These recipes are from the cookbook “The Everything Healthy Slow Cooker Cookbook”.
Minestrone Soup
Ingredients:
3 cloves garlic, minced
15 ounces canned fire-roasted diced tomatoes
28 ounces canned crushed tomatoes
2 stalks celery, diced
1 medium onion, diced
3 medium carrots, diced
3 cups vegetable or chicken stock
30 ounces canned kidney beans, drained and rinsed
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 tablespoons minced basil
2 tablespoons minced oregano
2 tablespoons minced Italian parsley
¾ cup diced zucchini
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon pepper
8 ounces small cooked pasta
1. Add the garlic, diced and crushed tomatoes, celery, onions, carrots, stock, beans, tomato paste, basil, and spices to a 4- or 6-quart slow cooker. Cook on low heat for 6-8 hours.
2. Add the zucchini and turn to high for the last hour. Stir in the salt, pepper, and pasta before serving.
Serves 8
Per Serving:
270 Calories
1.5g Fat
900mg Sodium
55g Carbs
10g Fiber
13g Protein
Smoky Chipotle Chili
Ingredients:
1 pound ground meat (the recipe called for ground pork, but I used ground turkey because the ground pork wasn’t very lean)
30 ounces canned fire-roasted diced tomatoes
3 chipotle chiles in adobo, chopped
1 teaspoon liquid smoke
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground chipotle (I couldn’t find this so I used an extra chile)
1 teaspoon hot paprika (I couldn’t find this either so I used cayenne)
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
30 ounces canned chili beans, drained and rinsed
1 medium onion, diced, 3 cloves garlic, minced
1. Sauté the meat in a nonstick skillet until just cooked through. Drain off fat.
2. Place all ingredients in a 4- or 6- quart slow cooker. Stir. Cook on low for 8-10 hours.
Serves 8
Per Serving:
270 Calories
13g Fat
580mg Sodium
25g Carbs
9g Fiber
17g Protein
Better-Than-Takeout Mongolian Beef
Ingredients:
3 pounds lean beef roast, extra fat removed
3 cloves garlic, grated
1” knob peeled fresh ginger, grated (I used a tablespoon of the kind that comes in the tube that’s already grated)
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
½ cup water
½ cup low sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons black vinegar
2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon Chinese five-spice powder
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1. Place all ingredients in a 4-quart slow cooker. Cover and cook for 5 hours on low or until the meat is thoroughly cooked through and tender.
2. Remove the roast to a cutting board. Slice thinly and return to the slow cooker. Cook for an additional 20 minutes on high. Stir the meat and sauce before serving.
*Note: I used double to triple the amount of soy sauce, black vinegar, hoisin sauce, red pepper flakes, and sesame oil, because Jon and I like extra flavor and spice.
Serves 6
Per Serving:
490 Calories
27g Fat
930mg Sodium
10g Carbs
<1g Fiber
49g Protein
Red Wine Pot Roast
Ingredients:
½ cup red wine
½ cup water
4 red skin potatoes, quartered
3 carrots, cut into thirds
2 bulbs fennel, quartered (I left this out)
2 rutabagas, quartered (I left this out, too)
1 onion, sliced
4 cloves garlic, sliced
1 ½ pounds lean top round roast, excess fat removed
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1. Pour the wine and water into a 4- or 6-quart slow cooker. Add the potatoes, carrots, fennel, rutabagas, onions, and garlic. Stir.
2. Add the beef. Sprinkle with slat and pepper. Cook on low for 8 hours.
3. Remove and slice the beef. Use a slotted spoon to serve the vegetables. Discard the cooking liquid.
Serves 6
Per Serving:
320 Calories
4g Fat
350mg Sodium
45g Carbs
9g Fiber
30g Protein
Apples-and-Onions Pork Chops
Ingredients:
4 crisp, sweet apples
2 large onions, sliced
4 thick-cut boneless pork chops (about 1 pound)
½ teaspoon ground cayenne
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
¼ teaspoon allspice
¼ teaspoon ground fennel
1. Cut the apples into wedges. Place half the wedges in the bottom of a 4- or 6-quart slow cooker along with half of the sliced onions. Top with a single layer of pork chops. Sprinkle with spices, and top with the remaining apples and onions.
2. Cook on low for 8 hours.
*Note: The pork chops will be very tender to the point where they can be shredded. This might be due to the fact that I cooked mine in a 6-quart slow cooker and it wasn’t very full, so they might have cooked faster than they were supposed to.
Serves 4
Per Serving:
340 Calories
10g Fat
75mg Sodium
30g Carbs
6g Fiber
35g Protein
Chinese-Style Boneless Ribs (this is our favorite so far)
Ingredients:
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
2 pounds boneless pork ribs (called country-style ribs or Southern-style ribs, we had to ask for them at the meat counter)
2 cloves minced garlic
1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
1 small onion, minced
1 tablespoon Chinese five-spice powder
1 tablespoon black vinegar
¼ reduced sodium soy sauce
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1. Heat the oil in a large skillet. Cook the pork for 1 minute on each side. Place in a 4- or 6-quart slow cooker. Pour the remaining ingredients over the meat. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours.
2. If the sauce is very thin, pour into a saucepan and cook until it reduces. Drizzle the sauce on the ribs and serve.
*Note: The ribs will be very tender. The recipe does not say to mix the spices with the liquid, so I didn’t. Next time I’m going to try mixing the spices with the liquid so the dry spices don't sit on top of the meat for 8 hours. This one smells weird while it's cooking, but tastes much better than it smells.
Serves 4
Per Serving:
530 Calories
26g Fat
115mg Sodium
7g Carbs
<1g Fiber
64g Protein
Balsamic Chicken and Spinach
Ingredients:
¾ pounds boneless, skinless chick breasts, cup into strips
¼ cup balsamic vinegar
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon minced fresh oregano
1 tablespoon minced fresh Italian parsley
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
5 ounces baby spinach
1. Place the chicken, vinegar, garlic, and spices into a 4-quart slow cooker. Stir. Cook on low for 6 hours.
2. Stir in the baby spinach and continue to cook until it starts to wilt, about 15 minutes. Stir before serving.
*Note: This one works best in a 4-quart slow cooker because otherwise the liquid is too spread out. I ended up using an entire bottle of balsamic vinegar when I cooked this in my 6-quart slow cooker and it was very strong tasting.
Serves 4
Per Serving:
180 Calories
3g Fat
125mg Sodium
10g Carbs
2g Fiber
28g Protein
These next recipes were from the slow-cooker section of the “WeightWatchers One Pot Cookbook”, which is why there is more nutritional information and PointsPlus values.
Meat Loaf with Parmesan & Tomato
Ingredients:
1 pound ground turkey
½ cup grated zucchini
¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese
¼ cup plain dried bread crumbs
4 tablespoons fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 tablespoons fat-free egg substitute
1 garlic clove, minced
½ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper
½ cup canned tomato sauce
1. Line bottom and part way up side of 4- or 6-quart slow cooker with sheet of nonstick foil.
2. Mix together turkey, zucchini, Parmesan, bread crumbs, 3 tablespoons of parsley, the egg substitute, garlic, salt, and pepper in a medium bowl just until mixed well. Shape mixture into loaf about 6 inches long x 3 ½ inches wide x 1 ½ inches high; place in slow cooker and spoon tomato sauce on top.
3. Cover and cook 1 hour on high. Reduce heat to low and cook until instant-read thermometer inserted into center of loaf registers 160 degrees F, about 4 hours longer.
4. Carefully lift meat loaf from slow cooker using foil as handles and transfer to cutting board; let stand covered with foil 10 minutes. Sprinkle meat loaf with remaining 1 tablespoon parsley and cut into 8 slices.
Serves 4
4 PointsPlus
Per serving (2 slices):
184 Calories
3g Total Fat
1g Saturated Fat
0g Trans Fat
49mg Cholesterol
663mg Sodium
8g Carbs
2g Sugar
1g Fiber
32g Protein
81mg Calcium
Double Mushroom Soup
Ingredients:
1 (0.35-ounce) package dried mushrooms, preferably porcini
½ cup boiling water
3 cups reduced-sodium beef or vegetable broth
½ pound small white mushrooms, sliced
1 carrot, halved lengthwise and sliced
1 celery stalk with leaves, thinly sliced
1 small red onion, quartered and thinly sliced
1 small bay leaf
¾ teaspoon dried dill
½ teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
8 tablespoons reduced-fat sour cream
2 slices Canadian bacon, cut into matchsticks
1. Combine dried mushrooms and boiling water in small bowl. Let stand until softened, about 20 minutes. Transfer mushrooms and liquid to sieve set over medium bowl. Reserve mushroom liquid. Rinse mushrooms to remove any grit; pat dry with paper towels and finely chop. Pour mushroom liquid into 4- or 6-quart slow cooker.
2. Add broth, dried mushrooms, fresh mushrooms, carrot, celery, onion, bay leaf, dill, salt, and pepper to slow cooker. Cover and cook 3 hours on high or 6 hours on low. Discard bay leaf. Stir in 1 tablespoon of parsley.
3. Ladle soup evenly into each of 4 soup bowls. Top each serving with 2 tablespoons of sour cream and one-fourth of bacon; sprinkle with remaining 1 tablespoon of parsley.
*Note: The sour cream is what really gives this soup some depth of flavor.
Serves 4
4 PointsPlus
Per serving (1 ¼ cups):
145 Calories
7g Total Fat
3g Saturated Fat
0g Trans Fat
18mg Cholesterol
581mg Sodium
10g Carbs
4g Sugar
2g fiber
11g Protein
79mg Calcium
Another recipe that I really liked from this cookbook is from the “In A Skillet” section, so it’s NOT a slow-cooker recipe.
Chicken Sausage with Sun-Dried Tomato Couscous
Ingredients:
1 teaspoons olive oil
6 sweet Italian-style chicken sausages (about 1 pound)
1 onion, chopped
1 green bell pepper, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 ¼ cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 (6-oz) bag baby spinach
1 cup whole wheat couscous
6 moist-packed sun-dried tomatoes (not packed in oil), chopped (I couldn’t find moist packed ones, so I got the dry ones in the produce section)
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
1. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add sausages and cook, turning often, until browned and cooked through, about 6 minutes. Transfer to plate and keep warm. (I drained the grease off at this point.)
2. Reduce heat to medium. Add onion, bell pepper, and garlic to skillet; cook, stirring, until onion is softened, about 5 minutes.
3. Return sausages to skillet. Add broth and bring to boil over medium-high heat. Stir in spinach and cook, stirring occasionally, until beginning to wilt, about 2 minutes. Stir in couscous, sun-dried tomatoes, and black pepper. Cover and remove skillet from heat. Let stand until liquid is absorbed and couscous is tender, about 5 minutes. Fluff couscous with fork.
*Note: The recipe called for turkey sausage, but I couldn’t find any sweet Italian-style turkey sausage that was raw. I ended up finding the “Smart Chicken” brand of the chicken sausage in the meat section.
I used couscous, but next time I make this I’m going to try using quinoa instead.
Serves 6
6 PointsPlus
Per serving (1 sausage and about ½ cup couscous mixture):
243 Calories
10g Total Fat
0g Saturated Fat
0g Trans Fat
45mg Cholesterol
692mg Sodium
23g Carbs
4g Sugar
5g Fiber
17g Protein
44mg Calcium
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