Instant Pot Chili

Here in Indiana we have hit the coldest spell this winter. Temperatures with wind chill hitting about -15. This calls for something warm and hearty for dinner. Chili is a winter favorite for us! Chili warms up any occasion from family dinner to a game day party. The Instant Pot helps make the chili and get it to the table much faster.

My husband is the chili maker in our house! The blend of flavors is delicious!

In the summer we have a pretty large garden and plant a few different varieties of tomatoes. I do a lot of canning and so I always make sure we can tomato juice from tomatoes in the garden.

We enjoy chili a lot in the fall and winter months, and its nice to have that canned juice right from our garden on hand.

We really like the McCormick Chili Seasoning Mix. It has the right blend of flavors that we love. We prefer our chili more on the spicy side, but not too spicy rather than a sweet chili.

Instant Pot Chili 

PRINTABLE RECIPE HERE

Ingredients for Instant Pot Chili:

1 Tbsp vegetable oil
1 pound lean ground beef
1/2 cup fresh onion, chopped
1/2 cup green bell pepper, chopped
1 packet McCormick Chili Seasoning Mix (1.25 oz.)
1 (15.5 oz.) can red kidney beans, drained
1 (10 oz.) can Rotel Original Diced Tomatoes and Green Chilies
1 (14.5 oz.) can crushed tomatoes
1 quart jar tomato juice (I can my own tomato juice in quarts, but it also equals 4 cups.
salt and pepper to taste

Directions for Instant Pot Chili: 

1. Set the Instant Pot to Saute and add vegetable oil and chopped onions. Once pot is hot, add ground beef and chopped green bell pepper. Brown together.
2. Once browned, add the McCormick Chili Seasoning Mix and stir together.
3. Turn the Instant Pot "off" the Saute option.
4. Drain any grease if needed
5. Add the red kidney beans, the Rotel, crushed tomatoes, and tomato juice
6. Lock lid and set to Manual for 15 minutes.
7. Quick release when done.
8. Serve with saltine crackers and cheese for extra flavors.

We love this chili as our main meal or as a side....and leftover chili is always my favorite!

Ramblings from the backroad....

A few days ago, my husband and I enjoyed a fun extended weekend in one of our favorite cities, Nashville, Tennessee! We attended the American Farm Bureau Federation Annual Convention that was held at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel. The convention is in a different state each year. This is our 4th time attending, and we always look forward to it.

Our convention was full of great breakout sessions with a variety of topics. I am a volunteer for Ag in the Classroom and loved the Purple Plow breakout session for new ideas for classroom lessons!

We also heard from Reba during the closing session. A highlight of the convention was that President Trump came and addressed the thousands of farmers and ranchers that attended.

Nashville is one of our favorite cities! We first went there on our honeymoon and stayed at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel, and have been there a few times since then. The hotel is a beautiful resort and convention center that is full of indoor atrium gardens, little shops, restaurants, and a lazy river that you can enjoy a boat ride.

We really like to go downtown and enjoy the atmosphere. We enjoyed eating at the Wildhorse Saloon and Caney Fork Restaurant. A place we really loved was The Southern! We love to seek out good food when we travel and it was so worth it.

We jumped on board with the Uber service as a way to save us parking and having to drive. So many of our friends were using it on the trip and it was so convenient!! One of our drivers actually gave us the restaurant suggestion for The Southern and I'm so glad we checked it out!

Our last evening we enjoyed a Grand Ole Opry Performance!

A few things I picked up from the weekend:

This FarmHer t-shirt

This set of chapter books for my boys to read featuring stories on the farm.

Now back to our regular schedule of school, work, and sports practices. I'll be enjoying more of my Instant Pot as well!

Chocolate Dipped Wafer Cookies

I love making holiday treats for the kids parties and at home. These Chocolate Dipped Wafer Cookies are probably one of the easiest treats to make! They're fun for the kids to help with, tasty, and still somewhat "homemade."

I made these with my daughter for her preschool class party. We used pink wafers with Valentine's Day in mind. We melted white chocolate and dipped one end of the water in the chocolate then set them out on a cookie sheet. We decorated the chocolate them with different fun sprinkles.

So fun and easy to put together.

Choose a color wafer.

Use melted white, milk, or dark chocolate. .

Decorate with sprinkles, small candies, and/or chocolate drizzle to make them festive.

Wrap them up in a treat bag and attach a cute tag for fun gift giving.

Do different variations for Forth of July, Halloween, etc. 

Chocolate Dipped Wafer Cookies

PRINTABLE RECIPE HERE

Ingredients for Chocolate Dipped Wafer Cookies: 

1 package wafer cookies (Strawberry, Chocolate, and/or Vanilla)
1 package chocolate (I like to use Baker's Premium White Chocolate or Nestle Tollhouse Morsels
 Sprinkles, small candies (Valentine's Day, 4th of July, Halloween, Christmas)

Directions for Chocolate Dipped Wafer Cookies: 

1. Place the chocolate in a microwave safe bowl and melt the chocolate until smooth. Microwave on high for 30 minute intervals and stir in between.
2. Line a baking sheet with wax paper so the cookies won't stick when the chocolate has dried.
3. Dip the wafer into the melted chocolate halfway or so.
4. Place the wafer on the wax paper. While the chocolate is still warm add the sprinkles or other decorations.
5. Let chocolate cool completely and enjoy! Place in a treat bag, tie with a ribbon and add a cute tag for fun gift giving.

Instant Pot Spaghetti

Spaghetti is always an easy go to meal for us and all the kids eat it well. I always have all the ingredients in my pantry and its great for nights you need to get an easy meal done relatively fast. I LOVE how the Instant Pot actually helps the meal get done even quicker and it is delicious!

When I got my Instant Pot, the spaghetti was the first thing I've made, and I've made a few other batches since. For dinner and to freeze for later!

So good!

Simple dinners are always a hit and with busy schedules. Between the kids in sports, homework, and the farm, sometimes simple dinners are wonderful!

So with the Instant Pot, the great thing is everything can be made in the insert pot! Brown the meat and the ingredients and it cooks for 8 minutes and dinner is ready!

And bonus....one pot, no colander or extra pans needed!

By time your garlic bread is done, your spaghetti will also be done!

Instant Pot Spaghetti

PRINTABLE RECIPE HERE

Ingredients for Instant Pot Spaghetti: 

1 lb. lean ground beef (if not lean, just drain off the grease)
1/2 tsp pepper
1 tsp minced garlic
1/2 tsp oregano
1/4 cup chopped onion
1 (16 oz) box spaghetti noodles
1 (24 oz) jar spaghetti sauce
1 (14.5 oz) can diced tomatoes
1 (24 oz) jar water

Directions for Instant Pot Spaghetti:

1. Press the Saute button and add the ground beef, pepper, minced garlic, oregano, and chopped onion to the insert pot. Cook the ground beef until fully browned. Turn the Instant Pot off. Drain any grease if needed.
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2. Break the spaghetti noodles in half and place them over top of the meat in the Instant Pot. Placing them crisscross will help ensure they are fully cooked and not stick together. Pour the spaghetti sauce, diced tomatoes and water over the noodles and meet, making sure the noodles are completely covered.

3. Place the lid and seal the Instant Pot. Set it to manual mode, high pressure, 8 minutes cook time. When the time is up, do a manual quick release on the vent. After the venting is completely released open the lid. Stir the spaghetti well to be completely blended. Serve with your favorite cheeses.

Get a favorite family meal to the table even faster, with this super easy spaghetti recipe for the Instant Pot!

Instant Pot Corned Beef and Cabbage

My husband loves corned beef and cabbage, so when I got my Instant Pot I knew it was a meal I wanted to make in it. Corned beef and cabbage cooked in the Instant Pot is amazing. So flavorful and colorful. The meat itself is perfectly tender!

Make the whole meal in just a few hours with the Instant Pot. The beef cooks up tender in only 90 minutes, and then the veggies are done in just a few minutes more. All with only a short amount of prep work. When everything is done, put it all together on a platter and your meal is served!

Instant Pot Corned Beef and Cabbage

PRINTABLE RECIPE HERE

Ingredients for Instant Pot Corned Beef and Cabbage: 

3-4 lb corned beef brisket, thawed, and the additional spice pack
4 cups water
1 small onion, chopped in big chunks
2 Tbsp minced garlic
1 small cabbage, cut into large wedges
3 cups baby carrots
2 lbs baby red potatoes, halved and quartered
pepper to taste

Directions for Instant Pot Corned Beef and Cabbage: 

1. Start by adding the 4 cups of water, minced garlic, and onion to the instant pot. Then add corned beef brisket to the instant pot. I used the rack to keep the meat off of the bottom. Add the additional spice pack.

2. Close and lock the lid of the instant pot. Press the Meat/Stew button and set the timer for 90 minutes and make sure the vent is on seal. Once time is up, quick release pressure. Remove lid and take out corned beef. Place on platter and cover with foil to rest while cooking the vegetables.

3. Add the potatoes, carrots, and cabbage to the instant pot without discarding the liquid. Replace the lid and lock it. Press the Soup button and set the timer for 6 minutes. Once time is up, turn the valve to quick release pressure. Once steam has released, pull your vegetables out and place them on platter with corned beef.

4. Slice the corned beef and the meal is ready to serve.

We really enjoy this meal and the 6 qt Instant Pot makes a great amount for our family.