Crock Pot Yumminess!

Barron and I cleaned up the rest of the Creamy Crock Pot Chicken today and it reminded me that I need to share this recipe with you! If you're looking for something you can toss in the crock pot and come home to dinner, this is for you. (*disclaimer: it is best with noodles or rice. I suppose you could put rice in the pot too, but it will be mushy. Instant rice doesn't take too long.)

Creamy Crock Pot Chicken
from my Aunt Sherri

4 chicken breasts
1/4 c water
1 pkg Italian salad dressing mix
8 oz cream cheese, low fat, softened (I've used less than 8oz before)
1 can cream of chicken soup (fat free is what I use)

Spray crock with non-stick spray. Spread the chicken along the bottom of the crock. Mix cream cheese, dressing mix, and cream of chicken soup. Cover chicken with mixture (it's pretty thick). Cover that with water (use a little more if you want). Cook on low all day (or high for a shorter time).

Yum. Sorry I don't have a picture, but let's be honest; crock pot meals don't win awards for presentation ;)

As mentioned above, serve over rice or noodles.

Another crock pot favorite of ours is pork loin. I make it with a dry rub, giving it great flavor but keeping it versatile enough to use for bbq sandwiches, pork nachos, soup, etc.

Pork Dry Rub

Pork loin (you could it on butt, roast, whatever, but I try to keep it lower in fat)
Meat tenderizer (like Adolf)
black pepper
seasoning salt
season blend, no salt (like Mrs. Dash)
basil
some flavor of Dirkey grill creations (really most anything will work)
water

Spray the crock with non-stick spray. Sprinkle tenderizer on both sides of meat. Cover it well, but don't over-do it. Place in crock, fat side up.

In a little bowl, mix the rest of the seasonings. I realize I didn't put any measurements - I wasn't given any so I just wing it. Half a teaspoon of everything is a good place to start. Add more of something you especially like. Add more of it all. The only way to screw this up is use too much seasoning salt. The tenderizer is very salty, so you don't want to over-do the salt. Once mixed, sprinkle it over the meat. (And yes, sometimes I do just sprinkle each spice directly on the meat, one at a time. Whatever.)

Add some water to the pot, around the meat. A cup should do it, maybe two.

Cook on low all day. Come home from work and sigh in contentment at how wonderful the house smells. Eat it like it is day one. Get creative the rest of the week. Monday is a great day to make a huge pork loin!

Happy slow-cooking!