Dinner #23 & #24

Spaghetti.  My kids have been begging for it, but I made it with a new twist tonight.  I made my own sauce and I cooked it in the crock pot, well the sauce, not the pasta.  It turned out wonderful.  The best thing about this is you can double the recipe and freeze half of it and save it for later.  I made fresh rolls with it and served it with a green veggie.  I just think green goes so well with the red sauce.  We all enjoyed this dish.


Slow Cooker Spaghetti Sauce

2 lb bulk Italian pork sausage or ground beef

2 large onions, chopped (2 cups)

2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms (6 oz)

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 can (28 oz) Muir Glen® organic diced tomatoes, undrained

2 cans (15 oz each) tomato sauce

1 can (6 oz) tomato paste

1 tablespoon dried basil leaves

1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon pepper

1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes 

·        Spray 5-quart slow cooker with cooking spray. In 12-inch skillet, cook sausage, onions, mushrooms and garlic over medium heat about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until sausage is no longer pink; drain.

·        

 2 Spoon sausage mixture into cooker. Stir in remaining ingredients.

·        Cover; cook on Low heat for 8-9 hours. 

After sauce is cooked, prepare pasta.  Add the sauce, sprinkle some parmesan cheese on top.  Yum!

Dinner #24

Orange Chicken 

Chicken:
2 lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts (cut into 1-1/2” cubes)
1 ½ cups all purpose flour
1 eggs (beaten)
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
Oil (for frying)

Orange Sauce:
1 cup water
2 tablespoons FRESH orange juice
¼ cup FRESH lemon juice
1/3 cup rice vinegar
2 ½ tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon orange zest (grated)
1 cup packed brown sugar (I thought this was to much.  It made it to sweet)
½ teaspoon ginger root (minced)
½ teaspoon garlic (minced)
2 tablespoons green onion (chopped)
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes 

3 tablespoons cornstarch
1/4 c. water

Combine flour, salt, and pepper. Dip chicken in egg mixture and shake in flour mixture to coat. Deep fry chicken in batches at 375 degrees in a deep fryer (or use a wok) until completely cooked.

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan combine 1 cup water, lemon juice, orange juice, rice vinegar, and soy sauce. Blend well over medium heat for a few minutes. Stir in brown sugar, orange zest, ginger garlic, and onion. Bring to a boil.

Combine 3 tablespoons of cornstarch with 1/4 cup of water and mix thoroughly. Slowly stir cornstarch mixture into sauce until it thickens. Pour sauce over breaded chicken, and if desired add red pepper flakes and garnish with green onions.

My kids weren't sold on this.  I knew they wouldn't be.  Damon and I enjoyed it, but he likes my sweet and sour chicken better.  If you are in a rush you can make the sauce and then use popcorn chicken.  Just a tip.  I served this with rice and a veggies.