Home Cooking in the Crockpot

My crockpot has been getting a workout these last few weeks.  This week was the last week for the Adult Ed classes Deus Ex Machina and I were taking this fall.  We had two - Qigong on Wednesday nights (which will continue mid- November) and Country Line Dancing on Thursdays (which will resume in January, hopefully!).  Both classes were a hoot, and really, line dancing is some crazy good exercise ... if you do it the way I do - lots of hips and flailing arms :).  

There's no time to eat before class with work schedules being what they are, and so we eat after, but there's no time to cook dinner after class, if we hope to eat before 8:00pm.  So, I've been putting our dinner in the crockpot for the past several weeks, and it's been amazing.  Honestly, that crockpot has, totally, paid for itself - just in the savings from not eating out.  We won't even add the cost savings from the fact that there are always leftovers that Deus Ex Machina takes to lunch.

We've had a lot of different meals.  My favorite is to throw a pork roast with seasonings for Carnitas.  The meat is served with corn tortillas or chips, lettuce, grated cheese, salsa, and sour cream.  Sometimes I will cook rice to serve with it instead of the corn tortillas.  

Really, any roast in the crockpot is a good choice.  Beef roast topped with a tomato sauce, peppers, and onions is Yankee Pot Roast, and served over mashed potatoes.

Another favorite is to add stew meat, potatoes, carrots, onions, and spices for beef stew.  The other day, I had to drive to work because my daughter needed a ride to her job, and I came home at lunch and threw stew in the crockpot.  It was done by the time we got done with our Qigong class.

Sometimes, though, I just want the comfort of a good Mac&Cheese, but to make it the right way, which is not from a box and includes baking it, can be time consuming.  Really good Mac&Cheese includes a lot of cooking terms: boil, grate, mix, bake ....  

I found a crockpot version that is so simple, I can't even imagine doing Mac&Cheese any other way, now.  And there's no need to pre-boil the pasta.   Just throw everything into the crockpot, close the lid, wait an hour, stir, leave it alone for another hour or so, and serve, and it's AMAZING!

The original recipe called for Velveeta cheese, which I don't ever use.  So, I adapted it for my kitchen, and because I wanted it to be a full meal, I added ham and broccoli, both of which are optional and can be left out. 

Here's my recipe, using gluten-free penne or macaroni, and no Velveeta cheese.

Creamy Crock-pot Mac & Cheese

Ingredients:

12 oz pasta (I've used Penne and macaroni, both of which came out really good)

14 oz shredded cheese (I used a mix of cheddar, Monterey Jack, and Pepper Jack)

4 oz Feta (an additional 4 ounces of a shredded cheese would also work)

3 1/2 c Half and Half

1/2 c butter, cut into 1" slices

1 lb ham, cubed (optional)

1 c  chopped broccoli pieces (optional).

How To:

1.  Put pasta topped with ham and broccoli in the bottom of the crockpot. 

2.  Put butter on top of pasta, ham, and broccoli

3.  Add shredded cheese.

4. Pour in with Half and Half.

5.  Cover with lid and cook on high for one hour.

6.  Stir well.

7.  Replace lid and cook for an additional hour.

The only worry is to check the pasta to make sure that it's not overcooked and mushy, but even if it is a little well-done, it's still creamy and delicious, and so much easier than dealing with multiple pots and baking pans.  

I like simple meals that taste really good and don't use many dishes ... because I love to cook, but I hate washing dishes.