Slow Cooker Texas Pulled Pork

I am not big on pulled pork nor am I big on things made with BBQ sauce.  This recipe has both and I LOVE it!  Recipe calls for Pork Shoulder Roast.  I used the sale slab of pork (I don't even know what it was called) and cooked it on the slowwwwww setting - i.e. 12 hours on low.

Ingredients

• 1 teaspoon vegetable oil
• 1 (4 pound) pork shoulder roast 
• 1 cup barbeque sauce (I used "Dianna")
• ½ cup apple cider vinegar
• ½ cup chicken broth
• ¼ cup light brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon prepared yellow mustard
• 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 small onion, or 1/2 large onion, chopped
• 2 large cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 ½ teaspoons dried thyme
• 8 hamburger buns, split
• 2 tablespoons butter, or as needed

Directions

1.    Pour vegetable oil into the bottom of a slow cooker. Place pork roast into the slow cooker. In a bowl combine barbeque sauce, vinegar, chicken broth, brown sugar, yellow mustard, Worcestershire sauce, chili powder, onion, garlic, and thyme - mix well and pour into slow cooker.  Cover and cook on Low for 10 to 12 hours or High for 5 to 6 hours until pork shreds easily with a fork.

2.    Remove pork from the slow cooker, and shred the meat using two forks. Return shredded pork to the slow cooker, and stir to combine with juices.

3.    Spread the inside of both halves of hamburger buns with butter. Toast buns, butter-side down, in a skillet over medium heat until golden brown. Spoon pulled pork into toasted buns.

4.  Enjoy!

 

 

Gwyneth Paltow (sort of) Blueberry Muffin

This is a recipe that was developed by someone who altered Gwyneth Paltrow's Blueberry Muffin recipe which I altered too.  When I run out of blueberries (but following the recipe with 2-1/2 cups of blueberries, it is really very very good!), I use chocolate chips which make delicious muffins too.   I also add nuts, whatever kind I have on hand, to top each muffin.

Ingredients:

8 TBSP unsalted Butter, melted and cooled (113 grams)

2 large eggs

1/2 cup milk (any kind)

2 Cups all-purpose flour (I use whole wheat flour)

3/4 Cups of granulated Sugar or Splenda

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp fine kosher salt (I use fine sea salt)

2-1/2 Cups Blueberries

Instructions:

1.  Preheat oven to 375°F.  Prepare muffin tin with liners or spray with non-stick cooking spray.

2.  Whisk together butter, eggs and milk in a medium bowl.  

3.  In a large bowl whisk flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. (If using choc chips you can add them to dry ingredients)

4.  Stir wet ingredients into dry ingredients (I usually have to add an additional 1/8 cup milk otherwise batter is too thick).

5.  Gently fold in blueberries.

6.  Divide batter among 12 muffin tins.  Bake 25-30 minutes.

 TIP ... Before you bake cookies ...

DO NOT USE the Western Family brand of butter sold at SAVE ON FOODS in the cookie recipes on this site or in my books.  I don't know what is wrong with it but the cookies splay across the baking sheet and DO NOT TURN OUT.  

I have also heard that the No Name Butter, which I have used in the past, does the same thing now.  Be careful.  It may cost a bit more to purchase a brand name butter, but at least your baking with be presentable and delicious and edible.

 Quesadilla a la my friend Sue

This is a great way to use up left over meat.

1. Mash beans.  Today I used white kidney beans.  Have also used red kidney beans in the past but any bean you like will do.

2.  Mix into the beans  2 or 3 heaping tablespoons (not measuring spoons, just your kitchen spoons) of Salsa.

3.  Spoon mixture onto 1/2 of Tortillas, then top this with left over meat.  Today I used ground beef.  Also excellent with left over chicken/turkey.  Top this with grated cheese of your choice (I used cheddar).

                                          

4.  Fold and bake in 350 degree F oven for about 20 minutes, until centres are hot and cheese is melted.

5.  Serve hot topped with Sour Cream/Plain Yogurt, Salsa and  mashed Avocados/Guacamole.

Simple and easy.  Enjoy!

  

Apple, Sauerkraut & Cheddar QUESADILLAS

 

I had saurkraut left over from my Adult Hallowe'en Hot Dogs and remembered making this years ago.  It has all the ingredients I like, it is easy to make, so I made it. And it was just as delicious as I remembered it to be.

Ingredients

1  Cup Sauerkraut, rinsed

1/2 Cup Water

2 - 9 to 10 inch Flour Tortillas

1-1/3 Cups Old Cheddar Cheese, shredded

1 tart, juicy Apple, peeled and very thinly sliced (I omitted the peeling and used a mandolin to get very thin sliced

Directions

Put sauerkraut and water in a medium nonreactive skillet. Gently heat just until the liquid has evaporated but not so much that the sauerkraut begins to stick to the pan. Remove from the heat.

Gradually heat a large skillet, lightly sprayed with a cooking spray (I used canola oil spray), over medium heat.   Put one tortilla in the pan and immediately sprinkle 1/3 cup cheese over half of it. Quickly arrange about half the apple slices over the cheese, then top with half the sauerkraut, spreading it evenly. Sprinkle with another 1/3 cup cheese.

Fold the tortilla over the filled half and press gently on it with a spatula to seal. Heat the quesadilla until the bottom is golden, about 2 minutes, then carefully flip and lightly brown the other side. Slide the quesadilla onto a cutting board and cut it into halves or quarters. Prepare the second one in the same fashion.

Serve with your choice of sour cream, guacamole, fresh apple sliced or similar.

Suggestion: If you like, a little chopped ham tastes wonderful layered in with the other ingredients.  I haven't tried this but it sounds good.

Hallowe'en Apple Treats

 I made these with the kids.  They enjoyed making them and it is a healthy snack or dessert for Hallowe'en time.

Ingredients

One Crips Apple (I used Honeycrisp)

1 Tsp Lemon Juice

1 Pkg blanched slivered Almonds

Directions

1. Quarter and Core the Apple.
2. With a small sharp knife cut a lengthwise wedge from the skin side of each apple quarter, leaving the peel around the wedge edge for lips.
3. Rub the cut portions (all the white parts ie front and back) with lemon juice to prevent browning.
4. Poke 5 or 6 slivered almonds into the top and bottom of the cut out area to make snaggly teeth.

Hallo ... Weenies (Hallowe'en Hot Dogs)

 I made this for the kids the night of Trick or Treating.  It was a quick and easy dinner for those young ones anxious to get going.  Would be great for a Hallowe'en party for kids as well.

Ingredients

One Package Pilllsbury Crescent Rolls or preferably Hot Dog Rolls

6 to 8 Hot Dogs

Nonstick spray & Parchment Paper

Directions

Preheat oven to 375°F.  

Open crescent or hot dog rolls onto cutting board and with long side facing you cut 1/4 to 1/2" wide strips.  (I find the skinnier the better so used the 1/4" cuts)

Start with one strip of dough and wrap it around the hot dog like a mummy bandage.  Continue, pressing the end of the last strip together with the start of a new strip and leave a small space between the "body" and the top of the "head" so you can dot two eyes there.  Try to get the joints on the bottom, then place joined side down on a baking sheet lined with parchment (obviously I didn't have parchment so used tin foil) and sprayed with cooking spray.  Repeat with all of the hot dogs.

Bake for 12-17 minutes until the strips are golden brown.  Let cool for 5 minutes.  When cooled add two dots of mustard for the eyes.

You can watch a video on the Pillsbury site.  They use cheese with theirs but my kids don't like cheese with their hot dogs.

Hallo-weenies How To