Slow Cooker Whole Cauliflower

Slow Cooker Whole Cauliflower

The Lazy Slow Cooker, Susan, United States.
This recipe is from a social media friend who specializes in slow cooker dishes. I made this on 12 Apr 2023, excellent flavor, and very well liked by the family.
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 6 hours
Course Side Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 6 servings

Equipment

  • Slow Cooker (4+ quart)

Ingredients
  

  • 1 head cauliflower
  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • ¼ cup Dijon mustard
  • ¼ cup Parmesan cheese, grated
  • 4 cloves garlic, minced

Instructions
 

  • Trim the stem of the cauliflower so the head will sit flat, remove any leaves, and give it a quick rinse and shake off the excess water. Place in the slow cooker. No need to remove the stem, it is just as good as the rest of the cauliflower.
  • In a small bowl, mix together the oil, mustard, cheese, and garlic to make the sauce.
  • Spoon the sauce on top of the cauliflower, right in the center. Let gravity pull the sauce down on the sides, and just even it out with the back of the spoon, until the head is covered evenly with the sauce.
  • Cover and set to Low, let cook for 6 to 8 hours, checking for doneness at 6 hours. If a fork can be easily inserted from the top to the bottom of the stem, it is done. I took the photo after I had cut the cauliflower into 6 wedges and started to serve.
  • Serve as a side dish, and enjoy.
Sausage Balls

Sausage Balls

Favorite Recipes page 8, Sande Seale, St. Clair Shores, MI.
This recipe is from an extensive cookbook titled Favorite Recipes, compiled by the active and retired employees of Michigan Bell in 1981. Links to the Shortcuts are listed in the Notes section.
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Course Appetizer
Cuisine American

Equipment

  • Baking Sheet
  • Foil
  • Oven

Ingredients
  

  • 500 grams pork sausage, (1 lb), Shortcut
  • 500 grams Cheddar cheese, shredded, (1 lb)
  • cups Bisquick Mix, Shortcut
  • pinch fresh parsley, chopped fine

Instructions
 

  • Preheat your oven to 180° C (350° F), get out a baking, line with foil with the edges turned up, to make cleanup easier.
  • Add all ingredients to a large mixing bowl, mix together.
  • Form into even sized balls. Arrange on baking sheet.
  • Bake for 20-30 minutes or until cooked through.
  • Serve as appetizers with dipping sauces of your choice. Enjoy.

Notes

Chicken Nugget Casserole II

Chicken Nugget Casserole II

Adapted from an internet recipe.
I made this on 28 Sep 2022, and it is incredibly good! Family absolutely loved this. Links to the Shortcuts are listed in the Notes section.
Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 40 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 6 servings

Equipment

  • Baking Pan (9x13 inch)
  • Foil
  • Oven

Ingredients
  

  • 1 kilo frozen chicken nuggets, you will not use them all, (2 lb)
  • ½ cup Parmesan cheese, grated
  • 4 cups spaghetti sauce, Shortcut
  • 2 cups Mozzarella cheese, shredded
  • Italian seasoning, as desired, Shortcut

Instructions
 

  • Preheat your oven to 180° C (350° F), grease a 9x13 baking dish with butter or cooking spray.
  • Place frozen chicken nuggets in the prepared dish in a single layer.
  • Sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese.
  • Pour the spaghetti sauce over all the nuggets.
  • Sprinkle with Mozzarella cheese, then top that with Italian seasoning.
  • Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes or until the nuggets are heated through and the cheese melted. Remove the foil and bake another 5-10 minutes to just lightly start to brown the cheese on top. Remove from oven and let rest for 5 minutes before serving.
  • Serve and enjoy with sides of your choice.
    Excellent side dish ideas are pasta (classic), mashed potatoes (another classic), fresh salad, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, or Saffron rice.

Notes

Fair cost per per serving based on the cheese used.
Shortcuts: Spaghetti/Pasta Sauce, Italian Seasoning.
Chicken Nugget Spaghetti Bake

Chicken Nugget Spaghetti Bake

Adapted from an internet recipe.
This is an excellent way to serve chicken nuggets. I made this on 21 Nov 2022, and adjusted the ingredients based on the family comments, and the updated ingredients are are updated.
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Course Main Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 6 servings

Equipment

  • Baking Pan (9x13 inch)
  • Oven

Ingredients
  

  • 500 grams dry spaghetti, (1 lb)
  • 4-5 cups pasta sauce, Shortcut
  • 500 grams frozen chicken nuggets, thawed, (1 lb)
  • ½ cup Parmesan cheese, grated
  • 2 cups Mozzarella cheese, or as desired

Instructions
 

  • Heat a pot of salted water to boiling. Add the spaghetti and cook until just tender, drain well.
  • Just before the spaghetti is done, preheat your oven to 180° (350° F), get out a 9x13 baking pan.
  • After the spaghetti is drained, add to the baking dish.
  • Add 2-3 cups of pasta sauce and mix together. Spread out evenly.
  • Top the spaghetti with the chicken nuggets in an even layer.
  • Drizzle another 1-2 cups of sauce over the nuggets, then sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese.
  • Top with Mozzarella cheese, be generous.
  • Bake for 20-30 minutes or until bubbly and the cheese is starting to brown.
  • Serve and enjoy.

Notes

Fair cost per serving based on the cheese used.
Shortcut: Pasta Sauce.
Updated on 21 November 2022.
Bologna, Ham, or Chicken Salad

Bologna, Ham, or Chicken Salad

Just A Pinch Recipe Club, Beverly Dunlap, United States.
This comes from the Just A Pinch Recipe Club, and is delicious! This recipe assumes you have hard boiled eggs on hand but if not, a link is provided for my favorite way to make them. This recipe requires a meat grinder or food processor, however, I can vouch for using a sharp knife and dicing sliced bologna or sliced ham. Link to the Shortcut is listed in the Notes section.
Prep Time 15 minutes
Passive Time 2 hours
Course Lunch, Main Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 6 servings

Equipment

  • Meat Grinder or Food Processor

Ingredients
  

  • 500 grams bologna, ham, or cooked chicken, (1 lb), see Step 1
  • 4-6 dill pickles
  • 6 hard boiled eggs, peeled, Shortcut
  • 1 medium onion, quartered
  • 1 cup mayo

Instructions
 

  • For the Bologna and Ham, feel free to use bulk unsliced, or sliced. For sliced, you can use a sharp knife and quickly dice this, then finely dice the other ingredients, saving you the cleaning of a grinder or food processor. For grinding or processing, cut the bologna or ham into chunks.
    For the Chicken, cook it your preferred way, boiling, baking, leftovers, rotisserie, you get the idea. For this a grinder or processor would be the best way to go. Cut the chicken in to chunks.

Grinder / Food Processor Method

  • Run the bologna, ham, or chicken, pickles, eggs, and onion through your meat grinder or pulse with an S blade in your food processor until finely chopped.
  • Mix the ground / chopped ingredients together.
  • Add the mayo and mix together. Cover and place in the fridge for at least 2 hours or even overnight.
  • Serve on bread, toast (buttered), or on crackers, enjoy.

Knife Method

  • For sliced bologna or ham place a stack of slices on a cutting board, cut thin slices all the way across, turn the board 90° and slice again, result is finely diced bologna or ham, add to a mixing bowl.
  • Now finely dice the pickles, eggs, and onion, adding each to the same mixing bowl.
  • Mix together.
  • Add the mayo and mix that in. Cover and place in the fridge for at least 2 hours or even overnight. (I used Japanese Kewpie mayo, and already smoothed it out, ready to be covered and placed in the fridge.)
  • After several hours of chilling, I made sandwiches using my fresh baked multigrain bread, toasted and buttered. Delicious!

Notes

I will say Low cost for now as this does make a lot.
Shortcut: Perfect Hard Boiled Chicken Eggs
Chu-Hi

Chu-Hi

Adapted from an internet recipe.
I have drank many of these while stationed in Japan, four ingredients, and they are good! These are Japanese in origin but the alcohol is Korean, sochu.
Prep Time 2 minutes
Course Drinks
Cuisine Japanese
Servings 1 serving

Equipment

  • Tall Glass

Ingredients
  

  • ¼ cup sochu, Jinro is my preferred brand. from Korea
  • ¼ cup fruit juice, orange, grapefruit, pineapple, grape, work well
  • ¾ cup club soda
  • ice cubes, as needed

Instructions
 

  • Add the first three ingredients to a tall glass, add ice to fill, stir, and enjoy.
Cheese Ball VI

Cheese Ball VI

Favorite Recipes page 6, Sande Seale, St. Clair Shores, MI.
This recipe is from an extensive cookbook titled Favorite Recipes, compiled by the active and retired employees of Michigan Bell in 1981.
Prep Time 20 minutes
Course Appetizer, Snack
Cuisine American
Servings 12 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 3 packages cream cheese, softened, (8 oz / 226 g each)
  • 1 jar pimento, drained well, diced
  • spring onion, finely chopped, as desired
  • 1 jar dried beef, cut into squares, (2½ oz / 71 g)

Instructions
 

  • In a mixing bowl, add the cream cheese, pimento, and spring onion. Mix together well.
  • Form into a ball.
  • Place squares of dried beef on entire ball, overlapping squares.
  • Serve and enjoy.
Broccoli Potato Topper

Broccoli Potato Topper

Only 3 ingredients. I got this recipe from my Mom, Joann, and she clipped it from a magazine 10-20 years ago, and it does sound good. On my to make and taste list. Link to the Shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 4 minutes
Course Side Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 4 servings

Equipment

  • Microwave

Ingredients
  

  • 1 can condensed Cheddar cheese soup, (10½ oz / 298 g), Shortcut
  • 4 hot baked potatoes, split
  • 1 cup cooked broccoli florets, drained

Instructions
 

  • Stir soup in the can until smooth. Place potatoes on a microwave safe plate, fluff potatoes with a fork and top with broccoli.
  • Spoon soup over the potatoes.
  • Microwave on High setting for 4 minutes or until hot.
  • Serve as a side dish and enjoy.
Easy Cheese Fries

Easy Cheese Fries

Only 2 ingredients. I got this recipe from my Mom, Joann, and she clipped it from a magazine 10-20 years ago, and it does sound good. On my to make and taste list. Link to the Shortcut is listed in the Recipe Notes section.
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Course Side Dish
Cuisine American
Servings 6 servings

Equipment

  • Oven
  • Baking Sheet

Ingredients
  

  • 1 bag frozen French fries, (32 oz / 2 lb / 907 g)
  • 1 can condensed Cheddar cheese soup, (10½ oz / 298 g), Shortcut

Instructions
 

  • Bake the French fries according to package instructions.
  • Push all the fries towards the center of the baking sheet. Stir soup in the can, then spoon over the fries.
  • Bake for 3 minutes more or until the soup is hot.
  • Serve as a side dish, and enjoy
Basic Pork Belly (Pressure Cooker)

Basic Pork Belly (Pressure Cooker)

Sandy Wu
This recipe is from a friend on social media and is a make as much as you want recipe, keeping in mind the limits of your pressure cooker. I will be using my 9 liter (9½ quart) stove top pressure cooker with a pressure of 80 kPa (12 psi), so this will work equally well with electric pressure cookers. Follow all safety precautions for your model of pressure cooker.
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 22 minutes
Course Lunch, Main Dish
Cuisine Asian

Equipment

  • Pressure Cooker
  • Timer
  • Broiler

Ingredients
  

  • fresh pork belly
  • dipping sauces of your choice, as desired, for serving
  • hot cooked rice, as desired, for serving

Instructions
 

  • Cut the pork belly into strips about 2 inches wide.
  • Place a rack in your pressure cooker and add 1½ cups of water, the rack should be above the water.
  • Place the pork belly strips on the rack.
  • Add the lid to the pressure cooker and lock in place, add the weight on the lid. Place on high heat until the weight (jiggler) starts venting and making some sound and moving a little. Reduce heat to low or medium low to just keep the jiggler venting and moving, set your timer for 22 minutes.
  • At 22 minutes, turn off the heat and carefully move the pressure cooker to an unused burner and allow the pressure to release naturally, about 15-20 minutes.
  • When you have indications of zero pressure inside the cooker, carefully remove the weight, then remove the lid.
  • Remove the pork belly to a cutting board to sit and dry out. I will verify the time when I prepare this.
  • Lightly score the skin side of the pork belly with a knife.
  • Now for crisping up the skin, I am going to use a broiler, but feel free to use an air fryer.
  • Place the pork belly on a rack, skin side up, and broil until the skin is blistered and crispy. I will verify a time for this when I prepare this.
  • Cut pork belly into 1 inch wide pieces.
  • Serve with dipping sauces of your choice or simply with salt and pepper, and rice on the side if desired. Enjoy.

Notes

Low cost per serving.