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This Was My Father’s Favorite Dish – Yum!

My mother never had a crock pot but that doesn’t mean she didn’t know how to slow cook food to perfection. My Dad was crazy about her sausage stew; Mom would make a huge batch of it, letting it simmer slowly for half a day. By the time we gathered around the dinner table the whole house smelled amazing and our tummies were growling. She didn’t have to call for us twice, that’s for sure!

Now, I really don’t have the time to stand by the stove all day (neither did my mother so I have no idea how she made it happen). That’s why I love my slow cooker – I can let it do all the work for me and then I just happily enjoy the results!

This hearty sausage stew is one of my favorite crock pot recipes. Probably because the flavor is almost identical to the one my mother used to make. Making dinner doesn’t get any easier than this! I make this stew year ’round but I think it’s perfect for the chilly fall and winter nights.

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Quick Tip: This recipe makes 6 servings.

If you have been reading for some time, you should know that I absolutely love a good potato. Yeah, I know it sounds funny and you thought I was going to say “a good bowl of soup” but it is just true. I love going to restaurants like Longhorn, or Texas Roadhouse, or even Wendy’s when I am on the go to get myself a good ol’ fashioned potato. It is just awesome! There is something about it for me that is so comforting and soothing to sit with a perfectly delicious baked potato.

Now, do not skip out on the fixings with me either. I hate going to Wendy’s to find that they are out of cheese or simply did not prepare it with everything. No girl, load that baby up! One day, after a particularly unamusing visit to Wendy’s, I decided to make my own at home. Now, I do not know exactly how many people I thought I was feeding, but let’s just say I had leftovers. Guess what I did with it? Read on this recipe and you will find out! It is a simple and easy way to use leftovers, but it does not have to be just that. You can make this with regular uncooked potatoes as well.

Photo and recipe courtesy of Dinner Then Dessert.

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Quick Tip: Swap ham for turkey or chicken.

I was a good child. No, I am not kidding! I really was. At least when it came to food. I wasn’t a picky eater. Between my brother and me, it was easier to feed me. I was the one who always ate what she was told to eat regardless of my preference. When I requested for chicken and there was fish on the table, I ate it. That’s why I can say that I truly love vegetables. It’s an acquired taste, but yeah, I managed to do so over the years. The only food I really couldn’t stomach back then (and until now actually) was pickled food, but I really did eat everything that my parents cooked for us.

They had a hard time with my younger brother. He really didn’t want to eat anything other than fried food and pasta. While pasta could be healthy, we only had that every weekend, which meant that the rest of the week, he was only eating fried, dried, and fatty food. The best attempt my Mom tried was a vegetable soup renamed as creamy pasta soup. Well, it worked! Until I opened my big mouth and told him it was vegetable soup.

Photo courtesy of Food.com. Recipe courtesy of Food Network Kitchen.

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Quick Tip: Leave a cup of vegetables not pureed if a chunkier soup is preferred.

Potato lovers rejoice! No longer is a loaded baked potato shunned to a side dish, this twice-baked potato casserole moved up to the main meal and will fill your family’s bellies with hearty goodness. With a combined prep and bake time of 35 minutes, this dish is perfect for a weeknight meal! I love it whenever I find a recipe that doesn’t make me slave away in the kitchen for hours.

Going back for seconds is a must with the delicious flavors of crispy bacon, gooey cheeses, sour cream, and green onions to top it off. Make this for a pot-luck, or a family gathering as it comfortably serves 6-8. Of course, you could double the ingredients to make sure you’ll have tasty leftovers for lunch the next day. That’s what I always do, and so far I have never regretted it!

Recipe and photo courtesy of Taste of Home.

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Quick tip: Add some of your favorite veggies to make this casserole a little lighter.

There’s little better than a nice bowl of chili to warm you up on a cold day. This recipe is a bit non-traditional, but it is satisfying and rather quick and easy to put together. I could eat chili most any time of year, though many people like to save it for the colder months. As often as I cook chili, though, I am on the lookout for creative variations on the traditional recipe, and this is a nice one.

Here’s what our friends over at Domesticate Me had to say about this amazing chili:

I’m pleased to report that this chili is a vegan wonder, but you can easily beef things up with any type of meat you have handy. I’ve made it at least four times over the past few weeks with different fillings, and it never disappoints. Try simmering it with top round steak, ground turkey, shredded chicken, lightly browned chorizo or some spicy chicken sausage. (The Dude really lost his cool over the chicken sausage version.) Feel free to get creative.

 

Recipe and photo courtesy of Domesticate Me

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Quick tip: Adjust the amount of chili powder and crushed red pepper to your taste.

Do you feel like you’ve tried every possible side dish recipe on the Earth? Or maybe you just don’t like to spend hours preparing for a side, when the main course itself is taking time. Whatever the case, we have found the perfect solution for you!

Sweet potatoes are great with most any meal, though they are a particularly common side dish for Thanksgiving or Christmas dinner. This recipe for Slow Cooker Sweet Potatoes With Bacon is an easy but flavorful one, and that’s why I can’t wait for a special occasion to make it! This should go nicely with turkey, ham, chicken, or even other types of pork. That blend of sweet, savory, and salty is just irresistible to me. Just throw this in the Crock-Pot in the morning, and you can have it ready in time for dinner with no trouble at all.

Recipe and photo courtesy of MyRecipes.com

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Quick tip: Want to make this vegan? Omit the bacon and use vegetable margarine instead of butter.

These Cheesy Bacon Breakfast Potatoes make for a simple yet delicious main course. With just three rather common essential ingredients (plus some salt and pepper and a simple garnish), this recipe won’t break your back or the bank. This is properly a breakfast recipe, but I normally eat my breakfast food at suppertime. Breakfast food like this is great if you want something soothing and savory but don’t want anything too over-the-top heavy for dinner.

I was intrigued by this recipe, as it calls for baking the bacon (instead of frying it on the stove) and reserving the bacon grease for the other baking steps. I have to say, it turned out nicely. Bacon grease just adds so much great savory flavor to everything. I kept things simple and breakfast-oriented and had these potatoes with some eggs and grits, but if you want to serve this as a side dish in a bigger meal, I’m sure that it would go nicely with some steak or even some fried pork chops.

Recipe and photo courtesy of Barefeet in the Kitchen

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Quick tip: Use your favorite cheese for this dish!