Busy Days

Our days have been very busy lately. And on some of our busiest days, meals have been quite tricky to put together. We are both full time students and I work in between classes and sometimes late into the evening. There is always homework to be done as well as everyday chores around the house. But we still need to eat. So what have we been doing? Hello, Crock Pot!

This beautiful kitchen masterpiece has been a great help on those very busy days. Potato Chowder last week and Taco Soup today. Here is the VERY easy recipe:

Crock Pot Taco Soup
Servings: A lot. It fills our whole 6 quart crock pot almost completely and will feed us for several meals.
Cook Time: Depends on how soon you want to eat it!

Ingredients:
- 1 can black beans
- 1 can pinto beans
- 1 can kidney beans
- 1 can whole kernel corn
- 1 can diced tomatoes
- 1 small onion diced
- 1 package taco  seasoning
- 1 lb ground beef
- 1-2 cans water (Depends on how thick you want it. I sometimes will not even put a whole can in)
- salt and pepper to taste

Directions:
Brown ground beef over medium heat, drain excess fat. Add meat, diced onions, seasonings and everything in the cans (including water/juice) and how ever much extra water you want to your Crock Pot. Cook on high for 2-4 hours or low for 6-8. (Or however long you want it to cook! If you want it ready in less than 4 hours I would put it on high but for anything more than that, low would probably suffice. Top with shredded cheese and sour cream and eat with tortilla chips. Great meal for a busy day!

(I have also made this in a large stock pot on the stove. Directions are the same but cook time is lowered to about half an hour of low simmering over medium heat.)

PS. I only know a few crock pot recipes but am looking for more. If you have one that your family likes and would like to share I would LOVE to try it!

Have a great day!

Garden Pizza

If you choose to omit the garden vegetables when you make this yourself then just call it Pizza. (Or yummy pizza, or yeast-free pizza crust pizza, or Emma's Favorite Pizza recipe, etc.)

The Crust: Makes one medium-large pizza. (Fits on the standard pizza stone.)
Ingredients:
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour (I use 2 cups white and 1/2 cup wheat)
- 2 3/4 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 Tbsp. oil
- 3/4 to 1 cup water

Directions: Mix dry ingredients, add 3/4 cup water and oil. Stir until in forms a ball. If dough is stiff add more water. If dough is too sticky, add more flour (but not too much because it will make it difficult to roll out). The dough will be soft, not sticky. Knead on a floured surface for 3-4 min. Place on preheated pizza stone*. (careful, HOT!) Top with sauce and favorite toppings. Bake @ 400 degrees F for 15-25 min.

*A pizza stone helps the dough to cook evenly but any other pizza making sheet will do, or make it a square pizza and bake it in a deep cookie sheet.

Sauce: Here is what I do but you can use any pizza sauce and it would be just fine. I just eyeball it and do a lot of taste testing. I use maybe 1 1/2 cup pasta sauce (I have never measured it out) and then add more seasoning. That is the main difference between pasta and pizza sauce, the flavor intensity. I add oregano, onion powder and garlic powder. Be creative and use the spices your family likes.

Assembly: I first spread around the sauce, then I top it with cheddar cheese (what we have on hand, but mozzarella would be just as great), peperoni, jalapenos, thinly sliced zucchini (if we have some), fresh tomatoes slices, pineapple (leftover from Hawaiian Haystacks, a great way to use up those toppings!), and sliced green onions (also Haystack leftovers). I have put sliced yellow onions on it before as well as sliced green pepper. Anything would taste delicious. I top it all off with a little bit of Parmesan cheese.