Lisa's Kitchen Blog

Happy New Year! Just after midnight on the big night, when my boys were still running around the house blowing their noisemakers, I started frying bacon. Is there a better way to start the new year? We were planning on a lazy New Year's Day at home, and I wanted a hot breakfast for everyone without the work. Enter the slow cooker! I have been meaning to try this recipe for a while, and this was the perfect time.

We finally went to bed around 1:00, and when we woke up some 8 hours later, it was to the smell of breakfast cooking downstairs. Yes! The casserole turned out great, and I will definitely be making it over and over again. It's great for lazy holidays or weekends, but would be very welcome on busy school-day mornings as well. Much better than toast and cereal on a rushed morning! Customize this dish by adding chopped vegetables, your favorite herbs (dill would be good!), and whatever kind of cheese you like best. The sky's the limit!

Slow cooker breakfast casserole

1/2 pound bacon, cooked and chopped into bite-sized pieces
1- to 2-lb. package frozen hash browns or potatoes O'Brien with onions and peppers
1 1/2 cups shredded cheese (I used Cheddar)
12 eggs
1 cup milk
Salt, pepper, and herbs to taste

Spray the inside of your slow cooker with non-stick spray, or insert a disposable liner. Spread frozen potatoes across the bottom. Top with cooked bacon pieces. Sprinkle cheese on top.

In a medium bowl, beat eggs, milk, salt and pepper, and any herbs you like. Pour over the ingredients in the slow cooker.

Cook on low for 8 to 10 hours, or until the internal temperature reaches 160º F. Enjoy!

Hold the phone!! You can make party mix in the slow cooker?!? Yes,  yes you can! I love party mix, but almost never make it, because it's a mess and a pain to make on a baking sheet in the oven. OK, maybe not for most people, but I once dumped an entire batch into the bottom of the oven when the tray slipped out of my hand. You know how much I love my slow cookers, so imagine how excited I was to hear this tasty snack could be made in them! Here's how:

9 Tbsp. melted butter or margarine
3 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 Tbsp. seasoned salt
1 tsp. garlic powder
3 cups woven square corn cereal
3 cups woven square rice cereal
3 cups woven square wheat cereal
1 cup nuts (peanuts, almonds, mixed nuts ... whatever you like!)
1 1/2 cups pretzel rods or small pretzel shapes
2 cups oyster crackers, unsweetened O-shaped cereal, or small cheese crackers

In a small pan over low heat, melt butter or margarine. Add Worcestershire sauce, seasoned salt, and garlic powder. Stir to combine well.

Meanwhile, dump all other ingredients in a large slow cooker. Use your hands or a large spoon to toss the ingredients well. Pour the butter mixture over the top, and toss well.

Cook on low, uncovered, for about 3 hours. Give it a good stir every half hour or so.

You can really add any ingredients you like to this, which makes it so easy. If you like spicy treats, add some hot sauce to the melted butter. If you like ranch, add a packet of powdered ranch mix. The possibilities are endless! Honestly, the hardest part of making this party mix is keeping everyone from snacking on it before it's finished. It does crisp up nicely, and tastes just as good as party mix made in the oven. Enjoy!

My husband grew up in Hamburg, Iowa, which is home to a big popcorn plant, and as any resident will tell you, is the popcorn capital of the free world. They even have Popcorn Day in September every year, complete with class reunions, a parade, greased pig contests, frog jumping contests, and -- of course -- all the popcorn you can eat. So, as you might imagine, popcorn is a popular snack at my house.

If there's anything better than sitting on the couch with my family watching a movie, it's sitting on the couch with my family watching a movie and eating caramel popcorn. Of course you can buy microwave caramel popcorn, but you can make the caramel yourself, and it's even better! You can also pour the caramel into a jar and use it for topping ice cream or dipping apples.

This version of caramel sauce is super easy. Easy enough that you can whip it up while your popcorn is popping, using ingredients you no doubt have in your pantry.

2/3 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1 can sweetened condensed milk
1 tsp. vanilla

Simply melt the ingredients together in a heavy saucepan over medium-low heat, stirring constantly. Let the mixture boil for about 2 minutes, still stirring constantly. Then pour it over your popcorn and fold to coat, or put it in a jar and refrigerate for use as apple dip or ice cream topping. This recipe makes enough caramel to coat 3 bags of microwave popcorn.

It's that simple! Can you believe it? Give this gooey, soft caramel a try, and you'll be a believer!

My middle son, Luke, is playing football this year, and it's his first year with pads and a helmet. It's also his first year with practice four nights a week. That makes for a pretty crazy evening at my house, and is giving me baseball season flashbacks! He eats a healthy snack, like a banana and granola bar, when he gets home from school, but can't eat dinner until he gets home from practice around 8:00. So the trick these days is to make a meal that my other two sons can eat while Luke's at practice, and that the football player and his dad can have when they get home. The slow cooker is perfect for this kind of meal, and sandwiches are a natural.

This tasty, cheesy version of the sloppy Joe fits the bill. It's ready whenever we are!

Cheesy Joes

1 pound ground turkey or beef
1 pound ground sausage
1 packet onion soup mix
1 pound (half a block) Velveeta or similar cheese-type product

Brown the meat in a large skillet with the onion soup mix. Drain any fat. Transfer cooked meat into a slow cooker treated with non-stick spray, or (even better) fitted with a disposable liner. Cut the Velveeta into cubes and mix it into the meat. Cook on low, stirring occasionally, until the cheese is melted. Turn slow cooker to the "warm" setting, stirring occasionally, and eat whenever you're ready!

We ate this right up on little wheat cocktail buns. Leftovers would be great in nachos, or as stuffing for baked potatoes. This would also be an easy dish to take to a potluck dinner or for tailgating at the football game! Enjoy!