Dinner? No I am sorry, we have the plague.

I have missed my little corner of the food world! Honestly, I believe my family has too because I will admit in writing, that as of today, I have not cooked a meal for my family in over a week! Shameful, I know. The person who believes every person can find time to cook a meal has failed miserable to accomplish that...the nerve right?

Well, let's put this in perspective. My real job has kept me hopping, and I mean 12 hour work day hopping. I have thrown a few things in a crock-pot here or there or re-purposed freezer leftovers a couple of times. But the real cause of this latest culinary drought? The plague. You read that correctly. I am convinced that short of dipping my entire house in bleach my family is doomed to a cycle of co-pays, medicines and sick days. I myself am home for the second day in a row after succumbing to bronchitis...this after being sick last Sunday with what my local doc-in-a-box called an "upper respiratory infection" and promptly gave me decongestant.Yesterday, my family doctor consequently shook her head at me "tsk, tsk" while she rubbed my lumpy lymph nodes and wrote me a prescription for amoxicillan. Now, did I mention last Saturday my little boy was diagnosed with Strep Throat...which in turn my husband caught and was home with for two days last week? Prior to that, my husband was sick with what we thought was the flu and was instead a yet to be named virus everyone else has had at some point judging by Facebook statuses.

What does this have to do with food? Well, the motivation to cook diminishes significantly when everyone including the head chef is ill or not getting home until 7PM at night. Hubby stepped it up and made dinner a few nights, our favorite local Italian place has received our online order a few times and last night for fear my small son would be subjected to pizza or grilled cheese again, I went and picked up take-out from a steakhouse chain. Sometimes, it is NOT about a culinary journey but survival. We have been surviving. I am definitely ready to move past survival and start cooking and enjoying eating again.

I am starting today by trying out a new recipe. My cough is still keeping me awake and my culinary creativity is in a Nyquil fog so I found this tasty recipe that I had pinned a while back for honey sesame chicken. I think I can manage the intensive labor it calls for....wish me luck and maybe one day I'll get back to meal planning and cooking...right now I am working on breathing.

Harvest Pot Roast

What's better than a hot meal after standing in line for almost 2 hours to vote? A hot meal from a crock-pot with a November theme: harvest!

One chuck roast, sweet potatoes, carrots, onions and a blend of brown gravy mix, seasoned salt, and cinnamon! Made a nice gravy when it was done. And as an aside, pairs great with Punkin Ale!

Crock-pot Creation: Asian Style Pork Tacos

It may not look like a lot in the pot, but this is the makings of pulled pork tacos with a sauce of soy, hoisin, cola, ginger and garlic. Yummy!

Crock-Pot French Toast: The Next Day

So, the Crock-Pot French Toast? This was what I woke up to the next morning. The house smelled like someone else was in my kitchen making French Toast (as if THAT would ever happen) and it looked delicious. The recipe (and others I found on a quick search just to be sure) said to take the lid off the last 15 minutes of cooking in order to brown the bread. THAT was a huge step although I don't doubt had I just scooped this into a bowl it would have been met with delight as well. However, the crisping did make it just like French toast out of the skillet.

The verdict from the family? Anything that my step-daughter says to make again is a keeper and hubby AND small son both gobbled it up. I couldn't resist serving it with bacon of course!

The original recipe linked to Pinterest is found HERE. 

You can follow my food and recipe board on Pinterest as well....I am always finding things that are interesting, inspirational and like this French toast, recipes I have to try. And as if there was a question, yes I have a bacon love page too!

French Toast! In a Crock-Pot?

I just put this together. Pinterest strikes again! Trying out this French toast recipe made overnight in the slow cooker. I bought a beautiful loaf of raisin challah and I am crossing my fingers! If it works I will share recipe and link tomorrow !

Chicken Chili: It's What's for Breakfast

Those of you who know me outside this blog in "real life" know I have been fighting a cold/Captain Tripps-esque misery for a week. It is raining this morning and nothing sounded good except for my leftover chicken chili from Tuesday. So even with the shaking of my husband's head in the background, my breakfast was served. I think the jalapeño is helping my sinuses.

Find the recipe at: http://www.mypodcooks.com/recipes/slow-cooker-chicken-chili

Sunday Supper: Mom's Chili

I learned to make chili from my mom and a few years ago she gave me her recipe. She can't remember where she got it from but it's the chili she has cooked for years and I get to share the recipe with you!

Mom's Chili

Ingredients

• 2.5 lb ground chuck
  
• 2 cups chopped onion
  
• 1 chopped green pepper
  
• 2 cloves garlic pressed
  
• 3 Tbsp chili powder
  
• 1.5 tsp oregano
  
• 1 tsp basil
  
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper
  
• 2 tsp ground cumin
  
• 1 tsp sugar
  
• 2 tsp salt
  
• 2 cans whole tomatoes, undrained
  
• 2 cans tomato sauce
  
• 1 can tomato paste
  
• 2 cans kidney beans, light and dark or both same
  

Cooking Directions

1. Cook meat until no longer pink and then drain. 
2. Reserve meat and add onion and green pepper to pan. 
3. Next add garlic and all remaining spices. 
4. Stir in the ground beef and the remaining ingredients except beans. 
5. Bring to a boil. 
6. Simmer 1 hour and then add the beans.
7. Cook another 15 minutes.
   

Simple right? Now me being me and The Cook Crook after all, I don't actually follow this recipe to the letter. In fact, since Sunday's meal was in fact chili, I started it this morning before we all headed to church. Once I browned my meat and reserved it, I sauteed both red and yellow onion and omitted the green pepper all together. My husband likes spice so too the mix I added some fresh chili peppers from this handy kitchen helper:

I live by these little tubes now!

Anyway, I then added 1 can of diced tomatoes and green chiles and a new product made by Hunt's that is tomato sauce seasoned for chili. The only change I made to the spices in mom's recipe was I cut back to 2 tablespoons of chili powder instead of 3 to account for the seasoned sauce. With no other tomatoes or suace added, this by itself would make wonderful hot dog chili!

Today the chili went into the slow cooker and I added the remaining ingredients and if you were in my house right now, you would definitely smell chili! Nothing like it when it cooks all day and those flavors come together!

I love chili and have won a few chili competitions just by experimenting with my Mom's basic recipe. Have any chili tips to share? Let me know! And as always send in your "cook crook" moments as I would love to share them.