31 days – Believe in the Magic Traci Diary

31 days, Crockpot, Imaginative one, Wee one, weekly ramblings

Weekly Ramblings – Halloween 2015 – Write 31 Wrap Up

Posted on 31 Oct 201523 Dec 2022 by traci

Today is the last day of the Write 31 challenge. I can’t believe it’s over. During the challenge, I hooked a lot of meals and desserts in the crockpot. It’s been a fun experience. In fact, as I am typing, there is chicken and hamburger meat cooking for later meals.

I’m going to continue cooking dinners in the crock pot. During the month, it’s been a much easier way to get dinner on the table, which is much less stressful on my part. O would love to do more freezer kits and share them with you.

My 31-day post will be attached to a page later this week, so you can still refer to it later. I’m also going to provide printable recipes. I’ve already put some of the recipes on my Google drive. Once I finish that, I’ll provide you with a link to all the recipes. 🙂

Here is a list of new and old blogs featuring crock pot meals. I’ve shared a few of them on my menu plan Monday blog posts.

Here are 23 recipes I’ve shared over the last 31 days.

I hope you enjoyed the recipes I’ve shared.

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31 days, Chicken, Pasta

Chicken Parmesan (Day 30)

Posted on 30 Oct 201523 Dec 2022 by traci

I’ve signed up for a 31-day writing challenge. Every day in October, I post a new slow cooker recipe, a link to a previously posted slow cooker recipe, or a recipe from another blog.

Tomorrow is the last day of the writing challenge. I’m getting ready for my next two series. They won’t be as intense as the 31 writing challenge.

The first series is a countdown to the Thanksgiving series. I have some crockpot meals for the sides and even a turkey recipe for the crockpot. My plan is to have a printable Thanksgiving menu the week before Thanksgiving.

The second series is a countdown to Christmas. I already have recipes for the I’m Hungry cooking blog. We are going to revisit some of our favorite Christmas cookies and treats. The Imaginative One loves this time of the year because he loves taste-testing the goodies.

I’ve already tasted two of the recipes for the countdown to Christmas. Both the Wee One and the Imaginative One LOVED the first one. Only the Wee One has tried the other one. He kept going back for me, so I think that is a sign that he LOVED the other treat.

As I said in other blog posts, we eat dinner with my mother-in-law on Sunday night. Twice during October, we also invited another church member to our Sunday night dinner. On the 11th, I decided to cook chicken Parmesan in the slow cooker. Chicken Parmesan is one of my mother-in-law’s favorite meals. Everyone raved about the deliciousness of the meal.

About half an hour before dinner, I took the chicken out of the crock. I placed the chicken pieces in a casserole dish and then sprinkled Parmesan cheese over the chicken. Then I put it in the oven for a few minutes to allow the cheese to melt.

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31 days, ground beef, onions, slow cooker, soup

Taco Soup (Day 29)

Posted on 29 Oct 201523 Dec 2022 by traci

I’ve signed up for a 31-day writing challenge. Every day in October, I post a new slow cooker recipe, a link to a previously posted slow cooker recipe, or a recipe from another blog.

Yes, I know this is another soup recipe.

We had lots of rain on Tuesday and Wednesday, so it was a good thing I had taco soup on the menu for Tuesday. There is something about soup on a dreary day. It helps brighten your soul.

The Wee One loves tacos, so I thought he would like this soup. He probably would have liked it better if I had served it with tortilla chips.

Hubby and I loved the soup. It’s easy to put together in the morning. The soup uses ingredients that most people have in the pantry.

The boys decided they wanted me to take a picture of them. I was trying to get a picture of the soup.

This is the Wee One taste testing the soup. I have no clue while he is holding his head.

Taco Soup

Stars of the recipe:

1 lb. hamburger, browned or 2 c. already browned hamburger
1/2 small onion, diced
1 Tbsp. minced garlic
3 heaping Tbsp. Homemade taco seasoning or 1 package of store-bought taco seasoning
1 1/2 c. water
2 (15 oz.) cans of diced tomato
1 (15 oz.) can of tomato sauce
1 (15 oz.) can of kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 c. frozen corn

Steps:

Place all ingredients in the slow cooker.
Cook on low for 6-8 hours or high for 3-4 hours.
Top with your favorite toppings – cheese, sour cream, etc..
Enjoy!

If you enjoyed this recipe, please share it on Facebook or Pinterest. Here is a link to my Facebook page and my Pinterest page.

To check out the rest of the recipes I’ve shared during this challenge, click on this link.

Oh, and please check back during the first week of November. I’m planning a small giveaway. No, it is not a crock pot. More information will be forthcoming about the giveaway.

Happy eating,
Traci

31 days, dinner, slow cooker, soup

Creamy Tomato Soup (Day 28)

Posted on 28 Oct 201523 Dec 2022 by traci

I’ve signed up for a 31-day writing challenge. Every day in October, I post a new slow cooker recipe, a link to a previously posted slow cooker recipe, or a recipe from another blog.

On Friday, Wee One and I went to a bonfire. Since we were going to be eating yummy food there, I planned to have a light dinner, so we were NOT too full. So I chose to make tomato soup and grilled cheese. Yum!

The Wee One and I had fun at the bonfire. I made some Boo Mix to share. It was a big hit with everyone who tried it.

The adults sat with the adults and chit-chatted. The kids ran around caring for people and going on hay rides. I did go on one of the hay rides and screamed during the whole ride, even though it wasn’t really that scary.

Continue reading →

31 days, Cherries, Dessert, slow cooker

Cherry Crisp (Day 27)

Posted on 27 Oct 201523 Dec 2022 by traci

I’ve signed up for a 31-day writing challenge. Every day in October, I post a new slow cooker recipe, a link to a previously posted slow cooker recipe, or a recipe from another blog.

Can you believe this is the 27th day of the writing challenge? I can’t believe it, either.

Tonight I asked the family what they thought of the challenge so far. The Imaginative One told me that it’s as though everything is normal. The family is fed and happy, so that is normal. I don’t have to worry about rushing home from work because I know dinner will be ready. Those are both winners in my book.

My mother-in-law has also been happy about the challenge because she hasn’t had to make a Sunday dinner recently. I’ve been making the dinners to test new recipes.

On Sunday, I invited my mother-in-law and a member of our church over for Sunday dinner. I cooked a pre-Thanksgiving dinner – turkey, green bean casserole, rolls, homemade applesauce, and dessert. I was in the mood for cherry crisp, so I tried to cook it in the crock pot. The cherry crisp was delicious!

My mother-in-law and F. loved the crisp.

I had more on Monday, and it was even better than on Sunday.

Cherry Crisp

Stars of the recipe:

1 (15 oz) can of cherry pie filling
2/3 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. old-fashioned oats
1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
1/4 chopped pecans
1/3 butter, softened, cut into small pieces

Steps:

Spray a 2 or 3-quart crock with cooking spray.
Pour the cherry pie filling into the crockpot.
In a small bowl, add the other ingredients (topping) except for the butter. Mix.
Cut the butter into the topping ingredients using 2 knives, a pastry blender, or your hands until crumbly.
Drop the topping over the cherry pie filling.
Cook on low for 3 to 4 hours until bubbly.
Enjoy with ice cream or homemade whipped cream!

If you enjoyed this recipe, please share it on Facebook or Pinterest. Here is a link to my Facebook page and my Pinterest page.

To check out the rest of the recipes I’ve shared during this challenge, click on this link.

Happy eating,
Traci

31 days, Cranberries, slow cooker

Menu Plan Monday – October 26, 2015 and Cranberry Relish

Posted on 26 Oct 201523 Dec 2022 by traci

I’ve signed up for a 31-day writing challenge. Every day in October, I post a new slow cooker recipe, a link to a previously posted slow cooker recipe, or a recipe from another blog.

Tonight I’m extremely unmotivated. We had a three-day weekend because of parent-teacher conferences. I taught students all day and then had a 2-hour training. I’ve got to come up with a lesson plan for when I’ll be observed by my principal. My brain cells have been overextended.

Monday – Leftover Turkey, Green Bean Casserole

Tuesday – Taco Soup

Wednesday – Beef and Noodles

Thursday – Sloppy Joe

Friday – Beenies Weenies

Printable Version of the menu

This post was originally posted in November 2011. (It’s been repinned on Pinterest over 300 times!)

On Sunday, my father-in-law informed us he was cooking a chicken for Thanksgiving. There were going to be only 6 of us for dinner, and he didn’t want to deal with all the leftovers. The family convinced him that he needed to make a turkey. I wanted to help make the dinner, so I decided what to bring. One of the items was going to be homemade cranberry relish. Yesterday I stumbled on this recipe.

Earlier in the week, I had created a list of things I needed from the store. One of the items was an orange for the relish. My husband went shopping but didn’t buy an orange. His reasoning was I had oranges at the house. I have grapefruit and clementines but no navel oranges. So I made a trip to Save-A-Lot to go get the oranges. Boy, I’m glad I did. This recipe is easy, and the end result is delicious.

Cranberry Relish

Click on the picture for the original blog post

Stars of the recipe:

2 oranges
1 bag (12 ounces) of cranberries, rinsed and picked over
1 cup sugar
pinch cinnamon or Chinese five spice
3 tablespoons water

Steps:

Zest the oranges.
Cut off the remaining outer peel and pith and discard.
Cut the peeled orange sections into small chunks and add to the slow cooker along with cranberries, sugar, cinnamon, and zest.
Add water.
Cover and cook on HIGH for about 2 hours. (I had to put it on low for about 1/2 hour after cooking it on high.)

Since my brain cells are overextended, I will leave out the blog spotlight for the week.

If you enjoyed this recipe, please share it on Facebook or Pinterest. Here is a link to my Facebook page and my Pinterest page.

Click on this link to check out the rest of the recipes I’ve shared during this challenge.

Happy eating,
Traci

31 days, apple, slow cooker

Crockpot Homemade Applesauce

Posted on 25 Oct 201525 Dec 2022 by traci

I’ve signed up for a 31-day writing challenge. Every dayy in October, I post a new slow cooker recipe, a link to apreviouslys posted slow cooker recipe, or a recipe from another blog.

The Imaginative One LOVES apples. Actually, that’s an understatement; he adores apples and will eat all the way to the core and even around the seeds. He loves to pack them for lunch.

Since it’s fall, apples are plentiful, so I decided I would try to make some applesauce in the crock pot. I’ve made it on the stove, so I followed the same method but in the crock pot instead.

While the apples were cooking, the boys and I went on an adventure. The in the Dayton areaWright Brothers lived in the Dayton areaWright Brothers lived in the Dayton area and tested out the airplane. I’m so fortunate that I live about 5 miles from where they tested the airplane after the December 17, 1903 flight. We went to the Interpretive Center and then down to the Huffman Dam, which was built after the Great Flood of 1913. After we were done with our walk, we drove through the local university because it has beautiful fall foliage, especially in one area.

Click on the picture to see more pictures from our adventure.

Crockpot Homemade Applesauce

Stars of the recipe:

1 to 2 pounds of apples, cored and cut into cubes
2 cinnamon sticks
water

Steps:

Cut up apples.
Place in a 2 – 3 quart crockpot.
Add water to just below the top of the apples.
Add the cinnamon sticks.
Cook on low for 3 to 4 hours until the apples are tender.
Pour out the majority of the water.
Blend in small batches in a blender. (Add sugar at this point if you want to.)
Enjoy!

If you enjoyed this recipe, please share it on Facebook or Pinterest. Here is a link to my Facebook page and my Pinterest page.

Click on this link to check out the rest of the recipes I’ve shared during this challenge.

Happy eating,
Traci

31 days, Beans, beef, slow cooker

Weekly Ramblings and Bramble Beans (Day 24)

Posted on 24 Oct 201525 Dec 2022 by traci

Next week is the last Saturday of the 31-day writing challenge. The family enjoyed all the meals and desserts. And sides created in the slow cooker. It’s renewed my interest in cooking. The family never knows what I’m whipping up in the kitchen.

This week I’ve shared two of our favorite ways to cook meat.

Crockpot chicken
Crockpot BBQ ribs – Our favorite brand of barbecue sauce is Sweet Baby Ray’s Barbecue Sauce. You could also use my recipe for root beer barbecue sauce.

Here are the other recipes I’ve shared this week:

(Click the pictures to see the posts where I shared each recipe.)

This week I had parent-teacher conferences on Tuesday and Thursday evenings. The crock pot was helpful those two nights because I could have dinner for the boys and Hubby. On Tuesday, they had crockpot chicken and leftovers for their sides.

Then on Thursday, I cooked up bramble beans. Hubby did not eat any beans because he had a big lunch. I did eat them when I got home that night.

Here is a funny story about the bramble beans – Hubby thought I had made meatloaf because he briefly looked into the pot. He took the crockpot over to my mother-in-law’s house since she would watch the boys. Hubby also heated up some mixed veggies.

The boys refused to eat any of the beans, so my kind mother-in-law pulled out the meat.

I like this dish. The brown sugar used to make the sauce gives it a sweetness my taste buds appreciate.

I’ve also made this dish for a Boy Scouts’ potluck. It was well received by those who tasted it. I was left with almost nothing or nothing when I took the crockpot home.

Bramble Beans

adapted from Eat at Home

Stars of the recipe:

2 – 15 oz. cans of pork and beans
1 – 15 oz. can of kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 lb. hamburger, browned or 2 c. bulk-cooked hamburger
1 small onion, diced
1 c. ketchup
2 Tbsp. mustard
2 Tbsp. vinegar
4 Tbsp. brown sugar

Steps:

Place ground beef, kidney beans, onions, pork, and beans in the crock pot.
Mix the ketchup, mustard, vinegar, and brown sugar in a small bowl.
Pour the ketchup mixture over the ingredients in the crockpot.
Cook on low for 5 hours.

Here is a picture of the beautiful fall foliage. The boys and I went for a walk today.

If you enjoyed this recipe, please share it on Facebook or Pinterest. Here is a link to my Facebook page and my Pinterest page.

To check out the rest of the recipes I’ve shared during this challenge, click on this link.

Happy eating,
Traci

31 days, apple, Dessert, slow cooker

Crockpot Caramel Apple Crisp (Day 23)

Posted on 23 Oct 201525 Dec 2022 by traci

I’ve signed up for a 31-day writing challenge. Every day in October, I post a new slow cooker recipe, a link to a previously posted slow cooker recipe, or a recipe from another blog.

I’m over two-thirds of the way through the challenge. I’ve shared a dip, main dishes, and soups. This is the first time I’ve shared a dessert.

Last Saturday, Hubby and I were discussing how I’m planning to make most of our Thanksgiving dinner in the crock pot. He told me I would probably make an apple crisp in the crock pot for our Thanksgiving dinner.

He didn’t know I had planned to make a crisp in the crock pot for our Sunday dinner.

Every Sunday, we have dinner with my mother-in-law. Sometimes she cooks, or we go out to eat. Recently I’ve been cooking dinner. The majority of the meal was cooked in the crock pot. The whipped cream and veggies were the only meals not cooked in the crock pot.

This dessert was delicious. I put the caramel drizzle on the crisp. It really didn’t that drizzle. The crisp was sweet enough without it.

This crisp is especially delicious with whipped cream on top. I usually make my own whipped cream now. Homemade whipped cream is delicious and yummy!

Crock Pot Caramel Apple Crisp

adapted from Crockpot Ladies

Stars of the recipe:

1 (11 oz.) individually wrapped caramels
10 apples, diced (I used gala.)
1/2 c. brown sugar
2 tsp. Pumpkin pie spice or 1 tsp. Ground cinnamon and 1/4 tsp. cloves
1/2 c. all-purpose flour

Topping

1/2 c. cold unsalted butter (1 stick) cut into small pieces
1/2 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. old-fashioned oatmeal
2 tsp. Pumpkin pie spice or 1/2 tsp. Ground cinnamon and a pinch of cloves

Caramel Drizzle

1 jar of caramel ice cream topping

Steps:

Spray a 6-quart crock pot or casserole crock pot with cooking spray.
Unwrap the caramels. Cut each caramel in half. Place in crockpot.
Add apples, spices, and flour to the caramels. Mix well.
In a small bowl, add the topping ingredients.
Using 2 butter knives or a pastry blender to cut the butter until it’s a nice crumbly mixture.
Spread the topping over the apples and caramels.
Cover. Cook on low for 8 hours or on high for 4 hours.
Enjoy with whipped cream and the caramel drizzle!

If you enjoyed this recipe, please share it on Facebook or Pinterest. Here is a link to my Facebook page and my Pinterest page.

Click on this link to check out the rest of the recipes I’ve shared during this challenge.

Happy eating,
Traci

31 days, bell peppers, ground beef, onions, Rice, slow cooker, soup

Stuffed Pepper Soup (Day 21)

Posted on 21 Oct 201525 Dec 2022 by traci

I’ve signed up for a 31-day writing challenge. Every day in October, I post a new slow cooker recipe, a link to a previously posted slow cooker recipe, or a recipe from another blog.

Last night, my school had parent-teacher conferences. Even though I only had one parent show up, last night was productive. The parent who came was crying happy tears because of how much more confident her child has become this year.

Later after talking for a while, we both realized we were Christians. The mom told another staff member and me about a great Christian singer, Jonathan McReynolds. I ended up listening to his song “Pressure.” It’s such a great song with a great message.

I hope you enjoyed listening to the message from Jon. He is truly blessed by God.

Anyway, onto the recipe for today.

I made stuffed pepper soup on Monday using some of the bulk hamburgers I cooked up over the weekend. I put the rice in the slow cooker when I put the rest of the ingredients in the slow cooker. The rice ended up falling apart after being cooked for that long.

If you make the soup and decide to put the rice in at the beginning, use brown rice instead of white like I did. Or cook the rice at the end and then put it in the bowls as you serve the soup. It’s your decision.

Oh, I used a 6-quart crock pot.

Stuffed Pepper Soup

Stars of the recipe:

1 lb of ground beef, browned or 2 c. bulk hamburger from the freezer
1 15 oz. can of tomato sauce
2 15 oz. cans of diced tomatoes with juices or 1 28 oz. can of diced tomatoes
1 c. beef broth
1 16 oz. bag of frozen pepper stir fry mix
salt and pepper, to taste
1 c. brown rice
cheddar cheese to top the soup

Steps:

Place all ingredients into your crock except cheese and rice if you make the rice at the end.
Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours or high for 3 to 4 hours.
(OPTIONAL STEP) If you opted to make the rice at the end, make the rice. Place about 1/4 c. of cooked rice in the bowls before servings.
Serve with cheese.

If you enjoyed this recipe, please share it on Facebook or Pinterest. Here is a link to my Facebook page and my Pinterest page.

To check out the rest of the recipes I’ve shared during this challenge, click on this link.

Happy eating,
Traci

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Taco Soup

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Cherry Crisp

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Click on the picture for the original blog post

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Crockpot Homemade Applesauce

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Bramble Beans

adapted from Eat at Home

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Crock Pot Caramel Apple Crisp

adapted from Crockpot Ladies

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Stuffed Pepper Soup

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