slow cooker cabbage rolls

'tis the time of year for the cabbage roll.  it is pretty damp and cold here this morning so i thought these cabbage rolls would be perfect for dinner.  they are one of mike's favorites and hendrix needs to go to cabbage eaters anonymous.  seriously.  he asked for a bowl of cabbage for breakfast.  not a bad thing, i guess. did you know cabbage is high in vitamin K and C? so, you see...it's perfect for the cold & flu season.  i'll be honest.  i, too, love cabbage but the idea of cabbage rolls grossed me out.  mike leans towards "old fashioned", farmer food and sometimes it's gross.  he ordered cabbage rolls once at a small town diner and couldn't stop talking about them so i decided to make them.  turns out.  he's right.  they are delicious.  we usually eat them with mashed potatoes. for non meat eaters, like hendrix, the meat & rice can easily be replaced with quinoa, shredded veggies like carrots or zucchini, some beans for extra protein and the proceed as directed .  here's the traditional recipe...
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cabbage rolls
1 small head of green cabbage, you need the outer leaves
1 lb. of ground meat
1 small onion, very finely chopped
3-4 dashed of Worcestershire sauce
1/2 c. of quick cooking rice
1 large can of tomato juice
in a bowl, combine meat, onion, Worcestershire sauce, rice, and 3/4 cup of tomato juice.  carefully peel 5-8 cabbage leaves from the head, depending on the size of your cabbage leaves, then make an inverted “V” in the base of each leaf to remove the steam. divide mixture and using the greens, roll into “burritos”. place rolls in crock pot.  at this point, i usually shred a bunch of the leftover cabbage and place on top.  pour tomato juice on top, covering rolls, and cook on low for about 6 hours.  serve rolls with mashed potatoes and "sauce" from the crock pot. 
 

mike's chili...vegged out

it's been quiet around here, i know.  halloween and life got the better of me.  ha!  we had a wonderful halloween with my brother and his family.  i hope you all did, too.  for those of you on the east coast, i hope life gets back to normal sooner than later. xo!
in the meantime, here's a recipe from the top ten slow cooker recipes that i have "vegged out" for those of you that were wanting less meat-focused slow cooker meals.  also, here's the list of my favorite slow cooker vegetarian meals.  mike, my husband, is a big meat eater and our son is not...so it can make slow cooker cooking interesting.  sometimes if i am making meat stuffed peppers or cabbage rolls, i just stuff one or two with a grain, bean, and veg mixture for the kid & me.  things like chili can be a little tougher, though.  so if i am sure hendrix is not going to just eat the beans or i feel like we have been lacking on the veg consumption then i just add some veggies and cut the meat.  mike usually doesn't notice.
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mike's favorite chili - vegged out
1/2-3/4 lb of ground meat, browned
1 onion, chopped
1 T. minced garlic
2 cans of kidney beans, rinsed
1 can of diced tomatoes
1 can of tomato soup + 1 can of water (if too dry looking)
1/4 c. of chili powder
2 T. cumin
1 handful of shredded carrots or zucchini
1 bell pepper, chopped
1 small bunch of kale or spinach, chopped very fine
combine everything but the greens in the crock pot and cook on low for 6-8 hours.  before serving, turn crock pot to high and add greens.  cook until wilted.  serve with your favorite chili toppings. 

being grateful

yesterday a little baby boy from our community passed away after a long battle with cancer.  his family belongs to the same parish our preschool is at and i saw firsthand how the community rose up to support this family.  facebook pages were started to inform folks of fundraisers and to simply ask people to pray.  people  turned out in droves to do whatever they could.  in the end, this baby boy got some peace and slipped away from this earth.  i first found out about his passing on facebook.  of course, when i was trying to tune out my own child who was driving me crazy.  then just like that i realized how lucky i was to have a boy who threw tantrums, spills milk on the rug, calls me princess when i wear a skirt, makes himself fart, refuses to go to bed, hugs me when i don't feel good, and is a healthy boy.
then this morning i wake up and see the devastation that is hurricane sandy.  thousands and thousands of people without power, damaged homes, or worse.  kids who are mostly likely pretty scared. it made me realize that in the end all this trouble with the drought, earlier this year,  in my part of the country was small stuff compared to what the east coast is going through.
it's too bad that is takes tragedies for us to realize what we have and to be grateful.  i guess that's how life works.  today i am grateful and send much love to those who need it.

diy hot cocoa

it was the para-teacher's birthday at our preschool this week.  so hendrix and i put together a quick, season appropriate gift for her.  i typically give hot cocoa to our friends and family during christmas.  usually i do it in brown bags or waxed bags tied with baker's twine and a tag with the prep directions. this time, since i was only doing one, i took a cue from pinterest and used a mason jar and added some marshmallows.  this recipe makes about 1 1/2 pint jars.

clementine's hot cocoa mix
1 c. unsweetened cocoa powder
2 c. sugar
1 heaping teaspoon of salt
whisk and combine thoroughly.  store in an container.

to prep...
1 tablespoon of hot cocoa mix
8 oz. milk
warm in pan until hot and mix is dissolved. ENJOY!

rainbow soup

garden tomatoes from earlier this year.  now my garden looks like the apocalypse hit .

when i posted the top ten slow cooker meals, i heard from a lot of new mommas and soon to be new mommas.  (remind to tell you all about the time i came home with a new baby and no food in the house. it was my first and i apparently thought i was going have time to cook.)  this recipe is for you ladies...it's easy to make, freezes well, can be made in the slow cooker or on the stove top, is super healthy for growing babies in the belly, super great for recovering new mommies, and if you use a little clever marketing...a toddler might like it.  hendrix calls this rainbow soup and loves it.  oh, it's pretty darn cheap to make too! i posted about it a few years ago, but i figured it was worth sharing again. it's basically a very versatile minestrone recipe.  feel free to add some cooked, sliced italian sausage if you like. always add parmesan cheese. xo!
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i love this twist on the traditional minestrone. it is so colorful, versatile, and delicious! don't have butternut squash? use potato. or sweet potatoes.  don't like yellow squash? use green beans or zucchini. you can use kale or spinach instead of cabbage, too. cannellini beans, pinto beans or chickpeas would work in place of the kidney beans, as well. get creative!  this works especially well if you froze any of your garden's bounty earlier this year. 

anna's minestrone
3 T. olive oil
1 onion, chopped
3 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 -2 celery stalks, chopped
1/4 t. red pepper flakes
1 t. minced fresh rosemary or 1/4 t. dried
coarse salt and pepper, to taste
1 can (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes, drained (or fresh, chopped)
1/2 butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and chopped
1/2 lb. shredded green cabbage
1 can (15 oz.) kidney beans, rinsed and drained
2 c. yellow squash, chopped
1 c. green peas, frozen
1 minced garlic clove
7 c. water
shredded parmesan for serving


STOVETOP: in large pot, heat oil over medium - add onion, carrots, celery, red pepper flakes, rosemary, s&p (to taste) - cook until onion begins to turn golden (5-8 mins.) - add tomatoes, cook 1 minute - add butternut squash, cabbage, beans, and 7 c. water - bring to a boil  - reduce to a simmer and cook until all veggies are tender (15 minutes) - stir in peas and cook 5-10 minutes - season with s&p, stir in garlic - serve with parmesan on top - enjoy!
SLOW COOKER: omit olive oil.  combine everything BUT greens and peas.  cook on low for 6-8 hours.  before serving, turn to high and add greens and peas.  cook until greens are wilted. - serve with parmesan on top - enjoy!

mondays + breakfast

i didn't do much cooking this weekend.  mike's mom is still in the hospital and is kind of having a tough time. much of the weekend was spent shuffling hendrix to one place or another so that i could make it up to visit her. so please keep sending her good vibes. 
i did eat some of these mind blowing pumpkin cinnamon rolls courtesy of my friend summer.  i also made this rueben bake on saturday night.  so easy and so delicious. on thursday, i made this roasted beef, mushroom, and barley stew.  huge hit with hendrix!
finally, here's 5 minute breakfast for you all...
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apple pie oatmeal
1 peeled, chopped apple
1 generous TABLESPOON of brown sugar
generous sprinkle of baking spice
1/2 cup of oats
1 cup of water
combine ingredients in a small pot and cook in med to med high until cooked through and thickened.  about 5 minutes. serve with milk.

{semi} vegetarian slow cooker meals

as promised, here are some {semi} vegetarian options for the slow cooker and don't forget about the stuffed black bean peppers on the top ten slow cooker recipes for parents file. i'll come back next week with some easy variations on the meat heavy slow cooker recipes i have already shared.  this week has been a little crazy with preschool field trips, volunteering, and now my poor MIL broke her hip.  please send her lots of good vibes today.  her surgery is later today.  however, i do want to say THANK YOU to all of you nice folks who left wonderful comments, started to follow this blog, and shared the top 10 file. it really made my week.  of course, thanks to JENNY OF DALS, too.

my favorite potato soup

vegetable + chickpea curry (i have not made this yet, but my friend does and i eat it.  so good!!)

eggplant stew (tips: i do not use porcini shrooms.  i use portabello because i can just chop and throw them in the slow cooker.  also, i don't precook my onion because i am not making extra dirty dishes. finally, i throw in some spinach towards the end of cooking. )

black bean enchiladas (turns out more like a casserole, but delicious)

refried beans (fricking brilliant and can be frozen.  thanks to andrea for pointing these out to me.)

white bean +  collard stew (so fricking good with the sausage, but you can easily omit or add in a "healthier" sausage")