Homemade Crockpot Apple Butter

Ingredients
6 lbs apples (we used gala), diced with peel on
2 1/2 cups white sugar
2 1/2 cups brown sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon
2 1/2 cups apple cider
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar

Directions
First wash, and stem your apples, what I did was just cut the apples around the core, but anyway you choose is fine. Leave the peel on. Add your apple pieces to the crockpot and set to low setting. Then add 2 cups of the white sugar and 1 1/2 cups brown. Then add the cinnamon, apple cider and apple cider vinegar. Give good stir put lid on and leave alone 6-8 hours (I did this over night and left it alone for almost nine hours), give it a good stir every hour for three more hours. Then with by hand blender or one  you have on hand blend away until smooth like apple sauce. What I did here was use my little pull in dicer and did it in portions, putting the blended stuff separate in a different bowl. Once all apples are well blended remove half of the  liquid content from crockpot ( makes a great fluid replacement for a cake) add rest of sugar and the puréed apples back to crock pot. Leave the lid off and keep simmering for about six hours. Giving it a good stir every now and then.

I canned my contents, doing canning for the first time. I suggest you try canning. But as I am learning. Please do not hold my method to heart.

What I did was boil sterilized four pint sized canning jars and lids. Then I pulled each jar separately from boiling water. Filled with apple butter, popped All noticeable bubbles along edge of glass. Wiped the rim free of and droppings placed lid on finger tight and resumbmerged. Let all four jars boil for about fifteen minutes the let water cool then removed jars from water and set on counter to wait for the Ping sound to say sealed.  Only two jars pinged. So the two that did not were placed in fridge and will be used up quickly.

Do not follow my method for canning.  Please don't!!!!

Chicken Fried Rice

Chicken Fried Rice

Ingredients
1/2 pound pre-cooked chicken breast (leftovers are wonderful!)
1/2 cup shoestring styled cut raw carrots (you know the string cut ones mmm)
1/2 cup super finely chopped/dice broccoli raw or thawed frozen
1/2 a small yellow onion finely chopped
1/2 cup of frozen yellow corn (or if your like me almost the whole bag because I love corn)
1 can chicken stock (try low sodium due to the contents of the soy sauce, trying to watch our intake)

1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon finely mince garlic (mmm or a little if your not a garlic lover)

1/4 cup soy sauce (I use Kikkomans mmmm)
1 tablespoon of olive oil (extra virgin is the best) or 1 tablespoon butter

1 boil bag of rice (or 2 cups of cooked white or brown rice)

Preperation

About two to three hours before you plan on eating (longer if you have the time) prepare the rice. Why so early? The rice needs to slightly "dry out" again from being cooked, the longer you can give it time back in the fridge the better. To do this we're going to add 1 can of chicken stock and 1/2 cup of water to a sauce pan (you may need a little more water). Following the directions for your boil bag rice, drop the bag of rice into the stock/water combo and let it boil until the rice is tender. Once the rice has finished boiling, removing from the stock water combo and set it in a bowl over a paper towel to cool. Once cooled replace in a covered dish in fridge (still in bag still on a new paper towel to absorb any excessive moisture).

About a half hour until dinner, take either the olive oil or the butter and add to a pan to become hot. Once hot add in carrots, corn and broccoli and let them heat and tenderize. This can take up to ten minutes sometimes (I swear raw broccoli hates me while I cook it).. About half way done with the sauteeing add in onions and garlic to let them sweat (add these last so they dont burn). Once the vegetables are properly heated, add in the diced up chicken breast, the soy sauce and rice. Watching and stirring constantly so it does not burn. Once everything is properly heated through, turn off heat and enjoy!

Chibi's Veggie Packed Lasagna

Veggie Packed Lasagna

Ingredients
1 pound ground beef
1 pound maple sausage
1 large eggplant
1 box lasagna noodles
1 large can crushed tomatoes
3 cans diced tomatoes
1 medium onion
4 stalks of celery
4 tablespoons minced garlic
1 32 ounce container ricotta cheese
2 tablespoons pepper
1tsp of sea salt
1 lemon
2 eggs
1 cup sliced carrots
1 cup raw spinach
1/4 cup sliced olives
1 1/2 bags shredded Italian blend cheese
1 package sun dried tomatoes.

Sauce
Start with slicing the onion and celery add to the beef and sausage, add garlic. Brown meat until done. Add in the can of crushed tomatoes and just ONE can of the diced tomatoes. Drain olives and add to the sauce Let simmer until sauce thickens about 20 minutes.

Ricotta Mixture
Crack open eggs, then slice lemon in half and add all the juice to the eggs. Whisk until foamy. Add in pepper, salt ricotta and 1/2 of one bag of shredded cheese. Whip until blended nicely set aside in the fridge.

Lasagna Instructions
Start by greasing a deep baking pan, then line the bottom with a single layer of noodles, make sure to place them over lapping. Add last cans of diced tomatoes over the layer of noodles, then cover with another layer of noodles shingled over that. Spread about 3/4 of the ricotta mixture over the top layer of noodles, cover that with the meat sauce. Then add in the carrots, and spinach. Peel and slice the eggplant thinly and layer over everything else. Spread remaining ricotta over the eggplant, add the sun dried tomatoes, then the remaining shredded cheese. Let bake in over at 350 for about 1 hr..

Taco Lasanga

Barb’s Taco Lasagna
Ingredients-
2 lbs ground meat (beef/chicken/pork/turkey/lamb (Whatever you choose)
3 pks taco seasoning
1 Large Can Refried Beans
2 boxes Spanish Rice (cooked up separately)
1 bag shredded cheese
2 large jar salsa
1 Large container of ricotta cheese
2 16 count packages tortillas

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Brown meat until done, add in 2 packages of taco seasoning and let simmer. While meat is browning prepare the rice according to the box (Or if you want to cheat 2 cups instant rice cooked up and add ½ of a jar of salsa to it..). Heat up beans and mix until smooth and creamy. Blend 1 package of taco seasoning into ricotta cheese.

Spray a baking pan with pam (or grease it or butter it), layer 1 layer of tortillas over lapping only a bit until the bottom of the pan is covered. Smear a layer of beans over tortillas, add ground meat over that, then a layer of ricotta cheese, rice, then salsa and a thin layer of shredded cheese. Add another layer of tortillas and repeat with beans, meat, rice, ricotta and salsa until pan is filled. Top off with 1 last layer of tortillas then smother tortillas with cheese. Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes until heated through and cheese on top is all melted and slightly browning.

Serve garnished with a dollup of sour cream and chives for added flare.

Chibi's PB Balls

Chibi's Pb Balls

Chibi's Chilly day Pumpkin Soup

Pumpkin Soup w/ Cinnamon Croutons

Chibi's Homemade Peirogies

Chibi's Peirogies