Slow Cooker Cheesy Grits with Garlic Butter Shrimp

Ingredients

Grits:

• 2 cups uncooked stone-ground grits
• 6 cups water
• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 1 1/2 cup sharp cheddar cheese, grated
• 1/2 cup Parmesan, grated
• 3 tablespoons butter
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoons freshly ground pepper

Shrimp:

• 24 large shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1 1/4 sticks butter, sliced into pats
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
• salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

1. Combine grits and water in slow cooker and let grits settle to the bottom. Skim any solids off the top of the water. Cover and cook on low for 7-8 hours or overnight.
2. Stir and add in cream, cheeses, salt, pepper and butter.
3. Preheat oven to 350º F.
4. Toss shrimp in olive oil and minced garlic, and season with salt and pepper. Spread out on a baking tray.
5. Place in oven and cook for 6-8 minutes, or until shrimp is pink, opaque and cooked through.
6. Add butter directly to baking tray and toss shrimp in it.
7. Spoon grits into bowls and add shrimp and butter on top.
8. Serve warm.

Recipe found at 12tomatoes.com

Crock Pot Monkey Bread

**originally posted on www.WGLR.com on 2-3-14**

This is one of those recipes that makes your house smell AMAZING while it cooks! Plus, it is an easy one to include your kids or grandkids in the prep for some extra fun and family time.

CROCK POT MONKEY BREAD

• 1 tube refrigerated biscuits
• 1/4 cup belted butter
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup brown sugar

Cut biscuits into quarters with a knife or kitchen shears. Mix together the brown sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl. Melt the butter in another small bowl in the microwave. Spray your crock pot with non stick spray. Take each dough piece and dip it into the butter, then into the cinnamon sugar mix, evenly coating the dough. Place into the crock and build up a pull apart bread in it. If you have leftover cinnamon sugar and butter, pour it all over the top!

Cover and cook on low for 2 hours. I shifted some of it around after an hour to make sure each piece cooked evenly.

Scoop out and enjoy the warm gooey yumminess!!

Crock Pot Apple Butter

(originally posted on www.wglr.com on 11-12-13)

This recipe was the result of timing working well with two things last week. First, I had too many apples in my pantry from a few orchard trips in October that were going soft. Second, I got a new toy! An immersion blender! I have wanted one for a while and found a great deal for one online, and it came in the mail last week. So, I had the perfect combination to try to make my own apple butter! And let me tell you, it’s REALLY delicious, it turned out better than I expected. And don’t fret if you don’t have an immersion blender. I prefer smooth apple butter, but you can just enjoy it chunkier, or throw it in your blender, too. It tastes awesome on warm biscuits, toast, crackers, english muffins, etc.! And the best part is how this makes your house smell all day! So wonderful!

CROCK POT APPLE BUTTER

• About a dozen medium apples, peeled, cored & diced (I used 18 small-medium, and got about a pint and a half of butter)
• 1/2 cup water or apple cider (I used cider)
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp allspice

Place apples in your crock pot, add in all other ingredients. Give it a good stir to coat all the apples with spices. Cook on low for 8 hours or high for 4 hours. The process is similar to making applesauce, except you need to cook it down more to a thicker consistency. After the initial cooking time, put (or keep) the crock on HIGH, and either vent the lid with a wooden spoon, or remover the cover altogether, and cook for another hour or two, checking consistency. It needs to thicken up to become apple butter.

When it cooks down to a thicker consistency than apple sauce, you can give it a good mash if you want it chunkier, or you can take the immersion blender to it to smooth it out. Store it in jars or plastic containers in the fridge.