Slow Cooker Chili

Another in the series of slow cooker experiments. The challenge with doing a vegetarian chili in a crockpot is getting the flavors to pop. (no I'm not going vegetarian, this was part of the freezer cleaning and there wasn't meat).

2 cups pinto beans (dried)
1 cup black beans (dried)
1 can kidney beans
1 can corn
1 can green chiles (unless you are fortunate enough to have fresh ones)
1 8 oz can tomato sauce
1 medium onion
4-8 garlic cloves
1 1/2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp hot paprika
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp cocoa powder
1/2 tsp onion powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder

**Saute the onion and garlic. Throw everything into the slow cooker. Cook on low for 4-6 hours, depending on how stubborn your dried beans are. When I tried mine towards the end of cooking it needed more spices so I added more cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper. Season till it tastes right. I also had some random spice blend that contained smoked paprika, garlic, chil, and chives that I chucked in with everything else. Add salt once the beans have finished cooking.**

Nutmeg

Slow Cooker Lasagna

I decided to put my slow cooker to work and clean out my freezer at the same time. This was one of the results.  Since it is just me it had to still be appealing after eating it everyday for 5 days straight.
I am quite pleased with how it turned out and how easy it was to put together. You can vary what vegetables you add depending on what you have on hand. If you have pickier eaters you could blend the tomato and veggie layer to create a smoother mixture. Mine was vegetarian since I didn't have any sausage to throw in but if you wanted to make it more robust  you could definitely add your meat of choice. I would cook up the meat with the onions and garlic.

Sauce/veggie layer:
olive oil
Large onion
5 cloves garlic
1/2 cup celery
1 cup zucchini (shredded)
1 cup carrots (shredded)
spinach
1 bell pepper
1 can (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes
salt, pepper to taste

Cheese layer:
1 egg
2 cups cottage cheese (or ricotta if that is in your budget)
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese (or whatever other grated cheese you have)
1/2 cup mozzarella (shredded) 
1 cup spinach (chopped)
garlic powder
basil

noodles (don't worry about cooking beforehand since they will go in uncooked)

** To help bring out the flavors saute the onion and garlic to an almost carmelized state. Then add the other veg (minus the tomato) and cook for about 10 minutes on low heat. The more caramelized things are here the better the final flavor is in the lasagna. Add the tomatoes and season to taste.
For the cheese layer mix all the ingredients together. 
 Layer everything in the crockpot, sauce/veg, noodles and cheese . You'll need to break the noodles to fit. Repeat until ingredients are used. Cover and cook on low for 4-6 hours or until your noodles are tender. If you want more cheese on top you can add additional mozzarella on top after you turn off the slow cooker, the heat will melt the cheese.**

Enjoy!

Nutmeg