My girlfriend and I baked chocolate chip cookies tonight.

[AntiAlias]

Well, it's more like she told me what to do, and then I obeyed her. The last thing I "cooked" was some toast and a bowl of Corn-Flakes. I am a but a poor divorcee, and have subsided on Hungry Mans and other kind of TV dinners for about five years, ever since my ex-wife and I split up. Before you ask, yeah I came from a good home; my parents are set to celebrate their 60th in a few years. So I didn't come from a broken home, or anything. I am just lazy.

So, the cookies took surprisingly less effort than I thought it would. If I can bake cookies, than maybe I can cook, like, meals, or dinner. I was wondering if you guys would like to share some food-cooking instructions with me.

I don't do seafood. I hate the Sea, and everything in it. But I do like veggies, and my girlfriend eats pork, and chicken.

Any suggestions of something I can maybe make in the crockpot for her? Maybe we can use this thread to share crockpot food-instructions.

[mike]

Check back later today, AntiAlias, I've got a slew of recipes to get a gal's attention ... crock-pot stuff included ...

It will all be from personal experience and not merely anecdotal Google searches.

One of my favorites involves an orange couscous, asparagus and rosemary skewers (picked from my own yard). I used shrimp on the rosemary skewers (unlike you, I'm a huge seafood fanatic) but I'm sure you could replace the shrimp with chicken or pork ...

Stay tuned ...

[neoplacebo]

Never eat anything bigger than your head.
But, seriously, I've found that cooking for one person is not easy, and generally results in a lot of waste.....and I like to cook. I guess just hang on to the girlfriend and crock pot.

[Colonel Taylor]

...I was wondering if you guys would like to share some food-cooking instructions with me...

Ask her to marry you.

Na Why ruin it!

[Wneglia]

I enjoy cooking, which helps me focus on things other than work. I would advise you not to get too hung up on crock-pot cooking, as there are lots of relatively simple recipes that involve other pots and pans. I didn't start serious cooking until about 15 years ago, and now can hold my own against most home cooks, so long as I have a recipe to follow. I am not too creative in trying to reinvent the wheel, although I may tweak things a bit to suit my tastes. When there is nothing better to watch on TV, I will go to the cooking channel, where you can always learn basic or new techniques. I am in a men's gourmet cooking club in Charleston that meets quarterly and has a 6 course dinner with responsibilities (hors d'oeuvres, soup&salad, entree, and dessert) rotated among 4 men. The wives don't have to do anything but sit back, relax, and enjoy. It has become somewhat competitive, trying to outdo each other, but has allowed me to play with new toys, such as a blowtorch to singe a creme brulee or meringue. The next day is a little rough when the aperitifs, wine, and after dinner drinks take their toll.

Here is a crockpot recipe that is easy, but a little messy to eat:

CROCKPOT QUAIL

Box of frozen quail (4 quail)
2 cans of Campbells Golden cream of mushroom soup
1 can of Campbells cream of chicken soup
1 pk. of Lipton Onion Soup and 3 Chicken Bouillon Cubes (mixed with 3 cups of water and heated for 2-3 minutes in microwave) and stirred after removed.
Add to heating crock pot.

Get all this mixed up and stirred in while frying quail

Pat quail dry with towel.
Season with salt, pepper, and poultry seasoning.
Roll in all-purpose flour.
Fry golden brown. (Do not over cook-only takes a few minutes to brown)
Put birds in crock pot, and smother in soup mix.
Cook on High for first hour
Cook 5-6 more hours on Low
Add water to get thinner "gravy" if desired.

By finishing off in the crock pot, the birds will be so moist and tender, the meat will almost fall off the bone

Serve with rice. (I prefer wild rice with this recipe)

[billy.pilgrim]

Well, it's more like she told me what to do, and then I obeyed her. The last thing I "cooked" was some toast and a bowl of Corn-Flakes. I am a but a poor divorcee, and have subsided on Hungry Mans and other kind of TV dinners for about five years, ever since my ex-wife and I split up. Before you ask, yeah I came from a good home; my parents are set to celebrate their 60th in a few years. So I didn't come from a broken home, or anything. I am just lazy.

So, the cookies took surprisingly less effort than I thought it would. If I can bake cookies, than maybe I can cook, like, meals, or dinner. I was wondering if you guys would like to share some food-cooking instructions with me.

I don't do seafood. I hate the Sea, and everything in it. But I do like veggies, and my girlfriend eats pork, and chicken.

Any suggestions of something I can maybe make in the crockpot for her? Maybe we can use this thread to share crockpot food-instructions.

spent 12 years divorced and love to cook.

btw - cooking is like way easier than baking, so you have now accomplished the hard stuff

easy cooking rule, mix good stuff together, cook, and eat

[Wneglia]

btw - cooking is like way easier than baking, so you have now accomplished the hard stuff

You got that right. Baking is much more complicated and labor intensive, and not worth the effort, especially if you live in Hendersonville where there are several top notch bakeries to choose from. I will do an occasional cake or something like jalapeno cheddar cornbread, but anything that involves kneading and yeast is too much trouble for me. One of my partners who has a home in Arden is into baking big time and even has an outdoor pizza oven which takes hours to heat to temperature, but can do a thin crust pizza in about a minute. The 2 of us learned not to cook wood fired pizzas in an outdoor oven in a 30 mph wind, unless you enjoy ash flavored pizzas.

[Colonel Taylor]

Unfortunately I love to cook and am pretty good at it. Took up canning the last 10 years or so also.
Someone had mentioned earlier how hard it is to cook for only 1 or 2, so true. I was always used to cooking for a herd of people, typical weekend was a dozen or so. I am still learning how to freeze things properly which doesn't always work to well.
Just about mastered veggie dishes such as Veggie Lasagna with white sauce and such dishes.

[Crock Hunter]

even has an outdoor pizza oven which takes hours to heat to temperature, but can do a thin crust pizza in about a minute.

I modified a Weber Charcoal Grill by adding stone on top of the grill and a stainless steel band that raises the lid about 6 inches.. It has an opening wide enough for our peel.. Fired with lump charcoal it reaches 800-900 degrees in about 30-40 minutes.. It'll cook a pie in just a few minutes..

Yumm..

[O Really]

[from the armchair shrink...] Your girlfriend probably doesn't care if you cook it from scratch. She cares that you are preparing and "providing" a meal for her and being considerate of her preferences - hopefully not having to resort to "do you like...whatever" to find out something about her. Go somewhere like Earth Fare or Fresh Market. Get advice and something ready-to-cook. Then make something fresh on-the-spot, which could be as simple as a salad (but not just lettuce in a bowl). Don't forget a really nice dessert and dessert wine. Make sure there's some chocolate in either the dessert itself or the wine. Example: Chocolate Cherry Passion, from Icicle Ridge Winery, described as...
Lush, deep red juicy cherries aged with dark rich chocolate- What a way to finish an evening! This dessert wine is the perfect ending to a dinner with friends, although sharing may be hard after you taste this incredible wine. Pour in small amounts for sipping or drizzle over New York Cheesecake for the perfect dessert! Enjoy!"

Or, if she's a Wisconsin girl, you can just feed her brats, beer cheese soup, and a six-pack of Leinie's.

[nobody]

One boneless skinless chicken, bag of frozen mixed vegetables, top with mustard base BQ sauce one can of tomatoes. If juce is not enough to fill the pot you need more BQ sauce. Turn on low go to work. Add water as needed at lunch. Keep cooking on low. No not defrost the veggies they will cook to fast and turn to mush.

[Wneglia]

[from the armchair shrink...] Your girlfriend probably doesn't care if you cook it from scratch. She cares that you are preparing and "providing" a meal for her and being considerate of her preferences - hopefully not having to resort to "do you like...whatever" to find out something about her. Go somewhere like Earth Fare or Fresh Market. Get advice and something ready-to-cook. Then make something fresh on-the-spot, which could be as simple as a salad (but not just lettuce in a bowl). Don't forget a really nice dessert and dessert wine. Make sure there's some chocolate in either the dessert itself or the wine. Example: Chocolate Cherry Passion, from Icicle Ridge Winery, described as...
Lush, deep red juicy cherries aged with dark rich chocolate- What a way to finish an evening! This dessert wine is the perfect ending to a dinner with friends, although sharing may be hard after you taste this incredible wine. Pour in small amounts for sipping or drizzle over New York Cheesecake for the perfect dessert! Enjoy!"

Or, if she's a Wisconsin girl, you can just feed her brats, beer cheese soup, and a six-pack of Leinie's.

It doesn't get much better than beer, brats, a Wisconsin girl and a good Packer game. My wife is from Green Bay.

[AntiAlias]

[from the armchair shrink...] Your girlfriend probably doesn't care if you cook it from scratch. She cares that you are preparing and "providing" a meal for her and being considerate of her preferences - hopefully not having to resort to "do you like...whatever" to find out something about her. Go somewhere like Earth Fare or Fresh Market. Get advice and something ready-to-cook. Then make something fresh on-the-spot, which could be as simple as a salad (but not just lettuce in a bowl). Don't forget a really nice dessert and dessert wine. Make sure there's some chocolate in either the dessert itself or the wine. Example: Chocolate Cherry Passion, from Icicle Ridge Winery, described as...
Lush, deep red juicy cherries aged with dark rich chocolate- What a way to finish an evening! This dessert wine is the perfect ending to a dinner with friends, although sharing may be hard after you taste this incredible wine. Pour in small amounts for sipping or drizzle over New York Cheesecake for the perfect dessert! Enjoy!"

Or, if she's a Wisconsin girl, you can just feed her brats, beer cheese soup, and a six-pack of Leinie's.

It doesn't get much better than beer, brats, a Wisconsin girl and a good Packer game. My wife is from Green Bay.

Yeah, well, I'm from Cleveland, she's from Baltimore. So that's not gonna work.

[AntiAlias]

[from the armchair shrink...] Your girlfriend probably doesn't care if you cook it from scratch. She cares that you are preparing and "providing" a meal for her and being considerate of her preferences - hopefully not having to resort to "do you like...whatever" to find out something about her. Go somewhere like Earth Fare or Fresh Market. Get advice and something ready-to-cook. Then make something fresh on-the-spot, which could be as simple as a salad (but not just lettuce in a bowl). Don't forget a really nice dessert and dessert wine. Make sure there's some chocolate in either the dessert itself or the wine. Example: Chocolate Cherry Passion, from Icicle Ridge Winery, described as...
Lush, deep red juicy cherries aged with dark rich chocolate- What a way to finish an evening! This dessert wine is the perfect ending to a dinner with friends, although sharing may be hard after you taste this incredible wine. Pour in small amounts for sipping or drizzle over New York Cheesecake for the perfect dessert! Enjoy!"

Or, if she's a Wisconsin girl, you can just feed her brats, beer cheese soup, and a six-pack of Leinie's.

Thanks. Never even thought about dessert.

[Wneglia]

Recipe for Vrede

[Wneglia]

[AntiAlias]

Thanks, guys. High fives for the dudes, hugs for the ladies. I'll let you know how it goes (the dinner, not what happens after )

[Reality]

A/A, if you think you are going to need an ER you might want to find out who's working where before the evening starts.

[mike]

AntiAlias ... great recipe ... it's awesome (plus, it involves beer )

Crock Pot Beer Chicken

A wonderful and easy Chicken Crock Pot Recipe that tastes great ... also makes a great ... Super Bowl Recipe idea.

Ingredients

2lbs skinless, boneless chicken breasts (I used 8 breasts, 4oz ea)
1 bottle or can of your favorite beer (I used Guinness) (I used Coor's regular ... yeah, I know, a bit pedestrian but it worked)
1 tsp salt
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tbsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp black pepper

Instructions

Place all ingredients in the crock pot, and cook on high for 4-5 hrs, or low for 6-8 hrs.
Feel free to change out the spices and herbs and use whatever you’d like.

Preparation time: (This is the best part) 5 minute(s)

Cooking time: 6 hour(s)

Read more: http://www.laaloosh.com/2012/07/09/croc ... z2B2RlqYbl

Really, it's good!