Comerford Hope - Fix-it and forget-it holiday favorites: 150 easy and delicious slow cooker recipes

Copyright 2017 by Good Books, an imprint of Skyhorse Publishing, Inc. Photos by Bonnie Matthews All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any manner without the express written consent of the publisher, except in the case of brief excerpts in critical reviews or articles. All inquiries should be addressed to Good Books, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018. Good Books books may be purchased in bulk at special discounts for sales promotion, corporate gifts, fund-raising, or educational purposes. Special editions can also be created to specifications.

For details, contact the Special Sales Department, Good Books, 307 West 36th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10018 or . Good Books is an imprint of Skyhorse Publishing, Inc., a Delaware corporation. Visit our website at www.goodbooks.com. 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Comerford, Hope, author. | Matthews, Bonnie, 1963- photographer. Title: Fix-it and forget-it holiday favorites: 150 easy and delicious slow cooker recipes / Hope Comerford ; photos by Bonnie Matthews.

Description: New York, New York: Good Books, [2017] | Includes index. Identifiers: LCCN 2017014815| ISBN 9781680993301 (pbk.: alk. paper) | ISBN 9781680993325 (Ebook) Subjects: LCSH: Holiday cooking. | Electric cooking, Slow. | LCGFT: Cookbooks. Classification: LCC TX739 .C572 2017 | DDC 641.5/884dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017014815 Cover design by Jane Sheppard Cover photo by Bonnie Matthews Print ISBN: 978-1-68099-330-1 Ebook ISBN: 978-1-68099-332-5 Printed in China Table of Contents Welcome to Fix-It and Forget-It Holiday Favorites The holidays are a very special time for our family.

Like most families, the majority of our get-togethers revolve around food! Lets face it, we all love to eat (maybe my family more than most!). With a little help from our Fix-It and Forget-It friends from around the country, Ive compiled 150 of the most popular Fix-It and Forget-It holiday recipes for you. Youll dazzle and wow your family, while the slow cooker helps you keep your sanity and your food warm. Whether youre hosting, celebrating with just a couple of friends, or bringing a dish to pass around for many at a large gathering, youll find many forgiving and flexible recipes to choose from. There are recipes that only take a couple of hours to make, and there are recipes that cook for an extended period of time so you can tend to other important things. The holidays can be a very stressful time, but cooking doesnt have to be.

Put this book to good use and make it your own. Write little notes in the margins. Edit the ingredients to suit your personal tastes or needs. Youll find that planning a complete holiday menu has never been easier. A Few Things You Should Know about Your Slow Cooker Not all slow cookers are created equal or work equally well for everyone! Those of us who use slow cookers frequently know we have our own preferences when it comes to which slow cooker we choose to use. For instance, I love my programmable slow cooker, but there are many programmable slow cookers Ive tried that Ive strongly disliked.

Why? Because some go by increments of 15 or 30 minutes and some go by 4, 6, 8, or 10 hours. I dislike those restrictions, but I have family and friends who dont mind them at all! I am also pretty brand loyal when it comes to my manual slow cookers because Ive had great success with those and have had unsuccessful moments with slow cookers of other brands. So, which slow cooker(s) is/are best for your household? It really depends on how many people youre feeding and if youre gone for long periods of time. Here are my recommendations:

For a 23-person household	35-quart slow cooker
For a 45-person household	56-quart slow cooker
For a 6- person household	67-quart slow cooker

Large slow cooker advantages/disadvantages: Advantages: You can fit a loaf pan or a baking dish into a 6- or 7-quart, depending on the shape of your cooker. That allows you to make bread or cakes, or even smaller quantities of main dishes. (Take your favorite baking dish and loaf pan along when you shop for a cooker to make sure theyll fit inside.) You can feed large groups of people, or make larger quantities of food, allowing for leftovers, or meals to freeze.

Disadvantages: They take up more storage room. They dont fit as neatly into a dishwasher. If your crock isnt full, you may burn your food. Small slow cooker advantages/disadvantages: Advantages: Theyre great for lots of appetizers, for serving hot drinks, for baking cakes straight in the crock, and for dorm rooms or apartments. Theyre a great option for making recipes of smaller quantities. Disadvantages: Food in smaller quantities tends to cook more quickly than larger amounts.

So keep an eye on it. Chances are, you wont have many leftovers. So, if you like to have leftovers, a smaller slow cooker may not be a good option for you. My recommendation: Have at least two slow cookersone around 34 quarts and one 6 quarts or larger. A third would be a huge bonus (and a great advantage to your cooking repertoire!). The advantage of having at least a couple is that you can make a larger variety of recipes.

Also, you can make at least two or three dishes at once for a whole meal. Manual vs. Programmable If you are gone for only 68 hours a day, a manual slow cooker might be just fine for you. If you are gone for more than 8 hours during the day, I would highly recommend purchasing a programmable slow cooker that will switch to warm when the cook time you set is up. It will allow you to cook a wider variety of recipes. The two I use most frequently are my 4-quart manual slow cooker and my 6-quart programmable slow cooker.

I like that I can make smaller portions in my 4-quart slow cooker on days I dont need or want leftovers, but I also love how my 6-quart slow cooker can accommodate whole chickens, turkey breasts, hams, or big batches of soups. I use them both often. Get to Know Your Slow Cooker Plan a little time to get acquainted with your slow cooker. Each slow cooker has its own personalityjust like your oven (and your car). Plus, many new slow cookers cook hotter and faster than earlier models. I think that with all of the concern for food safety, the slow cooker manufacturers have amped up their settings so that High, Low, and Warm are all higher temperatures than in the older models.

That means they cook hotterand therefore, fasterthan the first slow cookers. The beauty of these little machines is that theyre supposed to cook low and slow. We count on that when we flip the switch in the morning before we leave the house for 10 hours or so. So, because none of us knows what kind of temperament our slow cooker has until we try it out, nor how hot it cooksdont assume anything. Save yourself a disappointment and make the first recipe in your new slow cooker on a day when youre at home. Cook it for the shortest amount of time the recipe calls for.

Then, check the food to see if its done. Or if you start smelling food that seems to be finished, turn off the cooker and rescue your food. Also, all slow cookers seem to have a hot spot, which is of great importance to know, especially when baking with your slow cooker. This spot may tend to burn food in that area if youre not careful. If youre baking directly in your slow cooker, I recommend covering the hot spot with some foil.