Crock Pot Applesauce

It is not quite fall.  I wish it were.  It has been 122 degrees now for days on end.  Okay not really.  It just feels like 122 degrees when it is only a balmy 110 degrees!  What I am trying to say is it is stinkin' hot in this part of California. 

On a positive note I do live in the agricultural center of the universe.  Spoiled rotten by fresh fruits and veggies year round.  Someone keeps bringing all this fruit from their trees at their house to church.  Bags and bags of apples, peaches, grapes, flats of Roma tomatoes.  Amazing. 

Here is what I made today:

APPLESAUCE CROCK POT STYLE

12 cups apple, peeled and sliced (I don't know what kind they are..kinda reddish/green)
1/2 cup sugar
1 t. cinnamon
1 cup water
Juice of 1 lemon

Peel and slice apples, removing seeds and yucky spots.  Toss apples in crock pot with cinnamon and sugar mixture.  Pour over water and lemon juice.  Give it a stir.  Cook on low for six hours.  After six hours or so give it a stir (I used a flat whisk, which seemed to make it smooth right out) and it should just fall right apart into a big batch of applesauce!  How easy was that? 

Ranch Dressing...Low calorie style.

Maybe I should just restate my blog purpose.  My blog is now just another one of those blogs that publishes recipes found on Pinterest. Unlike my Pinterest board, these are actual recipes that I have tried and find good enough to pass on to my friends.

Just recently have I become a fan of Ranch dressing.  I know, I am weird.  How Un-American to not eat Ranch.  I made this super-low calorie Ranch and no one knew the difference.  It is thick and creamy just like it would be with mayo.  Aside from the fact this recipe is super low cal, it also comes from a blog whose url is fluffimama.  I like anyone called fluffimama.



LOW-CALORIE RANCH DRESSING

• 1 packet Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing (not dip)
• 1 cup non-fat, plain greek yogurt
• 1/2 cup 1% milk

Slow Cooker Sloppy Joes

As my friend Amy would say it is HOT, HOT, HOT!  I would say it is even too hot to BBQ.  Really, who wants to stand out side when it is 110 degrees and grill something?  Not me!  The crock pot should be our friend in the summer, not just when it is chilly out. 

I have said before that I would love to be an awesome blogger...but it is not meant to be.  There is too much life going on.  I have been challenged by Kristen to get it going so I am going to give it a try...Again!

SLOW COOKER SLOPPY JOES

• 1-1/2 lbs. lean ground beef (I used some of my ground chuck)
• 1 lb. Jimmy Dean sausage
• 1 sm. onion, chopped
• 1/2 med. sized bell pepper, chopped
• 1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce
• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup ketchup
• 1/4 c. brown sugar, firmly packed
• 2 T. cider vinegar
• 2 T. yellow mustard
• 1 T. chili powder
• 1 T. Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 8 hamburger buns, toasted 

Chop onion and bell pepper.  Brown ground beef, sausage, onion and bell pepper. Drain well.  Place in 4-1/2 quart crock pot.  Add remaining ingredients and cook on HIGH for 4 hours.  Serve on toasted buns please.  It would be an insult to the Sloppy Joe if you didn't.

To toast buns, spread with butter and grill in a skillet or on a griddle.