Slow-Cooker Turkey Breast with Gravy

Prep Time: 50 minutes
Cook Time: 5-6 hours
Rest Time: 20 min

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (December 2012)

As much as I love to cook, I have never made a Turkey before. I tried to help my mom one Thanksgiving when I was a young adult and it grossed me out so much, I became a vegetarian soon after. That lasted 7 years. I eat meat all the time now, but I still don't like dealing with things on the bone, let alone an entire bird.

I usually bring side dishes to family meals for Thanksgiving. When it is just the two of us I have done a boneless skinless turkey breast. But those never taste anything like Thanksgiving turkey to me. So this year when I saw this recipe on the America's Test Kitchen Feed, (recipe is behind the paywall now) I decided to at least try a real breast on the bone.

I wasn't sure what to expect – thinking the turkey would be steamed and I knew it wouldn't be as pretty as roasted turkey.

It was not pretty, that is true, but once carved, you only noticed that it didn't have skin. It was the most moist turkey I've ever had, and the gravy was delicious. I will definitely use this recipe again.

Part of what makes this recipe work is that you take off the skin and cook it in skillet first to render the fat and then you saute the vegetables in that fat to start your gravy. You sort of make the gravy in the beginning and cook the turkey on top of the gravy and vegetables and cooked skin. After you remove the turkey breast you strain the gravy and after some seasoning it tasted delicious.

If I had one complaint it is the gravy was a bit thin. It was pretty thick until I strained it and the thick stuff got stuck with the vegetables. I waited until the end to do that, so I didn't have time to thicken on the stove, but I will do that next time.

One breast ended up a little more cooked than the other side. I'm not sure why. It may have been leaning and touching the side of the slow cooker. It was still moist enough though and tasted good and will be used for some leftover recipes this weekend.

Brown Soda Bread

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Bake Time: 45 - 50 minutes
Cool Time: 1 hour

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (February 2013)
Recipe Source: Cook's Country TV (Season 6)

For such a simple recipe, this was surprisingly good. Often these quick breads are just okay, but I really loved this one. The crust was super flavorful and the interior moist and but not gummy.

I have made this twice. The second time it took longer than 50 minutes to reach 195 degrees, and the top was getting extra brown. I had to put some foil on top to keep it from drying out.

It toasts up nicely and is still good for a few days.

Make Ahead Beef and Bean Burritos

Prep Time: 40 minutes
Cool Time: 20 minutes
Assemble/Wrap: 20 minutes
Finish Time: 6 minutes

Grade: A

Recipe Source: Cooks Country April 2013,
Make Ahead Cook (book)

I actually had tried the recipe from Cook's Country last year but never added it here. We liked it, but I forgot about it.

The recipe in the Make Ahead Cook is almost exactly the same except the ingredients were increased in a mostly proportional way (although not exactly) to make 8 burritos instead of 6. This larger version is more logical since it uses a pound of beef and 8 tortillas instead of 12 oz and 6, which leaves you with some waste.

These freeze nicely and the recommended way to serve is to microwave for 5 minutes and then bake in over for 5 minutes with some cheese sprinkled on top. That works really well.

This recipe may become a staple since these are so easy to pull out of the freezer and prepare quickly. They taste great too, and I'm sure the individual ingredients could be substituted easily for different variations. (The beans, meat, etc.)

Caramel Cake

Prep Time: 13 minutes
Bake Time: 25 minutes
Cool Time: 60+ minutes
Frosting: 22 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (December 2009)

I am not a big cake fan, but this was very, very delicious. The cake was very moist, and the frosting was amazing. Very, very sweet, as frosting often is, but different because it a caramel frosting.

I actually only make a half cake. I did one circle, cut it in half but still make it a layer cake. I ended up frosting the cut half which was hard. And not a good idea, because eating the 2 pieces that were on the end which were frosted on top, middle AND the side was just too much frosting! (Delicious as it was.)

This cake was so rich, even with my half cake, I still gave 2 pieces to my neighbors so I didn't get sick of it. We had it two nights in a row though. I will make this again to serve to a larger group.

Glazed Meatloaf

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 50 minutes
Rest Time:  20 minutes

Grade: B+

Make Again: Maybe

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (February 2009)

This meatloaf is good, but I think I like this version of meatloaf better. They both take a similar amount of time to prep and cook, so I'd probably choose the All Beef version. I still always feel like a meatloaf should take very little time to prep, but it always takes at least some time. The beauty of a meatloaf though is that the cooking part is easy and the kitchen is always clean by the time you serve dinner (other than the pan the loaf is on.)

Chicken and Slicks

Total Time: 80 minutes

Grade: B+

Make Again: No

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (February 2011)
Recipe Source: Cook's Country TV (Season 5)

I made this a while ago, and didn't keep good notes on the details of how much time this took. I just wrote down 80 minutes. I think that was total time, and was not work time. This is not an overly complicated recipe, actually. The time comes from cooking the chicken, freezing the noodles then cooking them. 

I did the recipe in two steps, made the chicken and noodle dough the night before, then shredded the chicken and cut and cooked noodle the 2nd night. It worked out well. 

The broth and chicken on this was super flavorful and delicious. The noodles were decent as well but a bit too thick for me. The only reason I wouldn't make this again is because if I am making a recipe like this I would probably go for Chicken and Dumplings instead which I like a little more. This is certainly good, but I missed the vegetables, and the noodles were more work than dumplings. 

Sweet Potato Biscuits

Prep Time: 15 minutes + 22 minutes
Cook Time: 18-22 minutes

Grade: B

Make Again:No

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (December 2010)

These really do taste good, but I prefer the Everyday Food recipe. These are pretty sweet and were not flaky. They felt more like cakes to me. Tasty cakes, for sure, but not what I want in a biscuit.

One interesting thing about the recipe is that there is no milk. It is all sweet potato that give the moisture. (And a tiny bit of vinegar.) So you really do get a good sweet potato flavor from these biscuits.


 

Angel Biscuits

Prep Time: 25 minutes
Rise Time: 30 minutes
Bake Time: 14 minutes

Grade: B

Make Again: No

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (August 2007)

These are biscuits with the rise from yeast and baking powder. I thought they were ok, but not as good as regular biscuits and not as good as some dinner rolls I've made. They can be made fairly quickly, but are more work and time than regular biscuits, so I won't be making again.

Runsas or Bierocks

Filling Time: 25 minutes
Chill Time: 15 minutes 
Dough Time: 15 minutes
Rise Time: 60 minutes
Assemble Time: 15 minutes
Rise Time: 45-60 minutes
Bake Time: 20 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (June 2012)

These take some time to put together, but the dough and filling times can overlap some. Really there is not a lot of hands on work, it is a lot of waiting for things to rise and/or cool.

But putting them together is quite simple. The dough wrapped around the chilled filling very nicely.

The biggest bonus is that these freeze beautifully. They can be reheated in the oven when you don't want to cook. I have defrosted in microwave then heated in over for 10-15 minutes and they are great.

I will try to make an Italian or Tex-Mex version with different flavors so I don't have to use cabbage next time. I don't mind it, but the picky eater does, so I want to try something he will eat.

Chocolate Cream Cupcakes

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Bake Time: 18-22 minutes
Filling Prep Time: 10 minutes
Chill Time: 30 minutes
Frost/Assemble Time: 20 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Maybe

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (February 2010)

These were very good, and fun to make. But cake is not my favorite dessert so I probably won't make again. I would if someone wanted me to though. They were not too difficult. Definitely more steps than a normal cake since you have to fill the cupcakes and decorate the top, but it wasn't too bad.

Actually I already have made them twice, the first time about 4 months ago. Unfortunately, the first time I forgot to add sugar to the batter, making them inedible. So I really wanted to make again to see if they actually good, and they were.

The filling is made with butter, gelatin and marshmallow fluff and turns out pretty good. You use it to decorate the top as well.

Overall, these are a better tasting reproduction of Hostess cupcakes.

Morning Glory Muffins

Prep Time: 35 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes

Grade: A-

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (April 2011)
Recipe Source: Cook's Country TV (same link)

I was starting to write my review in my head while I was baking these, assuming they would get a grade lower than an A. The prep on these muffins takes quite a while. Grating carrots, peeling grating an apple, squeezing liquid from the apple and pineapple, toasting the walnuts and coconut, then processing in food processor! That is a lot for a muffin. And because I always try to multi-task I burned some of the coconut when toasting. I tried taking the burned pieces out and toasted a bit more. There was a burned coffee smell in my kitchen and I was sure these wouldn't taste good.

But I was really happy when I tasted one. The texture was perfect. One of the best I've ever made. These are not super sweet, so really a good muffin for breakfast. I have never tried to make these muffins before because all recipes I saw had walnuts and raisins which I don't like. But since these walnuts are ground up, I thought it would be ok, and it was. I think they added nice flavor to the muffin.

These are definitely some work, but I think they are worth it to have in the freezer for a quick breakfast that is a little less sweet than most muffins, but still very tasty.

The only change I made to the recipe was to replace 1 cup of the all-purpose flour with 1 cup of white wheat. I still used 1 1/4 of regular flour. It worked well.

This recipe is currently available for free on Cook's Country website since it was feature during the current season of Cook's Country TV, so grab it now if you are interested.

Slow-Cooker Turkey Chili

Prep Time: 35 minutes
Cook Time: 4 hours

Grade: A-

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (February 2011)

This recipe is featured on the Cook's Country website right now, so if you are interested, now is the time to print it out or save it.

I'm perfectly happy with the Cook's Illustrated Simple chili recipe but I guess I always am willing to try something new. The fact that the recipe was developed for a slow cooker appealed to me. 

This tasted great, but it was more work than the Simple Chili recipe. And it created another problem. It didn't fit in my slow cooker. I should have known. Most of their recipes are for the large crock-pot, and I have a smaller one. I should have cut the recipe in half.  (Although I'm happy to have lots of leftovers to freeze now.) 

I ended up just using the dutch oven I did all the prep cooking in, and cooked on low for 3 hours, although it would have been fine at 2 hours. 

I might make again, but most likely I'll stick with the Simple chili which takes just 20 minutes of prep and requires less cleanup. 

Pumpkin Prailine Pie

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Chill Time: 1 hour
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Chill Time: 50 minutes
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Bake Time: 35 minutes
Topping Time: 10 minutes

Grade: B+

Make Again: Probably not

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (October 2006)
Recipe Source: Best of ATK 2008

This recipe is currently available on the Cooks Country website, but probably won't be forever, so print it out if you want to try it. 

This tasted good, but I guess pumpkin pie is not my favorite. The biggest complaint I have with the recipe was I could not make it as pretty as it should have been. The sugar on top didn't caramelize and after sitting in the fridge all day (which they said was OK) the outside topping liquified a bit. The topping did taste very nice though and I liked that in combo with the pumpkin.

Also, I'm not great at pie crusts, so mine ended up a bit tough, although I thought it tasted quite good.


If I wanted to make a pumpkin pie again, I might try this once more. However, if I was just going to make a pie, I would go with another type. I would like to get better at pies someday.

Spaghetti Alla Carbonara (Lighter)

Total Time: 44 minutes
Grade: B
Make Again: Maybe?

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (October 2008)
Recipe Source: America's Test Kitchen Light & Healthy 2010

This was good, but maybe more work than I wanted. My bacon always takes longer to cook than they say it will. I may have used thicker bacon though.

I did add some boneless chicken breast to this to add some more protein. It was a good addition, IMO.

Also, I didn't have any evaporated milk on hand, so just used a tiny bit of cream instead.

I was surprised that the leftovers were still good. I thought it would be a gloopy mess, but it wasn't bad. Not as good as fresh, but still quite edible.

Philly Cheesesteaks (Lighter)

Prep Time: 40 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes

Grade: B
Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (October 2006)
Recipe Source:  Light & Healthy 2010 (The Best of America's Test Kitchen)

Ingredients
1lb. top round steak, cut into strips and partially frozen (25-50 minutes), then shredded with food processor
1 onion chopped (I sliced so I could pick them out later, for my picky eater)
2 teaspoons oil
salt and pepper
5 slices reduced-fat provolone deli-style provolone cheese
4 sub rolls, toasted

Saute the onions over low heat, covered, then add the beef, and cook at higher heat. Add salt and pepper to taste. Lower heat and put cheese on top. Serve on bun.

Yum!

I'm a little bit excited about this recipe, which may seem a little strange, since I only gave this recipe a B. However, the concept of the recipe is what is great, and it tasted really, really good, and it is "light".

The fact that I couldn't make the cheese gooey and melt nicely like the recipe suggested it would is why I don't give this recipe an A. The recipe suggests you should be able to add a lower fat provolone cheese (I used Sargento) to the top of the beef over a low heat, and stir it in after it melts. I've tried this two times, trying to stir at different times, and both times the cheese became very rubbery and never stirred in well. I would assume a higher fat cheese would work fine.

But I don't have a problem with just laying the cheese on top and letting it melt, and skipping the stirring phase. Even the beef without the cheese is very tasty, so that is an option also.

Really the best thing about this recipe is the idea of cutting up the beef (Top Round) into finger pieces that will fit in your food processor tube. Then you freeze them for 30-60 minutes, to make them firm, but not frozen through. After that, you can slice with a thin slicing disk on the food processor.

You don't even really need a recipe for this (although I've linked to the non-light version of the recipe above at the paid Cook's Country site.)

I plan on using this technique for the beef to make these sandwiches also. I've always made that recipe with Shaved Beef from Trader Joe's which is somewhat expensive and full of fat. I was able to get 1.25 lbs of Top Round for a little over $4 on sale, which is much cheaper, and also much leaner. I ended up freezing half of my shaved beef and using a week later to make this recipe a second time. In the future, I may even buy a bigger piece of meat, especially if on sale, and shred a whole bunch at once, and freezing in batches. This will make a super fast dinner when I don't have a lot of time.

Blueberry Streusel Muffins

Prep Time: 25 minutes
Bake Time: 22-25 minutes
Cool Time: 20 minutes plus more out of pan

Grade: A-

Make Again: No

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (June 2007)

I just made blueberry muffins recently, but I'm still trying to use up frozen blueberries that I have from last summer.  I never even bought any this year.

If I were grading on taste alone, these would get an A+.  They are delicious.  However, there was way too much streusel and  I ended up using only about 2/3 of because I knew it was going to fall off the muffins and be wasted anyway.  I love streusel, but hate the mess when it falls off.  And also it just adds calories that aren't necessarily appreciated.  I think enough to cover in one layer is enough to give the textures and flavor, but more isn't worth it.

Here is only part of the mess.  There is more on the counter and floor. It just seems like a waste to me when it all falls off.

I have another recipe for a coffee cake with blueberries that I will stick to because it ends up being less messy, and probably easier to make, even though this one was very, very good.

7 Up Pound Cake

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Bake Time: 70-90 minutes (half recipe took 60 minutes)
Cool Time: 2 hours
Glaze Time: 10 minutes

Grade: A-

Make Again: No

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (June 2009)

This was very good.  A nice pound cake with a little citrus flavor.  I used Ginger Ale which they said was fine to sub for the 7Up.   I also only made a half recipe and used my 6 cup bundt pan instead of a tube pan.

The main reason I wouldn't make this again is just because it uses the soda, and it isn't something I often have on hand.   (Diet Coke, probably wouldn't work here.)  Also, I have two other very good recipes I like if I wanted a lemon pound cake.  The Cook's Illustrated recipe, which I have never blogged on, and the one from Baking with Julia.

Slow Cooker Meatballs in Marinara Sauce

Prep Time: 45 minutes
Cook Time: 4-5 hours

Grade: C+

Make Again: No

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (August 2009)


The meatballs were good, but I didn't love the sauce.  I didn't dislike it, but I felt like there should have been more flavor, with all the ingredients that are in this.  The wine slightly overpowered the rest, even though I was careful to cook it down before putting in slow cooker.  

This made a huge amounts of sauce.  More than I think you need for 1.5 pounds of pasta.   I am saving the meatballs with some sauce, in individual containers to freeze, and then I saved almost a quart without any meatballs for use another time. 

I have a medium size slow cooker and it was filled to the brim almost.  The recipe was probably developed in a larger cooker.

I think I have other meatball recipes I would use before making this one again, because it still was a decent amount of effort - especially for a slow-cooker meal.

NOTE: I didn't actually test the Cook's Country recipe.  I used the one from the Best of 2010 book, which contains the recipe from Best Slow and Easy Recipes.  (Did you follow that?)   The recipes are similar, but there are a few differences - the one I used had milk and bread instead of the  mozzarella cheese, less tomato paste and no cream.  Everything else looks the same. 

Popovers

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Rest Time: 1 hour
Bake Time: 50-60 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (December 2008)

Recipe: Cook's Country TV (Season 2)

I assume the Cook's Country TV show is just like America's Test Kitchen and they won't keep those recipes up there for ever (wanting to people to go to paid site instead.)  So, print it out if you are interested. :-)  You need to register with an email but don't need to pay. 

These are very, very good.  I have made popovers lots of times before, and I love them when they are eggy and moist on the inside but crispy on the outside.  These fit the bill, and they are more flavorful than the others I've tried. 

The main differences are as far as I can tell are using more eggs and butter, but a lower fat milk.  It also uses Bread flour for more structure.

I think going forward, this will be the recipe I use, when I make popovers. (Which isn't that often, but it is a good way to use up milk.)

Pan Fried Pork Chops

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes

Grade: A-

Make Again: Maybe

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (February 2009)


I found some 2 year old pork chops in my freezer last week when I was cleaning it out.  They weren't even wrapped well, just frozen in the thin plastic they were wrapped in at the grocery.  I've only cooked pork chops once or twice before, and I forgot about them.  I didn't have much hope for them, but they seemed ok after they were defrosted and I didn't notice much freezer burn, so I decided to try this simple recipe.

I was pleasantly surprised.  It was super easy and fast.  The biggest time suck was waiting for the bacon to cook.  But you have to wait 10 minutes in between flour dredging the chops the two times, so it works out well.  I used less oil and it worked fine.  The chops are seasoned first before they go in the flour with garlic powder, paprika, and salt and pepper (and a little cayenne.) 

I was starting to not want to try them though because of their age.  When they were resting some blood started to seep through the flour from the bones and as an ex-vegetarian this grossed me out!  Then I really didn't want to try them. 

But I did anyways, and they tasted really good.  The crust was perfect on them and they were still moist.  I may have to try them once more with fresher meat.