Another go-round

This weekend I finally got to use a fabulous garage sale purchase from my Lincoln trip: a crock pot. For $2!

Probably a year or so ago, I had crock pot chicken and dumplings and really liked it because of the consistency (not too creamy but not necessarily broth-based). I did use a bit more cream of chicken in this batch, and I used a bag of frozen mixed vegetables, in part because I think it tastes better but also because I wanted to range of peas, beans, corn and carrots.

The other modification is that I make my own dumplings instead of using the biscuits. And the middle, bless her heart, cooks similarly to me. When I asked her to remind me how she makes her dumplings she replied with, “You can use just flour and water. Or you can add an egg and milk. Plus any seasonings you want.” No measurements and directions, no problems.

 

The other great thing about this crock pot? It’s not large at all so it minimizes leftovers for me. It was equally exciting because I had another great find this weekend — an adorable soup holder to bring leftovers to the office. I probably should have taken a photo with the design of the cup/bowl instead of just the meal…

And I broke down for one last loaf of bread, primarily because I made sure I had all the ingredients for it two weeks ago but also because I’ll be traveling next week and weekend so I know I won’t be making any bread (I’m telling you, it’s the perfect snack to bring to work). This time I surprisingly nixed the berries and went for a sunken apple pie bread.

While I think fresh apples would be much better suited for the bread, it actually wasn’t bad at all (though let’s be honest, rarely do I not like bread). It was also nice because the bread was relatively firm. After using berries so much these last few weeks to make bread, I was getting used to a somewhat soggy consistency.

And I didn’t realize until after I cut my first slice that I forgot to add powered sugar on top. No way could I forget that!

I should probably get back to searching for and cooking lighter, healthier recipes….

About dakotalizzie

I'm a twentysomething young professional living in Nebraska. My blog centers on the things I love - my family, dogs, friends, crafting, cooking, life chats and health. All these things help me lead the good life, and isn't that really what it's all about?

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