With fall here in less than a week, it’s time to think about cooking for the colder weather. 175 Essential Slow Cooker Classics by Judith Finlayson is a cookbook you’ll want to own. Using a slow cooker makes cooking so much easier and Finlayson’s book provides a wide range of options for slow cooker meals. (We’re giving away 175 Essential Slow Cooker Classics by Judith Finlayson and The Essential Ayurvedic Cookbook by Lois Leonhardi to a lucky winner…see giveaway details below.)
You’ll find recipes including soups, stews, curries, pot roasts, chili, lasagna, pies, puddings, flans and cakes. I tried the Butternut Apple Soup with Swiss Cheese and it turned out well. It was quite easy to make, but did require a bit of preparation such as cutting the butternut squash in cubes and chopping and sautéeing the onion before combining the ingredients in the slow cooker.
I have included one of the book’s amazing soup recipes below for you to try.
Santa Fe Sweet Potato Soup
Courtesy of 175 Essential Slow Cooker Recipes by Judith Finlayson © 2015 www.robertrose.ca Reprinted with publisher permission. Available where books are sold.
Here’s a flavourful, rib-sticking soup with lots of pizzazz and universal appeal. New Mexico chiles add an enticing, slightly smoky flavor, but ancho or guajillo chiles also work well. The lime, roasted red pepper and cilantro finish provides a nice balance to the sweet potatoes. If you are a heat seeker, add the jalapeño pepper.
Serves 6 to 8
Make ahead
This soup can be partially prepared before it is cooked. Complete Step 1. Cover and refrigerate for up to 2 days. When you’re ready to cook, continue with the recipe.
Works best using a large (minimum 5 quart) slow cooker.
Ingredients:
1 tbsp vegetable oil
2 onions, finely chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp salt
1 tsp dried oregano leaves
6 cups vegetable or chicken stock
4 cups cubed (about 1⁄2 inch) peeled, sweet potatoes
2 dried New Mexico, ancho or guajillo chile peppers
2 cups boiling water
1 jalapeño pepper, finely chopped, optional
2 cups corn kernels, thawed if frozen
1 tsp grated lime zest
2 tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice
2 roasted red peppers, cut into thin strips
Finely chopped cilantro
- In a skillet, heat oil over medium heat for 30 seconds. Add onions and cook, stirring, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add garlic, salt and oregano and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Transfer to slow cooker stoneware. Add stock and stir to combine.
- Add sweet potatoes and stir to combine. Cover and cook on Low for 8 to 10 hours or on High for 4 to 6 hours, until sweet potatoes are tender.
- Half an hour before soup has finished cooking, in a heatproof bowl, soak dried chile peppers in boiling water for 30 minutes, weighing down with a cup to ensure they remain submerged. Drain, discarding soaking liquid and stems. Pat dry, chop coarsely and add to stoneware, along with the jalapeño pepper, if using. Working in batches, purée soup in a food processor or blender and return to slow cooker. (You can also do this in the stoneware using an immersion blender.) Add corn, lime zest and juice. Cover and cook on High for 30 minutes, until corn is tender. When ready to serve, ladle soup into individual bowls and garnish with red pepper strips and cilantro.
Cookbooks Giveaway
Enter to win 175 Essential Slow Cooker Classics by Judith Finlayson and The Essential Ayurvedic Cookbook by Lois Leonhardi. Open to 18+, Canada and U.S.
This contest appears on ContestCanada.net
slow cooking stew
i like to cook pork ribs in the slow cooker – super easy and fall off the bone good!
I love to use it to make soups and stews. They always turn out perfectly!
Chillis and sauces
I love to cook roasts and pulled pork in the slow cooker
I love to use my slow cooker to make chilli.
roast beef
I love mine for chili 🙂
My favourite way to use my slow cooker is to make stew. Thanks
for stews and chili
we love to cook roasts in our slow cooker! we also make a great chicken pot pie!
I make Chilli .Start in the Am, use at dinner time.
I like to use mine to cook chicken which I use for pulled chicken sandwiches.
I like cooking turkey in mine
i like to make stew
I love to use my slow cooker to make healthy vegetarian stews!
Soup or chili
I love to make chili in the crockpot when it’s cold outside.
i love to make a roast in the crockpot! Its so nice to put it on in the morning and have dinner ready when you
come home!
I openingly drooooooooled when I saw the picture of the Santa Fe Sweet Potato Soup!! It looks absolutely delicious PLUS looking at the recipe you posted, even I could make this!
Definitely, my go to receipes would be beef stew, chili and chinese soups!
I use mine to make beans over night!
I like to cook my Mom-in-law’s sweet cabbage rolls in the slow cooker.
I use mine for everything. My favorite is to use it while I am at work. Quick prep in the morning, let it go all day, and dinner is done when we all get home in the evening. So easy!
I like to make deconstructed cabbage rolls.
My favourite way to use my slow cooker is for stews
I love to cook chicken in mine
I use it to make roast beef!
This would help us so much with our weekly schedules.
I love to make pulled pork in my crockpot
Making chilli
My favourite way to use my slow cooker is to make stews and soups
I like to use it for soups!
I think my favourite slow cooker recipe is steak fajitas! So yummy
We love making stew!
I use my slow cooker for go to meals whenever my kids have a sporting event. It is a life saver because we get home late on those days and dinner is already prepared for us when we get home.
I love making soups in it!!
I love using my slow cooker for game days!! Its great for tailgating! Also on Thursdays since we have girl scouts, I dont have time to cook. So thats my crock pot day!
I use it for stews and soups and pulled pork sammiches!
We love using a slow cooker to make BBQ Pulled Pork. It is always delicious.
I love using it to make roasts and stews. I’ll set it up in the morning and it’s ready when we get home from work! It’s so convenient! I love it!!
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