Love Your Crock Pot

Crock pots are amazing!  You throw your dinner in and when you get home its done!  I made this meal Thursday night when I had to work til 7 and dinner was ready when my family got home.  I spent my day off before making the bread and in the morning before work I threw the meat in and dinner was ready when my family was hungry that evening.

Slow Cooker Roast Pork with Fruit
1 medium onion, sliced 1 boneless pork loin roast (2 lb) 1 package (8 oz) dried pears or dried plums (1 1/2 cups) 1/2 cup apple juice 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon 1. In 4- to 5-quart slow cooker, place onion. Place pork on onion; top with fruit. 2. In small bowl, mix remaining ingredients; pour over fruit. 3 .Cover; cook on Low heat setting 7 to 9 hours or until pork is tender. Serve fruit mixture over pork.

For the bread be prepared to stay at home to keep an eye on it all day.  Walnut-Gorgonzola Baguettes 2 1/2 to 3 cups Gold Medal® Better for Bread™ flour 1 package regular active dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons) 1 cup very warm water (120°F to 130°F) 1 teaspoon salt 1/3 cup chopped walnuts 1/3 cup crumbled Gorgonzola cheese 1. In large bowl, mix 1 1/2 cups of the flour and the yeast. Add warm water. Beat with electric mixer on low speed 1 minute, scraping bowl frequently. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and let stand about 1 hour or until bubbly. 2. Stir in salt and enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. On lightly floured surface, knead dough 5 to 10 minutes or until dough is smooth and springy (dough will be soft). Grease large bowl with shortening or spray with cooking spray. Place dough in bowl, turning dough to grease all sides. Sprinkle walnuts and cheese over dough. Cover bowl loosely with plastic wrap and let rise in warm place 1 to 1 1/4 hours or until double. Dough is ready if indentation remains when touched. 3. Grease large cookie sheet with shortening or spray with cooking spray. On lightly floured surface, knead dough until nuts and cheese are worked into dough. Sprinkle top of dough with flour. Divide dough in half. Gently shape each half into a narrow loaf, about 12 inches long. Place about 4 inches apart on cookie sheet. Using spray bottle with fine mist, spray loaves with cool water. Let rise uncovered in warm place about 1 hour or until double. 4. Place 8-inch or 9-inch square pan on bottom rack in oven; add hot water to pan until about 1/2 inch from top of pan. Heat oven to 425°F. 5. Carefully cut 1/4-inch-deep slashes diagonally across loaves at 2-inch intervals with sharp serrated knife. Spray tops of loaves with cool water. Place loaves in oven and spray again. 6. Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until loaves are deep golden with crisp crust and sound hollow when tapped. Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack; cool completely, about 1 hour. High Altitude (3500-6500 ft): Bake 25 to 30 minutes.

~Bry