Fun, Friendly & Fix Approved

        21 Day Fix/Hammer & Chisel Slow Cooker Time!

Ever feel like you are busy working, running to sports practices, doing homework, cooking dinner, laundry, food shopping, never-ending housework, trying to find time to spend with the hubby or even watch your favorite tv show??? YES...that would be ME! 

"Time is of the Essence"

I get it. Even before my three kids, I was always busy. Now it's just a whole new level! Something has to give, right? I know it does for me. And as much as I would love to get rid of the never-ending housework, unfortunately it just has to get done. So I decided to help all of you busy momma's take back some of your time so you can spend it doing something you enjoy. Sound interesting?!

Who else loves to eat as much as I do? I LOVE me some yummy, tasty foods. So how do we make quick, delicious, healthy meals our whole family can enjoy???

Try these SLOW COOKER RECIPES...and guess what? They are 21 Day Fix/Hammer & Chisel Approved!!!

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork BBQ

Pulled Pork BBQ

Yield: 4 servings

Fix Portions (per serving): 1 red, 1/4 green, 2 tsp, 1 yellow (if served open-face; 2 if served on whole wheat bun; 0 if served bunless)

Ingredients

  1 pork loin

  1/4 cup of honey
1 tbsp of paprika
1 tbsp of Himilayan salt
1 tsp pepper
3 tbsp olive oil
  1 green container (about 1 cup) onions and mushrooms, chopped

  1 tsp cayenne pepper

  1 tbsp garlic powder

  ¼ cup red wine (or apple cider) vinegar

   1 whole wheat bun or roll (optional)

Directions

  Combine all ingredients in slow cooker
Layer onions and mushrooms over the top of loin

  Cook on low for 7-8 hours

  Shred pork

Serve 1 red container (about 2/3 cup) of pork on whole wheat hamburger bun or deli round

21 Day Fix Chicken Tortilla Soup

Serves about 6 (1 1/2 cup servings) Portion Fix Equivalent: 1 1/2 cup – 1/2 RED 1/2 GREEN 1/2 YELLOW

Don’t forget to count the toppings!

Ingredients:

1 1/4 lb raw boneless skinless chicken breasts (about 3-4 Breasts)

10 oz. diced tomatoes with green chilies

14.5 oz. diced tomatoes (no salt added)

1  cup frozen corn thawed

1 cup black beans (no salt added), drained & rinsed

1 medium onion, diced

1 jalapeno, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

4 cups of organic, low sodium chicken broth or stock

1 tsp. ground cumin

1 tsp. chili powder

1 tsp. Himalayan salt

1/4 tsp. black pepper

Tortilla Strips:

organic corn tortillas

olive oil cooking spray

Himalayan salt

Optional toppings – avocado, cheese, lime, Greek yogurt, cilantro…or all of the above.

Directions:

• Toss all the ingredients for the soup into your crock pot.  Stir, turn on low, and go about your day.  Check back in 6-8 hours.
• Before serving, shred the chicken.
• If you want to make homemade tortilla strips, preheat your oven to 350 and cut the corn tortillas into strips.  Spray with olive oil spray and sprinkle with Himalayan salt.  Bake for about 10-15 minutes.
• Enjoy with toppings!

Slow Cooker Beef Fajitas

Servings: 6

Portion Fix Equivalents: Container count per serving: ½ green, 1½ red

Note: Remember to also consider your tortillas and toppings when calculating containers!

INGREDIENTS

• 1½ lb flank steak
• 2 tbsp  oil
• 3 red bell peppers, cut into ⅓” strips
• 2 large yellow onions, sliced into half moons about the same thickness as the peppers
• 6 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 8oz can of diced tomatoes with chilies
• 1 tbsp of chili powder
• 1 tsp of cumin
• 1 tsp of granulated garlic
• 1 tsp of granulated onion
• 1 tsp of paprika
• ½ tsp of ground coriander
• ½ tsp of oregano
• salt and pepper, to taste

DIRECTIONS

• Preheat a large skillet over high heat, add the oil and allow it to get nice and hot. Season your steak on both sides with salt and pepper and sear it in the hot skillet for about 3 minutes on each side.
• Meanwhile, in a very large bowl, toss together the onions, peppers, garlic, all the spices, diced tomatoes and chilies and salt and pepper.
• Place half of the veggie mixture in the bottom of your slow cooker pot, top with the seared steak and tumble over the remaining veggie mixture.
• Cook on high for about 3 to 4 hours or low for about 6 to 8.
• When ready to serve, lift the steak from the pot, slice into thin slices against the grain and add it back in the pot.
• Serve with tortillas and your favorite toppings.

Slow Cooker Braised Short Ribs

Serves 4

Container count per serving: 1 red, 1½ teaspoons

Note: Since the meat has bones, and ribs can be cut in different sizes, it’s hard to say exactly how much meat will be on each rib. When I made it, the recipe produced 4 servings, but be sure to estimate the best you can with your red container when creating your portions.

INGREDIENTS

• 3-4 pounds beef short ribs
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• 2 tablespoon coconut oil (or regular oil)
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• ½ tablespoon onion powder
• 2 cups beef broth
• 15 oz tomato sauce
• 4 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 4 Tablespoons honey
• 2-4 sprigs fresh thyme

DIRECTIONS

• Sprinkle the short ribs with salt, pepper and onion powder.
• In large pan over medium-high heat, melt the coconut oil. Once the coconut oil is melted, add the short ribs.
• Cook on for 3-4 minutes or until browned. Flip and cook the other side for 3-4 minutes or brown. Remove from pan and set aside.
• Add garlic to the pan and cook for 1 minute or until fragrant. Pour into a small bowl and set aside.
• In medium-large bowl mix together the broth, tomato sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and honey. Whisk to combine.
• If cooking right away: Add ribs, broth mixture and cooked garlic to the bowl of a slow cooker. Add thyme. Cook on low for 7-9 hours.
• If making this into a freezer meal: Place the short ribs into a large gallon sized freezer bag, add in the broth mixture, cooked garlic and thyme. Place into freezer and freeze. When ready to cook, add everything to a slow cooker and cook on low for 7-9 hours.

Who else often has a craving for pizza??? We all know on the Fix, carbs are precious and few. So on days when you’re low on yellow containers, this Crock Pot Pizza is the perfect solution! Don't forget to throw your favorite fix-approved toppings together in the slow cooker and by dinnertime you’ve got a healthy, pizza-inspired casserole the whole family with love.

Crock Pot Pizza

Servings: 8

Container count per slice: 1/2 red, 1/2 green, 1 blue, 1/4 purple

INGREDIENTS

• 2.25 cups ground turkey, cooked and seasoned with 1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce, 1 tsp garlic powder, 1 tsp onion powder
• 1-15 ounce jar pizza sauce
• 2 cups mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 2/3 cup Parmesan
• 3 cups fresh spinach
• 16 slices turkey pepperoni
• 1 cup mushrooms, sliced
• 1/2 green pepper, chopped
• 1/2 cup sweet onion, chopped
• 1/4 cup marinated artichoke hearts, chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, minced

DIRECTIONS

• In a large bowl, combine ground turkey with sauce and onions. Place half of sauce mixture in the bottom of a 6 quart crock pot.
• Place half of fresh spinach on top of sauce mixture.
• Place pepperoni and 1/2 desired toppings on top.
• Place half of mozzarella and Parmesan cheese on top of toppings.
• Repeat layers ending with mozzarella and Parmesan.
• Cook on low 4-6 hours.
• Let cool slightly and cut into 8 slices. Refrigerate remaining.

21 Day Fix Slow Cooker Garlic Chicken

Red Container, add your own sides

Ingredients:

• 4 Chicken Breasts
• 3-4 Cloves of Garlic
• 2-3 cups unsalted chicken broth or chicken stock – just enough to halfway cover chicken
• Mrs. Dash seasoning (we use garlic & herb AND Original blend) – season as much as you want (I recommend a lot since it is salt-free and a “free food”).

Directions:

Combine everything in the crock pot and cook for 10 hours on low! It will shred really, really easily.

What do you do with leftovers?
Throw them away? 
Eat them the same boring way?

HECK NO...try this family fun dish!

I love love love me so BBQ sauce!!! I’m constantly loading up a slow cooker with that sweet, tangy sauce and any kind of meat I have handy… chicken, pork, ribs… I believe just about anything tastes good with a little BBQ sauce on it. Don't you agree??? I just happened to have a bit of leftover slow-cooked BBQ chicken that could have easily become standard, run of the mill sandwiches. But I imagined something greater for that leftover chicken. So behold: a creamy, cheesy casserole full of tangy, ooey-gooey goodness.

Cheesy BBQ Chicken Pasta Bake

Servings: 4

Container count per serving: 1 red, 1/8 green, 1/2 purple, 2 yellow, 1 blue, 1 tsp.

INGREDIENTS

• 4 tsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp. flour
• 1 1/3 cup shredded 2% sharp cheddar cheese
• 1 cup unsweetened almond milk
• 3 cups cooked whole grain pasta (I used rotini)
• 1/4 cup green onion, chopped, plus more for topping (optional)
• 1/4 cup red onion, chopped
• 3 cups cooked chicken, shredded
• 2 cups clean BBQ sauce. If you can’t find any at the store you can make your own (see below)
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1/2 tsp. ground mustard
• 1/4 tsp. pepper

DIRECTIONS

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Heat 2 tsp. of the oil in a medium saucepan on medium heat. When the oil is hot, whisk in the flour until it becomes a paste. Cook until the flour becomes a caramel color, about 2 minutes, stirring occasionally so it doesn’t burn.
• Add the almond milk slowly, whisking until it thickens. Mix in the salt, pepper, and ground mustard. Next, add 1 cup of the cheese and whisk until melted and well combined.
• Heat a small pan over medium heat and add the remaining 2 tsp. of oil. Add the chopped red onions and green onions and cook until soft and fragrant, about 5 minutes. Add the onions to the cheese mixture.
• In a casserole dish, add the cooked pasta, chicken and 1 1/2 cups of the BBQ sauce. Mix well until combined. Next, add the cheese sauce and mix well. Top with the remaining 1/2 cup of BBQ sauce and 1/3 cup of cheese.
• Bake for 30 minutes or until cheese is melted on top. Top with more green onions, if desired.

MAKE YOUR OWN BBQ Sauce

So, then I added a cup of my awesome homemade bbq sauce.  Even if the pork doesn’t turn out it was worth it just for this recipe I invented. (And remember you are using just a little bit of sauce.  The recipe makes over 4-6 cups.  (I didn’t measure the final amount but it was a lot).

Homemade Low GI BBQ Sauce

1 large can tomato sauce (or pureed tomatoes in a blender and strained)

1/2 cup of water

1/2 c balsamic vinegar

1/3 c agave (can add a little more depending on taste)

1/2 tsp onion powder

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp mustard powder

1 tbsp chilli powder

1/4 tsp cayenne

1/2 tsp salt

1 tbsp yellow mustard

2 dashes of liquid smoke (start small and can add more because it packs a punch)

1/4 c Worcestershire sauce (this does contain hfc and sugar but it is such a small amount for a large quantity of sauce that I wouldn’t worry about it)

Mix all together with a whisk until it boils and then quickly turn to med low and let simmer for 45 minutes.  Then bottle and store in your fridge.