I've been stranded out of my home by hurricane rita,

[brownie12]

I've been stranded out of my home by hurricane rita, and I am so blessed that everyone in my family is safe. Our home is even standing, just totally fixable damage. We are staying in a motel room with a little kitchenette. I have a decent sized fridge, a sink, dishwasher and 2 burners. I'm thinking that I'll be using my crockpot a lot in the month or so it'll take to get us back to our house. Does anyone have any really, really simple recipes that are tried and true for the crockpot? Or even simple enough to do with a skillet and medium sized saucepan. If I could get 4 or 5 for both chicken and beef, I'd be in business. Thanks for your help! (If I don't answer for a couple of days, it's because I'm using the computer at friends' homes and haven't gotten back to one yet.)

Thanks in advance!

[colleency]

(((brownie)))

French Beef dips are really easy.

French Dips, clbb by kathyb by krhm
1 3-pound chuck roast, all visible fat trimmed
1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce
1 beef bouillon cube
1 bay leaf
3 to 4 whole peppercorns
2 tsp Italian seasoning
1 tsp garlic powder

Combine seasonings and pour over roast in crockpot. Add 1/2 cup water. Cover and cook on low 10-12 hours. Remove roast and let cool. Separate juice and fat. Shred the beef into bite-sized pieces, removing the fat. Broil in toasted buns with a slice of provolone. Serve with a small bowl of "au jus" for dunking.

[mundy]

So sorry your home was damaged. Here's a recipe that is easy to cook and also easy to eat.



Slow-Cooker Beef-and-Bean Burritos

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 12 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : beef

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
2 pounds London broil
1 1/4 ounces taco seasoning mix -- 1 pkg
Cooking spray
1 cup chopped onion
1 tablespoon white vinegar
4 1/2 ounces chopped green chiles -- 1 can
16 ounces fat-free refried beans
12 medium fat-free flour tortillas -- (8-inch)
6 ounces shredded Monterey Jack cheese -- 1 1/2 cups
1 1/2 cups chopped plum tomato
3/4 cup fat-free sour cream

INSTRUCTIONS:
1. Trim fat from meat; rub seasoning mix over both sides of meat. Place meat in an electric slow cooker coated with cooking spray; add onion, vinegar, and green chiles. Cover with lid; cook on low-heat setting for 9 hours. Remove meat from slow cooker, reserving cooking liquid; shred meat with two forks. Combine meat and reserved cooking liquid; stir well.
2. Warm beans and tortillas according to package directions. Spread 2 tablespoons beans down the center of each tortilla. Spoon a heaping 1/3 cup meat mixture on top of beans. Top each with 2 tablespoons cheese, 2 tablespoons tomato, and 1 tablespoon sour cream; roll up.

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Per Serving (excluding unknown items): 384 Calories; 22g Fat (52.6% calories from fat); 22g Protein; 23g Carbohydrate; 7g Dietary Fiber; 67mg Cholesterol; 632mg Sodium. Exchanges: 1 Grain(Starch); 2 1/2 Lean Meat; 1/2 Vegetable; 3 Fat; 1/2 Other Carbohydrates.

Sorry, I don't know the source of this recipe. I often use round steak for this since its a similar cut and is usually less expensive where I live (often on sale).
Hope clean-up won't take too long for you. My daughter's in-laws are from Port Arthur and are going through exactly what you are.

[TXtransplant]

DH, DS (19 mos), and me (5 mos pregnant) lived in extended stay-type hotel when we first moved here...it was challenging to say the least...and I didn't even have to deal with the stress of my home being damaged by a storm! I hope everything works out for you...at least you and your family are safe...things can be replaced, people can't. I made this for DH and he loved it, so it will definitely be in our repeat menus. I was surprised by how easy it was to prepare


Beef Burgundy
1 can cream of mushroom soup, undiluted
1 can cream of celery soup, undiluted
1 can tomato soup, undiluted
1 pkt dry onion soup mix
3 lb beef, cut up (I think I used Round Steak)
1/2 c red wine
3 bay leaves
Mix all ingredients together and cook in crock-pot on low for 8-10 hours. Serve over hot noodles or rice.

These are others that we enjoy (skillet dinners):

Sloppy Joe's (my grandma's recipe so you know they have to be good)
1 lb ground beef
1 t salt
1/2 t chili powder
1 1/4 c tomato juice
1/4 t black pepper
2 T flour
2 T brown sugar
3/4 t dried onion
1/4 t garlic powder
Brown hamburger until thoroughly cooked. Add all ingredients, stir and let simmer until desired consistency.



Sweet and Spicy Chicken
1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into 1/2" cubes
3 T taco seasoning
1-2 T vegetable oil
11 oz jar chunky salsa
1/2+ cup peach preserves (I add a little more if using hot salsa)
Place chicken in a large resealable plastic bag; add taco seasoning and toss to coat. In a skillet, brown chicken in oil. Combine salsa and preserves; stir into skillet. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; cover and simmer 2-3 minutes until meat juices run clear. Serve over rice.



Beef Broccoli Stir Fry
3 T cornstarch, divided
1/2 c plus 2 T water, dividided
1/2 t garlic powder
1 lb bonelss round steak, cut into 3" strips
2 T vegetable oil
4 c broccoli florets
1 small onion, cut into wedges
1/3 c soy sauce
2 T brown sugar
1 t ground ginger
In a bowl, combine 2 T cornstarch, 2 T water and garlic powder until smooth. Add beef and toss. In a large skillet or wok over med-high heat, stir fry been in 1 T oil until desired doneness. Remove and keep warm. Stir fry broccoli and onion in remaining oil (I use cooking spray) for 4-5 min. Return beef to pan. Combine soy sauce, brown sugar, ginger, and remaining cornstarch and water until smooth; add to the pan. Cook and stir for 2 min. Serve over rice. I did this with chicken instead of been and stir fry veggies and it was wonderful! The sauce is what makes this dish so be creative.

[Missi]

So sorry about your home :o .

Here are a couple of soup recipes. With a bagged salad and bread, you've got an easy meal.


* Exported from MasterCook *

Tomato Spinach Slow Cooker Soup

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 0 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Crockpot Soups


Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
10 oz spinach -- baby, washed
2 medium carrot(s) -- chopped
2 medium stalk celery -- chopped
1 large onion(s) -- chopped
1 clove garlic clove(s) -- minced
4 cup vegetable broth -- low-sodium
28 oz canned diced tomatoes -- no-salt added
2 leaf bay leaf
1 Tbsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes -- crushed

Place all ingredients in a slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 5 hours. Remove bay leaves, stir and serve. Yields about 1 cup per serving.


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* Exported from MasterCook *

Chicken Tortilla Soup

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 0 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Crockpot Soups


Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
4 chicken breast halves (thawed or frozen -- doesn't matter)
1 cans black beans -- (15 oz) undrained
(I did 1 can beans, 1 can corn)
1 cans Mexican stewed tomatos -- (15 oz) or Rotel
tomatos
1 cup salsa (mild - hot -- whatever your
preference)
1 can chopped green chilies (I omitted) -- (4 oz)
1 can tomato sauce -- (14 1/2 oz)
tortilla chips (Tostitos)
2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese


1. Combine all ingredients except chips and cheese in a large slow cooker (i.e. chicken on bottom, everything else dumped on top).


2. Cover. Cook on low 8 hours, or high 4.


3. Just before serving, remove the chicken breasts and either cut into bite size pieces or shred with a fork. (I prefer shredding)


4. To serve, put a handful of chips in each bowl and ladle soup over the chips. Top with cheese.


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[Beth]

So glad you and your family are all okay. I made an emergency meal not to long ago that my son dubbed Mexican lasagna. I had an old CL recipe that looked appealing, but when I read through the recipe, it had too much prep for my schedule (chopping, sauteing, reducing), so I improvised.

I baked it in the oven, but it really just needs to be heated through, so you could do it in a crockpot. I just wouldn't know how long to tell you to plan on it cooking -- maybe 2 hours??? BTW, we had a vegetarian version, but you could easily add some ground or shredded beef or chicken to it. My older son said he wants to make this in a Dutch oven on a camping trip.

Mexican Lasagna

6 flour tortillas
3 cans beans, drained (I used one each -- black, pinto and white)
1 can corn, drained
1 can petite diced tomatoes, drained
1 small jar Pace pincate sauce
1 tsp cumin (or to taste)
2 Tbsp chili seasoning (or to taste)
2-3 cups grated cheese (used Mexican blend and didn't measure)

Spray a large, deep casserole with cooking spray (really only necesary if the cheese would stick to your dish or crock and be a pain to soak and clean -- mine wasn't so I might skip this next time).

In a large bowl, combine the beans, corn, tomatoes, picante sauce and seasonings. Spoon about 1/4 of the mixture into the pan, sprinkle with cheese and top with 2 tortillas, torn to fit into a layer across the pan. Repeat layers twice and top with remaining bean mixture. Top with grated cheese. Bake at 350 about 30 min. or until bubbling around the edges.

You could easily scale this up or down to fit your pot. Hope that helps.

The Crockpot Italian Beef Sandwiches (very similar to the ones posted above) are very simple and one of my favorites -- on a roll with a slice of cheese. I think Lindrusso's Santa Fe Chicken would be simple enough to work for you too. I haven't loaded my recipes onto this computer yet, but you could search for them on this BB. If you have trouble finding them, I'll help you get them. Also from the old computer, I have a group of collected crockpot recipes, and I recently got a slow cooker crockpot. I'll see if I spot something else for you.

Hasn't the Sticky Chicken been done in the crockpot?

[brownie12]

thanks so much for the ideas! I know the kiddos will enjoy them. We're staying upbeat and positive, thanks mostly to the help of friends-and virtual friends!