Slow Cooker Pork Tacos

adapted from Food Network Magazine, Feb/Mar 2009

Ingredients:

• 1 poblano pepper
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 chipotles in adobo sauce
• 1/2 medium white onion, roughly chopped
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
• Kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons dried oregano, preferably Mexican
• 3 3/4 cups chicken broth
• 4 pounds pork tenderloin
• Freshly ground pepper
• 2 bay leaves
• 1 cinnamon stick
• Corn tortillas, warmed for serving
• Assorted taco toppings (cilantro, limes, mangos, cheddar cheese, avocado, red cabbage)

Put the poblano, garlic, chipotles, onion, 2 tablespoons olive oil, honey, vinegar, 1 tablespoon salt, and the oregano to the blender; puree until smooth.

Season the pork all over with salt and pepper and transfer to a large slow cooker.  Add the bay leaves and cinnamon stick, then pour in the sauce and the chicken broth.  Cover and cook on high until the meat is tender, about 5 hours.  (Or cook the meat in a large Dutch oven, covered, for 1 hour 45 minutes at 350 degrees F; uncover and cook 30 more minutes.)

Discard the bay leaves and the cinnamon stick.  Shred the pork with 2 forks; season with salt and pepper.  Serve the shredded pork in the tortillas, along with toppings.

A few nights ago, I made Slow Cooker French Dip Sandwiches after reading about them on Baking Bites, one of my favorite blogs. I love French Dip Sandwiches! The Picky Apple, as it turns out, doesn’t like them as much as me. I probably could have guessed that though. He has a serious aversion to anything resulting in soggy bread. French onion soup is the biggest soggy bread offender in his book.  (Coincidentally, my all time favorite soup!)  Bread pudding is not something he’ll be requesting anytime soon.  So he ate his sandwich sans au jus, which kind of goes against the whole idea of French dip, if you ask me.  But to each his own.  We both liked the flavor of the meat.  I thought it was melt in your mouth good, especially with some fresh bread and melted smoked provolone! If you like French Dip Sandwiches, then you have got to try this…Check out the recipe here!

Slow-Cooker Taco Chili

Serves 2

Ingredients:

• 1/2 lb. extra lean ground beef, cooked and drained
• 1/2 package taco seasoning mix (I use Old El Paso Original)
• 1 10 oz. can of Rotel (the Chili flavor is best, but sometimes hard to find)
• 1/2 of a 15 oz. can of black beans, drained
• 1/2 of a 15 oz. can of corn, drained

Directions:  Throw everything into a slow-cooker, and cook for 6-8 hours on low or 2-4 hours on high.  Serve with tortilla chips or tortillas, cheese, sour cream, cornbread.