The Healthy Slow Cooker

by Finlayson, Judith

• ISBN13: 9780778801337
• ISBN10: 0778801330
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2006-02-04
• Publisher: Robert Rose Inc

Summary

A winning combination of healthy eating and convenience. Here's an ideal combination: a tasty meal, nutrition for good health, and the convenience of a slow cooker. The Healthy Slow Cooker offers more than 100 delicious, nourishing recipes that are healthy and contain key nutritional, health and wellness information. Along with a complete nutrient analysis, each recipe will feature: An icon denotes vegan friendly recipes "Mindful morsels" that highlight particular nutritional elements "Natural Wonders" that provide an a overview of a dish's healthful benefits For example, Indian-Style Chicken with Pureed Spinach provides 400% of the daily requirement of Vitamin K, and cumin in the recipe improves digestion. Here's a small sampling of the tantalizing array of recipes: Creamy Polenta with Corn and Chilies Moroccan-Style Lamb with Apricots and Raisins Ribs 'n' Greens with Wheatberries Winter Vegetable Casserole Cranberry Pear Brown Betty Indian Banana Pudding For diabetics, the book features a separate section of useful advice and nutrition guidelines.

Author Biography

Judith Finlayson is a food writer and the author of many cookbooks, including the bestselling 150 Best Slow Cooker Recipes, Delicious and Dependable Slow Cooker Recipes, and 125 Best Vegetarian Slow Cooker Recipes.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments

Nutrient Analysis

Introduction

Using Your Slow

Cooker Slow

Cooker Tips

Bread and Breakfast

Apple Cranberry Bread

Pumpkin Date Loaf Banana Walnut Oat Bread

Caraway Soda Bread

Creamy Morning Millet with Apples

Breakfast

Rice Multigrain Cereal with Fruit Apple

Oatmeal with Wheat Berries

Irish Oatmeal Soups

Turkey and Corn

Chowder with Barley

Basic Vegetable Stock Homemade

Chicken Stock Mushroom

Lentil Soup

Leafy Greens Soup

Beet Soup with Lemongrass and Lime Gingery

Carrot Soup with Orange and Parsley

Turkey and Black Bean Soup

Two-Bean Soup with Pistou Thai-Style

Pumpkin Soup Vichyssoise with Celery

Root and Watercress Caldo Verde

New World Leek and Potato Soup

Scotch Broth Curried

Parsnip Soup with Green Peas Cabbage

Borscht Harira Vegetable Gumbo

Cockaleekie Chestnut Soup

Greek-Style Spit Pea Soup

Poultry, Seafood and Fish Caribbean

Fish Stew

Chicken Cassoulet Indian-Style

Chicken with Pureed Spinach

Chicken Cacciatore with Broccoli French Basil Chicken

Chicken with Leeks in Walnut Sauce Spicy Peanut Chicken

Chicken Chili and Barley Casserole

Turkey in Cranberry Leek Sauce

Moroccan-Style Chicken with Prunes and Quinoa

Turkey, Mushroom and Chickpea Sauce

Peppery Turkey Casserole

Two-Bean Turkey Chili

Creamy Tuna Casserole

Cioppino Salmon Loaf Onion-Braised Shrimp Bistro

Fish Soup Thai-Style

Coconut Fish Curry Sweet

Potato Coconut Curry with Shrimp Louisiana

Seafood Stew with Chicken and Sausage Meat Veal Goulash

Beef and Barley with Rosemary and Orange Greek-Style

Beef with Eggplant Stuffed Onions Greek-Style

Veal Shanks with Caper and Feta Gremolata

Lamb with Lentils and Chard Spanish-Style

Pork and Beans Moroccan-Style

Lamb with Raisins and Apricots

Ribs with Hominy and Kale

Ribs 'n' Greens with Wheat Berries

Buckwheat Meatballs in Tomato Sauce Indian

Beef with Cauliflower and Peppers Mediterranean

Beef Ragout Chili con Carne Carbonnade with Collards

Beef and Chickpea Curry with Spinach

Pasta and Grains Barley and Wild Rice Pilaf

Celery Root and Mushroom Lasagna Basic Polenta

Creamy Polenta with Corn and Chilies Caramelized

Onion Sauce with Whole Wheat Pasta

Vegetable Cobbler with Millet Crust

Pumpkin and Rice Casserole with Mushrooms Shrimp 'n'

Grits Pasta with Syracuse Sauce Greek-Style

Beans and Barley Barley and Sweet Potato

Chili Tamale Pie with Chili Millet

Crust Squash with Quinoa and Apricots Mushroom

Tomato Sauce Basic Tomato Sauce Just Veggies Mixed

Vegetables in Spicy Peanut Sauce Ratatouille Sweet Potato

Shepherd's Pie Spinach, Sun-Dried Tomato and Cheddar Cheesecake

New Age Succotash Squash and Black Bean

Chili Spinach Dal with Millet Vegetable Chili

Mushroom and Chickpea Stew with Roasted

Red Pepper Coulis Winter Vegetable

Casserole Indian Peas and Beans Soy-Braised Tofu

Vegetable Curry with Lentils and Spinach Artichoke, Sun-Dried

Tomato and Goat Cheese Strata

Basic Beans Desserts Gingery Pears

Poached in Green Tea Pumpkin Rice Pudding

Coconut Cranberry

Rice Pudding Basmati

Rice Pudding

Cranberry Pear Brown Betty

Apple Oatmeal Pudding

Peach Raspberry Betty

The Ultimate Baked Apples

Cornmeal Pudding

Indian Banana Pudding

Diabetic Food Values

Bibliography

Index

Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved.

Excerpts

Introduction This is my fourth slow cooker cookbook. The more I use my slow cooker; the more ideas I have for using this versatile appliance. It fits so well with how I like to cook that I'm constantly seeing new ways to incorporate its services into my life. So perhaps not surprisingly, I became interested in finding a way to combine the burgeoning interest in health and nutrition with the convenience of using a slow cooker. Like most people, I'm becoming increasingly aware of the important role diet plays in health. And while most of the recipes in my previous books could be described as nutritious, I gradually came to realize that they didn't maximize the advantages of all the exciting new developments occurring in the field of nutrition. Groundbreaking research is proving that food can provide much more than daily sustenance; it also has the power to prevent, and possibly even cure, many illnesses, from cardiovascular disease and type-2 diabetes to certain kinds of cancer. Integrating some of this information into slow cooker recipes that people can regularly use to make convenient and delicious meals seemed like an excellent idea. The food we eat contains vitamins and minerals, plus a multitude of compounds known as phytonutrients, some of which you may be familiar with for instance, antioxidants such as lycopene and beta-carotene, and phytoestrogens such as isoflavones and lignans. All these substances work together to keep us healthy in ways that scientists are only beginning to understand. What we do know, however, is that over the long term we can dramatically influence our health status by eating smarter to get the most out of food. Along with maintaining a healthy weight, being physically active, monitoring alcohol consumption and not smoking, eating a nutritious diet plays a key role in keeping us well. Current strategies for healthy eating emphasize consuming a wide variety of whole foods, particularly fruits, vegetables and whole grains. By habitually eating an assortment of foods from all the food groups, you're making sure you get the broad mix of essential nutrients that make up a healthy diet: vitamins, minerals and dietary fiber. But more than that, you're tapping into the healing power of food. Emerging evidence indicates that all the nutrients in foods work together to create synergy in the health benefits they produce. A kaleidoscope of colors on your plate signals a host of phytonutrients that team up to keep you healthy For instance, studies show that the lycopene in red tomatoes and the glucosinolates in green broccoli are far more formidable cancer fighters when combined than either component is on its own. Making good food choices from every food group also means avoiding junk foods and those that are highly refined. Such foods tend to be high in calories and low in nutrients. Instead, choose foods that are "nutrient dense," those that deliver optimum nutrition for the calories they provide. These include red and orange vegetables, dark leafy greens, unrefined whole grains and deeply colored berries, among others. Striving to achieve a balance among the intake of good fats, protein and carbohydrates is another objective. Each of these nutrients, which interact with one another in complex ways, plays an important role in helping the body stay well and defend itself against disease. Contrary to conventional wisdom and still a bit controversial, there do not appear to be any links between a low-fat diet and good health. It is the kind of fat that matters. Commercially produced trans fats, which have a well-documented adverse effect on cardiovascular health, should be avoided, and, whenever possible, saturated fats should be replaced with unsaturated fats, which have numerous health benefits. To help you get the most out of this book, in addition to the total amount of fat per serving, the nutritional analysis that accompanies each recipe also specifi