Paleo Breakfast Crock Pot Casserole

The crock pot makes cooking a breeze and it's even more wonderful to wake up to a delicious smelling breakfast! This is a super healthy recipe and is also Paleo friendly. It's a healthy way to kick start your day and plus there will be plenty to share. The consistency of the eggs was some what new to me since i usually eat them scrambled, but I guess it's just like eating a quiche. I am not sure how this would work with egg whites, but that might be a variation to try next time. When you don't have a lot of time to make breakfast in the morning, this is a great casserole to make so that you can just reheat and eat.

Ingredients:
8 eggs, whisked 
1 sweet potato, shredded
1 white onion, diced
1 tablespoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons dried basil
Veggies: I used bell peppers and mushrooms, but you can use anything you want
Salt and pepper

Directions:

 Start by whisking the eight eggs together in a medium bowl. Coat the crock pot bowl with coconut oil to prevent anything from getting cooked on.

 Peel the sweet potato and then use a medium grater to grate the sweet potato. Then add all the ingredients into the crock pot and stir everything together. Cook it on LOW for 6 to 8 hours. (I accidentally cooked mine one high so it got a bit brown on the edges.

Crock Pot Pumpkin Breakfast Quinoa

I love quinoa because you can do so much with it. However, I have never made a sweet recipe. I have had breakfast quinoa dish before and it was super tasty and filling, so I decided that I wanted to find a breakfast quinoa recipe. So I headed on over to Pinterest to see what I could find. I was so excited when I found this recipe from The Lovely Vegan Mama for pumpkin breakfast quinoa. I was even more excited when I realized that I happened to have all the ingredients on hand! That rarely happens so I got to work making this right away. Plus I got to use my crock pot which is always exciting. Putting everything and having it smell amazing is definitely something I can do. This is a great fall breakfast and the protein packed quinoa will keep you feeling full and ready for the day.

Ingredients:

2 cups quinoa, uncooked
8 cups almond milk, unsweetened
1 cup canned pumpkin
1/2 cup maple syrup or agave (I used a combination of both)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon allspice
coconut oil spray

Directions:

Spray the crock pot thoroughly with coconut oil. You don't want to deal with trying to scrape any of the baked on quinoa off the bowl. Add the quinoa, almond milk, canned pumpkin, maple syrup or agave, vanilla, salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and allspice to the pot.

Stir together to make sure that everything is combined. Cook on low for 6 to 7 hours, depending on your consistency preference. It will smell delicious, I promise. You can served with dried cranberries, raisins, walnuts or bananas and you are on your way to a power packed breakfast.

It's Chili Time!

It's finally starting to feel like fall around here and I couldn't be more excited! It's perfect chili weather and I found great and healthy recipe for the crock pot. It's hearty and filling, but feel free to top it with cheese, onions, sour cream or guacamole. This chili is a little bit different in that you make the sauce before adding everything to the crock pot. Don't be alarmed this isn't a difficult process. When you are home for the day throw this and I can guarantee that you will have a delicious dinner! Plus who doesn't love the smell of a fall chili.

Ingredients:

1.25 lb ground beef (you can also use turkey)
2 14.5 oz cans of tomato sauce
2 15 oz cans of black beans, rinsed and drained
1 14.5 oz petite diced tomatoes, undrained
1 2/3 cups frozen corn
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tablespoon paprika
1 tablespoon chili powder
2 teaspoons cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons oregano
1/4 crushed red pepper flakes

Directions:

Heat olive oil in a large saute pan and brown the ground beef.

In a medium bow, combine the tomato sauce and spices. Mix together until everything is incorporated.

Add the tomato sauce to the cooked ground beef, black beans, corn and diced tomatoes. Cook on low for 4-8 hours. (Note*: I cooked mine for about 6 hours) Top this with your favorite toppings and enjoy a bowl of this festive fall chili.

Crock Pot Pumpkin Butter

During the fall, it seems that different "butters" start to become popular. Just to clarify, this doesn't actually have any butter in it. I think that the name comes from the similarity in consistency, but not in the ingredients. I haven't really tried many of these, let alone made one so I figured now was as good a time as any to try to make one. We all know it's now the season of pumpkin recipes so I decided to get on the boat and trying making a pumpkin butter. I am try to make more use of my crock pot (because the idea of throwing some ingredients together in a pot and then leaving it alone is very appealing) and it's a slightly underrated kitchen appliance. This couldn't be easier to make and it a great hostess gift as well. It makes a huge amount so you can definitely share and still have some to enjoy.

Ingredients:

1 15 oz can of pumpkin

1/2 cup low-sugar apple juice

3/4 cup brown sugar (the original recipe called for granulated sugar)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 ground nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon cloves

Directions:

Combine all the ingredients in the crock pot and cook on low for about 5 hours. Make sure that you occasionally stir the butter to prevent it from getting too brown. The butter will be done when you can turn a spoon upside down and the butter stays.

Put the butter in containers and let it cool completely in the refrigerator. It will last about a week in the frig and up to 6 months in the freezer. I left some out to use immediately and then froze the rest in smaller containers. That way when I run out, I can pull out some more for a few days without it going bad.

Slow Cooker Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal

This is just about the time when apples are coming into season and I would love to visit an orchard to go apple picking. However, there aren't any orchards around me so I decided to make this apple cinnamon oatmeal in honor of apple season. The best part of this you make it in the crock pot so not only is it really easy, it makes a few servings. There were a few substitutions that I made to the recipe based on what I had on hand. The apple cinnamon combination is the perfect blend of flavors for this time of year and the oatmeal is just the fuel to get you ready for to take on the day. You can add toppings like bananas, nuts, raisins or cranberries to the oatmeal as well, but I decided to eat mine without toppings. I took the leftovers and froze individual servings to make grab and go breakfasts.

Ingredients:

4 small gala apples, cut into cubes (3 large apples)
1 1/2 cups almond milk (2% milk)
1 cup low-sugar apple juice (apple cider)
1/2 cups water
1 heaping cup of old-fashioned oats (steel-cut oats)
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon wheat germ

Directions:

Core and cube apples. Use a crock pot liner or generously spray the inside with cooking spray. You don't want to be scrubbing all the baked on oatmeal off. Add all the ingredients into the crock pot and stir. Cook on low for 7 hours with the lid on.

When you are ready to reheat the oatmeal, microwave for 30 seconds with a splash of milk, stir and microwave an additional 15 seconds if necessary. You can add more liquid or microwave for more time based on how you like your oatmeal.

First Time Roast

I have never made a roast before, but I figured in the crock pot would be a great place to start. I love how simple and easy crock pots are and how they make your house smell amazingly delicious! Really anyone can use a crock pot because you throw together the ingredients and turn it on...not too much cooking involved. I found this recipe on Pinterest from crock pot pot roast and gave it a try. You can find the full recipe on my Pinterest board or on crepesofwrath.com. This is a simple but homey dish and just makes you feel good.

First you make the broth, put in half the cut up veggies, place the roast on top, layer the rest of the veggies on the roast. The key is to make sure that the roast is in the broth so that it stays moist. Turn it on for 8 to 10 hours. This recipe calls for 2 to 3 stems of fresh rosemary and I used 3. I would cut it back to 2 because the rosemary flavor was very prominent. It had a great flavor and at the end of the cooking time, the meat literally fell apart. It was packed with flavor and would be perfect for a cold fall evening. As a first attempt at cooking a roast, I think it turned out pretty well. So when the air begins to get a bit nippy be sure to try this out.

Crock Pot Chili

I have a crock pot, but don't really use it all that often because I don't have that many recipes. I found this recipe for chicken taco chili on Pinterest. It's super simple and really yummy. The best part about crock pot recipes is that you put in all the ingredients and then just let it cook away. Plus, it starts to release all these delicious aromas and makes me feel really cozy. The recipe is available on my Pinterest board, but here's what you need to know.



 Ingredients:
1 can of black beans
1 can of kidney beans
1 bag of frozen corn
1 28 oz. can of diced tomatoes (I used no salt added tomatoes)
1 16 oz. can of tomato sauce
3 boneless chicken breasts, frozen
1 tbsp chili powder
Either 1 packet taco seasoning or spices to taste (cumin, oregano, salt, pepper)

Directions:
Put all ingredients into the crock pot and cook for 6 hours on high or 10 hours on low. Once it's done, shred the chicken and mix in. Top with sour cream, shredded cheddar cheese, avocado, lettuce, tortilla strips or guacamole.

Dig in and enjoy! Try it out and let me know what you think. If you have any great crock pot recipes, post them so I check try them out.