Slow Cooker Cauliflower Sausage Casserole

My son in law is into the ketogenic diet so I substituted cauliflower for the tater tots in this Pioneer Woman's casserole recipe. I had the original dish with the tater tots at the monthly senior luncheon at our church made by Dee and it was delicious.

I substituted plain 2% milk for the half and half among other things. I also used the slow cooker approach instead of baking the dish. I just dumped the ingredients and forgot them. I used my Crock Pot brand casserole slow cooker but any slow cooker will do. The result was not as pretty as the original and looked more like a hash because of the curdling of the milk and cheese but the casserole turned out to be delicious. It got two thumbs up not only from my son in law but also my picky taster, my husband. They were happy so was I.

Slow Cooker Cauliflower Sausage Casserole

• 1 head cauliflower, cut into small florets
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 1\2 cup 2 % milk, note 1
• 1\4 tsp seasoned salt
• 1\4 tsp cayenne pepper
• 4 large eggs
• 2 tbsp cornstarch
• Black pepper to taste
• 2 red or yellow or green pepper, diced finely  
• 1 lb Italian sausage, casing removed and cut into 1\2 inch pieces, note 2
• 8 pieces American cheese slices, note 3
• 1\2 lb Mexican blend cheese, note 4

Spray the bottom and sides of the slow cooker and place the cauliflower florets at the bottom, 

Mix well the next 8 ingredients in a bowl and pour into the cauliflower in the slow cooker.

Add the sausage.

Add the cheese slices on top.

Cook at high setting for 6 hours. I cooked mine in Crock Pot brand slow cooker casserole for six hours at high setting. I wanted the cauliflower to be soft not crunchy.

Notes:

1. You can use 1 cup half and half and 1\2 whole milk in combination for a richer casserole.

2. You can use spicy bulk breakfast sausage. They will be softer in texture.

3. You can use 2 cups cheddar cheese.

4. You can use 1\2 cup pepper jack cheese.

Easy Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore

I have a grandson, Luca, who loves to eat. One of his favorite food to relish at my house is anything made with chicken. He and his sister, Maddie, love the Chicken Satay I prepared for them and the wonderful experience stuck with him.

One day I asked my children who came for a celebration if they wanted chicken, namely the leftover from our dinner and guess who raised his hand oh so high, Luca. So cute and adorable. When they were going home he also pointed to the slow cooker which contained the chicken to her mother to remind her to take his favorite food home.

They were coming last night so I prepared this easy chicken dish for them especially for the chicken boy, Luca. I actually liked this dish and was surprised how good the ingredients came together: the wine, the marinara sauce, beef bouillon and the mushrooms. Note most of the ingredients came straight from the pantry. So easy.

Here are pictures of Luca with his family at a ducky race.

Easy Slow Cooker Chicken Cacciatore

• 2 lbs chicken breasts
• 1-24 oz jar marinara sauce
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• 2 beef bouillon cubes
• 2-10 oz bottle chopped mushrooms, one undrained the other drained
• 1\2 cup red wine
• black pepper to taste

Place all the ingredients in the  Slow Cooker and cook  at

high setting for 4 hours or for 8 hours at low. I cooked mine in an Aroma Brand rice cooker/slow cooker for 2 hours at slow cooker setting.

Serve over pasta, rice or mashed potatoes.

Nini’s Egg and Spam Salad

Filipinos love hard boiled eggs. We use them as toppings for our noodle dish or pancit or mix them with tomatoes as a side dish for fried dishes like pork chops or tuyo or dilis. I boil them with the meat sauce when I cook adobo or even when I cook rice which saves me time and afford me one less pot to wash or watch over.

We also bring hard boiled eggs with us when we have trips as a handy portable food or snack to eat on our way to our destination. We crack them open and eat them with salt and pepper. That was what I had in mind when I was to take my former office mates at the Philippine Atomic Energy Commission, Nini and France, who came for a visit last August, to Fallingwater. Somehow I used the hard boiled eggs instead to make egg salad. But not any egg salad. Nini added leftover spam or luncheon meat.

Filipinos also love canned foods especially stateside ones or those that come from the United States. When Filipinos who have immigrated to the United States come back to the Philippines to visit, they bring home canned corned beef, vienna sausage and spam or luncheon meat as pasalubong or gifts for their loved ones who cherish them as much as the chocolate candies they also usually receive.

Fried spam or luncheon meat is part of many Filipino breakfasts. I prepared this favorite that morning before our visit to Fallingwater. When we got lost going there I got hungry and France my co driver handed me a sandwich and it was pure bliss. It was egg salad with chopped leftover spam which Nini prepared! So good  I associate their wonderful visit with this now. Flood of good memories come back every time I eat this delicious salad.

Nini is not only talented but ultra resourceful. As I have mentioned, she turned an ordinary egg salad into a spectacular one with little pieces of leftover spam which surprise your tastebuds with its saltiness. Nini also showed this trait when we brought my casserole crockpot in its original box to Bethesda for our mini reunion at Seville's place. It was heavy and I did not have a carrier. Nini improvised an oversized tshirt I had to fit that purpose. Too bad I did not take a picture. She also has a knack for interior design. She just fluffs some pillows and arranges them a certain way and voila, the living room exudes a better ambience.

Nini had been the president of the North Carolina Charlottesville Filipino organization for more than thirty years and I am not surprised since she is very organized. She also speaks five languages including Spanish, her husband Manolo's  language. I love hearing  her say the Spanish word este when she starts to explain something.

Muchas gracias Nini and France for your visit. Here are some pictures of our memorable times together in Pittsburgh.

At the Primantis Brothers at the South Side.

Gateway  Clipper Historical Cruise.

Karaoke Session with the Masterworks Choir members at the Steel City Restaurant.

Fallingwater designed by Frank Lloyd Wright.

Breakfast at our house's deck.

Nini's Egg and Spam Salad

I converted this to a ketogenic one by replacing the bread with lettuce leaves.

• 4 hard boiled eggs, peeled and chopped
• 2 tbsp mayonnaise
• 1 tbsp chopped pickles, note 1
• 2 tbsp chopped spam, see note 2
• Black pepper to taste
• 1 tbsp chopped green onions (optional), note 3
• 1 tbsp chopped cilantro (optional), note 3
• 4 lettuce leaves, either Romaine, iceberg or bibb

Mix the ingredients except lettuce leaves in a small bowl.

Spoon the mixture into lettuce cups.

Enjoy.

  Notes:

1. Add stevia for sweetness or use sweet pickle relish if you are not in a ketogenic diet.

2. You can fry the spam first or microwave it and then cool and chop before adding to the mixture.

3. The green onions and cilantro were not in the salad prepared by Nini. They are optional and can be skipped. I just added them for more pizzazz.

Slow Cooker Hawaiian Baby Back Ribs

One of my favorite programs on TV these days is Cheap Eats on the Cooking Channel. I pick up ideas of what to prepare for dinner from any dish I drooled over when I watch it. One such craveable dish is the beef short ribs prepared by a chef of Filipino descent from the Hometown Hawaiian Restaurant in California. 

I developed this recipe from the ingredients that the chef added to the marinade. The ribs were grilled on the stove after being marinated. I decided to skip those steps and use the slow cooker method. I more or less estimated the amounts of the ingredients since they were not provided. Here is the delectable easy slow cooker version using pork baby back ribs instead of the beef short ribs.

Slow Cooker Hawaiian Baby Back Ribs

• 3-5 lbs pork baby back ribs, whole slab or cut into pieces
• 1\2 cup water
• 1\2 cup sugar or stevia
• 1\2 cup soy sauce
• 1\4 cup sambal sauce 
• 1\4 cup Thai sweet chili sauce or more Stevia to taste
• 1\8 to 1\4 dry chili flakes
• 2 tbsp minced ginger
• 1\2 cup orange juice
• 2 tbsp cornstarch in 4 tbsp water

Add all the ingredients in a crockpot and cook on high for four hours or eight hours at low setting. I cooked mine in a Crock Pot brand slow cooker casserole for four hours at high setting.

Garnish with green onions and cilantro.

Serve  with rice and what the restaurant calls the Mac  Salad or macaroni salad.

Isn’t This Enough?

Green Tomato Bruschetta

If you are wondering what to do with the abundant harvest of green tomatoes from your garden, why not try the very easy bruschetta. It takes only five ingredients to make this appetizer that it so addictive you will eat them all day.

I prepared bruschetta using red tomatoes yesterday and I started thinking why not use the green ones. Both bruschettas actually were equally good but the one from the green tomatoes has the advantage of not getting the bread soggy and kept its form. It has a certain tartness to it too which rivals the sweetness of the red ones. Combined with garlic and fresh basil, the green ones held its own. Pure bliss.

I am concocting all sorts of ways to use green tomatoes these days, my nails are turning green. Ha,ha.

Green Tomato Bruschetta

Inspired by this site.

• 1 baguette, cut into slices and toasted
• 2 green tomatoes, cubed
• 2 cloves of garlic, minced
• 2 basil leaves, thinly sliced
• 2 tsp olive oil or more
• 1\4 tsp sea salt or to taste

Combine the tomatoes, garlic, basil leaves, olive oil and salt in a bowl. 

Spoon over the baguette.

 Enjoy!

Finding God in the Empty Spaces

In the pauses, spaces

between words of a song lurks

God's message. Listen.

Note: Reflection gleaned from John Michael Talbot's introduction to one of his songs during his concert yesterday at St. Bernadette Church, Monroeville, PA.

Slow Cooker Saucy Pork Chops

When you are down to two persons in a household, it is good to come up with recipes for two. In our case we tend to end up forgetting leftover stuff in the fridge that end up being thrown away. Sad and wasteful.

Here is a recipe I adapted from the one given to me by my daughter, Wendy. I used the slow cooker instead of the oven for this delicious dish meant for two. I also added chopped peppers from our vegetable garden.

Slow Cooker Saucy Pork Chops

Adapted from this site

• 2 pieces pork chops or any pork sliced into two 3\4  inch pieces (note 1)
• 1\4 cup onion, chopped
• 1\2 cup sliced peppers, any kind (note 2)
• 2 tbsp maple syrup
• 2 tbsp water
• 1 tbsp balsamic or cider vinegar
• 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp chili powder
• 1\2 tsp salt
• 1\4 tsp black pepper
• 1\8 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tbsp cornstarch in 2 tbsp water

Place all the ingredients in the slow cooker and cook for 3 hours at high setting or 6 hours at low. I cooked mine in an Aroma Brand rice cooker/slow cooker for two hours at slow cooker setting.

Serve over rice with a salad or steamed vegetables.

Notes

1. I used about a pound of pork butt which I cut into two thick slices.

2. I used a mixture of peppers.

Our First Days

I was on my way to the university last Tuesday where I was to meet my class for the first time. I recently got an emergency appointment at the place I retired from three years ago. While in the car, my mind was more on my granddaughter's first day in kindergarten rather than on my own.

I started crying realizing my little girl was all grown up. She was no longer the little toddler I took with me to the library to sing the ABC song during its Tots time on Mondays and later on to gymnastics class where she loved to tumble and took her first steps on the balance beam. She is now in a real school where she will learn to write her ABC''s and make words with them and read!

As I was just going through my Google photo albums before this her first day, the memories of her transformation from year to year overwhelmed me and I got teary eyed. Lately I have also observed acts of kindness and maturity from her I have not seen before.

Just a few days before her first day in school, I took her and her younger brother, Luca, to the mall where I have brought Maddie countless times to  its playground. It was actually Luca's first time there. Maddie took Luca under her wings and taught him how to go down the slide, ride the train and the cow and walk on top of the xylophone. She acted like a little Mommy to him teaching him the ropes. They also rode the virtual roller coaster with her delightfully sharing with her brother what she had enjoyed all these years.

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Luca felt all the motherly love from his sister the whole time in the playground. When we were walking towards the bookstore he took away my hand holding him so he could solely hold on to his older sister's. As we were walking, people were staring and smiling at the two of them holding hands and so did I beaming with pride.

Just a few days back, as I was lying down on their sofa to take a nap, Maddie asked me, "Lola (grandma in Tagalog), do you need a blanket?" .  OMG, I felt a warmth in my heart. This simple thoughtful offer signalled to me her growing maturity. She is now picking up what good things I have done  for her like the same offer I ask her when she takes a nap in our sofa at our house. I have always been scared she would just pick some irreverent stuff I say and do. But here she is with her big heart  choosing this simple act of kindness and thoughtfulness instead.

As I was crying in my car during my first day back at the university, my mind and heart were on Maddie and forgot all about the jitters about meeting some 24 students who I hope to see transforming before my eyes in the days to come this semester. I am  grateful to have the opportunity to see that as I have  had with my Maddie these past few days.

Garden Fresh Tomato Pizza

I wanted to use the tomatoes from our vegetable garden which my husband lovingly and obsessively put together. He kept on asking me everyday if I have done something with them.  I first thought of making a tomato red pepper marinara sauce but decided instead to make a tomato pizza using the fresh bounty from our garden.  I wanted this fruit or vegetable to some to be the star.

I used refrigerated pizza crust as the base for the luscious tomatoes. I opted to do away with using pizza sauce to further showcase the taste and freshness of the tomatoes.  I did use shredded cheese and grated Parmesan cheese.  For flavor, I used garlic and onion powders, Italian seasoning and salt and pepper to taste. My husband loved this simple rustic pizza but then again those tomatoes are his babies.

Garden Fresh Tomato Pizza

• 1 tube refrigerated pizza crust
• 3 large fresh tomatoes, sliced
• 1 cup shredded cheese
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup olives, optional
• 1/2 tbsp dry Italian seasoning or fresh chopped basil
• 1 tsp each garlic and onion powders
• salt and black pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

Spread the refrigerated pizza crust onto a 13x9 inch cookie pan,  Prebake for 8 minutes.

Place the sliced fresh tomatoes on top of the prebaked pizza crust.

Sprinkle shredded cheese, grated parmesan and Italian seasoning on top of tomatoes.

Bake the pizza for 6 minutes.

Sprinkle garlic and onion powders, salt and pepper on top of the baked pizza.

Cookie Cake from a Cake Mix

I love making cookie cakes for my granddaughter for her birthdays and have posted a recipe here of one I have made from scratch. Yesterday I was too tired to make one from scratch for the farewell party (see pictures below) for our parish priest, Father Tony, and so I googled for a recipe using a cake mix and found it in this wonderful site. It was pretty close to the one I have made from scratch and so easy even my granddaughter can make it. She has been eating leftover ones lately from the recent labor day picnic that was purchased from their neighborhood bakery, Oakmont Bakery. I could hardly wait to make this with her.

Cookie Cake from a Cake Mix

Inspired by this site.

• 2 eggs
• 1-15 oz box White cake mix or any other flavor of cake mix
• 5 tbsp butter melted
• 1-12 oz bag chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Place the eggs in the electric mixer bowl and beat. Add the butter and cake mix and beat till smooth.

Stir in the chocolate chips.

Place the mixture on a 13 x 9 pan that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Spread the batter evenly with your hand that has been sprayed with cooking spray.

Bake for 20 min.