my recipe for crock-o's. ("crockpot tacos," for those of you don't do bad puns.)

Prepare yourself for some terrible food photos - my specialty!

If I've said it once, I've said it a thousand times: I hate slow cooker meals.  I just really can't support them.  No one ever eats a slow cooker meal and thinks, "If I had time to cook a real meal, this is exactly what I would hope it would come out tasting like."  No.  They think, "At least I didn't have to take the time to actually cook a real meal."

Everything that goes into a slow cooker comes out tasting like "White + Seasonings."  Chicken enchiladas just taste like "white stuff + green chilis."  Soup comes out tasting like "white stuff + mushy chunks of vegetables (or is that meat?)."  Sad. Sad. Sad.

I know there are a lot of die-hard fans of the slow cooker out there, most of whom fall into one of two camps: Camp "It Makes Chicken Tender" (to whom I say, pound it and marinate it and cook it any other way, and your problem is solved), and Camp "At Least It's Fast"... to whom I say, I HEAR YOU.

Because, yes.  There are days when my top priority is that a meal is fast, hands-off, and ready and waiting for me when I get home.  While I still cannot get behind a full-on Crockpot meal, I definitely do appreciate using it when I need to; namely, on Wednesdays.

Wednesday is our busiest day of the week.  We're gone all morning on our trip to the Amish, we do school in the afternoon, Atticus has a standing speech therapy appointment at 4:00, and we often stop at the library afterward.  We're typically home around 5:30, just minutes before Todd walks in the door from work.  I just don't have the energy to only begin meal prep at that point, so I like having easy-to-prepare meals about ready to serve once I get home.

Last night it was Crock-o's - tacos made with the help of the Crockpot.  I love this meal because it's super easy, and the kids love it.  Also, I love this meal because my current favorite jokes involve  rhyming Rocco, Crock-O's, tacos, Chacos, etc., so taco night is a good opportunity to flex my Jokes muscles.  I promise I have other redeeming Best Friend qualities if you'd be willing to overlook how much time I invest in thinking of Rocco/Taco jokes.

It is definitely not the cheapest meal I serve (it costs around $15 to feed a family our size, and I usually like to keep it below $10 per supper), but everything costs something.  With those extra dollars I spend, I'm buying myself some sweet, sweet time.

I thought it would be a good idea to give you a really close look at some refried beans.  Because when is that not a good idea?

So, the basic concept is this:  Throw a couple pounds of ground beef or ground turkey in the Crockpot with about a half a cup of water or broth.  Cook on low for 4-6 hours, drain, and season with a couple of packets of taco seasonings and a little bit of water or broth.  Dinner cooked!

All of the fixings for tacos can be purchased ready-made, while still being relatively whole foods-based.

Shredded lettuce
Shredded cheese
Salsa
Guacamole (from the fridge case or quickly thrown together)
Refried beans
Sour cream
Tortillas and tortilla chips

Speaking of how much I disdain white meals... I present you with this mostly monochromatic food photo.  I roll the kids' tacos into more of a burrito because it keeps the mess down, and also I like to defy expectations.  Also, how sad does that lettuce look?

The other bonus is that the only dishes I get dirty in meal prep/serving are the Crockpot bowl and some spoons for the salsa and sour cream.  Easy prep, easy clean up.  It's almost enough incentive to get me to rethink my haughty ways.  Maybe I can one day hope to expand my slow cooker horizons, get down off my high horse, and find some more simple ways to incorporate the lowly slow cooker.  Maybe.