The Healthy Slow Cooker: More Than 100 Dishes for Health and Wellness

If you read some of the reviews on this site you'd think that the author has you going to exotic and bizarre grocery stores and spending hours preparing these dishes. Its simply untrue. If you're looking for a cookbook that has you open 5 different cans of salty foods and throw em all together for some mushy and unrecognizable (yet fast!) food product then don't buy this one. This one outlines how you can create wonderful, filling, nutritious meals for your whole family. Yep, you are required to chop up fresh fruits and veggies and add in whole grains and beans but isn't this what we should be adding to our meals anyway? I've tried probably half of the recipes in this cookbook and I have enjoyed them all. They freeze wonderfully so you can place them in individual portion sized containers to bring for lunch. This is nutritious and thrifty. She uses almost no processed foods in her recipes (except broths but you can make those yourself) which I appreciate as we try to avoid those foods. I highly recommend this cookbook as her approach to "healthy" food is moderate and logical. BTW, I live in a fairly small area and have been able to find all ingredients needed at my local generic grocery store.

This cookbook asks you to brown the meat and veggies ahead of time. This makes a tremendous difference in the taste. No gray, mushy meat here. I do the prep work the evening before (usually less than a 1/2 hour) then set it to cook in the morning. OK, yes, I do put it in the 'frig over night. I find I prefer to cut the time by one to two hours from the one Ms. Findlayson recommends. I also like the nutrition information provided for each recipe. My college bound son asked for this cookbook and a crockpot of his own. That's as high praise as I know of.

Reviewed by Geri Eden for Reader Views (3/06) In a world of fast food, deli's and supermarket fare, Judith Finlayson shows us how we can savor tasty, slow-cooked meals with only minutes of prep time. Her 288 page cookbook is filled with beautiful pictures of finished dishes, tips, make ahead info, nutritional charts, mindful morsels and natural wonders. Judith opens the book by giving an in-depth look at how to use your Slow Cooker by walking you through information about the various sizes of crock pots, how to care for them, tips on speeding up the cooking process, reducing liquids, the proper size, the use of herbs and baking within the crock pot cooker. The cookbook is well organized, has an easy to read larger font and uses contrasting headers and shading that aids to move the reader's eye from one section to another. Her cookbook is separated into seven sections titled: Bread & Breakfast, Soups, Poultry, Seafood & Fish, Meat, Pasta & Grains, Just Veggies and Desserts. She closes with Diabetic Food Values, a Bibliography and an Index. Her recipes include common spices that most cooks should already have on hand and fresh ingredients that can be easily found in any grocery store. No extra trips to specialty food sources. What's really impressive is that she covers all types of meals like dishes you can make for breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. One of my favorite recipes was for Creamy Tuna Casserole which is something you might never think of being able to cook in a crock pot. Judith has written several Slow Cooker cookbooks and this particular book may be of special interest to those that enjoy recipes with an international flair. In addition to American and European favorites, there are numerous dishes from the Middle East. You will undoubtedly find dishes to please just about everyone. Finlayson continues to prove that Slow Cookers can be used every day and should be brought out for more than just the infrequent home or work party with food like queso, cocktail meatballs or party sausages. So dust off your crock pot and get cooking!

I studiously avoided learning to cook for 50+ years but a friend who's very health conscious recommended trying a slow cooker. This cookbook gave me the additional boost I needed. Finlayson is very knowledgeable about nutrition, and somehow manages to make it interesting to read about. Plus, she gives tips on what to prepare the night before, so you can set up the crock pot in the morning, turn it on, and have a great meal by the time you get home. I love the Thai Pumpkin Soup, which has become a favorite in our household. If you're trying WeightWatchers point system, this has an abundance of good recipes.

THE HEALTHY SLOW COOKER: More than 100 Recipes for Health and Wellness By Judith Finlayson Slow cookers are different now. No longer do you put all ingredients in to return home and find an non-distinctive, mushy, rather flavor-lacking concoction. After four books, Findlayson has reached important conclusions for better slow cooker creations. Some of these make her feel zucchini, peas, snow peas, fish, seafood, and milk/cream do not respond well to long cooking. She also feels peppers, hot sauces and curry powder do not do well with long cooking. Her solution? Add these during the last 30 minutes of cooking. Each recipe has a two-page spread with headnotes, preparation tips, make ahead hints, "Mindful Morsels," and "Nuture Wonders" which expand on the nourishment of the main ingredient, The book also gives Nutrients Per Serving and significant vitamin content. Besides breakfast, even bread items and tempting desserts, The Healthy Slow Cooker helps you make some tempting, exciting dishes. Here a description of some of the recipes: Beet Soup with Lemongrass and Lime - Combines garlic, gingerroot, red bell pepper, red chile, lime zest, coconut cream and cilantro. (The Spanish favorite) Caldo Verde - Has cumin, onions, carrots, garlic, chickpeas, potatoes, paprika, collard greens and smoked sausage (A Moroccan favorite) Harira - Calls for celery, onion, garlic, tumeric, lemon zest, tomatoes, red lentils, chickpeas and parsley. This is best topped with Harissa made from red chile peppers, caraway and coriander seeds, cumin, sun-dried tomatoes, garlic, lemon and sweet paprika Spicy Peanut Chicken - Incorporates, onions, carrots, celery, garlic, gingerroot, peanut butter, lemon juice, soy sauce, red curry paste, coconut milk, green peas, roasted peanuts and cilantro. Cioppino - Made with onions, fennel, garlic, anchovy filets, tomatoes, dry white wine, fish stock, white fish, shrimp, crabmeat, red bell pepper, chile pepper and optionally topped with Easy Rouille made from mayonnaise, garlic, olive oil, lemon juice and hot paprika. Beef and Barley with Rosemary and Orange - Includes mushrooms, onions, celery, carrots garlic, orange zest and dry red wine. Can be topped with Persillade of parsley, garlic and balsamic vinegar. Chili con Carne - Make with flour, olive oil, onions, garlic, oregano, cinnamon stick, cumin, beer, kidney beans, ancho chili powder, chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, poblano chiles, cilantro, sour cream, red onion and roasted red pepper strips. Barley and Wild Rice Pilaf - Calls for onion, garlic, rosemary leaves, tomatoes, vegetable stock and toasted pine nuts. Tamale Pie with Chili Millet Crust - Make with onions, olive oil, celery, garlic, oregano, cumin, black or pinto beans, tomatoes, corn kernels, green bell pepper and jalapeno or chipotle pepper. May be topped with millet, water, black pepper, Monterrey Jack cheese and chopped green chiles. Review by Marty Martindale, 2006, Largo FL