How to Cook Without a Kitchen

I needed to provide food for a large group of teens and leaders and our host church had no kitchen.


First, I looked into takeout options. Too expensive. I figured I could make baked ziti at home and keep it warm using electric warming plates, but the amount of time between leaving my house and serving dinner seemed too long for that.

Then, someone suggested I use my crock pot. OK. That'd work. But what could I make that teens would enjoy? Would baked ziti work in a slow cooker. My first thought was that I would cook the ziti on the stove top and use the crockpot for the "oven" portion of the preparation.  Then, someone mentioned checking online for a recipe so I did.

I found a blog called "A Year of Slow Cooking" that had a baked ziti recipe. I used that as the basis for my meal, modifying it somewhat and adding an extra crockpot of sauce and sausages.


Here's how I did it:

Spray crockpot with cooking spray. Layer baked ziti, sauce and grated romano cheese in crockpot. Add a layer of ricotta cheese and some extra sauce on top. Add a quarter cup of water. Cook on low for 4-5 hours.


It worked really well!

I am also thrilled I found that blog. I am going to make good uise of it, and my slow cooker, in the future.

Have a good day!