Slow Cooker Lentil and Vegetable Soup

What’s that? I’m posting a vegetarian dish? Yes, believe it or not, I actually like a lot of vegetarian dishes. It’s just hard to find a vegetarian dish that my picky “meat and potatoes” son will enjoy as well. So I have to take baby steps with him and made a vegetarian soup. And slow cooker recipes are the best. Just prep your ingredients, put into your slow cooker and let it do all the work! Hopefully, my friend, Sue T. will approve. This recipe makes 6-8 servings.

INGREDIENTS:

• 1 1/2 cups lentils (green or red)
• 4 carrots, peeled and chopped
• 2 celery ribs, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and diced
• 1/2 onion, diced
• 1 red bell pepper, chopped
• 2 russet potatoes, peeled and chopped
• 1 bag (5 ounces) baby spinach
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1 teaspoon parsley
• 1/2 teaspoon paprika
• 6 1/2 cups vegetable stock
• salt to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1. Place all ingredients but the baby spinach, in your slow cooker. And pour in the vegetable stock.
2. Cook on high for 5 hours or on low for 8 hours.
3. Stir a few times throughout the cooking.
4. Add the baby spinach during the last 10 minutes of cooking cycle.
5. If you like a more brothy soup, add in 1-2 cups additional stock.
6. If you like a more creamy soup, carefully ladle out 1/3 of the soup into your blender and puree. Add back blended soup to slow cooker and mix well.
7. Salt to taste and garnish with chopped parsley.

Pulled Pork Tacos with Pineapple Pico De Gallo

Everyday is taco day in my house. But how about a little sweet and spicy kick?  Tex Mex meets Hawaiian and this is the end result. The slow cooker does most of the work, you get all the credit. Can’t beat that!

INGREDIENTS:

• 4 pounds pork shoulder
• 1 cup barbecue sauce
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 6 tablespoons fresh lime juice (3 limes)
• 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 2 tablespoons garlic powder
• 1 can (20 ounces) pineapple chunks or fresh if available
• 1 small white or red onion, diced
• 1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely diced
• 2 tomatoes, diced
• 1 cup cilantro, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon crushed red peppers (optional)
• 1 cup shredded red cabbage
• 20  small corn tortillas

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a 6 quart slow cooker add pork shoulder.
2. In a large bowl, add barbecue sauce, brown sugar, lime juice (reserve 1 tablespoon for the pineapple pico de gallo), cayenne pepper, chili powder and garlic powder. Mix together to form a paste and spread evenly over pork shoulder.
3. Cook on low for 8 to 9 hours; or you can cook on high for 5 to 6 hours. Shred when done cooking. 
4. When your pork is ready, assemble the pineapple pico de gallo.
5. Slice the pineapple chunks into smaller pieces and place in large bowl. Add the diced onions, jalapeno pepper, tomatoes, cilantro and reserved 1 tablespoon of lime juice. If you can handle the extra heat, add the crushed red peppers to the bowl. 
6. Top your tortillas with pulled pork, pineapple pico de gallo and shredded cabbage.
7. Garnish with lime wedges. 

You can also change this recipe into pulled pork sliders by substituting Hawaiian bread rolls for the corn tortillas.