Homeschool Community

Homeschooling for us has been mostly outside-of-the-homeschooing.  With 4 active kids we have made good use of our crockpot!  I tend to make dinner while breakfast is being made.  Easy meals that we all enjoy are chicken ***, pork chops (both can be made with lemon, salt & pepper / teriyaki / bbq) or a beef roast that can be made with salt, garlic & potatoes OR another family favorite: Mild Giardiniera.  I put frozen meat in the crock and set it on low if it's in the morning, at lunch you better set it on high.  Another thing: double check that it's plugged in - or you come home to no dinner!

Another trick I have is if dinner's not on the table at 6pm and their all growling - I put out a bowl of cut celery, carrots or sugar snap peas and a bowl with ranch dressing in it.  It fends them off and keeps them tame until the real meal comes and it gets them to eat more veggies!

I've never had much success with the crock pot.....sure wish I could! But I do have a healthy, nutritious, cheap, quick....even delicious dinner! Preheat oven to 400. Mix one can of drained and rinsed black beans, 1 can of drained corn, one can of chili ready tomatoes (use tomatoes w/chilies if you like it spicier), and 1 cup of shredded cheddar cheese. Using a slotted spoon, spoon onto tortilla and roll up burrito style. Place on baking sheet or pan. Bake for 8 minutes. Serve w/guacamole, salsa and sour cream, as desired.

 Ok, so it doesn't sound very appetizing at all, but trust me... it's yummy!  It's quick and really EASY and makes your house smell good all day!!

 This takes 5-10 minutes to prepare in the morning and 25 minutes in the evening.

STEAK THING

INGREDIENTS: (can be adjusted quite easily for any size family)

1-2 lbs of your favorite cut of beef (I use top sirloin) 

1 Family-sized can of Cream of Mushroom

1 medium onion, sliced

rice 

PREPARE:

Slice onion and place the slices on the bottom of the crock pot.  Put meat (I put it in the crock pot raw and never have any problems) on top of the onions.  Pour can of Cream of Mushroom over the meat and make sure that the soup is covering all the meat.  Sprinkle with garlic salt and peper and put the lid on the crock pot.  Put the heat on low for 7-8 hours.

At dinner time, make however much rice your family will eat.  While rice is cooking, take meat out, remove any fat and throw out, and shred the meat with a fork.  Put meat back into crock pot and stir the onion, soup and meat together.  

TO SERVE:

Spoon desired amount of rice onto plate and top with meat mixture.  Serve with bread to get all the sauce off the plate.  :)

We have 2 kids that have Fibromyalgia and are also vegetarians, and 1 that is pretty much straight carnivore. So meal time is always tricky. We also make use of our crock pot, but I always have vegetarian options available in the freezer. We also do a lot of salads and fresh fruits, especially for lunch, its just easier sometimes. Our fridge is stockpiled with yogurts for healthy snacks. I know we sound like health nuts, we aren't really, but its actually easier to eat that way sometimes. I guess it is actually more convenient.