Cheryl Moeller - Creative Slow-Cooker Meals: Use Two Slow Cookers for Tasty and Easy Dinners

My dad says they turn everything into mush. They dont have to, I replied. If you use two slow cookers instead of one, you can make a whole meal without everything tasting the same. My goal is to show you the same thing. Slow-cooked meals can be healthy and delicious, and are as appropriate for a family meal as a dinner party or potluck. I come from a long line of amazing cooks.

Their recipes were passed down from generation to generation in the kitchen, not on paper. And every one of those recipes has a story. My Grandma Webster, a professional cook, made the best blackberry cobbler Ive ever tasted. We knew it was summer when she brought it to the table! My Grandma and Grandpa Windquist owned a dairy farm, and it just wasnt Christmas without their succulent roast beef. And then there was the popcorn my father would always burn, and the fudge that always came out too hard or too soft, but never quite right. We loved it anyway.

We were all busy with our separate activities when I was growing upjust as busy as your family is today. But when the clock struck the dinner hour, we were all at the table to share our lives. No one questioned this. My husband, Bob, and I have the same rule with our family of six children (plus the in-laws and grandchildren!). Attendance at family meals needs to be non-negotiable. If missing dinner more than once or twice a week starts to become a common occurrence in our home, we take a hard look at our schedule and cut out whatever it is thats causing us to have lone rangers in the family.

Studies show that families who eat together benefit in more ways than one. The dinner table is the place where we come together for heart connections. Sharing a meal will help your children adjust better as teens and adults, converse at a deeper level, become best friends with each other, have a platform for spiritual discussions, and even test better in academics. Creative Slow-Cooker Meals will help you get the family back to the table while freeing you from long hours spent sweating over a hot stove. Using two slow cookers, youll have a warm entre and side dish on the table with hardly any effort! Its my hope that youll find some recipes here that will become staples in your home, that your family will be telling stories about for years to come.

Foods dont cook correctly if the slow cooker is filled too high. If the food level is lower than this, however, the contents will cook quicker. Cooking for 1 hour on high is equal to 2 hours on low. The low setting on slow cookers is 200 and the high setting is 300. The minimum temperature for food safety is 140. Always test for doneness with a thermometer, especially when cooking meat.

If theres too much liquid in the dish, you can thicken the juices by removing the lid and cooking on high for the last half hour of cooking time. In most slow cooker recipes, vegetables do not need to be initially sauted. In almost all instances, ingredients can be added raw at the start and allowed to cook all day. Most meats, except fish, require 8 hours of cooking on the low setting. You will almost always need to coat the slow cooker in nonstick cooking spray before beginning a recipe. As an alternative, most grocery stores carry slow cooker liners.

These are plastic bags that you insert into your slow cooker before adding the food. Nonstick spray and liner bags will make cleanup much simpler. Do not set the stoneware liner on a stovetop burner and attempt to heat up the contents. To prevent cracking, never add cold water to a hot slow cooker liner. To avoid heat loss, do not open the slow cooker while cooking except to stir or check for doneness. To avoid curdling dairy products, generally add milk, heavy cream, sour cream, or cheese sometime during the last hour of cooking time.

You thought you didnt have a warmer to serve hot food at your next dinner party, but you do, if you own a slow cooker! Your slow cooker also works well as a sorbet maker, fondue pot, pancake and tortilla warmer, rice maker, and punch bowl.

His compassions never fail. They
are new every morning. L AMENTATIONS 3:22-23

Overnight Oats

I NGREDIENTS :

1 cup steel cut oats 1 vanilla bean, sliced lengthwise 1 cinnamon stick 5 cups water

D IRECTIONS :

1. Place all ingredients in slow cooker and stir. 2. 2.

Stir well, then remove vanilla bean and cinnamon stick. Serve with Triple Berry Oatmeal Topping or cream, raisins, and brown sugar. I love waking up in the morning to a hot breakfast right in my own slow cookers.

Triple Berry Oatmeal Topping

I NGREDIENTS :

2 cups strawberries, hulled 2 cups blackberries 2 cups blueberries 2 cups water

D IRECTIONS :

1. Place strawberries, blackberries, and blueberries in slow cooker and pour water over top. 2.