PULLING Dinner Together For the Kids – Crockpot Pulled Pork

Welcome to the April 2013 Carnival of Natural Parenting: Family Recipes

This post was written for inclusion in the monthly Carnival of Natural Parenting hosted by Code Name: Mama and Hobo Mama. This month our participants are sharing their recipes, their stories, their pictures, and their memories.

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Let’s face it.  I’m a busy Mom.  I blog, I home school, I bring the kids to violin and horn lessons, I go to the gym, and I go to the store. I go…and go…and go! I don’t really have time (nor do I care) to make fancy involved meals with gourmet ingredients.  Let’s just say I want the easiest way from first ingredient to my kids’ plates.

Call me lazy if you will.  I just want 2 minutes to sit down during the day.

This is what makes this recipe so great!  Just wait, you will love it!

Ingredient List

1. A Crock Pot with a low and high setting. (picture 2)
2. A&W Root Beer – or just any of your favorite Root Beer.  You just need a can.  Personally, I don’t like Root Beer, so I just got the first thing I saw on the shelf that was on sale. (picture 1)
3. Pork Tenderloin – I know – expensive, right?  Read on – it’s totally 100% worth it!  Trust me.  Every time  you go to the store, check prices on the tenderloin.  When it’s on sale, buy it.  Today, I got a $30.00 cut of meat for $12.00.
4. Your favorite BBQ sauce.  Or, even better, make your own.  I used store bought because I don’t want or need the extra work.  I like a little bit of spice, so I got something a little sweet and a lot spicy! (picture 5)

That’s it.

Cool, eh? It’s so simple you could almost memorize the list.  But, if you are like me, don’t try it.  You will end up with a cart full of stuff – and still have to go back to the store for missing ingredients.

Instructions

1. Wash off the pork and place it in the Crock Pot.  (picture 2)
2. Pour a can of A&W Root Beer (or your favorite kind) over the pork. (picture 1)
3. Cook on low for 8 hours.  While it cooked, I picked up food for my daughter and took her to a birthday party.  I had lunch with my little boys.  I took them to the park, fed the baby, and went to pick up my daughter.  We then went out for ice cream (My son and I had chocolate chip cookie dough and my daughter had strawberry with gummy bears on top).  I then took my daughter to her violin lesson.  I fed the baby in the car, changed a few diapers, and by the time we came home (about 7 hours), it was done!
4. I took the meat out of the Crock Pot and shredded the pork.  I did this by sticking the fork into the pork and twisting.  The pork just comes off in shreds. (Picture 3).
5. I placed the shredded pork in a bowl.  (Picture 4)
6. I tried my BBQ sauce of choice to make sure it was delicious.  (Picture 6)
7. Then I put my BBQ sauce on the pork and mixed it up.  I used the entire 28 oz bottle on my cut of meat.  Just add slowly to your taste.  I like my pork dripping with sauce. (picture 7)
8. It’s kid approved (and my kids are picky)! (Pictures 9-12)
9. It’s definitely adult approved!  Relax and enjoy!  (Picture 13)

This recipe is so very easy and so very delicious!  We went on about our busy day and came out with a masterpiece!

Trust me (from a Root Beer hater) you don’t taste the Root Beer.

Try it – you’ll love it!

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Visit Code Name: Mama and Hobo Mama to find out how you can participate in the next Carnival of Natural Parenting!

Please take time to read the submissions by the other carnival participants:

• German Red Cabbage: A Family Tradition — At Living Peacefully with Children, Mandy shares her favorite dish and a part of her family’s history.
• Rotisserie Chicken Recipes for Meal Planning — Becky at Crafty Garden Mama shares a new recipe that is in her family’s meal-planning rotation. Check out how she uses a rotisserie chicken to get through the week.
• Grandma Wicken’s Sugar Cookies — Jana Falls at Jananas talks about how special her Grandma’s sugar cookies made her feel.
• Recipe: Seed and Bean Burgers — ANonyMous at Radical Ramblings shares one of her favourite frugal recipes that is also super-healthy and totally delicious.
• PULLING Dinner Together For the Kids – Crockpot Pulled Pork — Lisa at The Squishable Baby PULLS dinner together for the kids.
• The Best Banana Muffin Recipe (Gluten Free & Vegan) — Dionna of Code Name: Mama’s adventures in gluten free baking have not been 100% successful. But today she is guest posting at Fine and Fair to share a banana muffin recipe that will knock your socks off!
• The Pierogie Mama Whips Up Strawberry Pierogies! — Bianca at The Pierogie Mama shares her family’s recipe for strawberry pierogies…a sweet, summery version of the Polish dumplings that she affectionately named her daughter after.
• Mom’s Cookbook — Tree at Mom Grooves digs into the big book her mom created for her six daughters and shares a favorite family recipe.
• Crispy Duck Confit — Jennifer at Hybrid Rasta Mama takes the liberty of starting a family recipe tradition with this super simple, totally delicious crispy duck confit.
• Stovetop BBQ Chicken — Amy at Me, Mothering, and Making it All Work shares a yummy BBQ chicken recipe that you can make on the stovetop in less than 25 minutes, fridge to table!
• Twice-Baked Sweet Potato Casserole w/Bacon — Martine at Whey Beyond the Naked Truth shares a naked food twist on an old family favorite!
• Strawberry Panna Cotta — KerryAnn at CookingTF.com shows you her favorite dessert, a quick and easy Strawberry Panna Cotta that she enjoys so much, she had it instead of a birthday cake this year.
• Special crepes for a special day — Mikko at Hobo Mama is learning to cook his grandma’s signature holiday meal alongside his dad.

• Three Favorite Family Recipes: To Eat, To Wash, To Play — Kristin at Intrepid Murmurings is back with three family favorites: gluten-free vanilla orange sugar cookies, DIY powdered laundry detergent, and something fun for the kids: homemade “Flubber”!
• Black Bean Soup Forever — Mercedes at Project Procrastinot shares a soup recipe that’s been around forever.
• Do you want to know a secret? — SRB at Little Chicken Nuggets lets go of her mac and cheese recipe, a comfort food favourite for friends and family for years.
• Creating Our Own Family Recipes — Emily at S.A.H.M. i AM shares how she’s trying to create meals that her girls will want to pass down to their own children some day.
• Vranameer Chicken: A Family Recipe — Luschka at Diary of a First Child shares a recipe that reminds her of childhood and more specifically, of her mother. It’s a South African take on sweet and sour chicken and what it lacks in healthy it makes up for in tantalising to the taste buds.
• One Recipe, Three Uses: Dishwasher Liquid Detergent, Dish Soap, and Hand Soap — If you love saving money and time, you’ll love this green recipe from Jennifer at Hybrid Rasta Mama, guest posting at Natural Parents Network.
• Our Family’s Favorite Pies — Abbie at Farmer’s Daughter shares recipes and tutorials for the quintessential American dessert.
• Deliciously Easy Crock Pot Chili — Lactating Girl shares her crock pot chili that is not only quick and easy, but awesome.
• All-Purpose Crock Pot Pork — Crunchy Con Mommy‘s simple “recipe” for cooking perfect pork in the crock pot is for whatever mood her family is in!
• Family Rules: A Recipe for Harmony — Cooped-up kids + winter weather + frazzled parents can all blend together into a recipe for disaster. Dionna at Code Name: Mama shares what brought back the peace in her house.
• Favorite Healthy Family Recipes — Deb Chitwood at Living Montessori Now shares her family’s healthy eating experiences along with links to free printable vegetarian recipes that her family has created with love.
• Grandma’s Banana Bread — Megan at The Boho Mama has early and fond memories of her grandma’s banana bread. It’s love in a loaf!
• Family Comfort Food — Jorje of Momma Jorje shares a recipe handed down that moms have made for their kids, for regular meals as well as to comfort.