Slow Cooker Butterscotch Lava Cake

Oh boy, do I have a great recipe for you! When I was making this last week, my husband said it was “Crock of the Week whiplash” because I did a broccoli recipe the week before, and then this one, Crock Pot Butterscotch Lava Cake. Oh yes, you read that right. It is pretty similar to the Crock Pot Hot Fudge Cake I made last year, in that IT MAKES IT’S OWN SAUCE, people. It’s magic. You have delicious warm and moist cake on top, with this sinful pool of butterscotch saucy yumminess on the bottom of the crock. After chocolate, butterscotch is my favorite flavor. Throw a scoop of ice cream on it or some whipped cream, and you have a delicious dessert that tastes like you got it from a fancy restaurant. Make it. Make it NOW.

Your Thompson’s IGA ingredient list:

Crock Pot Butterscotch Lava Cake

• 1 cup flour
• 1 pkg (3 oz.) Cook & Serve butterscotch pudding (NOT instant)
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 3/4 cup milk
• 2 Tbsp canola oil
• 1 Tbsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup butterscotch chips

Topping:

• 3 Tbs butterscotch sundae topping
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1-1/3 cup boiling water

Spray your slow cooker with cooking spray. In a medium bowl, stir together flour, pudding mix, sugar, baking powder & salt. Make a well int he center for the milk, oil and vanilla. Whisk everything together, and then add in the butterscotch chips. Pour batter into the crock.

In a small bowl mix together the sundae topping and sugar. Pour boiling water into bowl, and stir until it is smooth and sugar is dissolved. Pour over the batter in the crock and DO NOT STIR. That is very important! No stirring!

Cook on high for about 2 hours, then turn off your crock and let it sit for a half hour.  Keep an eye on it in case your crock runs hot, you don’t want to burn the edges.

Scoop out the cake and then scoop out some sauce from the bottom to drizzle over your cake. A scoop of ice cream send this over the top YUM!

Often, you are planning dinner, but can't make just what you want because your main dish needs the oven, so you have to choose a side that doesn't need to be made in the oven. Well, why not use your crock pot for that side dish? This week I am offering you Slow Cooker Cheesy Broccoli Casserole. It's a good way to get veggies into your meal without a lot of work. I have to warn you though, if you haven't cooked with broccoli too often, it does have a pretty strong smell that some don't enjoy. So, yeah, I warned you there. Ha ha!

And I would like to welcome Thompson's IGA in Cuba City as a sponsor of Julie's Crock of the Week! Welcome aboard!

Your Thompson's IGA ingredient list:

Slow Cooker Cheesy Broccoli Casserole

• 2 lbs fresh (not frozen) broccoli florets, washed and trimmed
• 1/3 cup flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1/2 tsp ground dry mustard
• 1 cup low fat or fat free milk
• 1 cup chicken or veggie broth
• 1 cup shredded fancy white cheese (swiss, gouda, provolone, fontina, etc)
• 1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese

Use a 4 quart crock pot. Cut up and wash the broccoli. In a separate mixing bowl, mix together flour, salt, pepper & mustard. Toss the broccoli florets in the flour mixture, coating all the florets.  Pour into slow cooker. Stir in the cup pf fancy white shredded cheese. Pour in the milk and broth. Top with the parmesan cheese and cook on low for 4-6 hours or high for 2-4, until the broccoli is at desired tenderness. Give it all a good stir before serving. Makes about 8 cups, each cup is about 130 calories.

Salsa Chicken 2-for-1!

This week, I am giving you a bit of a 2-for-1 treat. I made this original recipe, Crock Pot Salsa Chicken, for the first time a few years ago and LOVED it. It comes from the great cookbook "A Year of Slow Cooking" by Stephanie O'Dea.  I recently came upon a variation of the original which made it into a soup, on her blog, which is the same name as her book (Google it, it's worth it!).  So I decided to try the soup version over the weekend and it was SO TASTY! My husband and I both agreed it is one of our favorite things I have ever made in the slow cooker. So not only am I giving you the soup recipe, but I'm also giving you the original salsa chicken recipe. Not only can you enjoy it as is, but it also works great as a filling in tacos, burritos, quesadillas, nachos, etc,  when you shred up the chicken.  It's also very low fat! YAY! Would be a nice dish for a taco bar at your Super Bowl party this weekend!

Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken

• 1 lb boneless chicken thighs or breasts
• 1 can black beans, rinsed & drained
• 1 cup chunky salsa (1.5 cups if you use breasts)
• 1 cup frozen corn

Pretty simple here...put the chicken in the crock (frozen is fine), and pour the other ingredients over the chicken. Cook on low for 6-8 hours.

Slow Cooker Salsa Chicken and Black Bean Soup

• 1 lb boneless chicken ( I used frozen breast tenderloins)
• 1 cup dried black beans (or 2 cans, drained & rinsed)
• 4 cups chicken broth (I used low sodium)
• 1 cup sliced mushrooms
• 1 cup frozen corn
• 1-16oz jar salsa
• 2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 cup sour cream (to stir in at the end, I used light)

If you know you are going to make this the day before, I recommend using the dried beans, just soak them overnight for at least 8 hours. I really think they tasted great in this soup, and are less expensive than the canned. But the canned beans would work well too, I am sure.

Pour beans into the crock. Lay the chicken on top, and then pur the remaining ingredients over the chicken and beans. Cook on low for 6-8 hours. If you are using the dried beans, it will be closer to 8 hours, check the beans for tenderness. With an hour or two to go, shred up the chicken in the crock (or remove, shred, and put back in crock, which is a bit easier!).  When the soup is done, stir in the sour cream before serving.

When serving, you can top with cheese, sour cream, avocado, etc. 1 cup serving on it's own is only 200 calories!