Food Lush

Pepperoni Dip

Editor's note: For our last week at Food Lush, I've asked the writers to share both a favorite post by another writer, from over the last three years, and a favorite post of their own. You'll see these posts linked to at the top of their new post for the week. Enjoy a stroll down Lush memory lane!

by Tara

I think it would be impossible to pick a favorite post. I've been a fan of the Lush sites since long before I wrote for Food Lush. Since before Food Lush was around and I still got recipes from Style Lush! I think of myself as an adventurous cook, and that means that the Recipe Round-ups were probably the most-used of the posts over the years. My favorite post I wrote was my first: World's Best Chocolate Chip Cookies. I was so honored to become a part of the Lush team, and I shared the best recipe I had. I hope you enjoy those cookies as much as I always do! I might make some tomorrow! 

***

With Super Bowl Sunday fast approaching, I know what we're all thinking about: food, commercials and what Beyonce's going to wear! (Wait. You mean some people watch the football game? Weird.) Anyway! Here's a crowd-pleasing recipe for an appetizer dip. Easy and delicious!

Pepperoni Dip

Ingredients:
-1 can cream of celery soup
-2 8-oz bricks of cream cheese
-1 package of pepperoni
-crackers and/or bread torn into dippable chunks

Directions:
1. Add soup and cream cheese to smallish slow cooker.*
2. Cut pepperonis in half and add to cooker.
3. Let warm, stirring occasionally, until creamy and easy to dip stuff into.

*I'm positive this can be made in a regular pot on the stove, or even in the microwave, but in a slow cooker is easiest because then you can keep it warm after it's done (and also just dump everything in and then leave it while you do other things).

Hot Chocolate in the Crock Pot

By Ariel

I told you my work does a lot of snack days. In honor of our team Christmas party today, one of the girls came up with doing a hot chocolate bar with all the fun trimmings. While we were skeptical, she totally rocked us all with an amazing hot chocolate brewed (do you brew hot chocolate? mix? create?) in a crock pot.

(Picture courtesy of Target.com, as well as my damask-loving wish list!)

Ginny's Crock Pot Hot Chocolate:

1.5 cups heavy whipping cream
1 14oz can condensed milk
2 cups milk chocolate chips
6 cups milk
1 tsp. Vanilla Extract

That's it! Mix it all together over low in a Crock Pot, stirring every few minutes to melt the chocolate chips and to keep them from sticking. This was a HUGE hit at work and I'm pretty sure some other coworkers who were not on our team snuck a cup or two. I plan on making this for a New Year's Eve gathering with Bailey's and Whipped Vodka on hand, but this would also make a charming Christmas morning treat. If you're feeling extra ambitious, why not throw together a few Chocolate Peppermint Marshmallows?

This is the last you'll here from me in 2012. I hope everyone has an AMAZING holiday season filled with delicious food, spiked hot chocolate, and of course, PLENTY of champagne!

Party Food: Chicken Taco Bites

By Erica H.

Welcome to December, aka Party Season! Are you ready? Are you ready for the cocktails and the decorations and the music and the this-outfit-was-really-cute-before-I-started-eating-my-way-though-Party-Season? And most importantly, the beautiful, terrible outfit-tighteners themselves, tiny bites of food that taste like regular meals but are way more adorable? Good. Because I'm going to help you out with that last one right now.

For my contribution to Book Club last Saturday I followed the basic structure of these Chipotle Chicken Tostada Bites from Apple A Day, but easied it up a bit by using store-bought guacamole and throwing some taco chicken in the slow cooker (2.5 lbs chicken + jar of salsa + packet of taco seasoning + 6-8 hours). These adjustments were in order to 1) save time and 2) create a bunch of leftover taco chicken, respectively. Success on both counts!

These were very easy to put together and taste like wee bites of Tex-Mex happiness. If you are feeling less lazy than myself you could always throw together Elsha's guacamole and Elisabeth's taco seasoning, and if you want an alternative slow cooker chicken flavor, Sarah has had good luck with green chile enchilada sauce.

A couple of caveats. As noted in the original recipe, these will get soggy pretty quick, so assembly needs to be last-minute. (Though slightly dispiriting in terms of presenation to the public, this sogginess will certainly not prevent certain motivated individuals from going after the leftovers with a fork the next morning.) And while delicious, the shredded chicken might look vaguely like very classy cat food. A jaunty cap o' cilantro leaf helps provide cover and doubles as a way to ferret out weirdo cilantro-haters. Everybody wins!

Crockpot Cranberry Sauce

By Ariel

Almost a year ago to the day I came to you with a plea for help; I was hosting my first-ever Thanksgiving dinner and wanted to make extra special not-from-the-can cranberry sauce.  Reader Sarah Lena suggested making it in the crock pot and pointed me to this recipe.

Cranberry sauce in the crock-pot? I gave it the shifty eye but because I love all things crock pot I decided to try it out. It was golden! I am done. I've made the recipe about six times since then, mostly as a sauce for pork and chicken. I'll be making it again for Thanksgiving dinner, and these bad boys are on sale everywhere so it's time to stock up:

(Photo credit: google images)

Thank you Sarah Lena and all you Food Lush readers! What special sides are you making for Thanksgiving?

Unorthodox chili ingredients

by Katie

photo from: me

Everyone has their favorite chili, but some people can be downright fanatical about it. The purists (beef only! only chili powder! get off my lawn!) scoff at the adventurers (ground turkey! chopped peppers! add some cumin!). Because I did not grow up with a family chili recipe, I fall into the “sure, I’ll try anything” camp. Different strokes, different folks, etc.

All this to say: please do not throw things at me for what I am about to say, chili purists. Because my two new favorite things to put into chili are:

cocoa powder and sweet potatoes.

I know! Blasphemy! But the former adds this lovely rich undertone and the latter adds a mild sweetness that helps soak up the richness a little and it is SO GOOD (particularly in vegetarian chili, which can get a little boring and gastrointestinally intense, what with all the acidic tomatoes and fibrous beans and that’s it.)

Plus: slow cooker. Bonus.

Slow cooker chili with sweet potatoes and cocoa powder

1 pound ground turkey or beef (optional)
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 28-oz can diced tomatoes with juice
1 14-oz can tomato sauce
2 sweet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
2 Tbsp of your favorite chili powder
1 Tbsp ground cumin
1-2 tsp unsweetened cocoa powder
1-2 tsp smoked paprika
1 Tbsp brown sugar
½ tsp salt

1. Brown meat, if using. It truly is optional- I’ve made this vegetarian a bunch of times and it’s got plenty of flavor and heft without the meat. (You do not, strictly speaking, have to brown the meat, either. I’ve skipped it, but I get a little nervous about foodborne bacteria and ground meats and slow cookers so I usually do it to be safe. I will often throw the onion in the skillet, too, because why not?)

2. Add all the ingredients to your slow cooker, stir it up, and cook on low 8-10 hours. Serve with shredded cheese and sour cream, if that's your thing. 

 

Is there anything else I should be adding to my chili? I'm all ears!

Easy Crock Pot Beer Brats

by Jess M

This time of year always has me yearning for some nice, heavy, delicious German food. And some nice, heavy, delicious German beer to go with it. So, with football on the TV (Baltimore Ravens!), I wanted something easy and fairly hands-off. I didn’t want to spend my Sunday standing over a pot frying schnitzel.

Last week we made Cook’s Country’s Slow-Cooker Beer Brats. The recipe is pretty simple and doesn’t require a whole lot of prep work. Onions and brats go in the crock pot with a simple mustard mixture and beer. At the end you remove the brats and heat up some sauerkraut. The Test Kitchen recommends you use a light-bodied American lager, but we used a heavier Marzen beer for fuller flavor.

After 4 hours on high, by halftime we were enjoying brats with sauerkraut and mustard and a side of soft pretzels.

(Photo from: Cook's Country)

Steel Cut Oats in the Crock Pot

By Katie

At the risk of giving foodlush readers the impression that I only ever cook in my crock pot anymore, I'd like to tell you about another recent slow cooker discovery that's blowing my mind: slow cooked steel cut oats.

I LOVE steel cut oatmeal, but its long cooking time usually makes it a no-go for me on weekdays. Which is a shame, because it's hearty and filling and would make an EXCELLENT breakfast for cool fall mornings.

Good thing I learned about doing steel cut oats in the slow cooker. It couldn't be easier: 1 cup steel cut oats, 3 cups water, a pinch of salt. Cook on low overnight (8-10 hours). Wake up to delicious, warming breakfast. If you want to go a little fancier, add a cup of the dried fruit of your choice (raisins, cherries, figs, and dried apples are all delicious) and increase the water to 4 cups. You can also add spices- cinnamon, nutmeg, clove, what have you. I like to mix it with a big dollop of the slow cooker applesauce I talked about last week, and some walnuts or almonds. Delicious.

This makes a big batch, but the oatmeal keeps well in the refrigerator for about a week.

(Personal photo)

Mulled Cider. In the Crockpot!

By Nora

I am fairly obsessed with apple cider from about October 1st through the end of November. We have it in the fridge almost constantly. I love it cold, I love it hot, and I especially love it mulled and spiked on a chilly night in front of the fireplace. But, I think to get the very best mulled cider, you really need to let it cook for a good long while in order for all of the spices and flavors to steep into the apple-y goodness.  This requires a bit of planning and attention, and who wants to do that, especially when it comes to cocktails?  This is where the crockpot comes to play. Mix the following ingredients in the crockpot, set it on low in the early afternoon, and by happy hour, you've got yourself some pretty tasty mulled cider (you can leave out the Calvados, if you want the whole family to be able to enjoy it).

Crockpot Mulled Cider

2 quarts apple cider

3-4 pieces of orange peel (about 3 inches long each)

1.5 cups of Calvados (apple brandy)

6 cinammon sticks

12 whole cloves

1 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

1/4 cup brown sugar (if you like it sweet)

1/8 tsp ground ginger

 

 Another benefit of mulling cider in a crockpot is that it makes the whole house smell absolutely delicious while it's heating. And once it's ready to serve, I like to garnish with a cinammon stick and an orange slice (I know, apples and oranges? But it works.) 

 

(photo from myrecipes.com)

Slow cooker applesauce

by Katie

Applesauce is not very difficult to make, but it can be a little hands on- the peeling, the chopping, the stirring at the stove. My parents gave us dozens and dozens of apples from their backyard tree, and I knew I wanted to make applesauce, but didn't particularly want to spend the afternoon standing at the stove. Could it be done in a slow cooker instead, I wondered?

It can, and it is so easy I can't imagine ever doing it the old way again.

Slow cooker applesauce

8-12 apples (I used 12, but you could certainly use less,) cored, peeled, and roughly chopped.
Juice of one half lemon (or a whole lemon, if your apples are very sweet)
1-2 cinnamon sticks (or 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon)
a scant 1/4 cup sugar (optional)
1/4-1/2 cup water

Put all the ingredients in the slow cooker and cook on low for 4 hours. Your house will smell like heaven. Remove the cinnamon sticks and mash the applesauce with a potato masher or run it through a blender, food mill, or food processor. Enjoy!

(Note: if you have a food mill or a very strong blender, like a Vitamix, you can even skip the peeling step. The food mill will separate out the peels and leave you with a chunky sauce, or the Vitamix will blend the peels right in and give you a velvety smooth sauce. Both are super tasty.)

(Picture from: canningbasics.com)

Reworked Italian Chicken

By Ariel

I think most people have made Italian chicken.  Marinade chicken breasts in Italian dressing and the bake or grill and serve.  It's an easy and delicious meal not too many will turn down.

I found a spin on Italian chicken via Pinterest the other day and adapted it over the weekend with what I had on hand.  It was a really great spin on the classic, and bonus?  You can make it in the CROCK POT!

Crock Pot Italian Chicken (Serves 2)
2 Chicken breasts
1 Packet (3 oz) dry Italian seasoning
1 Can Cream of mushroom soup
1 Cup (I just measure with the soup can to be honest...) chicken broth
8 oz. Cream cheese

Mix the seasonig, soup, broth, and cream cheese together in a crock pot.  Add the chicken and coat.  I used frozen chicken and cooked on high for about four hours, low would be perfect for a workday.  Serve the chicken and sauce over some whole-wheat noodles.

[Photo by me]

 

Tis the season for slow cookers!  What are you cooking this week?