Sweet and Sour Meatball Casserole

This is another crock pot recipe from the cookbook my mom gave me for Christmas. No particular reason for trying this one, it just sounded good. The kids like meatballs, so that's one point for it. But Steve doesn't like pineapple, so it loses the point it just got. Oh wait, I do like pineapple, so the point goes back up. Anyway here is the recipe.

Sweet and Sour Meatball Casserole
1 onion, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 cup wild rice, rinsed (I couldn't find this at Walmart, so I used regular long grain brown rice)
14 oz can beef broth
1 1/2 cups water
3 tbsp sugar
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
8 oz can pineapple tidbits in juice, undrained
1 pound frozen meatballs
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 green pepper, chopped
2 tbsp cornstarch
5 tbsp ketchup
2 tbsp water

In 4 or 5 quart slow cooker, combine onion, garlic, rice, broth, water, sugar, vinegar, and pineapple. Stir to combine. Add meatballs. Cover and cook on low 7-8 hours. Add chopped peppers; stir. Cover and cook on low 45 more minutes. Turn heat to high. In small bowl, combine cornstarch, ketchup, and water; mix well. Add to slow cooker and stir. Cook on high for 15-20 minutes or until liquid is thickened and bell peppers are tender. Serve immediately.

So this was the first flop we've had in a while. I think it was a mistake to use brown rice instead of long grain, because it turned into a gloppy gluey mess. I never added the cornstarch in the last step, I just added the ketchup, because the mixture was already so thick. We basically ended up just eating the meatballs...scraping them on the sides of the bowl to get the gluey rice off. Except Steve. In a bold, missionary-minded-I-will-eat-what-I'm-given way, he ate everything in his bowl. I don't know how he does it. But for the rest of us...not so much. Not a keeper.