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I've tried (and tried!) to get my courage up to try out Crockpot Lasagna, but so far I haven't found a recipe that has enough positive reviews to convince me to grab all the ingredients to actually make it. (Although I did get a recipe from a reader yesterday that I added to my “make this” list . . . I'll let you know if I try itout!)
I keep thinking though that there should be other recipes than chicken and beef for the crockpot, so I decided to try out a baked spaghetti. While I think it's not really much more exciting than any other baked pasta recipe, it was so nice to be able to make the recipe earlier in the day, and then let it cook up in the slow cooker during the bewitching hour. (At our house, 3-6 PM is just nuts!)
It also used up loads of items that I already had on hand, and since we needed to stock up on a few snack items this week I was thankful to pinch a few extra pennies from my grocery budget by eating from the pantry. This is a great way to use up some of those stockpiled noodles (I think I “purchased” those noodles for free at Publix at least two years ago!), and feed your family a yummy meal right from your kitchen.
Slow Cooked Baked Pasta
Ingredients
- 1 pound ground beef Publix Lean Ground Beef On Sale 4.49/lb, or Kroger Ground Chuck $2.69/lb
- 1 onion, chopped Kroger Value Yellow Onions 3 lb bag – $1.99
- 1 green pepper, chopped Florida Green Bell Peppers, 1.49/lb at Publix
- 1 clove minced garlic
- 1 tsp. Italian Seasoning
- 1 tsp. onion powder
- 1 tsp. garlic powder
- 1 tsp. pepper
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 24 oz. spaghetti sauce Barilla Pasta Sauce BOGO $2.86 at Publix
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 3 cups cooked pasta Barilla Pasta BOGO $1.34 at Publix
- pepperoni (optional) Hormel Pepperoni On Sale $3 at Kroger, use $0.55/2 Hormel Pepperoni Products printable 0r
$1/2 Hormel Pepperoni, exp. 3/15/12 (SS 01/15/12) - black olives (optional)
- 3 cups mozzarella Publix Shredded Cheese or Chunk, 6 or 8 oz pkg or Publix Sliced Cheese On Sale $2.50, or Kroger Shredded Cheese is on sale Buy One Get One Free this week
- 1 tbsp. olive oil
Directions
- Saute peppers and onions over medium heat in oil until onions are translucent. Then add minced garlic and cook an additional minute.
- Stir in ground beef and cook until browned, then drain any fat that accumulates.
- Add in Italian Seasoning, onion powder, garlic powder, pepper, salt, tomato paste, spaghetti sauce.
- Place cooked pasta at the bottom of your crock pot, then add tomato sauce mixture, pepperoni, and black olives.
- Add 2 cups of mozzarella cheese, and cook on low 3 hours.
- Stir together your ingredients, and add an addition cup of mozzarella.
- Bake another 30 minutes on low.
- Enjoy!
Recipe adapted from All Recipes. Visit I Heart Publix for more coupon matchups, and check out $5 Dinner Mom for more bargain meal deals. If you need a little more menu inspiration, check out the Recipe Gallery, and you can also see more recipe ideas over on my Pinterest board!
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If you have an extra hour, you can even cook your crumbled raw beef, peppers, garlic, and onions in the crock pot to saute and brown. I was out of time and had to go out one day so I threw everything that needed sauteing in the crock pot on high for about an hour. When I got back it was perfect! I just drained it and moved on-so now I do that all of the time so that I can use that time for something else.
What a good idea! I always wondered how to cook ground beef in the crock pot – thanks so much for sharing (I’ve gotta try it out!)
I have a good recipe for Slow-cooker Lasagna from Kraft Food fodd & family magizine.
Prep 15 min. Total 6 Hours 15 min.
Makes 8 Servings
What you need:
1 lb. ground beef
1 jar (26 oz.) spaghetti sauce
1 cup water
1 container (15 oz.) Breakstone’s or Knudsen Ricotta Cheese
1 pkg. (7 oz.) Kraft 2% Milk Shredded Mozzarella Cheese, divided
1/4 cup Kraft Grated Parmesan Cheese, divided
1 egg
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh parsley
6 lasagna noodles, uncooked
Make it:
Brown meat in large skillet; drain.
Stir in spaghetti sauce and water.
Mix ricotta, 1 1/12 cups mozzarella, 2 Tbsp. Parmesan, egg and parsley.
Spoon 1 cup meat sauce into slow cooker; top with layers of half each of the noodles, broken to fit, and sheese mixture. Cover with 2 cups of the remaining meat sauce. Top with remaining noodles, broken to fit, cheese mixture and meat sauce. Cover with lid.
Cook on low 4 to 6 hours or until liquid is absorbed. Sprinkle with remaining cheeses; let stand, covered, 10 min. or unilt melted.
Hi Michele! Someone else emailed me that exact recipe, so I’m planning to try it (trying to get courageous…. I’ll let you know how it goes!)
This is the recipe I use for lasagna and it is really good! The kids even like it!
Thanks Mary ~ I gotta try it! 🙂
That looks really good! 😀 Oh, and don’t be afraid to try Crockpot Lasagna. I’ve made it several times and it is very good. I’ve even tried the Duggar’s recipe! lol (it’s on their website)
I’ve got to try it out…. I’m just always afraid it’ll turn out mushy? Really, one of these days I’m going to try it 🙂