DINING ~ Autumn cooking with you slow cooker

I found this great recipe at the Cooking Light Magazine site. It serves 5 and as you know, there’s nothing easier or more hearty than dinner from the slow-cooker. I usually substitute easily found items or those that are on sale/special for higher priced ingredients in recipes.

Pork Roast with Three-Mushroom Ragout

Ingredients
1 (3 1/2-ounce) package shiitake mushrooms
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup canned crushed tomatoes, divided
2 tablespoons chopped fresh or 2 teaspoons dried thyme
2 (8-ounce) packages button mushrooms, cut in half
1 (8-ounce) package cremini mushrooms, cut in half
1 large onion, cut into 8 wedges
1/2 ounce sun-dried tomatoes, packed without oil, quartered (about 6)
1 3/4 pounds boned pork loin roast
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
5 cups cooked medium egg noodles (about 4 cups uncooked pasta)
Preparation
Discard shiitake mushroom stems; cut caps into quarters.
Lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour, 1/2 cup crushed tomatoes, and thyme in an electric slow cooker; stir well with a whisk. Add all mushrooms, onion, and sun-dried tomatoes.
Trim fat from pork. Sprinkle pork with salt and pepper; place on top of mushroom mixture. Pour 1/2 cup crushed tomatoes over pork. Cover with lid; cook on high heat for 1 hour. Reduce heat setting to low; cook 7 hours. Remove pork from slow cooker; cut into slices. Serve over noodles

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This is a traditional French braised beef, red wine, and vegetable stew. All you’d need is a warm baguette and you’ll have a French Bistro dish right in your own home. Note that the recipe is geared toward using a dutch oven, but if you scroll to the bottom, there are slow-cooker directions as well.

Beef Daube Provençal

Ingredients
2 teaspoons olive oil
12 garlic cloves, crushed
1 (2-pound) boneless chuck roast, trimmed and cut into 2-inch cubes
1 1/2 teaspoons salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
1 cup red wine
2 cups chopped carrot
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
1/2 cup less-sodium beef broth
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
Dash of ground cloves
1 (14 1/2-ounce) can diced tomatoes
1 bay leaf
3 cups cooked medium egg noodles (about 4 cups uncooked noodles)
Preparation
Preheat oven to 300°.
Heat oil in a small Dutch oven over low heat. Add garlic; cook 5 minutes or until garlic is fragrant, stirring occasionally. Remove garlic with a slotted spoon, and set aside. Increase heat to medium-high. Add beef to pan; sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Cook 5 minutes, browning on all sides. Remove beef from pan. Add wine to pan; bring to a boil, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Add garlic, beef, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, carrot, and next 8 ingredients (through bay leaf), and bring to a boil.
Cover and bake at 300° for 2 1/2 hours or until beef is tender. Discard bay leaf. Serve over noodles.
Note: To make in a slow cooker, prepare through Step 2. Place beef mixture in an electric slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 5 hours.

bon apetit!