It was a week of cooking success! Both of these recipes were total winners that get better the next day as leftovers. 

Coq au Vin

Adapted from Make It Fast, Cook It Slow, by Stephanie O’Dea

• 6 slices cooked and crumbled bacon
• 6-8 chicken thighs (I used boneless and skinless and put them in frozen)
• 8oz. sliced mushrooms 
• 3 carrots, chopped 
• 1 onion, chopped 
• 1 parsnip, chopped 
• 3 garlic cloves, minced 
• 1t salt 
• 1/2t black pepper 
• 1/2C chicken broth 
• 1.5C red wine (I used Cabernet and my husband drank the rest. Choose wine you want to drink.)
• 2 fresh thyme sprigs

Put bacon in crockpot. Place chicken and veggies on top. Add rest of ingredients. Cook on low for 8 hours. Serve with rice, pasta, or mashed potatoes. 

Bean and Sausage Stew

Adapted from mycupisfull.com

Note: I chopped the vegetables and sausage the night before and stowed it in the fridge. This cut down on day-of prep time considerably. 

• 15oz. kidney beans, drained
• 15oz. black beans, drained
• 29oz. petite diced tomatoes
• 28 ounces crushed tomatoes
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 russet potato, diced 
• 1 carrot, diced
• 1 parsnip, diced
• 4 sausages, sliced (I used chorizo)
• 1C water
• 1t Worcestershire sauce

Put all this in the crockpot. 

• 1T black pepper
• 2t salt
• 2t chili powder
• 1t garlic powder
• ½t cayenne 

Mix all this together and sprinkle into crockpot. Mix. Cook on low 8-10 hours. This is awesome with cheese on top.