Sweet Potato Chili (vegan!) Slow Cooker Recipe

I made a *darn* good chili last week, if I do say so myself (and I do. So does the rest of the family, including my parents). I had a few sweet potatoes left in the house and I desperately wanted to make up for the absolute fiasco that took place when I threw together that icky chicken and sweet potato I-don't-know-what-I-was-thinking dish.

This was much better. So much better, I demonstrated it on BlogHer's new webShow, The Juice. You can see the video by clicking here.

This is a cheap, vegan meal that doesn't leave you hungry 15 minutes later. I promise.

The Ingredients.

2 sweet potatoes, peeled and in 2-inch chunks
1 yellow onion, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 (15-ounce) can red kidney beans, drained and rinsed (or 2/3 cup dried beans, soaked overnight and boiled briskly for 10 minutes because of the freaky red bean toxin thing)
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
1 (14.5-ounce) can tomatoes (whatever's on sale, mine had oregano and roasted garlic)
1 tablespoon chili powder
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon chipotle chili powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup water
1/2 cup orange juice (not pictured. If you don't have any in the house, use water)

The Directions.

Use a 5-6 quart slow cooker. This is enough food to feed a family of 4 regular-sized, or 6 smallish people. Peel and chunk the sweet potato and add to the pot. Add diced onion. Follow with the red bell pepper, can of tomatoes, the beans, garlic, and seasonings. Pour in OJ and water. Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours, or until the onion is translucent and the sweet potato is fork-tender (if you want the sweet potato to get really squishy and disappear when stirred, cook longer).

The Verdict.

Super tasty. I loved the sweet smoky flavor this had, and was thrilled at the depth of flavor that came from this spice combination. The sweet potato and beans were plenty filling, and Adam didn't once mumble that he'd really like a steak. My kids ate it, but un-veganized it by adding shredded cheese and sour cream.
I will definitely make this again. Thank you so much to BlogHer and to Tropicana for the fun day of filming for The Juice production. I had an absolute ball, and am touched to have been included. Thank you.

other great chili dishes:

traditional chili
poor man's chili
clean-out-the-pantry chili
white chili
presidential (Barack Obama's) chili

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Slow Cooker Asian Shredded Beef Recipe

Thank you so much for responding to my Call for Recipes with so many wonderful choices! I've spent the last week reading them all and finding ways to incorporate many into our upcoming meal plans. This meal comes from Christin who got it from Cooking Light's 2007 list of annual recipes. It originally was made with pork, and called for sesame oil, minced garlic, and minced ginger. I thought we had sesame oil in the house, but I must have tossed it during the last refrigerator-clean-out and didn't feel like spending the time mincing garlic or ginger, and opted to use powdered garlic and upped the Chinese 5 spice powder to make up for the ginger. I also added a bit more honey (because we like it!)

I also used a 4 pound roast, and Cooking Light used a 2-3 pound roast. We really liked the results. Thank you, Christin!

The Ingredients.

4 pounds boneless beef or pork roast
1/2 cup gluten free soy sauce
1/2 cup gluten free hoisin sauce
6 tablespoons ketchup
6 tablespoons honey
2 teaspoons Chinese 5-spice powder
2 teaspoons garlic powder (or 6 cloves, minced)

The Directions.

Use a 5 quart slow cooker. Trim any visible fat from the meat, and plop it into your stoneware. My meat was fresh, but it's okay if your meat is still frozen. Sprinkle the dried spices directly onto the meat, and top with the ketchup and honey. Pour in the soy and hoisin sauces. Cover and cook on low for 8-9 hours, or until meat shreds easily with a fork. You may need to take the meat out and cut in chunks after 8 hours, then turn to high for an hour or so to get it to shred nicely (I did this).

Serve over white or brown basmati rice, or over shredded cabbage. I used the cabbage, and we all liked it. The cabbage provided a bit of a crunch at first, but then got warm and soggy with the sauce. I liked it better when it was soggy---if I was making this just for myself, I'd pour the bag of cabbage into the pot to get it wilty, but the rest of the family prefers the crunch.

The Verdict.

We all really liked this meal. The kids ate a ton of the beef, and continued to eat cold pieces later in the night after dinner. This makes a lot of food--we've got about half leftover that I'm looking forward to eating for lunch during the holiday weekend. The meat reminded me A LOT of mu-shu beef---I'd imagine it would be delicious wrapped in the little pancakes with some plum sauce (although Adam quickly pointed out that I haven't had Mu-Shu anything for about 6 years, so I could be way off base. I still think it'd be good wrapped in those pancakes...).

The original name that Cooking Light gave the meat was Char Siu, which means barbecued meat (usually pork). The meat didn't taste like it had a barbecued flavor to me, but instead was slightly sweet and tangy. I'd love to throw in some hot peppers next time to give a bit of heat.

Thank you again, Christin, and to all who submitted recipes. I'm excited!

other great Asian-inspired meat dishes:

Korean Ribs
Mongolian Beef
Thai Curry
Lamb Vindaloo
Broccoli Beef
Peking Duck

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Call for Recipes!

Okay, I need help. Or inspiration. Or something.

I'm cooking, but I haven't been posting because I haven't really made anything new in a while. In the past week we've had:

Indian Curry (yum!)
McCain's Ribs (which we've started calling Lemon Pepper Ribs)
Lemon and Dill Salmon
lots of leftover chicken noodle soup
and brown sugar chicken. AGAIN.

I am seriously in a slump. I can't come up with anything new! and exciting! to make, post, and share.

any ideas?
can you make mozzarella cheese in the crockpot?
what about some kind of slime?

meanwhile, I did post today on the other blog about our gluten free journey, and a few thoughts on the the new Elisabeth Hasselbeck book, The G-Free Diet. I'd love to hear your thoughts.

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Old Fashioned Chicken Noodle Soup Slow Cooker Recipe

I sat down at the computer and tried to write this post about 47 times in the last few days. Sorry to leave the icky chicken and sweet potato fiasco up for so long!

I made some yummy soup the other night that the kids adored and they each had THIRDS.

DID YOU HEAR ME?!

THIRDS!

I think my head may have exploded.

The Ingredients.


1 store-bought rotisserie chicken carcass, or 1 1/2 cups already cooked chicken meat
6 cups water
1 or 2 sweet potatoes, peeled and chunked
2 teaspoons chicken bouillon granules (check for gluten, this was clearly labeled gluten free)
1 cup broccoli florets
1 small onion, diced
1 tablespoon, plus 1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
kosher salt to taste (probably a good 1 teaspoon, since the base is water)
50-cent piece size, or so, handful of raw spaghetti noodles to add at the end (I used Trader Joe's brown rice)
1 large handful raw spinach leaves to add at the end
Parmesan and Asiago cheese, optional garnish

The Directions.

If you're going to use a chicken carcass, cook it on low overnight in the water. In the morning, unplug the crock and let it cool before digging in with CLEAN hands to pick out the bones. Strain through a colander (retaining liquid!) if desired.
Or, start with a slow cooker with 6 cups of water, and add chicken. Add all vegetables except for the spinach leaves. Stir in the bouillon and vinegar. Salt to taste. Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours, or until sweet potatoes are tender and the onion is translucent.

15 minutes before serving, put in raw spaghetti noodles and a large handful of spinach. Cover and flip to high.

Garnish with parmesan and asiago cheeses, if desired.

The Verdict.

This is such a wonderful, comforting soup. The balsamic vinegar does two things: 1, it really darkens the broth which provides a nice color, and 2, it brings the chicken flavor out so nicely while providing a touch of a tang. The tang is nice, because it fools your tongue into thinking it's tasting salt----which is mostly what you taste in canned chicken noodle soups.

Absolutely delicious. This fed our family of four for dinner, with just a bit leftover (and the kids were able to have 3rds!)

other yummy soups:

chicken and rice
Albondigas soup
black eyed pea soup
borscht
butternut squash

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