Slow Cooker Hoisin Pork Wraps

What a different twist on say BBQ pulled pork or chicken. Tangy, easy and quite good. I'd make this again and I'd also consider it for a pot luck or group get together. Made as written with no substitutions.

Slow Cooker Hoisin Pork Wraps

1 - 2 lb boneless pork roast, trimmed of fat
5 Tbsp hoisin sauce
1 Tbsp grated gingerroot
1 tsp Chinese 5 spice powder
2 garlic cloves, minced
10 - 10" flour tortillas
3 cups shredded lettuce
1/2 cup sliced green onions
1 - 15 oz can mandarin orange segments, drained

Place pork roast in 3 to 4 quart slow cooker. In small bowl, combine 4
tablespoons of the hoisin sauce, gingerroot, 5 spice powder and garlic
and mix well. Spread mixture over pork.

Cover; cook on Low setting for 7 to 8 hours.

About 15 minutes before serving, heat oven to 300 degrees F. Wrap
tortillas in foil. Heat packet at 300 degrees F. for 10 to 15 minutes or
until warm.

Meanwhile, remove pork from slow cooker; place on cutting board. Stir
remaining tablespoon hoisin sauce into juices in slow cooker. Shred pork
with 2 forks then return to slow cooker and mix well.

To serve, spoon about 1/2 cup pork mixture onto each warm tortilla. Top
each with lettuce, onions and orange segments. Roll up.

Makes: 10 wraps

Doreen's Ham on the grill

Let me start by saying I don't know who Doreen is but her Ham on the grill is delicious!!! Made exactly as written, basted during grilling and used the ham steaks from Costco. YUMMY!!!

Doreen's Ham on the grill

1 C brown sugar

1/4 C lemon juice

1/3 C prepared horseradish

2-4 large ham slices or steaks

Turn on grill low, lay aluminum foil over grill grate and spray with nonstick spray before putting ham on. Meanwhile, combine all above ingredients and heat in microwave for approx. 1 min until warm. Baste ham slices with marinade while on grill. Turing at least once during cooking. Cook for about 6-8 min per side or until desired doneness.

Candy Apple Salad

This salad is a GREAT picnic or potlock addition! It's so yummy, make sure to soak your apples in Sprite to keep them from browning (better than lemon juice!). Also, if you freeze your Snickers Bars, you can put them in a ziplock bag and smash them into bite size pieces vs. chopping them at room temperature (I've been known to sample a bit too much when they're bite size room temp. candy bars vs. the frozen broken pieces). Love this salad!

Candy Apple Salad

1 1/2 C cold milk, use skim or 2%

(1) small pkg. sugar free vanilla pudding
(3-4) Granny Smith apples, diced into bite size pieces

(3) 2.07 oz Snicker Bars cut into bite size pieces

8oz. Cool Whip; thawed

Combine milk and pudding and let stand 2 minutes. Gently fold pudding and whipped topping together with apples and candy bars. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Nan's Chocolate Trifle

What's that old adage? Anything in a trifle dish is good. Really, anything. I'm including this recipe on my all stars blog because my dear Nan thought this was the best dessert she's ever eaten. I have to laugh because although I do love it, I never considered it the BEST dessert but my grandmother didn't give out high praise to food very often so because of that, here it is.

Nan's Chocolate Trifle

1 box chocolate fudge cake mix

1 60z instant chocolate pudding

1/2 C STRONG coffee

12oz Cool Whip

6 Heath Bars crushed

Bake cake according to package directs for a 13x9 pan. Cool completely.

Prepare pudding according to package directions.

Crumble 1/2 C of chocolate cake and set aside in a bowl. Take 1/2 of the remaining cake and crumble it in the bottom of a trifle bowl. Next add 1/4 C of the strong coffee over the cake layer, then 1/2 of pudding and 1/2 of cool whip and 1/2 Heath Bars. Repeat these layers one more time. Mix remaining Heath Bars and reserved chocolate cake crumbs together. Sprinkle that on top of trifle. Cover with plastic wrap and let sit in refrigerator for 4-5 hours.

**NOTE: THIS IS BEST IF LEFT OVERNIGHT so make it the night before you need it**

Better than Sex/Hugs/Anything cake

Because it IS better than all of the above. Hands down. Making this the night before you need it takes it over the top. Everything becomes one. Buddha would be so proud.

Better than _____ cake

• 1 (18.25 ounce) package German Chocolate cake mix
• 1 (14 ounce) can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 jar butterscotch or caramel ice cream topping
• 3 (1.4 ounce) bars chocolate covered toffee, chopped
• 1 (8 ounce) container of Cool Whip topping, thawed

Bake cake according to package directions for a 9x13 inch pan; cool on wire rack for 10 minutes. Make holes across the top of the cake with the end of a wooded spoon, making sure not to go through to the bottom.

Pour sweetened condensed milk over cake and let sink into holes. Then pour ice cream topping over cake and let that sink into holes. Refrigerate until completely cool. Spread cake with Cool Whip and sprinkle the toffee bar over frosted cake. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Raspberry Cake

This cake made me famous 'round these parts. It's delicious. Perfect for a hot summer evening (or breakfast...don't judge me). It's been a challenge at times finding the frozen raspberries IN JUICE but Bird's Eye makes them so start looking now at your favorite store. Maybe they can order them for you. It's worth the effort, I swear. Oh and make this as written before you change it up. It's so good, I'd hate to have you miss out on the original cake.

Raspberry Cake

• 1 package (18-1/4 ounces) white cake mix
• 1 package (3 ounces) raspberry gelatin
• 4 eggs
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1/4 cup hot water
• 1 package (10 ounces) frozen sweetened raspberries, thawed, undrained
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• FROSTING:
• 1 carton (12 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed
• 1 package (10 ounces) frozen sweetened raspberries, thawed, undrained

In a large bowl, combine the cake mix, gelatin, eggs, oil and water; beat on low speed for 30 seconds. Beat on medium for 2 minutes. Stir in raspberries.
Pour into a greased 13-in. x 9-in. baking pan. Bake at 350° for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool.
For frosting, in a large bowl, fold whipped topping into raspberries. Spread over cake. Refrigerate for 2 hours before serving. Store in the refrigerator.

Yield: 12-16 servings.

York SENSATIONAL Brownies

These are pure indulgence. I cannot have them in my home. CANNOT. Maybe like 4, one for each member of the family but that's it. I love York Peppermint Patties and I love these brownies. That makes for a really bad relationship with my butt/hips/stomach/etc. They're a bit tricky to cut so I line my pan with foil, spray it with nonstick spray then as the brownies have cooled, I lift out the foil and cut the brownies that way. Sometimes they crumble a bit but they taste just as good. Try using a plastic knife if it's sticking/crumbling to cut them. Usually letting them cool COMPLETELY is the magic to cutting them without issues.

York SENSATIONAL Brownies

• 24 small (1-1/2 inch) YORK Peppermint Patties
• 1-1/2 cups (3 sticks) butter or margarine, melted
• 3 cups sugar
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 5 eggs
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup HERSHEY'S Cocoa
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt

1. Heat oven to 350°F.(325°F. for glass baking dish). Remove wrappers from peppermint patties. Grease 13x9x2-inch baking pan.
2. Stir together butter, sugar and vanilla in large bowl. Add eggs; beat until well blended. Stir in flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt; blend well. Reserve 2 cups batter. Spread remaining batter in prepared pan. Arrange peppermint patties about 1/2 inch apart in single layer over batter. Spread reserved 2 cups batter over patties.
3. Bake 50 to 55 minutes or until brownies begin to pull away from sides of pan. Cool completely in pan on wire rack; cut into squares.
4. About 36 brownies.

Pretzel Jello

The bane of my existence. The breaker of all diet/healthy eating plans. The thing that sits in my fridge and calls my name in the middle of the night..."come eat me...." This is one component of my "last meals" from the "if you were going to die on death row, what would your last meal be if you could have ANYTHING you wanted to eat." game. I love you pretzel jello, I really, really do.

Pretzel Jello

2 cups finely crushed pretzels
1 cup sugar
2/3 cup butter, melted

1 Tbls sugar
1 pkg. (8 oz) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened
1 (8oz.) thawed COOL WHIP Whipped Topping
2 cups boiling water
2 pkg. (3 oz.) or 1 (6oz) JELL-O Strawberry Flavor Gelatin
2 (10 oz.) package of frozen strawberries, partially thawed


HEAT oven to 400°F.

Mix pretzel crumbs, 1Tbls sugar and butter. Press onto bottom of 13x9-inch pan. Bake 8 min. Cool.

BEAT cream cheese until fluffy gradually add 1C sugar and beat until smooth. Fold in COOL WHIP; spread over crust. Refrigerate.

ADD boiling water to gelatin mix in large bowl; stir 2 min. until completely dissolved. Stir in strawberries. Refrigerate 1-1/2 hours or until thickened (spoon drawn through leaves definite impression). Pour over cream cheese mixture in pan. Refrigerate 3 hours or until firm (don't skip this step, it makes the difference whether or not your dessert stays put when you cut it!)

Cherry Pie

It's cherry season in my end of the woods. Who doesn't love cherry pie?? I do. This is easy and delicious. Plus, it's got a large helping of a food group (read fruit) so it's totally healthy! :) It's also written so that your little cook can help you make it. Mine LOVES to help in the kitchen so this was perfect!

Cherry Pie

4 C cherries (washed and pitted) which is about 1 1/2 to 2 lbs.

1 C sugar (I haven't tried this with splenda but plan to)

1/4 C cornstarch

1/4 tsp almond extract

2 frozen pie crusts

2 Tbls salted butter, cut into bits

Preheat oven to 400 F.

Measure out the sugar, cornstarch, and almond extract, then ask your child to add these to the cherries and gently stir together.

Let one pie crust thaw for 10 minutes, then have your helper prick the bottom of it all over with a fork. Bake this crust for 8 minutes, then remove from the oven and cool for 5 minutes.

Meanwhile, remove the other crust from the freezer and have your child pick off the fluted rim; this will be your top crust. Let it thaw for 10 minutes. Then your helper can cut a few 1-inch vent holes, using a butter knife or cookie cutter.

When the bottom crust has cooled, pour in the filling and dot with butter. Let your sous-chef carefully invert the top crust, still in the pan, onto the filling and lift the pan off. Place the pie on a foil-covered baking sheet and bake until the filling bubbles and the crust is golden brown, about 40 minutes. After 30 minutes, check to see if the crust is getting too brown; if it is, cover pie with an aluminum-foil tent. Let cool about 15 minutes before serving.

Cranberry Chicken

This goes by other names, I think newlywed chicken or something like that, but it's darn good despite it's aliases.

Cranberry Chicken

1 can whole cranberry sauce

1 pkg dry onion soup mix

1 8oz bottle of russian dressing

4-6 skinless, boneless chicken breasts

Preheat oven 350 F

Mix above ingredients together and pour over chicken. Bake uncovered for 45 min to 1 hour.

Sausage Casserole

This is so good. Creamy, yummy, comfort food goodness. You can totally scale down the calories to make it pretty guilt free. I've also made this in the crock pot for potlucks at work and it's turned out just as good! Leftovers rock too!

Sausage Casserole

1 bag of frozen shredded hash browns, thawed

1 can creamed corn

1 can whole corn

1 can cream of chicken soup

1 pkg of polish sausage sliced into small round bite size pieces (I use turkey sausage)

8 oz. sour cream

cheddar cheese if desired

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Combine all ingredients in large 13x9 baking dish and bake for 1 hour. Cover if potatoes start to get brown before cooking time is up.

Crock Pot Smoked Sausage Snack

People love this recipe. It couldn't be easier and makes for a great addition to a party or potluck. I use turkey based sausage but any kind will do. You could even use the little weenies from Hillshire Farms.

Crock Pot Smoked Sausage Snack

3 lbs smoked sausage cut into bite size pieces (1/2 round discs is what I usually do)

2 C brown sugar

1/2 C cider vinegar

mustard for dipping if desired

If your sausage isn't low fat, boil for about 10 min to remove fat. Place sausage in crock pot and combine remaining ingredients and pour over sausages. Cook on high for 3 hours then to low for remainder of cycle.

Crock Pot Chicken Enchilada Dip

This had me at cream cheese. Fabulous dip for parties or potlucks. Make sure to use a crock pot liner that's sprayed with nonstick spray, you'll thank me at the end of the night.

Chicken Enchilada Dip

4 cooked chicken breasts; shredded

1 red pepper, finely chopped

1C chopped onion

8oz cream cheese softened

4 oz can chopped green chilis

1 C mayo (NOT Miracle Whip)

1 tsp lemon juice

1 pkg taco seasoning

tabasco to taste

Combine all ingredients; heat in crock pot on high until cream cheese is melted. Turn to low or warm and continue to heat through. Serve with pita or tortilla chips.

Crab Rangoon Dip with Wonton Chips

I've made this a few times and it's been met with RAVE reviews!! People can't get enough of it. It's easy peasy so make it for your next get together.

Crab Rangoon Dip

1 pkg cream cheese, softened
1 garlic clove, pressed
4 oz shredded Swiss cheese
3/4 cup sweet and sour sauce
8 oz imitation crab meat
1 green onion with top (about 1/4 cup thinly sliced)
1/4 cup toasted sliced almonds
Crispy Wonton Chips (recipe follows)

In small Bowl, combine cream cheese and garlic. Add Swiss cheese; mix until well blended. Spread cream cheese mixture over bottom of glass pie plate.

Spoon sweet and sour sauce over cream cheese mixture. Coarsely chop crab meat; sprinkle evenly over sauce. Microwave, uncovered, on HIGH 4-6 minutes or until outside edges of dip are bubbly and dip is heated through. (I've also baked this at 350F until I had the desired results)

Meanwhile, thinly slice green onion. Sprinkle dip with green onion and almonds. Serve dip warm using Crispy Wonton Chips, if desired.

Yield: 16 servings

Crispy Wonton Chips

32 square wonton wrappers

vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 375 F. Cut wonton wrappers in 1/2 diagonally and arrange on baking sheet. Spray or brush lightly with oil or cooking spray.

Bake 8-10 min or until golden brown and crisp. Cool chips completely and use as needed.

Crock Pot Pork Chops and Potatoes in Mustard Sauce

This was good, hearty comfort food. Anything with a cream based soup to me is comfort food. Throw in some 'taters and I'm a happy camper.

Crock Pot Pork Chops and Potatoes in Mustard Sauce

6 pork loin chops

1 can fat free cream of mushroom soup

1/4C low sodium chicken broth

1/4 C Dijon mustard

1 clove garlic minced or 1/4 tsp garlic powder

1/4 tsp pepper

6 medium potatoes, thinly sliced

1 onion sliced

In nonstick skillet, brown chops in 2 Tbls oil if desired. Drain fat.

In crock pot mix soup, broth, mustard and garlic and pepper. Add potatoes and onion, stirring to coat. Place browned chops on top of potato mixture. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or on high 4-5 hours.

Grilled Chicken with Lemon Basil Pasta

I enjoyed this despite the fact that the tiny voice in the back of my head screamed "do you KNOW how many calories are in heavy cream???". It didn't warm up that great for lunch on day 2 but it was pretty darn tasty the 1st day so I dealt with it. This recipe is courtesy of The Pioneer Woman.

Grilled Chicken with lemon basil pasta

4 whole Grilled Chicken Breasts, Sliced
1 pound Penne Pasta, Cooked Until Al Dente
1/2 stick Butter
3 whole Lemons, Juiced
3/4 cups Heavy Cream
1/4 cup Half-and-half
1-1/2 cup Grated Parmesan Cheese (or Romano)
Salt And Freshly Ground Black Pepper, To Taste
20 whole Basil Leaves, Chopped

Cook pasta, reserving 1 cup of hot pasta water when you drain. Set pasta aside in a colander.

In the same pot, melt butter over medium heat. Squeeze in the juice of 3 to 4 lemons. Whisk together. Pour in cream and half-and-heat. Whisk until hot. Dump in cheese and whisk until melted. Add salt and pepper. Check consistency, adding some of the hot pasta water to loosen the sauce if needed.

Pour pasta and sauce into a large serving bowl. Sprinkle remaining basil all over the top, then add sliced chicken breasts. Serve immediately!

Mexican Rice

This rice is so easy to make. Perfect every time and rivals the stuff you'd find at your favorite mexican restaurant.

Mexican Rice

3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 cup uncooked long-grain rice
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup tomato sauce
2 cups chicken broth

Heat oil in a large saucepan over medium heat and add rice. Cook, stirring constantly, until puffed and golden. While rice is cooking, sprinkle with salt and cumin.
Stir in onions and cook until tender. Stir in tomato sauce and chicken broth; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer for 20 to 25 minutes. Fluff with a fork.

Baked Chicken Chimichangas

I love these. LOVE THEM. They're low fat too. Did I mention that I love them?

Baked Chicken Chimichangas

1/2 C chopped onion

1 Tblsp minced garlic

1 Tblsp olive oil

1/2 Tblsp chili powder

16oz jar of salsa

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tst ground cinnamon

1 pinch salt

2 1/2 C shredded, cooked chicken

8 tortillas

1 can fat free refried beans

cooking spray

Preheat oven to 450 F

In large saucepan, saute onion and garlic in oil until tender. Take care not to burn the garlic. Stir in chili powder, salsa, cumin, cinnamon and salt. Stir in shredded chicken. Let cool slightly.

Spray rimmed cookie sheet with cooking spray. Working with one tortilla at at time, spoon a heaping Tblsp of beans down center of tortilla. Top with 1/3 C of the chicken mixture. Fold up the bottom, top and sides of tortilla. Secure with toothpicks. Place chimichanga on cookie sheet seam side down. Spray all sides with cooking spray. Repeat for rest of tortillas. Bake in 450 F oven for 20-25 min or until golden brown and crisp, turning every 5 min.

Serve hot with shredded lettuce, fresh tomatoes, sour cream and salsa if desired.

Enchilada's Fantasticas

This recipe is near and dear to my heart. It was given to me many YEARS ago by a sweet woman named Betty Toppa. It was one of the 1st recipes I made my new husband after we got married. Betty was an amazing cook and I learned so many tips and tricks from her in addition to getting some delicious recipes. Betty has passed on but every time I make this, I think of her and smile.

Enchilada's Fantasticas

1lb. ground beef or turkey

2 C picante sauce

(1) 10oz pkg of frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry

2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp salt

(1) 8 oz pkg of cream cheese (use low fat, save where you can)

10 flour tortillas, warmed

(1) 14 1/2 oz diced tomatoes, un-drained

2 C shredded cheddar cheese

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Cook meat until browned, breaking into small pieces. Add 1 C picante sauce, spinach, 1 1/2 tsp cumin and salt. Cook and stir 5 min or until most of the liquid has evaporated. Add cream cheese, stirring just until melted. Remove from heat and let cool sightly. Spoon 1/3 C filling into tortilla. Roll up and place in greased 13x9 baking dish. Combine tomatoes, remaining 1 C picante sauce and 1/2 tsp cumin. Mix well. Spoon over enchiladas. Bake at 350 F for 20 min. Sprinkle cheese over enchiladas and return to oven for 2 min or until cheese melts. Serve with additional picante sauce and sour cream if desired.

Crock Pot Peking Pork Chops

These are a family favorite. So easy to prepare and I use boneless frozen chops and cook 'em on low pretty much for 7 hours. We usually eat them with some mashed potatoes and a green veggie.

Crock Pot Peking Pork Chops

6 pork chops about 1" thick

1/4 C brown sugar

1 Tblsp ground ginger

1/2 C reduced sodium soy sauce

1/4 C ketchup

1-2 cloves garlic; pressed

salt and pepper to taste

Trim any excess fat from chops. Place chops in crock pot. Combine rest of ingredients and pour over chops. Cook on low 4-6 hours or until meat is tender (if using frozen chops, figure on about 7 hours on low).

Enjoy!

Blueberry Buckle

This BY FAR is the BEST coffeecake/dessert/brunch item/etc. I've ever had the pleasure of eating! It's best with fresh blueberries, although I've made it with frozen and it was good but the fresh takes it one step further on the yummy scale.

Blueberry Buckle

3/4 C white sugar

1/4 C butter, softened

1 Egg

1/2 C milk

1 1/2 C flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

2 C fresh blueberries

Topping:

1/4 C white sugar

1/4 C brown sugar

1/3 C flour

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 C butter

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease an 8x8 baking dish.

Cream together 3/4 C sugar, 1/4 C softened butter and egg.

In a separate bowl, combine 1 1/2 C flour, baking powder and salt. Stir into sugar mixture, alternating with milk. Gently stir in blueberries. Pour into greased 8x8 pan.

For topping, combine white and brown sugars, flour, cinnamon and cut 1/4 C butter into mixture to form coarse crumb like texture. Sprinkle over cake batter.

Bake at 375 for 30-40 min. making sure the topping doesn't brown too quickly and toothpick inserted into center of cake comes out clean. Use foil on top of cake towards the end of baking if needed to keep topping from browning too quickly.

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