Slow Cooker- Cook Once, Eat Twice

Cook 2 pot roasts in your slow cooker one day and a few days later...

Add a few more ingredients to the leftovers and you have Cheesesteak Sandwiches

I love meals like this, where you cook once and can make 2 dinners. This pot roast was very tender and delicious, and that is coming from a non-beef lover. It was tasty and the sandwiches were great as well. I added a little more liquid than the recipe called for originally and also added some onion for flavor.

Slow-Cooker Pot Roast (adapted from Southern Living Magazine)

2 (2 1/4- to 2 1/2-lb.) eye-of-round roasts, trimmed

2 teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon vegetable oil

1 (1-lb.) package baby carrots

1 (28-oz.) can petite diced tomatoes

1 cup chopped celery
1/2 large red onion, chopped

2 cups beef broth

4 garlic cloves, chopped

1 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme leaves

1 1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram

1. Rub roasts evenly with 2 tsp. salt and 1 tsp. pepper.
2. Brown roasts on all sides in hot oil in a Dutch oven over medium-high heat (about 10 minutes). Place roasts, side by side, in a 6-qt. slow cooker. Add carrots and remaining ingredients.
3. Cook, covered, on LOW 10 to 12 hours or until tender. Remove roasts from slow cooker; shred 1 roast, and serve with 2 cups vegetable-and-gravy mixture. Shred remaining roast. Store remaining roast and 2 cups vegetable-and-gravy mixture in separate airtight containers in refrigerator up to 3 days or freeze up to 2 months.

Cheesesteak-Style Sandwiches

1 medium-size sweet onion, sliced

1 red bell pepper, sliced

1 green bell pepper, sliced

1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil

1/2 teaspoon Creole seasoning

1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce

1 cooked and shredded Slow-cooker Pot Roast

5 (6-inch) hoagie rolls, split
10 provolone cheese slices (about 6 oz.)

2 cups Slow-cooker Pot Roast gravy

1. Sauté first 3 ingredients in hot oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat 15 minutes or until golden brown. Sprinkle with Creole seasoning and Worcestershire sauce.
2. Spoon shredded pot roast and bell pepper mixture evenly onto bottoms of split rolls, and top with provolone cheese; replace tops of split rolls. Place sandwiches on a baking sheet.
3. Broil 6 inches from heat 2 to 3 minutes or until cheese is melted and top of rolls are toasted.
4. Microwave Slow-cooker Pot Roast gravy in a glass measuring cup at HIGH 1 to 1 1/2 minutes or until thoroughly heated. Serve sandwiches with gravy for dipping.

Easy Spanish Rice

Spanish Rice

1 cup chopped onion

1/2 cup chopped green pepper

1 cup instant brown rice

1 24-26 oz jar garden variety pasta sauce

1- 14- 16 oz can chicken broth

1 - 2 cups cooked ground beef, ground turkey, or other cooked meat

Flour tortillas

Shredded cheese

Heat 1 Tbls olive oil in an electic skillet on a nonstick skillet over medium high heat.

Add onion and saute 4-5 minutes. Add green pepper, cook 1-2 minutes. Add rice, and cook, stirring frequently, until rice is browned, 1-2 minutes.

Add pasta sauce and chicken broth. Bring mixture to a boil. Add cooked meat, cover and reduce heat to a medium low.

Cook for 25 minutes or until liquid is absorbed and rice is tender. Turn off heat and let cool 5 minutes.

Warm a flour tortilla for a few minutes in the microwave. Place 1/2 cup spanish rice in tortilla, sprinkle with shredded cheese, roll up, and serve.

Our Simple Passover Dinner

Our passover platter- Lamb koftas, dried figs, herbed goat cheese, dates, and cucumber
Lamb koftas with homemade grape juice

Lamb Koftas (Martha Stewart's Outdoor Living Magazine)
1/2 cup coursely chopped onion
1 piece (1/2 inch) fresh ginger, peeled
1 garlic clove
1/2 cup loosely packed fresh mint leaves
1/4 cup loosely packed fresh cilantro leaves
1 tsp garam masala (less if you are not familiar with its taste)
1 tsp coarse salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 large egg
1 pd ground lamb
3 Tbls safflower oil (I used olive oil)
1 recipe Cucumber Raita*

1. Pulse onion, ginger, and garlic in a food processor until finely chopped. Add int, cilantro, garam masala, salt and pepper; pulse until finely choppped. Add egg and lamb; process until fully combined, scraping down sides of bowl as needed.

2. Shape mixture into 1-inch balls; flatten into patties. Heat a saute pan over medium-high heat; add oil. When hot add patties in batches until cooked through, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer to a paper towel-lined baking sheet to drain. Or use an indoor grill pan like I did. Heat to medium-high heat. Spray with cooking spray. Add patties and drizzle with olive oil. Cook a few minutes on each side, until cooked through.

Cucumber Raita- 1 English Cucumber, peeled and seeded 1 cup plain yogurt, 1/4 cup coarsely chopped mint leaves, juice of 1 lime, 1 tsp coarse salt - Cut cucumber into 1/4-inch dice. Transfer to a bowl and add remaining ingredients; stir to combine.

Unleavened Bread

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine 3 cups flour and 1/4 tsp salt in a medium sized bowl. Slowly add enough water so that the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl and it is soft and workable. Add more flour if dough is too sticky.

Divide dough into 3 portions. On a floured surface, roll out each portion as thin as possible. Transfer to a lightly oiled cookie sheet and prick dough lightly a few times with a fork. Bake immediately until browned, turning once. Carefully slide onto a wire rack to cool.

Make the most of your meat

On Monday night we cooked a Pork Roast. We made a simple marinade and then served it in slices (cubes for the kids) as the main dish for our meal.
The best part about it is that now we have 2 cups of leftover meat that we can turn into another night's dinner.
Cooking more meat than you might need for a recipe is a good idea because it makes the rest of the week a little bit easier. I try to do this as often as possible so I have an easy night during the week when I know that dinner is not going to take as much time.
We are turning our leftover pork roast into

Quick Chow Mein
2 cups cooked meat, cut into 1/2-inch strips or cubes
2 Tbs chopped onion
1/2 green pepper, cut in strips
1 1/2 cups celery, diagonally sliced
1 Tbs oil
1 cup chicken broth
2 Tbs cornstarch
2 tsp soy sauce
1/4 cup cold water
cooked rice

Heat oil in wok or electric skillet. Stir-fry meat and onion until lightly browned.
Add chicken broth. Lower heat, cover and cook for 10 minutes. Add green pepper and celery; cover and cook 5 minutes.
Mix cornstarch, soy sauce and cold water. Add to meat and cook, stirring until thick. Serve immediately over cooked rice.

The great thing about this recipe is that you can use whatever leftover vegetables you have- mushrooms, carrots, zucchini, broccoli, or whatever and also whatever meat you have left over.
Quick and Easy!