Baked Ziti with Sausage and Peppers

1 Tbsp olive oil
1 lb Italian sausage, removed from its casing
2 onions, minced
1 green bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 red bell pepper, stemmed, seeded, and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 Tbsp minced fresh oregano or 1 tsp dried
1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup heavy cream
8 oz ziti
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp peper
1 15-oz can tomato sauce
hot water, as needed
1 cup shredded mozzarella (4 oz)

Line slow cooker with aluminum foil color and coat with vegetable oil spray.  Heat oil in large pot over medium high heat until just smoking.  Brown sausage well, breaking up large pieces with wooden spoon, about 5 minutes.  Add onions, bell peppers, garlic, and oregano and cook 8-10 minutes. stir in tomatoes and heavy cream, scraping up any browned bits, and simmer until thickened slightly, about 5 minutes.  Stir in ziti, salt and peper.  Transfer ziti mixture to prepared sow cooker and spread tomato sauce evenly over pasta.  Cover and cook 3 hours on high. Remove foil colar.  Gently stir pasta, adding hot water as needed to loosen sauce consistency.  Sprinkle with mozzarella, cover and let sit until melted, about 5 minutes.

Creamy Pasta Salad

Salt

1 lb. elbow macaroni
½ small red onion, minced
1 rib celery, minced
¼ c. minced fresh parsley
2 Tbls. lemon juice
1 Tbls. Dijon mustard
1/8 tsp. garlic powder
Pinch cayenne pepper
1 ½ c. mayonnaise
Black pepper

Bring 4 quarts water to boil in large pot. Salt water and add elbow macaroni and cook until nearly tender. Drain in colander and rinse with cold water until cook, then drain briefly so that pasta remains moist. Transfer to large bowl.

Stir in onion, celery, parsley, lemon juice, mustard, garlic powder, and cayenne, and let sit until flavors are absorbed, about 2 minutes. Add mayonnaise and let sit until salad texture is no longer watery, 5 to 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste and serve.
NOTES: Don’t drain the pasta too well before adding the other ingredients. A little extra moisture will keep the salad from drying out. If made ahead of time, stir in a little warm water to loosen the texture.
Can be covered and refrigerated for up to 2 days.

homey chicken stew

3 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs
salt and pepper
 1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 onions, minced
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 T tomato paste
2 tsp fresh thyme or 1/2 tsp dried
1/3 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup white wie
4 cup chicke broth
3 medium red potatoes, scrubed and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
4 carrots, peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick
2 bay leaves
1 cup frozen peas
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley

Season chicken wit salt and pepper. Heat 1 T oil in 12 inch skillet over medium high heat and brown the chicken lightly on both sides (5-8 minutes) and transfer to bowl - repeat with remaining chicken.  Heat 1 more T oil in skillet and add onions garlic, tomato paste, and thyme and cook until onions are softened and lghtly browned - 8-10 minutes.  Stir in flour and cook for 1 minute. Slowly whisk in wine, scraping up any browned bits.  Whisk in 1 cupbroth, smoothing out any lumps; transfer to slow cooker. Microwave potatoes and carrots with remaining 1 T oil in covered bowl for 5 minutes and transfer to slow cooker. Stir remaining 3 cups broth and bay leaves intoslow cooker. Nestle browned chicke with any accumulated juice into slow cooker.  Cover and cook until chicken is tender, 4-6 hours on low.  Transfer chicken to cutting bowl, cool sightly, then shred into bite sized pieces.  Discard bay leaves.  Stir shredded chicken and peas into the stew and let sit for 5 minutes.  Stir in parsley and season to taste with salt and pepper.

loaded baked potato soup for crockpot.

8 slices bacon, chopped
1 onion, minced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1.5 tsp fresh thyme or 1/2 tsp dried
2 T all purpose flour
4 cups chicken broth
3 lb russet potatoes (about 6 medium), peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
2 cups shredded cheddar cheese ( 2 cups), plus extra for serving
1/2 cup heavy cream
salt and pepper
3 scallions, sliced thin

Cook the bacon over medium heat until crisp, 5-7 minutes.  Transfer to paper towel-lined plate and refrigerate until serving. Pour off all but 2 T bacon fat. Add onion, garlic, and thyme to ksilled and cook over medium high heat until onion is softened and lightly browned - 8-10 minutes.  Stir in flour and cok 1 minute.  Slowly whick in 1 cup broth, scraping up any browned bits; transfer to slow cooker.  Stir remaining 3 cups broth and potatoes into slow cooker.  Cover and cook 6 hours on low. Transfer 2 cups of the potatoes to a bowl and mash smooth.  Stir cheddar into soup until melted, then stir in the cream and mashed potatoes. Reheat bacon in microwave.  Season sop to taste and serve with scallions, bacon and additional cheese.

shredded bbq chicken

2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp sweet paprika
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
salt and pepper
1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken thighs, trimmed
1.5 lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed
1.5 cups bbq sauce

Mix chili powder, paprika, cayenne, 1/2 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper together, then rub mixture evenly over the chicken and transfer to slow cooker. Pour 1/2 cup bbq sauce over chicken and toss to coat.  Cover and cook on low, 4-6 hours.

Transfer chicken to bowl and shred into bite-size pieces and cover to keep warm.

Microwave remaining cup of bbq sauce unti hot.  Toss shredded chicken with hot bbq sauce and 1 cup of the braising liquid; add more liquid as needed to keep meat moist.  Serve.