Friday Favorites: Pulled Pork and Carmelitas

Today's Friday Favorites are two recipes I've cooked this past week: Dr. Pepper Pulled Pork in the Crock Pot and Carmelitas. If you remember from last week, we made the pulled pork for our family summer fun night, but it made a lot of servings. I mean...a lot. We ate it from Friday night until the following Wednesday at noon. But, honestly, it was just so juicy and delicious and one of those kinds of leftovers we did not tire from! My tip: put it in a soft tortilla with some pico de gallo and you are set. Here's the recipe for Dr. Pepper Pulled Pork in the Crock Pot:

2 1/2-3 lb pork butt (also known as a pork shoulder)
24 oz. (2 cans) Dr. Pepper1 medium onion, cut in quarters and then again in half
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons dry ground mustard
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Salt and black pepper to taste
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
3 tablespoons Worcestershire Sauce
Barbecue Sauce of choice (we used HEB Texas Style BBQ Sauce)

Place the chopped onions in the bottom of the slow cooker. Place the pork butt on top of the onions and add the garlic, ground mustard, cayenne pepper, salt, pepper, apple cider vinegar and Worcestershire sauce. Pour the Dr. Pepper on top and cook on high for 4-5 hours (or on low for 8 hours).

Very carefully, because the pork will be hot, remove the meat from the slow cooker and place on a large cutting board. Using two forks, shred the pork by pulling away from each other. The meat should be very tender by this point. Place the shredded pork back into the slow cooker and continue to cook for an additional hour.

Drain the remaining juices and toss the meat and onion mixture in the barbecue sauce of choice. I don't have an exact amount listed-just add a bit at a time until you get to your desired sauciness!

And here is the Carmelita Recipe: (I always double it!) I have made these twice now. Saw the recipe on this blog via Pinterest. They are ooey-gooey delicious but also kind of heavy that even just eating one square is pretty filling. Do I want to eat more than one square? Yes. But, I can get my sweet fix very easily with just a little.

32 caramel squares, unwrapped
1/2 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup butter, melted
3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
1 cup flour
1 cup rolled oats
1 teaspoon baking soda
6 ounces semisweet chocolate chips

Combine caramels and cream in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir until completely smooth; set aside. In a separate bowl, combine melted butter, brown sugar, flour, oats, and baking soda. Pat half of the oatmeal mixture into the bottom of an 8x8" pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Remove pan from oven and sprinkle chocolate chips over crust. Pour caramel mixture over chocolate chips. Crumble remaining oatmeal mixture over caramel. Return to oven and bake an additional 15-20 minutes, until the edges are lightly browned. Remove from oven and cool completely before cutting.
*A stint in the fridge will help them cool off if you're pinched for time. They shouldn't be served cold, but all of that molten caramel takes a long time to cool down. They should be stored and served at room temperature.
**If you want to use homemade or store-bought caramel sauce in place of the caramel/cream mixture, use 1 1/4 cups of sauce.
***To make a 9x13" version, simply double the amounts.

These are my favorite recipes of this past week!