Black Bean and Turkey Sausage Stew

A wonderfully delicious and easy low calorie stew that simmers in a crock-pot throughout the day.  It also makes the house smell delightful.  This base for this recipe an old magazine for Crock-Pot recipes. 

Ingredients-

3 cans black beans (rinsed & drained)
1 onion(chopped)
2 stalks celery, sliced thinly
¼ cup frozen corn
2 jalapeno, finely diced
1½ cups chicken broth
3 cloves garlic, minced
1½ tsp dried oregano
1½ tsp cumin (or more to taste)
¼ tsp red pepper
6oz cooked turkey sausage, thinly sliced

Directions-

First, spray the inside of your crock with a non-stick spray.  Next, combine all ingredients except for the sausage in the crock-pot. Give it all a good stir, then cover.  Cook on low for 7 hours. 

Finally, add the sausage and allow to cook for another 25 to 30 minutes.  Serve with toppings of your choice: sour cream, green onions, shredded cheese, or all of the above.

Slow Cooker Shredded Chicken

This wonderful tasting dish cooks while you work!  It's a simple dish that is very versatile for many different meals.  Once this is cooked there are so many variables to making different meals. 

You could add some black beans and corn with a Tbsp. of cumin to make a Southwestern stew.

You could use it as a pulled BBQ-chicken sandwich meal.  I took the last bit of chicken and mixed with some leftover wild rice to school for lunch one day - YUM! So many ways to use this meat.


Ingredients -

5-6 boneless chicken breasts

16oz. jar of your favorite salsa  (My favorite brand is CHEAP- I use Harris Teeter or Southern Home brand and always stock up when it's on sale.)

What to do-

Prepare chicken by trimming away excess fat and place in the bottom of the slow cooker.
  *- I use the Reynolds Slow Cooker Liners, but you can spray the interior of the cooker with non-stick cooking spray.

Top the chicken with the salsa.

Cook on low for 7-8 hours.

When the cooking is complete use two forks to 'shred' the chicken and stir the mixture.


(Editor's note- 1/16/14: Add some black beans (rinsed and drained) to the salsa.)

You can now stuff burritos, or spread over a bed of tortilla chips and top with cheese and other toppings for some serious healthy nachos.

ENJOY!