Tag Archives: slow cooker

Slow Down this Weekend with Pulled Pork

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Beth & Bryce Caple

Although October is officially 4-H Month and National Pork Month, these two are celebrated daily by this Story County farm family. Bryce and Beth Caple of Maxwell have been farming together since they both graduated from Iowa State University and were married in 1994.

“We encouraged our kids to become involved in 4-H because we knew first-hand the benefits of the 4-H program,” says Beth. “The skills they make will be invaluable to their futures, and the friends they make will last a life time.”

Bryce and Beth were both nine-year 4-H members. Bryce’s favorite 4-H project was swine and he especially enjoyed showing at the county and state fairs. He also attended Citizenship Washington Focus as a high school student. As a 4-H volunteer, Bryce has served as swine superintendent at the Story County Fair for about 15 years. He also was in charge of county livestock judging contests for several years.

Beth served three years as the president of her local 4-H Club. She served on the Delaware County Council for two years and also was selected to serve on the Iowa State 4-H Council. She also attended Citizenship Washington Focus and traveled to Switzerland through the International Four-H Youth Exchange (IFYE). Beth’s favorite 4-H project areas were visual arts and foods, plus she enjoyed showing dairy cattle. She continued being involved in the 4-H program as an adult volunteer, serving four years as a Clover Kid leader. Beth is currently serving her second year as 4-H club leader and also serves on the Story County 4-H Foundation.

The Caples

With experiences like this, it’s no wonder all three of the Caple children are active in the 4-H program. Drake, 15, and Creighton, 14, have taken flower gardening and food plus hogs to the county fair. Hannah, 11, is involved with all three of those projects plus she takes visual arts and sewing projects. They’ve all received top awards and purple ribbons. Each child has also exhibited a champion flower garden, as well.

These avid Iowa State fans enjoy their season tickets to Cyclone football and women’s basketball games. When traveling to Ames, it’s a tradition to tailgate in the football stadium parking lot. That’s why today Beth is sharing a go-to tailgating recipe for Slow Cooked Texas Pulled Pork. It’s also a perfect “fix it and forget it” recipe to serve during fall harvest – or anytime of the year!

Slow Cooked Texas Pulled Pork

Description
One of our family’s favorite meals is Slow Cooked Texas Pulled Pork, which I found on allrecipes.com. Because we always have pork in our freezer, I enjoy trying new pork recipes. As a working mother of three very active children, I always appreciate being able to serve a delicious and nutritious meal without a lot of hassle (or dishes!). This recipe serves 8, and the prep time is only 15 minutes.

Ingredients

  • 1 tsp. vegetable oil
  • 1 (4 pound) pork shoulder roast
  • 1 cup barbeque sauce
  • 1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
  • 1/2 cup chicken broth
  • 1/4 cup light brown sugar
  • 1 Tbsp. prepared yellow mustard
  • 1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
  • 1 Tbsp. chili powder
  • 1 extra large onion, chopped
  • 2 large cloves garlic, crushed
  • 1.5 tsp. dried thyme
  • 8 hamburger buns, split
  • 2 Tbsp. butter, or as needed

Directions

  1. Pour the vegetable oil into the bottom of a slow cooker.
  2. Place the pork roast into the slow cooker; pour in the barbecue sauce, apple cider vinegar, and chicken broth.
  3. Stir in the brown sugar, yellow mustard, Worcestershire sauce, chili powder, onion, garlic, and thyme.
  4. Cover and cook on High until the roast shreds easily with a fork, 5 to 6 hours.
  5. Remove the roast from the slow cooker, and shred the meat using two forks.
  6. Return the shredded pork to the slow cooker, and stir the meat into the juices.
  7. Spread the inside of both halves of hamburger buns with butter.
  8. Toast the buns, butter side down, in a skillet over medium heat until golden brown.
  9. Spoon pork into the toasted buns.

Note: Great tip when using a slow cooker, always use Reynolds™ Slow Cooker Liners. Easy clean up!

Food & FamilyServe Up Soup for Supper This Season

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Crock pot meals are a favorite this time a year: they offer flexibility at meal time since you don’t have to worry about the pot roast burning or the soup boiling dry; you can make hearty meals that will help fuel a hardworking body for hours; and crock pot recipes usually require minimal prep time.

Minimizing time in the kitchen is key for busy farm wives, who drive the combine or haul grain carts during harvest and work in town. They’re also perfect for non-farming mamas like me, who are busy chauffeuring kids between football practice and gymnastics lessons, 4-H meetings and Scout activities.

So, you can imagine how delighted I was when I visited the Nelsen family last week in southern Minnesota last week and came home with two easy-to-make, nutrition-packed recipes. Pasta Fazula Soup is a Nelsen family favorite. Shirley Nelsen got the recipe a few winters ago while visiting her sister in Texas, and it’s become a go-to meal. This meal is such a hit that her son, Patrick, requested she “teach” his fiancée, Jody, how to make it.

“There isn’t much to teaching someone how to make Pasta Fazula Soup,” says Shirley with a smile. “All you really do is dump a bunch of canned items – plus a few fresh ingredients – into a crock pot. It’s a great harvest-time recipe and also freezes well.”

Shirley, who has worked for 27 years at the Hy-Vee food store in Austin, Minn., also told me about a recipe that the store’s nutritionist recently shared with her for Sweet Potatoes with Black Bean Salad. It doesn’t sound like something a Midwest family would traditionally serve at mealtime, but it certainly sounds like a great way to (1) get out of a food rut and (2) provide a satisfying last-minute supper. For those two reasons alone, I believe it’s worth having a few sweet potatoes on hand.

“The fragrant filling of beans and tomatoes adds protein,” writes Jen Haugen, registered dietitian at the Hy-Vee store in Austin, Minn., in The Austin Daily Herald’s food column. “Be sure to eat the potato skin, which is full of fiber, as well.”

Pasta Fazula Soup

All you need:

  • 1 to 2 pounds hamburger, browned
  • 1 large onion, chopped
  • 1, 16-oz can of peeled tomatoes
  • 1 or 2 cans of diced Rotel® (two makes it spicer, the way the Nelsen’s like it)
  • 1 or 2 cans of pinto or ranch beans
  • 3 cans of minestrone soup

All you do:
Rinse each can with ¼ can of water and add that liquid to your pot. Simmer for 2 or 3 hours.

COOK’S TIP: This is a great harvest-time recipe. All you have to do is put it in the crock pot and then take it out to the field. It also freezes well.

Sweet Potatoes with Warm Black Bean Salad
Serves 4 (1 potato each)
Active time: 15 minutes
Total time: 25 minutes

All you need:

  • 4 medium sweet potatoes
  • 1, 15-oz. can black beans (rinsed)
  • 2 medium tomatoes, diced
  • 1 T. extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 tsp. ground cumin
  • 1 tsp. ground coriander
  • ¾ tsp. salt
  • ¼ c. reduced-fat sour cream
  • ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro

All you do:

  1. Prick sweet potatoes with a fork in several places. Microwave on high until tender all the way to the center, 12 to 15 minutes. (Alternatively, bake at 425º for about 1 hour.)
  2. Meanwhile, in a medium microwaveable bowl, combine beans, tomatoes, oil, cumin, coriander and salt; microwave on high until just heated through, 2 to 3 minutes. (Alternatively, heat in a small saucepan over medium heat.)
  3. When cool enough to handle, slash each potato lengthwise. Press open to make a well in the center and spoon the bean mixture into the well. Top each with a dollop of sour cream and a sprinkle of cilantro.

Food & Family‘Twas the Night Before Christmas

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Click here to read ‘Twas the Night Before Harvest, an entertaining poem by a University of Auburn student.

It’s obviously not the Night Before Harvest in the Midwest, but we thought this poem was still fitting since tomorrow is the Night Before Christmas. At the end of the poem, Farmer Fred heads home for his supper of chicken and corn-on-the-cob. Fred doesn’t say what kind of chicken he’s having, so I thought I’d recommend one of my favorites, Bacon Ranch Slow-Cooked Chicken.

Bacon Ranch Slow-Cooked Chicken is a perfect harvest-time meal because it can be prepared ahead of time and left alone to cook all afternoon in a slow cooker. It also works perfectly during the holiday season when the house is filled with family or friends, and you don’t want to spend too much time alone in the kitchen prepping food.

The prep time for this dish is truly only 10 minutes. I often fix this as a meal when I know my kids are having play dates or on days when I’m leading a Scout meeting and will get home late. All I have to do is boil noodles and presto… it’s dinner time!

Bacon Ranch Slow-Cooked Chicken

Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

  • 4 chicken breasts
  • 2 T. bacon bits
  • 1 teaspoon instant minced garlic
  • 1 (1 ounce) package hidden valley ranch dressing mix
  • 1 (10 1/2 ounce) can cream of chicken soup
  • 1 cup sour cream
  • 4 boneless skinless chicken breasts
  • egg noodles, Prepared

Directions:

Prep Time: 10 mins Total Time: 3 1/4 hrs

  1. Combine the first 5 ingredients.
  2. Pour over chicken in slow cooker.
  3. Cook 3-4 hours on high, or until chicken is done.
  4. Serve over hot noodles.

Click here for the recipe online.