Slow Cooker Recipes: Easy Holiday Meals (cont.)

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons light or regular mayonnaise

3 tablespoons fat-free sour cream

3 tablespoons Italian seasoned dry bread crumbs (panko crumbs can be substituted)

3 tablespoons shredded Parmesan cheese

1 teaspoon finely chopped garlic

1 can (6 1/2 ounces) crabmeat (or 1 cup fresh crabmeat), rinsed and drained well

Dash or two Tabasco

Black pepper to taste

18 medium sized mushrooms, stems removed

Preparation:

1. Preheat slow cooker to high heat.
2. In small bowl, combine mayonnaise, fat-free sour cream, bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, and garlic. Fold in the crabmeat. Add Tabasco and black pepper to taste.
3. Spoon heaping teaspoons full of crab filling into mushroom caps.
4. Arrange mushroom caps (crab side up) in the bottom of the preheated slow cooker. Add cover and cook on HIGH for about 2 hours. Reduce heat to LOW and serve the crab-stuffed mushrooms from the slow cooker, if desired.

Yield: 9 servings (2 mushrooms per serving)

Nutrition Information: Per serving: 59 calories, 5 g protein, 4 g carbohydrate, 2.5 g fat, .6 g saturated fat, 16 mg cholesterol, .5 g fiber, 177 mg sodium. Calories from fat: 38%.

Slow Cooker Recipe No. 4: Chicken Sausage Cornbread Stuffing

Ingredients:

8 ounces reduced-fat, fully cooked chicken sausage (such as Aidell's Chicken Apple Sausage)

1 cup small diced onions

1 cup small diced celery

1 tablespoon canola oil

1 tablespoon fresh chopped sage (or 1 teaspoon dried)

1 tablespoon fresh chopped rosemary (or 1 1/2 teaspoon dried)

1 tablespoon fresh chopped thyme (or 1 teaspoon dried)

3 cups crumbled prepared cornbread (see recipe below)

3 cups cubed whole-wheat bread (toasted in a toaster to stiffen)

1 cup chicken broth (double-strength, if possible)

1 large apple, cored and diced

Slow Cooker Recipe No. 4: Chicken Sausage Cornbread Stuffing continued...

2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley (2 teaspoon parsley flakes)

2 teaspoons poultry seasoning

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 cup chopped red pepper

Preparation:

1. Preheat slow cooker to low or high heat. Brown the sausage and cut into a coarse dice.
2. In large nonstick frying pan, saute the onions and celery in canola oil for a few minutes. Stir in sage, rosemary, and thyme and continue to cook and stir over medium heat until mixture is softened (about 2 minutes more). Spoon mixture into large mixing bowl and stir in the sausage and the remaining ingredients.
3. Coat the inside of the slow cooker crock with canola oil cooking spray and spoon stuffing mixture into crock. Heat on low a couple of hours before the dinner party or potluck, or heat for one hour on high heat. If mixture seems too dry, drizzle more chicken broth over the top and stir.

Cornbread

If you like your cornbread a little on the sweet side, opt for the 2 tablespoons of sugar. If you prefer Southern style, just leave it out. You'll use almost half this cornbread for the recipe above.

Ingredients:

1 cup cornmeal

1/2 cup unbleached white flour

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

2 tablespoons granulated sugar (optional)

3/4 cup low-fat buttermilk

1 large egg (use a higher omega-3 brand if available)

1/4 cup egg substitute

2 tablespoons canola oil

Preparation:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Coat an 8 x 8-inch baking dish with canola cooking spray.
2. In large mixing bowl, combine first 4 ingredients, beating on low to blend. Add the remaining ingredients all at once in mixing bowl and beat on low, scraping sides of bowl after 5 seconds, until a smooth batter forms.
3. Pour batter into prepared baking dish and bake for approximately 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool.

Yield: 10 servings

Nutrition Information: Per serving: 180 calories, 7 g protein, 23 g carbohydrate, 7 g fat, 1.5 g saturated fat, 30 mg cholesterol, 3.5 g fiber, 470 mg sodium. Calories from fat: 35%.

Slow Cooker Recipe No. 4: Slow Cooker Sweet and Sour Turkey Meatballs

Ingredients:

1 pound extra-lean ground turkey (6-8% fat)

1 slices whole-wheat bread, finely chopped, or 1 cup soft breadcrumbs

1 large egg (or 1/4 cup egg substitute, if desired)

2 tablespoons finely minced onion