Slow Cooker Cajun Chicken Spaghetti ***

I made this basically as written, except that I added crawfish and used angelhair pasta in place of spaghetti. Oh, and smoked sausage in place of andouille. Those are all just personal preferences, though. It was amazing. It technically does take a bit of prep time, but it's worth it. For me, it helped that I had cooked chicken on hand and used a frozen fajita pepper blend in place of the peppers. All I really had to do was cut up the sausage. I actually need to make it again soon, now that I think about it!

SLOW COOKER CAJUN CHICKEN SPAGHETTI
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ Tablespoon)

10 oz (about 2/3 of a 1 lb box) dried spaghetti noodles
1 jar (15 oz) Alfredo sauce
1 medium (about 1 cup) yellow onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1/2 lb andouille sausage, sliced
1 green bell pepper, diced
1 can (14.5 oz) Muir GlenOrganic Diced Tomatoes Fire Roasted
1 1/2 tablespoons Creole seasoning
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/2 teaspoon salt

To start, cut the chicken into bite-size chunks and slice the andouille sausage.
Dice the whole onion, chop the bell pepper and mince the garlic. (Prep work over.)
Pour 1/3 of the Alfredo sauce into the bottom of the slow cooker and stir in the onions and garlic. Layer the chicken pieces on top of the saucy onions and sprinkle half of your Creole seasoning over the chicken.
Layer the bell pepper and sausage pieces over the chicken, then pour in the whole can of tomatoes (including the liquid). Top tomatoes with remaining Creole seasoning and Alfredo sauce.
Close the lid and cook on low for 4 hours. After 4 hours, give everything a stir and add about 1/4 cup of heavy cream to the sauce. Season with salt to taste, and add additional Creole seasoning if desired.
Break the spaghetti noodles in thirds and place them in the sauce. Stir until noodles are completely coated and submerged in the sauce, with no pieces sticking out.
Increase heat to high and cook, covered, for 20-25 more minutes. Give your pasta a good stir or two, and enjoy! NOTE: Keep in mind that once you turn the slow cooker off, the sauce and noodles will continue to cook for a few minutes. If you're not going to eat immediately, reduce the time you cook the noodles so that they are not overcooked by the time you're ready to eat.
*Amy's notes: I subbed angelhair pasta, smoked sausage, and a frozen fajita pepper blend. I also cut back on chicken and added crawfish.

3-Ingredient Crockpot Ranch Pork Chops ***

These are very basic, but they're good. We had them back in the winter, so they made for a nice, warming comfort food. I love that they're so easy to throw together in just a few minutes, but you still come home to a good meal. Add some green beans and mashed potatoes, and you're good to go!

3-INGREDIENT CROCKPOT RANCH PORK CHOPS
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ SlowCookerKitchen)

4 thick cut pork chops bone-in seems to work better
2 to 3 tablespoons ranch dressing mix
15 ounces chicken gravy

Place the pork chops in a lightly buttered crockpot insert
Sprinkle with the ranch dressing mix and pour the gravy over the top
Cover and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours
Freezer Meal Directions:
Pour the chicken gravy and the ranch dressing mix into a large freezer bag. Close and knead to mix.
Open the bag, add the pork chops and shake to coat.
Lay flat and remove as much air as possible. Label and freeze for up to 8 weeks.

Slow Cooker Cornbread Casserole ****

Wow. It has been ages since we've had this, but it is just amazing. I'm updating my recipe below to reflect all of my changes. You can click on the link to find the original recipe. I've just made enough changes to it that I want to remember it for the future. Anyway, I am vowing to never again let an entire year go by without having this. It's just so dang good. If I could ever remember to cook the sausage and peppers the night before (won't happen), it could easily be thrown together in just a few minutes on the cook day. I cook during my lunch breaks, so that would be pretty awesome. We'll see, lol. Tonight, everyone was raving about it. The kids both had seconds. And with my changes, it left plenty of leftovers for lunches tomorrow! Yay!

SLOW COOKER CORNBREAD CASSEROLE
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ inspired by TheSassySlowCooker)

2 lbs ground sausage, browned
1 package frozen fajita blend with peppers and onions
2 cans corn, drained
1 small can diced green chilies
1 can creamed corn
3 packages of corn muffin mix
1-1/2 cups fiesta blend cheese, shredded

Spray slow cooker with cooking spray.
Brown meat with peppers and onions. Once fully cooked, add corn and chilies to the pan and stir until well combined.
Prepare corn muffin mixes as directed in a bowl. Stir in creamed corn.
Layer slow cooker with 1/2 corn muffin mix, all of meat mixture, half of cheese, and then the rest of corn muffin mix.
Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 6 hours.
About 20 minutes before serving, sprinkle remainder of cheese on top of casserole and replace lid.


Previous Posts:
7/19/16 ~ As always, this was super tasty.  The kids think that Jiffy is my "secret cornbread recipe."  Seriously, my youngest asked me last year (when he was 9) if I'd pass it down to them before I die.  Bahaha!  So anything with Jiffy and corn was going to be a winner for us.  There was never any doubt.  We loved it, though.  I typically will use ground turkey sausage, and since it's leaner, I'll double the amount.  Then instead of messing with cutting up vegetables, I just grab a bag of the frozen fajita blend of peppers and onions.  Works perfectly.  I once again forgot about the note to try green chilies in it. Maybe I'll get around to it next time.  I'd considered maybe trying it with chilies and rotisserie chicken.  Just to see how it goes.  Who knows? 😊

Cherry Pork Chops (Crockpot) ***

We loved this one! I can only stand pork chops when they're done in the crockpot, and I was just kind of intrigued by the idea of making them with the pie filling. If anyone but Amylz had posted it, I might have thought it sounded crazy, but her recipes have never failed me in the past. I figured it was worth a shot. And we loved it! The 12-year-old is already asking to have it again! The cherries were actually my favorite part. I had them as a side instead of a topping, just because I liked them so much on their own. You can't beat this for ease, obviously, but they taste more complex than they actually are. Definitely a winner for us!

CHERRY PORK CHOPS
(Amy - amylz - The Everything Slow Cooker Cookbook )

6 pork chops
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1 (21 oz) can cherry pie filling
1 chicken bouillon cube
2 tsp lemon juice

Place the pork in a large skillet on the stove. Brown on medium high heat for 5 minutes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Mix half the can of cherry pie filling, the crushed bouillon cube and the lemon juice in the crock pot. Place the pork chops on top. Cover and cook on low for 4-5 hours. Heat the remaining cherry pie filling and serve over chops.

Slow Cooker Pork Gyros with Cucumber Yogurt Sauce ***

We tried our very first gyros this past January on a trip to a school competition in another city.  We all absolutely fell in love.  Since then, we've tried a couple of other places, but we've never found one that we loved as much as that first place.  So when I came across this recipe on Pinterest, I knew that I had to see if it would work for us.  While this one didn't blow our minds like that first place did, it definitely came in pretty high on the list.  The 11-year-old wanted to have it again the next night. 😂 I didn't go for that one, but I do see us having this again soon.  It's fairly simple, in comparison to other recipes out there, and I was at least able to throw together everything on my lunch break, which is one of my big requirements for most of our meals, lol.  I'm not much of a fan of cucumbers, but even this tzatziki sauce was pretty good.  I think I want to shred the cucumber for it next time, though.  Other than that, I wouldn't change a thing!

SLOW COOKER PORK GYROS WITH CUCUMBER YOGURT SAUCE
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ 365DaysOfCrockpot)

FOR PORK
3 pounds pork sirloin tip roast
1 large onion, thinly sliced
6 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon dried oregano
3/4 teaspoon allspice
1 tablespoon lemon pepper seasoning
1 large lemon, juiced
Lettuce, sliced cucumbers, sliced grape tomatoes, for serving

FOR TZATZIKI SAUCE
1 cup plain Greek yogurt
1 cup diced cucumber, seeded and diced into tiny pieces
1 tablespoon dried dill or 2 tablespoons fresh dill
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 garlic clove, minced
salt and pepper, to taste

FOR PORK
Place pork, onion, garlic, oil, oregano, allspice, lemon pepper and lemon juice into slow cooker.
Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours (if it’s frozen it will be like 8-10 hours)
Remove lid. Using tongs remove the pork and place on a cutting board. Shred or slice the pork and place back into the slow cooker.
Serve the pork and onions on the top of pita bread with Tzatziki sauce, lettuce, cucumbers and tomatoes.

FOR TZATZIKI SAUCE
Combine yogurt, cucumber, dill, salt and garlic in medium bowl. Stir until creamy and combined.
Salt and pepper to taste.
Serve with gyros.

Yummy Pork Steak ***

This is an older recipe, but it's been a couple years since I've made it.  I was really craving pork steaks, so I pulled this one out of my old files.  I usually do mine on low for about 6-7 hours (my crockpot runs hot).  I also prefer the dry onion mushroom soup, but the flavor is basically the same.  Still a winner for us!

YUMMY PORK STEAK
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ Recipezaar.com)

3 lbs pork steaks
1 (1 ounce) envelope dry onion soup mix
1 (10 1/2 ounce) can condensed cream of mushroom soup

Put pork steaks in bottom of crockpot or slow cooker.
Sprinkle onion soup mix over steaks.
Pour soup over the top.
Cover.
Cook on high setting about 4 hours.

Previous posts:
11/8/10 ~ Well, I boo-boo'd, and I accidentally bought pork chops instead of pork steak.  On top of that, I bought bone-in chops, which I hate.  So, being the industrious mama that I am, I deboned those suckers and threw them in the pot anyway.  They were really good.  It's way better with the pork steaks, but it left the chops so tender, and the sauce, simple as it might be, is really yummy.  The little ones were going on and on about how much they loved it, which is always a good thing in a house with kids who think every night should be take-out, lol.

Crockpot Country Ham Potato Casserole ***

If you're looking for the perfect cold-weather comfort food, look no further.  Honestly, it was nothing special for me, but the 11-year-old loved it.  It's obviously not healthy, by any stretch of the imagination, but it's quick and easy and decently tasty.  I can definitely see us having this again.

CROCK POT COUNTRY HAM POTATO CASSEROLE

(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ RecipesThatCrock)

2 c cooked ham, diced

2 c milk

1 c boiling water

10.75 oz can Cheddar cheese soup

7.8 oz pkg cheesy scalloped potato mix, unprepared

2 (11 oz) cans sweet corn & diced peppers, drained

Spray your crock pot with cooking spray.

Pour all of your ingredients into your crock pot and mix well.

Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, stirring occasionally.

Crockpot Pierogi Casserole ****

This positively blew our minds.  I mean, yes, it was pretty obvious that with potatoes and cheese and dough, you really couldn't go wrong, but we were wowed.  The 13-year-old took it to school for lunch and said it was even better the next day.  As I was pulling this together to post the blog, I just noticed her notes on the page about adding in veggies.  I put them at the bottom of the recipe, so that I can remember to try that next time.  I'm all about one-dish meals!  But even if you have to add a side, this still takes hardly any time at all.  The only prep work is slicing the sausage.  I did double the sausage amount, and I think I had too many pierogies.  The store didn't have the boxes, just the larger bags.  So since I wasn't sure how much was in the boxes, I just used them both.  It was fine.  Obviously, the sauce was less "saucy," but I kind of liked it that way.  I'll probably do the same thing next time, unless I add in the veggies.  Whatever, though, this is now one of our favorite dishes!

The recipe below is with my adjustments, just because I needed to have enough for extras.

CROCKPOT PIEROGI CASSEROLE
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ DailyDIYLife)

2 (2-lb) bags Mrs. T’s Cheddar Pierogies - regular or mini
6 cups chicken broth
12 oz cream cheese
1-1/2 cups cup shredded cheddar cheese
2 lbs kielbasa - sliced (or other cooked meat mentioned below)
salt and pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients in your crockpot. Cook on high 3-4 hours, or on low for 6 hours.
Serve with a fresh green salad and crusty bread.
OP's Notes: Yes, this family favorite recipe calls for kielbasa. To be completely honest with you I have also used crumbled cooked bacon, leftover cooked sausage, ham, chicken, or just vegetables a time or two. That’s one of the reasons this is such a go-to recipe that we just love. Add in your favorite veggies to make it a complete meal. Broccoli and snap peas are our favorite add-ins, but really anything will work nicely. A few reviewers even said they added sour kraut too. That might be an interesting twist.

Slow Cooker Ham with Pineapple ****

You just don't get any easier yet flavorful than this recipe right here.  I always double the cola and the pineapple, since the kids are crazy about the pineapple rings.  I've made this for family birthdays and holidays, but my favorite thing is just that I can start it before I leave for work in the morning and not have to rush home and spend my lunch break putting together our supper.  The ham comes out so tender and salty-sweet.  We all adore it.  I've made it at least 30 times since Amylz first posted it, and I have never once had to make any changes to the recipe.  It's absolutely perfect just as it is!

SLOW COOKER HAM WITH PINEAPPLE

Amy (amylz)

All Recipes  Servings: 14

1 (6 to 7 pound) picnic ham

1 (15.25 ounce) can pineapple rings

1 (16 ounce) can cola-flavored carbonated beverage (such as Pepsi)

Place ham in slow cooker with the fattier side facing down. Use toothpicks to attach pineapple rings to the ham. Pour juice from the can over the ham. Pour the cola into the slow cooker.  Cook on Low 7 to 10 hours.

*luckymommy/Amy's notes: I doubled the cola and pineapple.

Previous reviews:
1/27/14 ~ This is crazy, scary good.  I could have easily kept eating it until I made myself sick.  I took Amy's advice and used two cans of pineapple, so that we'd have enough for everyone to have some.  I also doubled the Coke in it.  Mine cooked about 10 hours, and it was sheer perfection.  I have never, ever had a ham that was so yummy.  When you take into account that it took all of 2 minutes to throw together, it's practically the perfect recipe!  The kids both asked for seconds on the ham, which is just unheard of around here.  I served it with the Too-Tasty-to-Be-Good-for-You Cauliflower Mac-n-Cheese, and they went perfectly together.  I will definitely be making this one again.  Soon. 

Slow Cooker Brats with Sauerkraut ****

We've had this recipe several times now, and honestly, it seems like we like it more and more every time.  The sweetness of the apples perfectly melds with the tartness of the sauerkraut.  The kraut doesn't taste like kraut at all, actually.  It's just so absolutely divine.  I used a small package of the "real bacon pieces" instead of frying bacon (and dirtying another dish, lol).  It makes the bacon pieces puff up nicely, giving you a little taste of bacon in each bite.  Seriously, this is so good.  The Johnsonville brats come in packs of 5, so I just used two full packs.  Not a problem at all.  Mine were in the crock for 6 hours and were absolutely perfect.

SLOW COOKER BRATS WITH SAUERKRAUT
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ MomsWhoThink)

8 uncooked bratwurst links
1 (14 ounce) can sauerkraut, rinsed and drained
2 medium apples, peeled and finely chopped
3 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 teaspoon ground mustard
8 brat buns, split

Place the bratwurst in a greased 5-6 quart slow cooker.
In a large bowl combine the sauerkraut, apples, bacon, brown sugar, onion and mustard; spoon over bratwurst.
Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours or until sausage is no longer pink.
Place brats in buns; using a slotted spoon, top with sauerkraut mixture.

Previous reviews
7/18/13 ~ Loved this.  Seriously.  The hubs wasn't quite as thrilled with it as the kids and I were, since he didn't like that the brats lost their crispness in the crockpot.  He did love the flavor, though.  I was worried about the sauerkraut, since he's definitely not a fan (he'd rather starve than eat it).  There are a couple of recipes I can get away with using it in, but I always have to wash and drain it really well.  Since that was in these directions anyway, we were golden.  :-)  There's honestly not a sauerkraut taste to this at all.  The apples and bacon completely mute the sauerkraut flavor.  My 9-year-old hates that stuff as much as his dad, and he actually ate it on top of the brats.  The 7-year-old liked the flavoring of it, but he ate the brat without the kraut (I had to rinse it off, lol).  This is most definitely a winner with us.  It's going right in the rotation!

Hoppin' John ****

Being born to a family with Southern roots, black-eyed peas are a staple on New Year's Day.  That, along with putting quarters in the windows and not doing laundry are a must in our family.  My grandmother just passed this last summer, and up until her very last New Year's, she would call around the night before and remind everyone not to do laundry.  It's the only way in which she was superstitious.  Every other fiber of her being was rooted in what is stable and reliable.  So for the remainder of my years on this Earth, I will be enjoying black-eyed peas with my quartered windows and dirty laundry on New Year's Day.  And I will be missing her the entire time.

That said, this is the only way my hubby will eat black-eyed peas, which is odd, considering that he was born and raised in the South, while I was born and raised further to the North.  So many of our first years of dating and marriage were spent with me trying to force-feed him a spoonful of black-eyed peas once a year.  Thanks to GatorGrrl, though, we've been enjoying this one together for the past 6 years.  I always serve it with Sweet Corn Cake (also from the BBC CFYF board).  Both recipes are typically only a once-a-year thing for us, which makes them a special treat.  Our kids love it as much as we do, which is a blessing in itself.  I've made a few changes over the years (mainly using green chilies for the jalapeno and cubed ham for the ham hock), but all in all, we stick pretty firmly to the recipe.  Why fix it if it ain't broke?  ;-)

HOPPIN' JOHN
(Sharon --GatorGrrrl)

4 cans black eyed peas
2 pieces of chopped up bacon
1 large onion, diced
1 large carrot, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 jalapeno (take the seeds out to cut the spice)
1 large smoked ham hock
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp parsley
1 tsp oregano
1-2 cups water
Cooked white rice

Saute 2 pieces of chopped up bacon.  Use the bacon drippings to saute a large onion, garlic, and a jalapeno. Then add big smoked ham hock, 4 cans of black eye peas, a tsp each of thyme, parsley and oregano.  Add just enough water to make it soupy, about 2 cups.
Let it simmer for at least an hour, but the longer the better.  At a certain point, take the ham hock out and let it cool and chop up the ham and stir it back in.
Serve over white rice.
*Amy's notes: I use a can of chilies in place of the jalapenos and cubed ham steak in place of the ham hock.  I also stir 3-4 servings of white rice directly into the peas before serving.

Past Reviews:
1/2/11 ~ Oh man, oh man, oh man. This was wonderful! I made very few changes to the recipe, because it was the first time I've ever attempted Hoppin' John. Although I live in the South (transplant though I may be), I am sad to admit that I'd never even heard of Hoppin' John until last New Year's. My family had always done black-eyed peas and ham for luck on NYD, but dh hates black-eyed peas with a passion. He says they smell like stinky feet and taste about as good as they smell. :) He eats one bite, just for me, every year, but he detests even that much. After my boss described Hoppin' John to me last year, I decided to give it a shot, just to see if I could find a way of making them that dh could tolerate. He actually enjoyed this. For one thing, canned peas don't have that "dirt" flavor to them that fresh do, and he definitely liked that aspect of this recipe. That's why I chose this one in particular. That and the fact that I didn't want to slave away all day on some big fancy pea recipe, just to have him turn his nose up at it, lol.
We all loved this. The only big change I made was to use an 7-oz can of chilies instead of the jalapeno. My kids aren't much on spice, so this was the right decision for us. At the end, I just put 2 servings of white rice directly into the peas. I also used an extra hamhock, with the hopes that I might get some more meat off of it. Instead, I have come to the conclusion that unless you get a much better hock than I did, there is very little usable meat on it. I'm grossed out by eating the fat or skin off of it, so after sawing on those hocks for ages in search of meat, I eventually chunked them. However, I adore the smoky flavor that the ham hocks give it. I've decided that next year, I'll put the one ham hock in there, add chopped ham, and then just let someone's dog have the hock when we're done. Other than that, I am SOLD on this sucker! :)
I served it with Sweet Corn Cake, which gave the perfect mix of sweet and spicy.

Slow Cooker Ham and White Beans ****

Last weekend, we went to a nearby harvest festival.  Every year, they have a little stand selling white beans with ham.  It always smells delicious, but there are so many other (more exciting) foods to sample that I rarely get around to having the beans. So this year, I came home craving them something fierce.  I went straight to the store, and the very next morning, these beans were in my crockpot.

Now, first off, I'll say that this is not a fancy recipe.  Not by any stretch of the imagination.  Truthfully, it should probably be one of those "make it up as you go" things, but I kind of suck at planning those.  Recipes like that can only happen spur of the moment for me.  For everything else, I need a recipe.  Now, I can easily change around any recipe and even turn it into something completely different than was originally written.  I just need something to get me started.  This is perfect for that.  It really needs no changes to what's written, though.  I didn't measure anything, but I just kind of eyeballed all of the ingredients.  I went with ham steaks cut into cubes, and I probably had a bit too much in there.  But other than that, it was great.  I will absolutely make this again and again.

SLOW COOKER HAM AND WHITE BEANS
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ PlainChicken)

1 lb package dried northern beans
ham bone, hocks, shanks or diced ham (about 1 pound)
2 tsp onion powder
6 cups water
salt & pepper to taste

Rinse and sort the beans for any pebbles. Add the rinsed beans, onion powder, salt, pepper, and ham to the crock pot. Add water. Cover and cook on low about 8 hours, until beans are tender. Remove ham bone, shanks or hocks and pull off the meat. Add meat to the crock pot and mix. Serve with cornbread.

Crockpot Pizza Quinoa ****

You guys.  Seriously.  I am just speechless.  This was that good.  And I did it all by myself!  As I've mentioned, we're trying to eat healthier.  Mainly, just trying to squeeze in more veggies and less pasta.  That's the biggest part of it.  So I've been trying out stuff with quinoa.  Well, this week I've been really craving Crockpot Pizza.  I love that stuff.  Since pasta is a no-no more than a couple times a week, I just knew that quinoa would be the perfect sub.  I searched high and low on the internet, but I couldn't find a single recipe that combined pizza with quinoa.  So I winged it.  And it.was.fabulous.  It got 2 thumbs up from every single person.  That's huge.  My 10-year-old just came in here and said, "That might be one of the best things I ever ate!"  I sprinkled a little cheese on top of each serving, just to make it prettier, but it's really not necessary.  The cheese inside is plenty.  I am actually sitting here fighting myself to keep from going back for seconds!

CROCKPOT PIZZA QUINOA
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy)

1-1/2 lbs ground turkey, browned
5 oz baby spinach
16 oz fresh sliced mushrooms
1-1/2 cups uncooked quinoa, rinsed
8 oz frozen chopped green peppers and onions (fajita blend will also work)
3 (14 oz) jars pizza sauce
4 oz sliced black olives
1-3/4 cups water (I put mine in the pizza sauce jars and slosh them around to get the extra sauce out)
1-1/2 to 2 cups shredded mozzarella
1 package mini pepperoni

Combine all ingredients in crockpot and stir well to combine.  I like to save a little cheese and pepperoni to put on top, but it's not necessary.
Cook on high 3-4 hours or on low 6-7 hours.
That's it!  It's that simple!
Serves 6-8

Crockpot Pizza Tortellini ***

This was really good.  I have an old BBC recipe for Crockpot Pizza that we love, but as I was shopping for the ingredients, I decided to remake it into a tortellini dish.  The kids and I love tortellini, so when coupled with pizza, it was just bound to be a slam dunk.  I originally made it with more water and more tortellini, but I've lowered the amounts in the final recipe.  I used the frozen chopped peppers and onions.  You can obviously sub in ground beef.  Ground turkey is just our preference.  I definitely want to make this again!

CROCKPOT PIZZA TORTELLINI
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy)

12-oz dried spinach and cheese tortellini, uncooked
1-1/2 lbs ground turkey, browned and drained
8-oz can sliced mushrooms
8-oz can sliced black olives
1 packet sliced pepperoni
3 (14-oz) jars pizza sauce
1 cup diced onion
1 cup diced green pepper
14.5-oz can diced fire-roasted tomatoes
2 cups water (enough to cover the mixture)
Shredded mozzarella cheese

Mix all ingredients together in crockpot.
Cook on low 7 hours.
Top each serving with a sprinkle of mozzarella.
Serves 6-8

Slow Cooker Cheesy Sausage and Veggie Pasta ***

We loved this so much!  Before you stir in the pasta, it sort of smells like one of my lentil recipes (which is a good thing!).  The cheese thoroughly breaks down during cooking, and it's just this yummy, creamy sauce.  The kids ate every bite, including all the vegetables!  Not only that, but they didn't see the vegetables as actual vegetables, so I got away with serving another veggie (broccoli) on the side!  Score!

SLOW COOKER CHEESY SAUSAGE AND VEGGIE PASTA
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ inspired by Fix-It-and-Forget-It)

2 cups beef stock
1/2 cup self-rising flour
1/4 cup butter
2 cups shredded fiesta blend cheese (or your favorite cheese blend)
2 lbs kielbasa, sliced into quarters
1 cup onions, diced
1 cup celery, diced
2 cups carrots, shredded
1 lb rotini pasta

Heat beef stock to boiling on stovetop.  Add in butter and stir until melted.
Add boiling stock to slow cooker.  Slowly whisk in flour until there are no clumps.  Add remaining ingredients except pasta.  Stir well until combined.
Cook on low 6 to 8 hours, until vegetables are soft and tender.
When finished cooking, prepare pasta as directed on box. Drain and mix into crockpot.  Stir gently until well mixed.
Serve warm.
Yield: 8 servings

Crockpot Cajun Chicken Spaghetti ***

We loved this!  I based it off of a recipe on Tablespoon, but I made so many changes that would affect the end result (good or bad) that it felt wrong using their recipe here.  So anyway, this was great.  I will most definitely make it again.  Even the kids were begging for seconds.

CROCKPOT CAJUN CHICKEN SPAGHETTI
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ inspired by Tablespoon)

3-4 uncooked large chicken breasts, diced
1 lb turkey Polish sausage
30 oz reduced-fat Alfredo sauce
1 package frozen fajita blend green peppers, red peppers, and onions
28 oz fire-roasted diced tomatoes
3 cloves minced garlic
1 tablespoon Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning
1 lb dried angelhair pasta

Combine all ingredients except pasta in crockpot.  Cook on low for 5-6 hours.
Follow directions on package for cooking pasta.  Drain and add to crockpot.
Stir until all noodles are covered.

Popeye's Red Beans and Rice ***

Even though there's one just a couple minutes from my house, I actually have never tried Popeye's.  However, I love red beans and rice, so when I first saw this a few years ago, I knew I had to give it a shot.  This is probably the hundredth time I've made it since then.  So good!  Not a bit spicy, thanks to adding the hot sauce after cooking.  Hubby and I love ours with the hot sauce, but it is easily left out of the kids' servings.  The OP said she used hot sausage links and goya beans, but I just use turkey smoked sausage and pinto beans.  I also use brown rice instead of white.  I'm sure the white would probably soak up the juices and hold the flavor better, but the brown makes me feel better about it, healthwise.  :)

POPEYE'S RED BEANS AND RICE
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ Food.com)

1 lb smoked sausage, sliced
4 (16 ounce) cans pink beans, drained and rinsed
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 bay leaf
1 pinch rosemary, crumbled
1/8 cup liquid smoke
1 (4 ounce) can green chilies, drained
6 cups cooked rice

Mix all ingredients (except rice) well in a crock pot.
Cook on low for 6-8 hours.
Remove bay leaf.
Stir in cooked rice and serve with hot sauce on the side.
*Amy's notes: I use turkey sausage and pinto beans.  The OP said she used hot links sausage and goya beans.  I also only use about a tablespoon of liquid smoke.

Crockpot Brat 'N' Tot ***

This was my attempt at turning my oven version of the Brat 'N' Tot Bake into a crockpot dish.  I've done it before, but the last time, I was limited on time (as usual) and thought I would be brilliant and skip the step of frying the bratwurst by instead using the pre-cooked brats.  Bad idea.  It made for far too much oil in there.  I hadn't thought about it, but frying the brat meat gets the grease out of it.

So this time, I smartened up and stuck with frying the cased brats.  I then put them in a colander and not only drained but also rinsed them well.  SO much more effective.  The amounts are a little different in the crockpot version, simply because I have a big crockpot and didn't want to risk overcooking.  It made for a decent amount of leftovers for lunch, though, so it all worked out.  The only difference was that I doubled the meat and onion and soup.  I kept the tots and sour cream and cheese amounts the same.  I think that next time I might try layering them a bit.  Maybe do tots, brats, soup, tots, and cheese.  We'll see.  It's great just like this, though.  The Brat 'N' Tot Bake is one of hubby's favorites, but with such a long cook time (not even including the prep time of precooking the meat), I don't get to make it very often.  This is a perfect compromise for us.   The flavor of the tots was great, and while they didn't get mushy or anything, they did fall apart a little.  So, this is definitely a keeper for us.  It was yummy and easy, which make it a winner in my book.  ;-)

CROCKPOT BRAT 'N' TOT
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy)

32 ounces uncooked bratwurst, casings removed (Do NOT use precooked)
1 to 1-1/2 medium onions, chopped
2 (10-3/4 ounce) cans low-fat condensed cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1 (32 ounce) package tater tots
1-1/2 cups sour cream
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese

Remove bratwurst from casings.  Crumble bratwurst into a large skillet.  Add onions and cook over medium heat until meat is no longer pink; drain and rinse in colander.  Add to crockpot, and stir in the soup.  Cover with tater tots.  Spread sour cream on tots, and sprinkle with cheese.  Cook on low 5-6 hours.

Blasphemous Pork Chops and Noodles (Crockpot) ***

This was amazing.  I'm not normally all that fond of pork chops (they're too dry for me), but they are fabulous cooked like this in the crockpot.  They're so tender and flavorful.  I think I may cut down a bit on the egg noodles next time, but that's the only thing I'll change.  I did have a bunch of fresh mushrooms to use up, so I threw them in there as well.  I'll definitely keep doing that.  I just love pork and mushrooms together.  Seriously, though, I will be making this again.  Two thumbs up all around!

BLASPHEMOUS PORK CHOPS AND NOODLES (CROCKPOT)
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ GoingReno)

6 pork chops or 1-1/2 pounds pork roast
1-1/2 cups liquid (I used chicken broth)
1/4 cup butter
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 small onion, finely chopped
Salt, pepper to taste
1 T Italian seasoning
1 T dry mustard
1/2 cup apricot preserves
Italian bread crumbs

Put the broth, butter, onion, garlic, apricot preserves, salt, pepper, Italian seasoning, and dry mustard into the crock of your slow cooker. Whisk to combine, then add the pork. Cook on high for four to five hours or low for eight to ten hours. About half way through the cooking time, turn the pork chops so that any part that wasn't already submerged is.
When the pork chops are done, start cooking the egg noodles. Take the meat out of the slow cooker. Remove any fat and use two forks to shred. Put the meat back into the crock.
When the noodles are cooked, drain them, then dump them into the slow cooker with the meat and broth. Sprinkle bread crumbs on top and mix everything together. The bread crumbs make a kind of dressing when they’re mixed with the liquid. That’s the consistency you’re going for. I used about a cup of bread crumbs, and it turned out perfect. You might like more or less, so just use your judgement. Taste for seasoning.
Tradition calls for serving pork chops and noodles with applesauce. My kids actually stir it into their noodles. Leaving it off might have caused flat-out mutiny in my house. I like to serve this with green beans or a salad.
*Amy's notes: I added a bunch of sliced fresh mushrooms at the beginning.  SO good!

Slow Cooker Ham and Pineapple Sandwiches ***

The kids and I loved these.  Hubby thought they were just okay.  I put them on the King's Hawaiian buns, which I will absolutely do every time.  YUM.  I took the buns and put them face-up under the broiler, with a slice of Swiss on each.  Then I added the ham afterwards.  So, so, so good.  I didn't do the peppers and onions and dried onions like it says, though.  I just used one of the frozen bags of three pepper and onion blends.  That buys you a little more cook time too, so I got away with 4 hours on low easily.  This is definitely a keeper for us.

SLOW COOKER HAM AND PINEAPPLE SANDWICHES
(luckymommyto2boys ~ Amy ~ SixSistersStuff)

2 lbs ham, fully cooked and cut into small pieces
1 (20 oz) can crushed pineapple
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 medium green bell pepper, diced
1/4 cup onions, minced
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon dried minced onion

Spray your slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray. Add all ingredients in the slow cooker and stir together. Cook on low heat for 3-4 hours or until completely heated through. Serve by scooping sandwich filling on a large hamburger bun (or bun of your choice). Makes about 10-12 sandwiches.
To make these even yummier, I threw some Swiss cheese on top of the ham and put them under the broiler in the oven for a minute or two (until the cheese was nice and melted). It was amazing.