Macaroni and cheese

J gave this 4 out of 5 stars and I gave it 4.5 out of 5 stars. Kids didn't like it as well as the adults.

1 T butter (up to 3 T) (I did 1)

1 1/2 cups uncooked macaroni (I did elbow)

1 qt (or 4 C.) milk (I did skim)

8-12 oz grated sharp cheddar cheese or cubed velveeta (not the low fat kind) (I did 16 oz-1 lb- velveeta because I wanted to get rid of it.)

1/2-1 tsp salt (I did 1/2)

1/4 tsp pepper

Stir everything together in crockpot. Cover and cook on low for 3 hours.

Mine took about 5 hours. Do not turn up to high. I tried and it started burning.

Creamy Spaghetti

p. 160 in my new crockpot book

I thought this was OK, maybe 3 out of 5 stars. But my kids went bonkers for it. They had seconds and thirds. I thought it was a lot like hamburger helper...edible, but not noteworthy.

1 lb dry spaghetti

1 lb ground beef or ground sausage

1 lb (1o oz) jar spaghetti sauce

1 lb velveeta cheese, cubed

1 (10 3/4 oz) cream of mushroom soup

Cook spaghetti noodles and drain. Place in a large mixing bowl.

Brown meat and drain. Add to noodles.

Add everything else to noodles, mix well. Place in slow cooker.

Cook on low 2-4 hours or until heated through.

Apricot Stuffing and Chicken

p. 46 in my new crockpot cookbook.

1 stick of butter (divided)

1 box of cornbread stuffing mix

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

6-8 oz jar apricot preserves

In a mixing bowl make stuffing using 1/2 stick butter and the amount of water asked for on stuffing. Set aside

Cut up chicken into 1" pieces. Place chicken in bottom of crock-pot. Spoon stuffing over top.

In microwave melt remaining butter with preserves. Pour over stuffing.

Cover and cook on high for 2 hours or on low for 3 1/2 hours or until chicken is tender, but not dry.

The stuffing will not be like stuffing...it will be mushy. It sounds gross, but it was good. I might try next time pouring the jam on the chicken, then put the stuffing on top to see how that tastes. But I liked it this mushy way also.

J gave it 3.5 out of 5 stars. I gave it 4 out of 5.

Honey Mustard Chicken

From p. 33 in my new cookbook

8 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

1 1/2 C. honey mustard dressing (It was exactly 1 bottle of Kens Steakhouse dressing from Smiths) (16 oz)

1/2 C. water

Spray inside of crockpot with non-stick spray. Cut chicken into 2" pieces. (I did whole chicken breasts...but it would have been better to follow the recipe and cut them into pieces...I was just lazy). Place chicken in crockpot. In separate bowl mix dressing and water. Pour dressing over chicken. Cover and cook on high 3-4 hours or on low 6-7 hours.

We gave this a 4 or 4.5 out of 5 stars. Parents liked, kids didn't.

Chicken Delicious

This was on p. 44 from my new crockpot cookbook.

10 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (I did less)

1 tsp. fresh lemon juice (I did lemon juice from the fridge...not freshly squeezed)

salt and pepper to taste

2 (10 3/4 oz) cans cream of celery soup (I did cream of chicken)

1/3 C. sherry or wine, optional (I omitted)

1/4 C. grated parmesan cheese (I just did the cheap stuff in the green can)

Place chicken in slow cooker in layers. Season each layer with a sprinkling of lemon juice, salt and pepper. In a separate bowl mix soups and wine. Pour soup over chicken. SPrinkle with parmesan cheese. Cover and cook on Low 8-10 hours or on high 4-5 hours until chicken is tender but not dry.

We gave this 4.5 out of 5 stars. I couldn't taste the parmesan. I would try fresh parmesan next time.

Chicken Salad Sandwiches

Start with shredded chicken, tuna, or even mashed up spam (thanks for the idea Jan L.) add miracle whip (or mayo) and some mustard. Other things you can add in sweet relish, dill relish (if you use dill, you probably want to add some sugar), chopped celery, chopped grapes, nuts, apples, etc...

Spam and eggs

I had never heard of this, or tried it...Spam and Eggs (or Eggs and Spam...hmmm...which sounds better). Chop up spam and cook in scrambled eggs. Mine was a little heavy on the spam. But really fairly tasty.

Crock Pot Book

So I bought a new cookbook. It is all crock-pot recipes and they all have less than 5 ingredients. At the end of this week I will be 4 weeks straight of doing a crock-pot meal for dinner every day! It has been fun to try new recipes and they are all very simple. I will share some of the best ones with you.

Egg Salad

From Kay

My recipe for egg salad sandwiches is very simple, but good. Just mash your hard-boiled eggs, put some mayo or Miracle Whip in it. Add salt and pepper, the put it on bread to make a sandwich.

Egg Salad anyone?

I am on the search for a good recipe for egg salad sandwiches. My Mom didn't like eggs...so we never had them growing up. How do you do it? (It doesn't need to be fancy).

Sizzler Toast

This is what we call Sizzler Toast because it is similar to the bread they serve at Sizzler.

It is best on Texas Toast (bread) or an artisan bread (slightly crispy on outside) but regular bread works too.

Butter both sides of the piece of bread I use a tub butter because it is easier to spread. Place in a non stick pan or non-stick griddle. Sprinkle top heavily with parmesan cheese (just the cheap kind in a green can). Flip over (before the bottom is cooked). Sprinkle other side (was the bottom, now the top) with parmesan. Allow bottom to cook until cheese is brown and toasty. Flip over and cook until cheese on 2nd side is brown and toasty.

If the parmesan flavor is too strong...just do one side, or sprinkle more lightly next time. But we like a lot!

Tortillas

My favorite tortillas are the raw ones that you cook yourself. But as far as ones that are already cooked I like the Don Julio Original.

Snack time

I really don't buy snacks or treats hardly at all. This is something my kids like to have for a sweet snack. I call them cinnamon roll-ups. Warm a tortilla in the microwave for about 20 seconds. spray one side with spray butter (like I can't believe it's not butter) sprinkle quite a bit with a cinnamon/sugar mixture. Roll up and enjoy.