Pressure Canned Ham and Butter Bean Soup

 I have recently ventured into the world of home canning.  I am already in love!  I made a huge batch of my Vegetable Beef Soup, substituting frozen vegetable for the canned vegetables so they wouldn't turn to mush in the canning process; and, of course, only heated it up rather than completely cooking it, allowing it to finish cooking during the processing.  Being able to just pop the lid off, stick it in the microwave for a minute and eat it is just amazing.  Totally worth the extra time in the cooking/prep phase.

For my next adventure, I decided to do something with butter beans, since I've been told by my doctor to eat more high-potassium foods thanks to one of my medications.  Some poking around online and recipe browsing, and the basis for this soup was born.  It's rich and hearty, without being overly complicated.  The 15 pints I made won't last long!  This is definitely going to be a regular addition to our menu.

I used speckled butter beans for this first batch; regular green butter beans (aka baby lima beans) should work just as well – and possibly be more visually appealing.  Some hot sauce, like Cholula, would be a great addition/substitution for the vinegar, but unfortunately I can't use it (allergies).  Celery or bell peppers, if you have some on hand, would likely also be good additions.

Slow Cooker Thieves' Pork Roast

This is a recipe I actually made up on the fly this morning!  Yesterday I made a large batch of Thieves' Oil Concentrate, and it smelled so very delicious, that today I used the basic ingredients as the foundation of this recipe...  and it was every bit as delicious as it smelled!

Slow Cooker Creamy Ranch Pork Chops with Potatoes

Second only to the Slow Cooker Honey-Butter Chicken Bake, I think this is my favorite of the freezer-to-crockpot recipes I've tried so far.  There was a lot of liquid, though; next time I may try reducing the soup and ranch mix to one each, at least for 4 pork chops.

Slow Cooker Tangy Barbecue Ribs

The first few bites I took of these ribs did not really impress me, as they have a very tangy, slightly bitter taste, but as I ate them, the taste really grew on me, and I decided I really enjoyed them by the end.

I served them with spaghetti squash with tomato sauce.

Slow Cooker Italian Pork Roast

I found this recipe to be much too strong on tomato for my tastes (possibly because I just used the whole small can of tomato paste), but Jess loved it, so here it is!  Based on a similar recipe for beef roast.

I served it with steamed brussel sprouts with butter and garlic, and bread stuffing.

Slow Cooker Onion Gravy Pork Chops

This is the recipe I had meant to make when I did the Slow Cooker Creamy Pork Chops with Mushrooms and Potatoes.  It is quite tasty, though quite heavy on the saltiness.  If you don't like things pretty salty, you might want to do this with 6 or even 8 pork chops and increase the chicken broth appropriately.

I served it with Bacon-Braised Turnip Greens and Cauliflower with White Sauce and Cheese.

Slow Cooker Creamy Pork Chops with Mushrooms and Potatoes

This was yet another success for the crockpot.  Delightfully tangy, yet creamy, and the pork chops were falling apart – literally.  It actually wasn't in the plan for this week, but when I went to put it together, I opened up to the wrong recipe, and didn't realize it till I went to put it here!  Luckily it was a huge hit, and will definitely be staying in the repertoire.

I served it with brussel sprouts covered in butter and garlic powder.  It was an amazingly good combination.

Slow Cooker Caribbean Jerk Pork Curry

The original recipe this delectable crockpot meal was based on, called it Jamaican Jerk Pork.  It's just...  not.  The flavor has much more in common with Indian style curry than Jamaican jerk.  However, it is absolutely delicious!  And the flavor is very strong, so a little goes a long way.

I served it over rice, and it went quite well, though you could also serve it on noodles or potatoes, or go in a very different direction and put it on bread as a sort of curry barbecue.