Crock-Pot Lasagna

I wish we had more recipes on here cuz I really do like them and have tried a lot of them, and after Angie said she liked to use the crock pot I remembered this recipe I got from my mom and thought I'd share. It's super easy, makes a lot, and is really good.

Crock-Pot Lasagna

1 lb ground beef

1 jar (26-28 oz) tomato pasta sauce 

1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce

1 jar (1 lb) Alfredo pasta sauce

1/2 package (9 oz) no-boil lasagna noodles (about 8 noodles)

3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1. Cook ground beef in large skillet, drain.

2. Spray 4-5 quart crock-pot with non-stick cooking spray. Spread 3/4 cup of tomato pasta sauce in bottom of cooker. Stir remaining tomato pasta sauce and tomato sauce into ground beef.

3. Layer 3 lasagna noodles over sauce in slow cooker, breaking noodles as necessary. Top with 1/3 of the alfredo sauce, spreading evenly. Sprinkle with 1 cup of the mozzarella cheese. Top with 1/3 of the ground beef mixture, spreading evenly.

4. Repeat laying twice, using 2 lasagna noodles in last layer. Sprinkle parmesan cheese on top.

5. Cover, cook on Low 3 1/2-4 1/2 hours.

Prep time: 20 minutes

Start to finish: 4 hours 50 minutes

Servings: 8

Freezer Meals for the Crock Pot

Before I had Warren, I spent an evening preparing freezer meals to use post-baby and I have LOVED having them! I use them on the days that he just won't let me put him down or the days I felt more sore and tired from recovery or because he didn't sleep very good that night or just because I'm feeling lazy. I haven't used them all and I hope to prep some more once I run out!   They've been so handy!  I know there are recipes for freezer meals that you can bake (like the Honey-Lime Enchiladas that Marilee gave us...DELISH!!) but all of these are meant to just throw in the crock pot for a few hours.


These are from the Six Sisters' Stuff blog.  They have other recipes for freezer meals but these are the ones I chose because I had just bought a case of chicken from Zaycon Foods.

Chicken Broccoli Alfredo

Ingredients:

1 ½ pounds chicken breasts

1 (16 oz) bag frozen broccoli florets

2 (16 oz) jars Alfredo sauce (I use light)

1 large green pepper, chopped

1 (4 oz) can sliced mushrooms, drained

Directions:

Place all ingredients in a resealable gallon-sized freezer bag and mix together.

When ready to eat, remove from freezer and thaw in fridge for 24 hours. Cook on LOW for 4-6 hours. 

Serve with cooked fettuccine noodles, green salad, and breadsticks. 

Cilantro Lime Chicken w/ Corn and Black Beans

Ingredients:

1 1/2 pounds chicken breasts
Juice from 2 limes
1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped
1 (16 oz) bag frozen corn
2 minced garlic cloves
1/2 red onion, chopped
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1 tsp cumin 

salt and pepper to taste

Directions: 

Place all ingredients in a resealable gallon-sized freezer bag. Mix together and zip bag closed.

When ready to eat, remove from freezer and thaw in fridge for 24 hours. Cook on LOW for 8 hours (or HIGH for 4 hours). 

Serve with tortillas and toppings such as with sour cream, guacamole, salsa, and cheese.

Recipe adapted from Over the Big Moon. 

**I have this in the freezer but I haven't made it yet. I'm excited to try it though so I'll let you know what we think.

**I don't think you need to thaw  these before hand, it just cook it for a couple more hours til the chicken is done.

 

These recipes are from Saving You Dinero

Crock Pot Hawaiian Chicken
(4-5 servings)

• 2-3 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• ½  cup white sugar
• ½  cup vinegar
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 Tablespoons soy sauce
• ½   cup of pineapple juice (use what’s in the can)
• ½  can of large pineapple chunks

Add all the ingredients to the bag. Cook 4-5 hours on high or 6-7 hours on low. Serve it over rice and enjoy. While I am cooking the rice I  like to shred the chicken and put it back in the juice before I serve it.
**This was a little sweet for my taste but still yummy.  I just added soy sauce on top when we ate it at it was better (according to my taste buds).

Garlic Honey Chicken
(4-5 servings)

• 1 ½  to 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• ⅓ cup  soy sauce
• ⅔  cup ketchup
• ¼  cup honey

(Feel free to double the sauce if you like extra sauce)
Add all the ingredients to a freezer bag. Cook 3-4 hours on high or 5-6 hours on low.  We like to eat this with mashed potatoes and a veggie.
 **THIS WAS DELICIOUS!!  It could easily be done without freezing if you wanted. I made loaded mashed potatoes (with sour cream, bacon, cheese, and green onions) and salad with the chicken and we both loved it!

Chicken Fajitas
( 5-6 servings)

• 2 peppers (your favorite)
• 1 onion
• 1 1/2 pound chicken breast
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• taco seasoning packet
• 1 tsp. chili powder
• 1/2 tsp. paprika
• 1 tsp. salt

You will also need tortillas, cheese, cream, etc.
**I cooked the chicken and then made chimichangas with the meat after I shredded it. I used the meat and peppers, black beans, cheese, and salsa. Rolled them up with the ends tucked in and lightly fried them in a pan with a little bit of oil in them.  So yummy!

Directions

1. Put all the ingredients in a large freezer bag. (Make sure you label the bag with instructions.)
2. When it’s time to cook it, dump it all in your slow cooker and cook on high for 3-4 hours or low for 5-6 hours.
3. When it’s cooked, shred the meat and add it back to the pepper mixture and serve on warm tortillas and your favorite toppings.

 Let me know if you have any great freezer meal recipes or if you have any questions about these!  Happy Cooking everyone! :)

Love ya!
Ang 

Sweet Balsamic Glazed Pork Loin

So, for dinner last night, I tried a new recipe. I have had this one pinned on pinterest for a long time and finally remembered to try it. It was really good. Generally, anything with balsamic vinegar is a big hit for me! I would probably do a few things differently next time I make it, though.

1. In her recipe, she says to cook on low in the crockpot for 6-8 hours. Mine cooked for about 7 hours and the top part of it really dried out, which is uncommon for crockpot meats. I think what I maybe would do is turn the roast halfway through cooking so each half gets a turn to sit in the juices. :) We'll see if that works a little better!

2. I would probably make a bigger batch of the glaze. The glaze was definitely delicious and since I served my roast with rice, I felt like I wanted more sauce to cover some of the rice. I don't think I would quite double it since that would seem like a ton, but maybe make it at about 1.5 times the original size.

But nonetheless, it was delicious and I will definitely make it again! Here is the link:

http://www.melskitchencafe.com/2011/09/sweet-balsamic-glazed-pork-loin-slow-cooker.html