It’s Monday morning. Staying in bed would be great, why is the weekend so short? For most of us Mondays are busy. But now that the days are longer it seems as if dinner time creeps up quickly and how many nights have you been scrambling to get dinner on the table before 8 pm? Well I have a solution for you. Get out the Crock Pot! If you don’t have one think about getting one, it will make getting dinner to the table easy and quick. You won’t have to spend much time in the kitchen and your house will smell delish.
For starters are are some Slow Cooker Tips
Let the meal equal the pot – The only time I have had poor results with a slow cooker is when I haven’t put enough food into the pot. When the pot is too big, food can tend to scorch and dry out. I actually have two slow cookers now – one for meals just for me and Roger (a 2-quart), and one for when I know all the kids will be home or I am making a meal with leftovers to be used in the following night’s dinner (a 6-quart).
You can overcook – Everyone says, “Just throw it in the pot and forget it!” Well, that’s true – to a point. You do what to make sure that to pay attentions to timing on your meal so that it doesn’t dry out.
If you are always going to be arriving home after a meal should be done cooking, you may want to consider getting a slow cooker with a probe thermometer. Our big pot has one of these handy little gadgets and can be programmed to stop cooking when the meat reaches a pre-determined temperature.
Use a non-stick cooking spray on the inside of your pot to make clean-up easier.
Meats don’t brown in the slow cooker, so if you do want your meats browned, do it before you put it on the pot.
What you should serve your troops!
Citrus-Glazed Pork Roast
I love pork roast in the slow cooker for several reasons – it doesn’t get dried out, you can cut it to size in order to have just enough to feed your troops.
Ingredients:
1 (3lb.) boneless pork loin roast
2 garlic cloves, minced
½ tsp. dried thyme
½ tsp. ground ginger
¼ tsp. pepper
1 T vegetable oil
1 c. chicken broth
2 T sugar
2 T lemon juice
2 T soy sauce
1 ½ tsp. orange zest
3 T. cornstarch
½ c. orange juice
Directions:
Cut roast in half.
In a small bowl, combine the garlic, thyme, ginger and pepper; rub over roast.
In a large skillet over medium heat, heat the oil and brown the roast on all sides.
Place roast in a 5-qt. slow cooker.
In a small bowl, combine the broth, sugar, lemon juice, soy sauce and orange zest; pour over roast.
Cover and cook on low for 4 hours or until a meat thermometer reads 160 degrees F.
Remove roast and keep warm.
In a saucepan, combine the cornstarch and orange juice until smooth; stir in cooking juices. Bring to a boil. Cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened.
Serve with the roast.
Now you just need a side or two. Steamed veggies, mash or roasted potatoes, fruit salad and dinner is served!
Do you have breakfast on the go, or do you go without breakfast? How many of you skip breakfast? I am guessing most of us, or if you do not skip breakfast than you might fall into the eat the donut with your coffee as you walk into work or drive the kiddos around category. Let’s face it our mornings are rushed and tackling the days tasks can seem more important to us than sitting down to eat breakfast.
All this week we are going to be focusing on getting out the door in the morning and one of the best ways to do that is to have some Breakfast on the go ideas.
But,whether it’s sitting around the table, or breakfast on the go it’s so important! It provides the energy we need to start the day, it gets our metabolism going and we all want that to work right. Nobody likes putting on extra pounds or buying a larger size. So how do we start the day off on the right foot, make it quick, easy and healthy and stay on time?
Below are a few links to give you some ideas about breakfast on the go. Many can be made ahead or take little to no time at all to prepare.
If you have kids there is plenty you can do to set up the night before.
Before bed set the table with the bowls, spoons, napkins and cereal choices. Add any fruit or bread items needed…anything that does not live in the fridge.
Have a list in the kitchen of your current breakfast choices so you do not waste time hunting for food. I have a friend who types up breakfast choices for her kids and before she sends them to bed the kids initial what they want the next day. The list changes as her food choices change. This save several minutes each morning for everyone in the house.
Set your coffee pot at night so by the time you wake up you have hot, fresh coffee.
Use your Crock Pot for breakfast; it’s not just for dinner.
Go ahead and chop the fruit or peel it and place it in a Ziploc bag. If you are prepping apples toss with lemon juice to prevent browning.
Have breakfast on the go choices ready: cheese sticks, yogurts, nuts and homemade breads sliced and in a container as well so you can grab it on your way out the door.
Below are a few sites you can visit to get great crock pot breakfast on the go recipes.
You have to love this next list of breakfast ideas, if only the website address… “Dumb little man” But it is also good to get a man’s perspective as well as a lot of us are taking care of his needs too!
And be sure to head over to my Facebook Author Page to download our list of 30 On the Go Breakfast Ideas!
So let’s help each other out. I want to hear what tips and tricks you have to make breakfast simple and healthy and getting out the door on time with little stress.
Tell me all your great ideas in the comments below and you could be entered to win a $25 Starbucks gift card.
One winner will be chosen from all comments posted for the entire week.
Please, be sure to link to your blog or provide an email address so we can get in touch with you!
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