to check the cookbook later for some others.

Sauerkraut and a pork roast (you can get small ones). I'd suggest browing the roast first.

Ham butt, add some cola, smear it with mustard and sprinkle brown sugar on.

I'm sorry to hear about your marriage.

When I moved to the bay trailer we realized we had no oven. The crock pot has been a godsend!

Meatballs--so easy. I take a bag of frozen meatballs,no need to even defrost them. Put any kind of sauce you like in the crock pot and enough meatballs to fill pot. Make sure you have enoug sauce to cover and remember as the meatballs thaw you will get more sauce. I start on high until they are heated and and then switch to warm. Add some seasonings and oregano. Serve on rolls with parmesan cheese on top. They freeze well too and then you can just throw them in the microwave in aweek or two.

Pierogies-- Melt a stick of butter. Mrs T's frozen pierogies and some sliced onion. Cook on high til pierogies are nice and tender and then put on warm til ready to serve.

I have also done roast beef in the crockpot with Newmans honey mustard salad dressing. Cook on high until beef is done to your liking. You can add carrots, onion, peppers or potatoes to this as well. The beef gets so tender.

I have also done frozen wings in the crock pot with any kind of sauce. Barbecue or hot.

ALWAYS MAKE SURE THERE IS LIQUID IN THE BOTTOM AND STIR THINGS OFTEN SO THEY DON'T STICK. Enjoy!

I forgot the best one.

PORK and it can be done two ways. You need a pork shoulder, something with some fat on it. Put water in crock pot, then pork shoulder and cook on high with seasonings, I use Adobo. Now depending how you will serve it you can add some Gazebo greek dressing, I use the light. And cook until tender, slice and serve. It will actually fall apart

Or you can take the shoulder out and shredd it with a fork and put back in crock pot and add any barbeque sauce for a great pulled pork barbecue. I amde this at the bay with a spicy sauce and it was a hit!

At all grocery stores is the Fix it and Forget it cookbook, which is all slowcooker recipes. That should keep you in ideas for awhile!

One of the first recipes I ever cooked for a boyfriend was so easy - I used chicken legs, slice a few onions on top, salt and pepper, then cover with mushroom soup, and serve with rice. I still like that one!

Sorry for your situation, its never easy no matter the reasons.

You could crock a big stew....

sorry, could not resist.

Sorry about the dissolution of your marriage, btw.

The nice thing about crockpot meals is you can freeze leftovers. So you can cook on a Sunday and have meals for all week. When I do beef for example I serve as a nice Sunday dinner and use leftovers for roast beef sandwiches with horse radish and some ore ida baked fries. maybe some cole slaw.

You can also take leftovers for lunch the next day.

I am also making a great dish tonight that can be catered to one.

I take a nice sized steak, dip in egg/milk wash and bread crumbs. Fry in olive oil. Now make some pasta and sautee some mushrooms. Vodka sauce. Get a plate put steak, top with mushrooms. Add pasta and top with vodka sauce and some parmesan cheese delish.

It does make like 4 pans but I am doing the mushrooms now and refrigerating them and then just nuking them for tonight. That gets rid of one pan to wash

Beef Barley Soup

½ C. Chopped Carrots
½ C. Chopped Celery
½ C. Chopped Onion
(Darrenkamp’s have these already chopped in the veggie dept.; I use their shredded carrots to save time.)
1 T. Butter
4 C. Beef Broth/Chicken Broth
2 C. Water
1 -14 oz. Can of diced Tomatoes
1 C. Quick Cooking Barley (high in protein ‘n fiber)
½ t. Dried Oregano (I use Polaners’ jarred oregano)
½-1 t. Garlic (I use Polaners’ jarred garlic)
1 ½ t. Salt
½ t. Pepper
2 + C. Chopped Roast Beef, or Chicken, or Ground and Browned Burger.
All meats are pre-cooked not put in raw; leftovers work, too.
Sauté chopped veggies in butter until soft. (Or Nuke them soft if you prefer)
Toss in Crock add remaining ingredients. Cook at least 2 - 3 hours in crock on high and 2 hours low, or all day on low.

Options; Add all or some of these:
If I have some sour cream on hand I some times add a nice sized dollop an hour before serving.
Shredded Cheddar.
Shredded Cabbage.
Leftover veggies.

My son makes this at college, loves the sr. Cream, cabbage & cheese in it. Feeds him and his friends for days.

You have a lot of nerve eating like that and then complaining about the doctors and the healthcare system that you are so desperately going to need one of these days. How on earth do you justify eating like that and then griping about the medical system?! Baffling. If you hate our medical care as much as you claim, then one would think you'd be doing anything you can to stay free of their clutches.

Anyway, probably not something in which a bachelor would be interested, but I make apple butter in mine.

Stew, really sorry to hear about your marriage.

oh yeah, stew.

Throw in some stew meat, some potatoes, onions, whatever veggies you want, grab a mccormicks stew mix packet (you should be able to find this with the other seasoning packets), set it and forget it

Are any of these ideas something you'd like, or were you wanting something else?

Thanks guys, I appreciate the sentiments.

These recipes sound like the bomb-diggety!!

Okay, Stew. You are now single. If you ever have any hope of meeting a woman you are going to have to lose the phrase, "bomb-diggety".

Just sayin'.

Jambalaya. Throw in canned diced tomatoes (with or without onions, chiles, peppers, whatever you like), spicy bulk sausage, diced celery, diced onion, and cajun seasoning to your liking. After that cooks on high for a few hours, add some cooked rice and cooked shrimp and let it heat through. Adjust the quantities to make as much as you like.

Sorry to hear about your marriage Stew. Here is a website that I use occasionally:
http://www.kraftfoods.com/kf/CookingSchool...p_fd_trend-_-NA

Take a boneless roast (beef or pork) throw in one can of cream of mushroom soup ( I use the low sodium) and one envelope of dry onion soup mix. Add one can of water. Stir it around once in a while, but you pretty much let it alone. My mom makes one and freezes slices of the pork to use later (she's been a widow for 4 years now and had trouble transitioning to cooking for one)

Then you can make potatoes and a veggie. The meat is tender, tasty and it makes a good gravy.

You can do an all in one, just put your cut up veggies in an hour or two before you want to eat.

I'm sorry to hear about your troubles. Hope things get better soon.

These recipes all sound delicious.

thanks for starting this thread Stewie

BTW - there is a church singles group that has a fun calendar of events every month. They're very nice single people who can get you through the difficult times.

PM me if you'd like more information.

Stewie:

If you remember some basic principles with crockpots, you can use one even if you don't have a specific recipe.

Add Vegetables first. Big chunks are fine. Carrots, onions, potatoes are a good basic start.

Meat on top -- whatever kind you choose, from poultry to beef & pork & lamb

Seasonings go on top and all over. You can take it any direction you want -- Mexican (chili powder, cumin, etc.), Italian (basil, oregano, or Italian seasoning blend), Indian (curry powder, garam masala)

Pour in 1 -2 cups of liquid (whether you want it soupy or drier) - broth, beer, wine (white for poultry, red for red meat), a can of soup, or just water.

Lid on tight. If you are doing this in the morning before work and it will cook all day, set it on low. It you are starting at noon, set it on high.

Bon apetit.

(sorry about your circumstances!)

ceejay - thanks for the basics on crockpot cooking. I haven't used a crockpot in a long time. Hopefully I will be back on track soon.

Do you really need all that liquid? If I toss chicken breasts in, when they are done they are practically boiling, there is so much juice from them.

1 cup minimum. The second cup I specified was if you wanted things soupy or stewie (no pun!). Potatoes absorb liquid, and the liquid keeps the veggies from sticking to the sides. But for Stew, if there are leftovers and liquid, they become a stew or soup for the next day.

(And don't forget the whole St. Pat's corned beef one pot dinner -- carrots, onions, potatoes, cabbage, corned beef on top. Leftovers become hash.)

stew-
i'm sorry to hear about your marriage.

about crockpots- try to not take the lid off much when it's on- each time you do, you're losing about 30 minutes of cooking time. (example- something says to cook for 6 hours. you take the lid off three times. you've upped it to 7 1/2 hours. [i added this because i didn't think i was very clear])

also, get the crockpot liners. they really help in the cleaning process! just don't be an idiot like me, i once tried to cut up a small roast in the pot. and i cut the darned bag!

i know i have a crockpot recipe book around here somewhere, if i find it, you can have it!

My crockpot has a ceramic liner. The nice part about that is I can allow the contents to cool and then refrigerate for leftovers.

I'm getting antsy for a crockpot meal...................

Cut peeled potatoes into quarters and place in bottom of crock pot. Add some baby carrots, if you like. Add boneless, skinless chicken breasts on top. Mix one can cream of chicken soup with half can of milk, till smooth. Pour over potatoes, carrots, and chicken. Make sure lid is on tight, and cook on low all day. I really like this, and think I'll probably have to make it this week sometime. It's been awhile.

crazycatwoman:
We've used the Campbell's Cheesy Soup with half a can of milk and added raw onions for flavor with our skinless chicken breasts.

I have to echo the Fix It and Forget It book series mentioned previously. So many easy and good recipes in there.

I've also Googled recipes. Say I have ham. I Google Ham Crock Pot, Ham Slow Cooker.

Also! Every time you lift the lid, add 15 minutes to the cooking time. Another thing, please note that newer crocks cook at a higher temperature than older crocks. Depending on the recipe's age, you might need to cook it for less time to avoid burning.

Anyone have any more receipes? How about Beef Strognoff??

Congrats, hopefully you won't make that mistake again.

The lancmoms site has a lot of recipes. Search for "crock pot" here, that should keep you busy for a while.

http://lancmoms.com/viewPage.php?ID=Recipe%20Finder

lancmoms would get a lot more traffic if they would change its "mom of the month" to "hot mom of the month," dont you think?

Sandy in the gravy section on the grocery store, McCormick has a Slow Cookers Beef Stroganoff seasoning package.

Just follow the recipe on the back, it is really good, just made it yesterday. The hubby had 2 platefulls.

1 pkg. McCormicks Seasoning
2 lbs. Beef Cubes
8 oz. Mushrooms sliced or halved
1/2 C. Chopped Onion
1 C. Water ( I used 1 can of beef broth)
1 C. Sour Cream


Place beef, mushrooms, and onion in slow cooker

Mix seasoning pkg with water/beef broth until well blended, pour over beef cubes and veggies, toss to coat well

Cover

Cook 8 hours on low (4 hrs. high) Don't lift lid until done.

Add sour cream for the last 10 minutes

Serve over cooked egg noodles. I tossed the (uncooked) egg noodles in 1/2 hour before done and it turned out just fine.

My husband does not like the Sr. Cream so I only add a small dollop to mine and stir it through. (helps to cool it down)

I get the Hamburger Helper Stroganoff. Twenty minutes and done. Guys eat it up. My favorite slow cook is beef stew.

1 lb beef (pre cut)
1 bag frozen carrots
1 bag frozen snow peas
1 lb mushrooms (pre cut)
1 box frozen little onions
3 cans small whole potatoes (no need to slice)
1 large jar spaghetti sauce.
Dump everything in and cover w/sauce. About 8 hours on low. If possible stir on occasion.
Enough leftovers you don't have to cook for a week. Yea

Does the sauce taste like spaghetti sauce when it's done?

Bachelor Shepherds Pie is my fav...

Take a bag of meatballs and mix with a big bag of frozen mixed veggies and a can of beef gravy

Put in crock pot

Cover that with a bag of tater tots

Melt two sticks of butter and pour over that

Cook in the crock pot on medium for a couple hours.

YUMMY!!!!!

Not really. Taste like beef stew with tomato base. Can substitute two jars of gravy. I'm not fond of gravy but hubby prefers it. Since I'm making it I use spaghetti sauce.

While it's cooking, do you shop for a cardiologist?


Hmm, I might try it with the spaghetti sauce. I am not a big fan of the jarred gravy, either.

lol - that's what I get for growing up on a farm. And, here I wondered why I have to take my Lipitor.

Cut back on the butter and take red yeast rice capsules every day. These capsules do cut your cholesterol.

In February I had an LDL of 135, total cholesterol of 207. Started taking red yeast rice and the LDL came down to 107 within four months. Blood pressure decreased as well.