I recently read that 80% of the American population owns a slow cooker. That is 4 out of 5 people in this country, which seems astonishingly high to me when 50% of the population is male, not to mention 1% of the population is homeless and 0.75% of the population is in prison.
Even if this statistic is true, what percentage of that population that has actually taken their slow cookers out of their cabinet since they received it as a wedding or house-warming gift, I'm not sure.
But one thing is for sure, one of those 4 out of 5 people that likes to cook slow is my aunt, who gave me this week's recipe. It is the epitome of simplicity - there are 4 ingredients, all of which you probably have on hand and no preparation is required. And it's very very tasty and pretty healthy. Thanks Aunt Jane!
4 Ingredient Chicken and Rice
Place the following ingredients in a slow cooker and cook on low for 8-10 hours.
4 frozen chicken breasts
2 cans of black beans
16 oz fresh salsa
1/2 cup rice
Optional: 1/4 c molasses or brown sugar for a touch of sweetness
And let's not forget that this Monday was President's Day. Enjoy!
I think the world is working against me. I try to be a productive member of society and go to work. I try to eat my 3 to 5 servings of vegetables a day (or whatever the USDA dictates these days). But both of these things contributed to my complete failure this Crockpot Monday.
I found a good recipe for Creamy Broccoli Soup in an issue of Real Simple that I wanted to try. This one enticed me because it was a healthier version - read this as no whipping cream, half and half or milk. Albeit it wasn't a crockpot recipe but I tried to adapt it to my slow cooker. Happily I left home on Monday morning knowing that when I returned from work I would have a big bowl of healthy goodness waiting for me. 10 hours later, quite the opposite awaited me. I had a feeling that my dreams were about to be dashed when, 10 feet outside my door I started to smell rotting eggs or a baby's diaper or something equally disgusting. It was a formidable scent... stung the nostrils.
Source: realsimple.com
What I should've been eating.
The broccoli and potatoes had been slowing cooking (good) and then burning (bad) throughout the day. Apparently I should have added more liquid and shouldn't have left it to cook for 10 hours. I also added too much red pepper (damn you brown people for making me think I'm resistant to heat). So even after I blended the ingredients to form an eye-enticing velvety green soup it just tasted like spicy burnt compost.
It was leftovers for me. World: 1 Jen: 0. I'm ready for a rematch. See you next Monday, world.
Super Bowl XLV on a scale of 1 to 10 was about a 6. The football game could've been more exciting, the Black Eyed Peas could've tried to sing on key, the commercials could've been funnier. Personally I would've liked to see a commercial with Troy Polamalu and Clay Matthews remaking Willow Smith's 'Whip My Hair' music video, but nobody asked me. But, the game wasn't a complete blowout, Slash played at half time and the E*Trade baby still makes me laugh.
Outside of the television commercials and half time performances, the thing I look forward to the most on Super Bowl Sunday is chili. This chili combined the hot spice of Italian sausage with the smoky spice of chipotle peppers in adobo sauce with the slight sweetness of cinnamon. You should try it.
Here's the Recipe...
Brown and drain:
1 lb. ground turkey
1 lb. Italian sausage
Break up with a wooden spoon and transfer to the insert of a slow cooker.
Saute in oil:
1 large onion, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
Transfer to the insert of a slow cooker.
Add the following ingredients to the slow cooker:
4 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, chopped
16 oz. tomato sauce
24-32 oz. crushed tomatoes
4 cinnamon sticks
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1 1/2 TB chili powder
1/4 tsp cardamom
1 tsp salt
1 TB sugar
1 bay leaf
Cook on high for 3-4 hours or on low for 6-8 hours.
In the last hour of cooking add:
2 cans red kidney or pinto beans, rinsed & drained
1 bag frozen corn
Serve with chopped green onions, cilantro, shredded cheese and corn chips.
