Cheesy Crock Pot Ravioli

This couldn't be easier! You want the taste of lasagna without having the time to put it all together?? Try this quick slow cooker version of this Italian favorite!! This is a great recipe for a pot luck or a family dinner.

Heat a tablespoon of olive oil in a saucepan, saute 1 clove of minced garlic and 1/2 finely chopped onion until the onion is tender. Add 1 can/jar of your favorite prepared pasta sauce and a 15 ounce can of tomato sauce. Season with Oregano, Basil and parsley.

Spray your slowcooker with nonstick spray, place 1 cup of sauce mixture in the bottom, add 1 package (25 oz) of frozen cheese ravioli. Top with 1 cup of shredded mozzarella cheese and dollops of ricotta cheese. Top with more sauce and layer another package of ravioli, cheese and the rest of the sauce.

Cover and cook on low for 4-5 hours.

Pumpkin Brownies

I never thought I'd love the combination of chocolate and pumpkin together. I mean, I like chocolate with things like strawberries, nuts, raisins, caramel...you get where I'm going. Pumpkin is great with cinnamon, cream cheese, nutmeg, ginger....so why would I have ever considered putting these two things together?

I'm not even sure why it struck me to combine the two and make a delicious fudgy brownie with a velvety pumpkin filling. I mean, I had heard of the WW recipe for mixing a box of cake mix with a can of pumpkin for a light dessert, but I wanted something to really make a flavor statement with the distinct separation of flavors. And one can never have too many brownie recipes...I mean, come on!!

This pumpkin brownie recipe is the perfect way to blend the savory essence of pumpkin with the richness of chocolate.

Here's how I start....Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Mix 4 oz of softened cream cheese and 3 Tbl white sugar until well blended, add 3/4 of a cup of pumpkin, 1 egg,1/2 Tbl cinnamon, & 1 tsp. nutmeg and mix until smooth.

In another bowl, mix together 1 box of your favorite fudge brownie mix. (You can easily substitute your "from scratch" recipe here). I mix the brownie mix, 1/4 cup water, 1/2 cup of applesauce and 2 eggs just until blended.I used a disposable baking pan, because I had planned to share these with the office. *Note: they didn't make it to the office, because I couldn't keep the kids out of it!!


Pour the brownie batter evenly in the bottom of your baking dish. Drop spoonfuls of the pumpkin mixture into the brownies and using a knife, cut through the batter several times to marble it. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the brownies are set.