Slow Cooker Sausage Breakfast Casserole

This recipe is also known as Proof My Slow Cooker Runs Hot.

I was having the girls over for dinner, and I like to use my crock pot on those nights since it makes everything so much easier when I get home from work. So I decided to go with breakfast and make this egg, sausage, potato casserole.

Yum, right?

I cut the recipe in half because it claims to yield 12 servings, and there were only going to be four of us.

I prepped everything the night before. I put everything in the crock pot except the eggs, which I beat up and put in a separate container, covered in Press'n Seal, which I think it just fantastic. It sticks to metal and plastic bowls so much better than plastic wrap.

Anyway, I get up in the morning, pout the eggs over the other ingredients, turn the crock pot on low, and go to work.

I come home to burnt eggs.

I'm so not kidding, I walk in the door and can smell something burnt.

I go over to the kitchen and before I even lift the lid, I can see the blackened bits. I turn the crockpot off (I figure I can turn it to warm in 45 min when my friends' arrival is imminent). I take off the lid and the whole casserole is pulling away from the sides of the dish, half of it's obviously burnt. The other half looks almost salvagable.

Well, this is what I'm serving, I though, better make more biscuits.

I also figured the eggs were probably dry, so I put a bunch of egg-appropriate condiments on the table (think salsa, hot sauce, etc.).

We tried it. My friends ate it but agreed it was not my most successful dish ever.

They ate more biscuits.

I think I also busted out a block of cheese, cottage cheese and pretzels. It really was not filling.

Even if I hadn't burnt it, though, I don't know that I would have liked it. I had forgotten that I'm not the biggest fan of potatoes in egg casseroles. I prefer bread. Maybe I can find a egg-sausage-bread crock pot casserole?

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Published without my pictures because they were pretty bad anyway. Seriously. The food did not look good.

The Soup Pot

For as long as I can remember, my mother has kept in her freezer a tall, cylindrical, pale green tupperware container. The lid has a hole in like, like you can pour stuff out, but Mom has never kept liquid in it.

It is her soup pot.

Sure, it's not a pot. But in this pale green plastic container goes all the leftover she will eventually use to make her "vegetable soup". I say "vegetable" because while there are veggies, there's also usually some chicken, occassionally ham, and it's usually a chickeny broth.

Mom collects her leftover in the freezer. Vegetable leftovers, where there's not enough to be a side dish for one person in a meal, but there's enough that you feel bad throwing it away.

Once the container is full, she throws everything in a pot, usually with an extra onion and whatever leftovers happen to be in the fridge, and simmers it on the stove all day. It's different every time, depending on what veggies and meat had been left over, and what spices she felt like using up. I could have sworn she threw in a bay leaf, but she told me last month that she never had. Oh well, I used a bay leaf.

My cousins love this soup. I...I like the corn bread Mom usually serves with the soup. And I like making the soup because I dislike waste.

Crockpot Chicken and Dumplings

I was having six people over for an evening and wanted to make something in my crock pot so I could focus on appetizers when I got home from work. And it would keep it warm, as I knew a couple people would be late.

I decided to make this chicken and dumplings.

Reheating: Not to great. It really kinda needs the dumpling to balance the dish and there were no dumplings left. Next time, just save the leftovers for the soup pot.

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All right, I remember I really liked these. I wish there had been more dumplings. And like I said, reheating did not work well. Next time, I'll just throw the leftovers in my soup pot.

You all do keep a soup pot, right? No? Is that seriously just my family?

That's gonna have to be another post...

No pic of mine because I remember it mostly showed burnt stuff on the interior sides of my crockpot. Because it runs too dang hot.

I fail miserably

So I read a thing a while ago on how to keep a successful blog. I have no idea where I read it, or I'd give you a link. But I remember it said, Never apologize to the readers.

Well, in this instance, I think that's a pile of manure.

I have probably a dozen half-started blog posts that I've never published. Because I'm lazy. And I'd like to fix that.

Well, maybe not fix being lazy, but at least get these drafts out of my queue. Then perhaps I'll start fresh again?

I'm going to keep them short as I don't remember most of what I was thinking when I made these recipes anymore. There may or may not be pictures. We'll just have to wait and see.

Tater Tot Casserole

I will start by saying I made this for my boyfriend.

He really likes tater tots.

Me? I could take them for leave them. But as I had most of the ingredients for this recipe and I needed to feed him, I went for it.

I used cream of chicken soup, because that's what I had on hand.

I got the meat mixture together. It did not smell good.


I put the meat mixture in a baking dish, and covered with the 16 oz. of tater tots. I think I should have used a smaller baking dish because the tater tots did not cover all of the meat. Lots of space in between the tots. I'd show you a picture, but I think something changed with the blog and it's not letting me upload things...?

I baked as directed. Then covered with cheese.

It was ready right when he arrived.

I served it. He liked it. I didn't.

I ate the tater tot part, but the meat really grossed me out. He suggested using something other than cream of chicken soup, and adding more salt. He thought the meat tasted a little like the bland stuff they serve in school cafeterias.

I told him I wouldn't be making it again.

Coupon Score of the Week

I have a bunch of actual food blog posts to catch up on, but because I'm lazy, I figure I can at least indulge the coupon side of me.

A few weeks ago, both Kroger and bigg's had Amour Meatballs on sale, 2/$5. I had a few coupons, but only used one for $1 off two.

I refrained because I was running out of room in my freezer.

I'm glad I refrained.

bigg's had a four-day New Year's Sale. At which, those same meatballs were $1.88 a pack. Much better than the previously advertised $2.50.

I had two coupons that were buy 2, get $1 off. So I got all four, $2 off the whole mess. If you divide that out, that's $0.50 off a bag. Making them $1.38 a bag. Originally $3.88 a bag.

I call that a deal.

And I immediately turned the whole lot over to my Brother the Chef to make cocktail meatballs for his New Year's Eve party. They were delicious.

Coupon Spotlight....Betty Crocker potatoes

So bigg's has Betty Crocker boxed potatoes on sale for 10/$10.

I have two coupons for $.50 off two. That doubles to $1 off two.

So instead of getting 4/$4, I got 4/$2.

The regular price was $1.99, making four boxes $7.96.

I saved $5.96 between the sale and the coupons.

Yeah...that's fairly awesome.