Crock Pot Chicken & Dumplings

I hope everyone is healthy, it is surely something I wished for a lot the past 2 days. Having been asleep more hours of the day yesterday than I was awake, I figured it would be a great opportunity to test out yet another EASY recipe for dinner: Crock Pot Chicken & Dumplings.  I first saw this idea while browsing around on Pinterest (don't we all live by that website now?) and was brought to the Cargile Family Favorite Recipes page for the recipe.  It seemed to have gotten great reviews, and the fact that really the only necessary work was throwing everything in the crock pot was the winning straw for me!

*Note, if you find yourself frequently using your crock pot, I suggest trying Reynolds Slow Cooker Liners.  They are bags that fit right into your crock pot, allowing for NO mess to be made during cooking and NO cleaning afterwards!  We live by them in my house!

Crock Pot Chicken & Dumplings
Ingredients
3 boneless chicken breasts, frozen OR thawed (how convenient!)
1 chopped onion
1 can Cream of Chicken
1 can Cream of Celery
1 can chicken brother, or package of Knorr Homestyle Stock Concetrate
2 cups water
A few shakes of poultry seasoning
1 can refrigerated biscuits
(You may add vegetables if desired: I added 1 box fresh mushrooms, 1 can peas & 1 can carrots)

Directions
Add everything to the crock pot except biscuits.  (I'm not an onion fan so I skipped that ingredient.)  Cook on high for 5-6 hours. You can also cook this on low all day while you're at work, and then just crank the setting back up to high before you add your biscuits.

An hour before serving, shred the chicken into desired-sized pieces.  Tear biscuits into smaller pieces and place into crock pot, pushing them down into the mixture.  They'll cook completely, but still have the gooey texture of a dumpling.

Place into serving bowl, and enjoy!

New England Pot Roast

I'm really excited to be posting my FIRST recipe!  The first one has to be a great one, which is why it only makes sense that I post this DELICIOUS and EASY dinner: New England Pot Roast.  I remember eating it for the first time while having dinner at Rudy's parents' house and immediately asking for the recipe because I had to eat it again!  What are the perks to this meal?  The LONGER it cooks the BETTER it tastes, which means it went into our slow cooker for 95% of the cooking time and I was able to enjoy the day without slaying over the stove! Side-note: the recipe given to me actually calls for it to be cooked low and slow in a large pot on the stove top or in the oven, but how convenient is it to not have to worry about safety with the stove, so I'll stick to my "twist" instead.

New England Pot Roast
Ingredients
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon + 2 teaspoons salt
1 1/4 teaspoons pepper
4lb beef chuck pot roast (arm, chuck eye or cross rib)
2 tablespoons shortening
1 cup water
8 small potatoes, pared and halved
8 medium carrots, halved crosswise and lengthwise
(You may add additional vegetables if desired such as corn, lima beans, green beans, wax beans, mushrooms, celery, etc.  They do not have to be fresh, canned vegetables work just the same.)

Directions

Stir together flour, salt and pepper; rub mixture on meat thoroughly.  Melt shortening in large skillet or Dutch oven; brown meat over medium heat, about 15 minutes. (I did all sides, not just top & bottom).

Reduce heat.  Add water; cover tightly & simmer on top of range or in oven set at 325 degrees for 4 hours, or until meat is tender. --This is where I just transfered the roast into the slow cooker, added the water, and let the device do it's magic!  *If mushrooms are desired, add them to the leftover shortening in the skillet, cover and cook for 10 minutes.  Afterwards, add mushrooms to slow cooker.

About 1 hour before end of cooking time, add vegetables.  Remember, the longer this cooks, the more the roast has a chance to break down and the better it turns out.  While it is scrumdiddlyumptious at just 5 hours, if you have the time, (and can resist the delicious smells coming from your kitchen) let it cook longer!  When you can no longer withhold your hunger, take a fork & knife and shred the roast into desired-sized pieces.  Spoon onto a plate or bowl and ENJOY! :)

**Reheats very well, so be sure to put some in tupperware and have it again during the week!

**[All credit for this recipe goes to Kathy Belko].  :)