Easter in a Slow Cooker
Easy Easter Dishes - Not Impossible!
This week, we feature Easter meal ideas all made in the slow cooker! What could get easier? The only hard part might be deciding which recipe to try OR hope you have multiple slow cookers!
Crock Pot Cinnamon Roll Casserole
Prep: 10 min.
Cook: 2 hrs. 30 min.
Total: 2 hrs. 40 min.
Servings: 8
2 (12-oz) tubes cinnamon roll dough, each one cut in quarters
3 eggs
1/2 C. heavy whipping cream
3 T. maple syrup
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/3 C. chopped pecans
Spray a 6-quart crock pot with cooking spray.
Place cinnamon roll quarters evenly in crock pot.
In a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, whipping cream, maple syrup, vanilla, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Slowly pour on top of cinnamon rolls.
Sprinkle pecans on top.
Spoon one of the containers of icing that came with the cinnamon rolls on top.
Place lid on crock pot and cook on low for 2-1/2 to 3 hours. If your crock pot runs hot, check after 3 hours. Cinnamon rolls should be golden brown along the edge and no longer gooey in the middle.
Once done, turn crock pot off and spoon second container of icing on top. Serve warm.
Ham w/ Maple Brown Sugar Glaze
Prep Time: 15 min.
Cook Time: 5 hrs.
Resting Time: 20 min.
Total Time: 5 hrs. 35 min.
Servings: 12
7.5 lb. ham unsliced, bone-in ham
1 C. apple juice
Glaze
1/2 C. dark brown sugar
1/2 C. maple syrup
2 T. brown mustard
2 T. of cornstarch
1/3 C. orange juice
pepper to taste
Trim excess fat and skin from the ham. Use a paring knife to slice a grid pattern into the ham.
Add ham and 1 C. of apple juice to slow cooker.
Heat for 5-6 hours on low, until heated through.
Remove ham from slow cooker and let rest for 20 min.
Glaze: Bring pure maple syrup, dark brown sugar, mustard, pepper and cornstarch to a boil. Let boil 2-3 min., whisking constantly until mixture starts to thicken. Add orange juice.
Let glaze cool for about 5 min.
Pat ham dry and spoon glaze over ham.
Heat ham under broiler 5-7 minutes until glaze has caramelized.
Note: If glaze cools too long and is overly thick, just reheat to make pourable.
Crock Pot Sweet Potato Casserole
Prep Time: 25 min.
Total Time: 4 hrs. 25 min.
Servings: 8
Cooking spray
4 lb. sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped into medium cubes
4 T. melted butter
2 C. packed brown sugar
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
Pinch salt
1-1/2 C. mini marshmallows
1/2 C. whole pecans
Grease slow cooker bowl with cooking spray and add sweet potatoes.
In a medium bowl, combine butter, sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, nutmeg if using, and a pinch of salt. Whisk to combine. Pour over sweet potatoes and toss until they are fully coated. Cook on high for 4 hours, stirring every hour.
Remove lid and top with marshmallows and pecans. Cover and cook on high about 10 min. more or until marshmallows are melted.
Crock Pot Glazed Carrots
Prep: 10 min.
Cook: 5 hrs.
Total: 5 hrs. 10 min.
Servings: 8
2 lbs. baby carrots
1/4 C. water
3 T. brown sugar packed
3 T. honey
3 T. butter cut into 8 cubes
1/4 tsp. salt
Chopped fresh herbs optional
Combine Ingredients: Place carrots, water, brown sugar, honey, butter and salt in a 6-quart slow cooker.
Set slow cooker to high for 5-6 hours or low for 6-8 hours. Stir carrots after 4-5 hours and continue cooking until carrots are fork tender. (If you want a thicker glaze, remove the lid of the slow cooker and allow to cook on high for an additional 30 minutes to allow some of the liquid to evaporate.)
Cheesy Crock Pot Potatoes
Prep Time: 5 min.
Cook Time: 3 hrs. 30 min.
Total Time: 3 hrs. 35 min.
Servings: 8
32 oz. frozen diced potatoes
1/2 C. finely diced onion
2 C. cheddar cheese, divided
1 (10.5 oz. can) cream of chicken soup
1 tsp. garlic powder
2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 – 1 tsp. black pepper
1 C. sour cream or 8 oz. softened cream cheese
Add all of the ingredients (using only 1 C. of the cheese) to a large bowl and stir together to combine. Spray the insert of a 6 quart slow cooker and add the potato mixture, spreading out in an even layer.
Cover the slow cooker and cook on high for 3 hours or on low for 6 hours. Test the potatoes to see if they are tender before continuing.
During the last 30 minutes of cooking, add the remaining cup of cheese in an even layer to the top of the potatoes. Cover and cook for the remaining 30 minutes. You can also transfer your slow cooker to the warm setting until you’re ready to serve.
Crock Pot Pecan Pie
Prep: 5 min.
Cook: 3 hrs.
Total: 3 hrs. 5 min.
1-1/2 C. chopped pecans plus some pecan halves for decoration
1 slow cooker liner
1 refrigerated pie crust
4 eggs lightly beaten
1 C. light corn syrup
1 C. sugar
1/3 C. salted butter melted
1-1/2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
Preheat oven to 350°F. Place pecans on a baking sheet and toast for 5 min. or until browned. Set aside.
Place the slow cooker liner in your slow cooker (you can use a small round slow cooker for a deep dish pie or a 6 qt oval for a thinner pie) and place pie crust in the bottom. Press down the bottom and each side to fit the bottom of the cooker. Use your fingers to press the very top of the crust into the slow cooker liner to make sure it adheres (so it won’t slump down into the pie later)
In a medium bowl, stir together the beaten eggs, corn syrup, sugar, butter, and vanilla. Whisk until smooth. Stir in the pecans, reserving the halves for top.
Pour the pie filling into the slow cooker/pie crust. Top with some pecan halves as you wish to decorate.
Cook on high for 3 hours (halfway through, give the liner a turn to rotate, taking care because the pie will not be set yet. This is optional but will help when removing later)
Turn off the cooker and allow the pie to cool completely before removing/cutting.
Serve with vanilla bean ice cream if desired!
Note: if you don’t allow the pie to cool completely it could fall apart when removing from the slow cooker or cutting. If you like to eat your pecan pie hot, you can microwave individual pieces to avoid the entire thing not keeping form.
Apple Streusel
Prep Time: 20 min.
Cook Time: 6 hrs.
Servings: 8
6 C. sliced peeled tart apples
1-1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground allspice
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
3/4 C. 2% milk
2 T. butter, softened
3/4 C. sugar
2 lg. eggs
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 C. biscuit/baking mix
Topping:
1 C. biscuit/baking mix
1/3 C. packed brown sugar
3 T. cold butter
1/2 C. sliced almonds
Ice cream or whipped cream, optional
In a large bowl, toss apples with cinnamon, allspice and nutmeg. Place in a greased 3-qt. slow cooker. In a small bowl, combine the milk, butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla and biscuit mix. Spoon over apples.
Topping: combine biscuit mix and brown sugar in a large bowl; cut in butter until crumbly. Add almonds; sprinkle over apples.
Cover and cook on low for 6-8 hours or until the apples are tender. Serve with ice cream or whipped cream if desired.
Easter Crock Pot Candy
Prep Time: 5 min.
Cook Time: 1 hr.
Refrigerate or cool at room temperature 2 hrs.
Total Time: 3 hrs. 5 min.
(2) 16 oz. containers of lightly salted peanuts
48 oz. white almond bark – broke into squares
12 oz. Easter Pastel M&M’s®
Sprinkles for decorating
Layer the peanuts and almond bark in a 5 qt. crock pot.
Cook on low for 1 hour.
Stir every 15-20 minutes to ensure that white almond bark does not burn on the bottom of the crock pot.
Once all ingredients are melted, stir thoroughly to combine and stir in approximately 1/2 of the M&M’s®.
Then use a spoon or a cookie scoop to scoop clusters onto a cookie sheet lined with wax paper or parchment paper. Then decorate each cluster with the sprinkles and leftover M&M’s® before they dry.
Put in the refrigerator or allow them to sit at room temperature until the chocolate has completely set (usually 1-2 hours).
Store the clusters in an airtight container or plastic bag in the refrigerator.
Quote of the Week:
“Tomorrow is the most important thing in life. Comes into us at midnight very clean. It’s perfect when it arrives, and it puts itself in our hands. It hopes we’ve learned something from yesterday.”
~ John Wayne
