Crockpot Pasta Fagioli

This soup was amazing!  It really did remind me of the Olive Garden soup I used to love.  The one I ate before I had children and actually went to Olive Garden.  Not much to tell on what I did, since crock pot meals are so easy there are not really any tips or tricks I have to share.  So here it is.  I had company this weekend and forgot to get any pictures of this soup.  I plan on making it again in the next couple weeks though, so I will try to update this post with pictures next time we have it.

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Crockpot Pasta Fagioli
From A Year of Slow Cooking

1 pound ground beef, browned and drained

1 medium onion, chopped
1 cup carrots, chopped
2 celery stalks, chopped
2 cans (14.5 oz) diced tomatoes do not drain
1 can kidney beans, drained and rinsed
1 can white beans, drained and rinsed (I use northern)
4 cups beef broth
1 jar (16.5 oz) pasta sauce
2 tsp oregano
1/2 T Tabasco sauce
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 cup dry pasta, to add at end of cooking time


Brown your ground beef and drain well. Let it cool a bit.

Place your chopped carrots, onion, and celery in a 6 quart crockpot.

Drain and rinse the beans then add them. Add the tomatoes, pasta sauce, and beef broth.  Season with your salt, pepper, oregano, and Tobasco sauce.  Stir in the meat.
Cook on high for 4 hours or low for 8 hours.  About 45 min - 1 hour before you are ready to serve, add the dry pasta and cook til tender.

I served with garlic bread, and a little parmesan.   This makes a lot of soup so we even had leftovers with grilled cheese a few nights later.

Crock Pot Chicken and Dumplings

If you haven't noticed already, I love easy meals.  I like to cook but sometimes I'm just busy, but I still want a good meal on the table at dinner time.  My crock pot is my friend and I am trying to pull out and go over my crock pot recipes now that it is starting to get warmer, because who wants to use the oven much when it gets hot outside.

Today was a semi-busy day, I ran around town shopping, I can't remember the last time I went shopping for just me.  So before I left the house I put 2 cans of cream of chicken soup (I want to make my own sometime but didn't have the time today), 1 can of chicken broth, 2 cans of water (use the broth can for this not the soup), salt and pepper (I don't usually salt cause of the soups but I do put in pepper), 3 medium size frozen chicken breast, 1/3 cup of each frozen peas and frozen carrots, and 1/4 cup of frozen chopped onion (you could use fresh or omit these altogether but frozen are faster for today).  Put the lid on and turn it on low for 4-6 hrs.


When I got home I did a few things around the house while the girls napped, and Anthony was at the park with a friend of his. Then I turned the crock pot on high and took the chicken breast out. I placed them on a cutting board and they easily shredded, then back in the pot they went.

About this time Elizabeth woke up and I brought her in the kitchen to color in her highchair while I cut up the biscuits on a floured cutting board.  I like a lot of biscuits in my chicken and dumplings but I have seen other recipes that use about the same about of liquid and other ingredients but only use 1 can of biscuits so you could cut this down to 1 if you would like.  After they are all cut, dump them in the crock pot and put the lid on, don't stir them.  I know you want to, but don't do it :).  After about an hour check them and then if they are not cooking well stir them slightly and try to get them under the liquid if you can.  Just make sure not to stir much because they may still be doughy at this point.  After the dumplings have been in for 1 1/2 - 2 hrs check and see if you need to add any salt or pepper and that your dumplings are cooked.  That's it, an easy dinner for a semi-busy day. 

Printable Recipe:

Recipe without picture

Recipe with picture




Crock Pot Chicken and Dumplings
total cook time 5 1/2 -8 hours

3 chicken breast
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1 can chicken broth
2 cans water (broth cans not cream of chicken)
1/3 cup frozen carrots
1/4 cup chopped onion
salt and pepper to taste
1/3 cup frozen peas
2 cans biscuits

Put all ingredients except biscuits in the crock pot. 
Cook on low for 4-5 hours.
Shred your chicken after 4-5 hours.  Turn the crock pot on High.

Flatten biscuits and cut into 4-6 pieces (your preference I like mine into six pieces)  Place in crock pot quickly but try not to stir them much if it all, after about an hour check and see if they need to be stirred.

Cook on high for 2 hrs.

*note: On occasion my biscuits have not cooked well (maybe I left the lid off too long, or cut my biscuit to large, who knows) or I need to get dinner on the table quicker than 2 hrs from putting the biscuits in.  You can still use the crock pot for the everything up until the biscuits, let the flavors simmer all day, yum.  But about 30 minutes before you want to serve dinner put the whole thing in a large pot.  Bring to a boil. Cut biscuits and drop into boiling broth. Cook on medium heat approximately 10-15 minutes.