Crock Pot Scalloped Potatoes

My hubster just loves taters, and scalloped potatoes are one of his favorites. I've found a great way to make these taters in the crock pot. Just put these babies on in the morning before work, and they'll be bubblin' up and waiting on you to dig in as soon as you walk through the door. They're easy as pie, y'all and so cheesy and good. Give 'em a try.

Here's what ya need:

2 lbs. small red potatoes
1 cup sour cream
1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 can condensed cream of potato soup
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
23tbsp. cream cheese
1/2 tsp. paprika

Here's what ya do:

Step 1: Spray yer crock pot dish with cooking spray.

Step 2: Slice up yer taters good and thin.

Step 3: Mix up the sour cream, tater soup, and Worcestershire in a bowl.

Step 4: Add the taters to the bowl and toss 'em to get them all coated with the good stuff.

Step 5: Layer taters & shredded cheese till ya have about 3 layers. On each of the shredded cheese layers, drop in a tablespoon of cream cheese...It'll all cook in and come together.

Step 6: Pop yer lid on and cook those taters on low for 7-8 hours. Or if you're putterin' around the house that day, you can cook 'em on high for about 4 hrs.

Step 7: Stir 'em up and sprinkle some of yer paprika on top. Enjoy.

How to stretch a pot of Pinto Beans

One of the cheapest things we make around here are pinto beans. The great thing about pintos is that you can do so many different things with them. I like to make one big pot, and then re-use the left-overs in different recipes for the next couple of days. Little tricks like this are great for helping to make your dollar stretch a little bit farther. Here's just one example of what you could do with the pinto beans.

Day 1:

Make that big ole pot of pintos. Please, for the love of peanuts, make sure that you put some good stuff in them and you're not eating bland pintos.  Season those puppies with a ham hock so that the flavor is just right.Now, yer gonna need some goodies to go along with those pintos, although my Hubster can make a meal on pintos alone....He puts mayonaisse in 'em, nastiest lookin' stuff you've ever seen, but that is another story. Moving on,.......... Make yerself a side of tater salad, some cabbage, and a pan of cornbread. Nobody will go to bed hungry tonight.

Day 2: Okay, so last night you had yourself a good old fashioned country meal. You had beans, taters and cornbread. Maybe tonight you can mix it up a little bit. Try putting those leftover pintos to good use and whip up a pinto bean casserole. They're super easy to make and don't take a lot of time or ingredients for that matter. If you had leftover tater salad, or cabbage it'll go along well with the casserole.

Day 3: So....Here's the deal. I'm paranoid about how long I'll use leftovers. I invoke the same three day rule my Mama always used. Around here if it ain't gone on the third day it's doggie chow. I just refuse to eat anything past that three day mark. So.....Now's the time to use up all those leftover pintos and what better way to do it than to make yerself some chili beans. These babies are super easy....I do 'em in the crockpot and it just doesn't get much easier than that does it? You're probably gonna wanna throw together another pan of cornbread to go with them.

See, how easy it is to make the most out of a simple pot of pintos? If you set yer mind to it, you  can stretch that dollar like a rubber band, and save some major dough!

Pinto Bean Casserole

There are a couple of dishes around here that are sure fire winners: casseroles and pintos. What better way to hit a home run in the kitchen than to combine the two? That's why everyone around here loves this pinto bean casserole. It's a great way to use up those leftover pintos from the night before.


Here's what ya need:

3 cups of pinto beans
1 lb. hamburger, browned and drained
1 medium onion, diced
1 can diced tomatoes ( or a pint jar of home-canned maters if you have 'em)
1 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp. chili powder
3 tsp. light brown sugar
1 box of Jiffy cornbread mix (mixed according to package directions)

Here's what ya do:

Step 1: Preheat yer oven to 350 degrees.

Step 2: Brown yer burger, and onion in a skillet till burger is cooked through and onions are soft.

Step 3: Mix hamburger, onion, maters, Worcestershire sauce, chili powder, light brown sugar and pintos in a large bowl.

Step 4: Pour into 9X13 casserole dish.

Step 5: Pour already mixed Jiffy Cornbread mix over top of bean mixture.

Step 6: Bake at 350 until the cornbread is golden brown (about 20 to 25 minutes)

Chili Beans

Chili Beans are a quick and easy comfort food. They're especially good during those cold months. As the temperature drops, there's nothing better than sitting around the fire enjoying a spicy hot bowl of chili beans. Now that'll warm ya up.

Here's what ya need:

4 cups of pintos

1 lb. of hamburger browned, and drained

2 -15 oz cans of diced tomatoes + 2 cans of water

2 heapin' tablespoons of chili powder....more or less depending on how spicy ya want it

1 large onion chopped

2 tbsp. brown sugar

2 tbsp. Worcestershire sauce

Here's what ya do:

Step 1: Brown yer burger and onion in oil. Drain & dump it in the crock pot.

Step 2: Add tomatoes, water, chili powder, brown sugar, and worcestershire sauce to the crock pot. 

Step 3: Give it a stir.

Step 4: Cook on high for 4 hrs. 

** Serve with shredded cheddar, sour cream, and tortilla chips.

Broccoli Casserole

Mmmmmm....Broccoli Casserole, cheesy, yummy, deliciousness. Oh how I love broccoli casserole. Problem is, not all broccoli casseroles are alike. Some are to die for, and some....well, they just make ya feel like dying. Uggh...There's nothing worse than getting all excited about broccoli casserole, taking that first bite, and wishin' you hadn't.

Never fear, this one's good. It's creamy. It's cheesy. It's, ummm...broccoli--y.

Here's what ya need:

2 pkgs. frozen chopped broccoli
1 pkg. boil in bag white rice
1 can cream of mushroom soup
1 can cream of cheddar soup
1 small vidalia onion
2+ cups of shredded cheddar cheese (the more the better as far as I'm concerned.)
Ritz Cracker Crumbs
Butter or margarine

Here's what ya do:

Step 1:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Step 2:

Cook your broccoli till it's tender.

Step 3:

Cook your rice.

Step 4:

Saute onion in about 2 tbsp. butter until tender

Step 5

Mix rice, soups, onions, broccoli, and 1- 1 1/2 c. cheddar cheese in large mixing bowl.

Step 6: Pour into buttered 9X13 casserole dish.

Step 7: Melt a couple tbsp. butter or margarine and add 1/2 c. ritz cracker crumbs. Mix well.

Step 8: Shredded Cheddar cheese over top of casserole.

Step 9: Top with buttered ritz cracker crumbs

Step 10: Bake at 350 degrees until bubbly:

Hash Brown Casserole

Okay y'all. So if you know me, then you'd know that there are a few things I love more than chicken, and here are a couple of 'em: cheese & taters. So, gimme some hashbrown casserole and I'm happier than a pig in slop. Here's my favorite recipe for it. Y'all are gonna love it.

Here's what ya need:

2 cans cream of potato soup

2 cans cream of cheddar soup

1pt. sour cream

1 bag frozen cubed hashbrowns

2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Here's what ya do:

Step 1:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Step 2:

Mix all ingredients up in a big ole bowl

Step 3: 

Pour into a greased 9 X 13 casserole dish.

Step 4: Bake uncovered for 1- 1 1/2 hours. 

Gracious, this stuff is so good....