Slow Cooker Spag & Balls

Been on a bit of tear with the slow cooker lately.

Ever since Mexico Brenda goaded me into making my own homemade refried beans I've been re-inspired to experiment with our slow cooker.  Thanks for that Brenda - your beans are in the mail  :)

I made another batch of black refried beans yesterday and today I'm trying out spaghetti and meatballs in the slow cooker.  

I found a few different recipes online and there's really nothing to it.

Ingredients

• a few handfuls of whole wheat spaghetti broken in thirds
• 26 ounce jar of your fave spaghetti sauce
• 24 frozen cooked meatballs
• a pinch of dried oregano and a clove of fresh garlic so you don't feel like a loser for not making your own spag sauce 
• 1 and a quarter cups of water (I substituted the water for a can of organic tomato sauce that I had to use up)

Combine the meatballs, sauce and water in your slow cooker and cook on low for about 6 hours. Mix in the handfuls of dry spaghetti and cook for another 45 minutes.  If you like really soft noodles, put the spaghetti in about halfway thru the process instead of at the end.

This is my first attempt at spag & balls in the slow cooker so we'll see how it goes.

Comments

[Brenda]

Let me know how this turns out, sounds like something I would try.
We use our slow cooker lots here in the summertime. I have a roast beef and veggies in it right now. I plug it in out on the patio and it keeps the heat out of the apartment.
We were wanting north of the border style pork and beans, think Heinz pork and beans with molasses, so I made a batch of them last week. Roy said they were better than Heinz, our favorite brand, so will definitely do them again soon.
If that recipe works for you I think I will make a bunch of meatballs in the winter, (in the oven to warm up the place), and freeze them for the summertime.
Thanks for the idea.
Have you found this site yet? This lady cooked with her slow cooker every day for a year and posted the recipes. If you haven't seen it yet you might be interested in it.

http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2007/12/alphabetical-listing-of-recipes.html

[kelsi]

Mex Brenda - we haven't tried it yet cause we always like spaghetti better on day two so we're gonna have it tomorrow with green salad and garlic toasts. But it smells RIDICULOUSLY GOOD simmering in the slow cooker. I'll let you know...
And yes - I found that website a few weeks ago and I'm slowly making my way thru her archives.
(By the way, sorry about your crappy August... you were most definitely missed out here in the blogosphere.)

[Brenda]

Thanks Kelsi.

[mave]

HiKelsi, Have you tried making 'hot stuff' in your slow cooker? You'd have to scale down the recipe unless you have a gigantic crock pot but if you're interested we might just give you the recipe, seeing as how you are as near to family as you can be, lol.

[kelsi]

Mavey-In-Law,
I think we have either a 4 or 6 quart slow cooker. It's a cheap Proctor Silex one (we bought for $20 about 5 years ago) and the inside of the base has burn marks I can't seem to clean out, so I think we'll buy a better quality one in the States next month. Your internet savvy son has been doing lots of crock pot research and we found a good model, made by Hamilton Beach, that's about $40.
What kind do you guys have?

[Laurie]

Best day ever...thanks to Brenda for the crockpot recipe link!

[Peanutt]

Delicious!!!! Can't wait for more of these great slunches!!! Thanks honeybunny, tastes much better then the boxed stuff!

[kelsi]

NewsMama - that IS a great website, hey? I've spent the last couple weeks pouring over the archives and stealing slow cooker ideas.
And I keep forgetting to tell you this... remember that orange mesh veggie bag you brought me back from Dubai, I think? Anyway, we use it ALL THE TIME when we buy fruits and veggies. Love it! And it matches all my fave foods (oranges, cheddar cheese, carrots, etc.)

[kelsi]

You're welcome, SweetPea.
Even though my Sarcasm Radar is beeping like mad :)
g

[Mavey]

Hi Kelsi,
We have a very old slow cooker that we picked up at the Lions garage sale last year. Even I haven't tried to make hot stuff in it because we usually use a BIG pot to make it and let it simmer on the stove for three or four hours after we have the ingredients cooked. One day we'll make it and show you how, but not right now because as soon as we get our visas for China we're outta here too. Can't wait!!!