Make Me Gluten-free - 101 Crockpots!: My Cooking Survival Guide, #4

By Nelly Baker

Is gluten ruining your family's menu? HARNESS THE POWER of your crockpot and save $$$, time and treat your tastebuds to a gluten-free feast!

Gluten allergies can make life a nightmare, right? This cookbook will change everything! Master your slow cooker and make gluten sickness just a memory with these easy step-by step recipes!

Just fifteen minutes of prep time will see you enjoying 101 unique, super tasty (and healthy) gluten-free soups, roasts, casseroles, desserts, breakfasts, breads and stews – all from your slow cooker!

Click the buy button to fight back against gluten allergies, save endless hours in the kitchen, and put taste back on your menu!

Plus you also get a copy of my cookbook Make Me Gluten-free.. in 30 minutes!!

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Would you like to create mouth-watering soups, roasts, casseroles, desserts, breakfasts, breads and stews in only 15 minutes?

Then this is the cookbook you have been waiting for – let your crockpot do all of the work!

Make Me Gluten-Free… 101 Crockpots! will show you how to cook the most exquisite gluten-free soups, roasts, casseroles, desserts, breakfasts, breads and stews  while you are asleep – wake up in the morning and it's all done for you!

In this book YOU'LL DISCOVER:

• 101 Simple step-by-step instructions and easy original recipes
• Guides on making superb slow-cooked gluten-free Soups, including my 'Shiloh White Bean' creation
• Lip-smacking Beef recipes, including my 'Slow-Train Braised Beef'
• Everything you need for awesome Pork crockpot dishes, including recipes for 'Tulsa Honey Pork Ribs'
• Gluten-free Bread recipes that really work, including 'Antigua Chocolate Bread'
• Proven tips to create perfect Lamb crockpot meals, including 'Cheyenne Roasted Lamb'
• How to create divine Fish meals for the whole family, including my 'Bourbon Street Jambalaya'
• Failure-free slow-cooked Poultry, including recipes for 'Monterey Chicken Stew'
• Slow-cooked Dessert concoctions that will make you beg for more, including 'Anaheim Almond Pudding'
• Fantastic Rice recipes, including 'Jackson Bell Peppers'
• Unbelievable Breakfast recipes, including 'No Crust Mushroom Quiche'

• PLUS YOU GET A COPY OF MY COOKBOOK MAKE ME GLUTEN-FREE IN 30 MINUTES! WITH EVERY PURCHASE!
• DON'T MISS OUT … Get yourself a copy of Make Me Gluten-Free… 101 Crockpots! and you'll be enjoying the most delicious gluten-free crockpot feasts in no time at all!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Red Herring Press
• Release date: Aug 12, 2016
• ISBN: 9781536532685

Nelly Baker

Nelly Baker is a former journalist who has a great love for healthy cooking and for sharing knowledge. She is a firm believer in regular chocolate and even more regular naps, and has a secret plan of marrying actor Daniel Craig. She resides with her family and gorgeous German Shepherd Miss K in a little house with  lovely garden. You can contact Nelly on Twitter at @nellybakercooks, on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mycookingsurvivalguide or by email at [e-mail]

Book preview

Introduction

A delicious crockpot-cooked meal cannot be beaten – and a gluten allergy is no reason for you to miss out.

Hi, my name is Nelly, and I’m going to show you how a healthy gluten-free crockpot feast can taste better than any other slow-cooked meal you’ve ever had in your life!

I’m a food lover, but I’m also a firm believer that there’s no reason why you need to compromise on taste, quality, budget or time spent in the kitchen to prepare a fantastic gluten-free crockpot meal.

In Make Me Gluten-Free... 101 Crockpots!, I’m going to show you how easy it is to braise lamb shanks, manage a meatloaf or even serve up a hearty soup without a hint of gluten in sight.

I’ve tried to cover all bases in this recipe collection - from chili, to soups, stews, breads, puddings and even breakfasts, there is something for everyone. Rest assured - my recipes focus on the important things – speed, flavor, nutrient content and saving dollars.

If you like this book, I’d love for you to visit me at www.mycookingsurvivalguide.com and join ‘Nelly’s cooking club’, a fun and friendly place here I share tips, recipes, freebies and discounts!

If you take anything away from this book, make it this – gluten-free doesn’t mean flavor-free or fun-free.

I hope you have as much fun making and eating these gluten-free crockpot meals as I had creating them!

Love,

Nelly

A brief introduction to gluten-free eating

A gluten-free diet is one that avoids (as you might expect) ‘gluten’, which is a protein mainly found in grains, such as wheat, barley or rye. If you have gluten intolerance or celiac disease, even a small amount of gluten in your food can be overwhelming for your digestive system.

There is currently no cure for gluten intolerance - the only way to avoid the symptoms is to embrace a gluten-free diet and lifestyle. (For more information about how to live a gluten-free life, have a look at your free copy of my lifestyle guide Make Me Gluten-Free.. In 30 Minutes!, at the back of this slow-cooker recipe book).

Following a gluten-free diet isn’t easy - it can be frustrating at times, given just how many different food products have gluten or traces of gluten as an ingredient. But if you get organized and stick to some basic rules, it becomes piece of cake.  And it gets even easier if you buy yourself a slow cooker.

A slow cooker is a huge advantage if you want to live and eat gluten-free. Why? It makes the cooking process soooo much easier. Using a crockpot not only saves you time, but  it also gives you tastier food with a richer flavor and better texture. This is because you can cook at lower temperatures and for longer, making it more tender.

Approved food types on the gluten-free ingredient list include beans, seeds, nuts, eggs, meat (beef, pork, poultry), fruits, vegetables and dairy products, as well as ancient grains such as amaranth, arrowroot, buckwheat, rice, millet, quinoa, sorghum, soy, tapioca or teff. Certain types of flour are also gluten-free, including rice flour, potato starch and bean flour.

Now it’s time to let your crockpot take over! Just mix up ingredients and your crockpot will cook your food slowly, allowing it to develop unique vibrant flavors without turning mushy (as it might when cooked over a stove).

Remember, your slow cooker is your best friend in the kitchen!

‘Slow cooker’ versus ‘crock pot’

For people new to slow cooking, the terms ‘crockpot’ and ‘slow cooker’ can some times be confusing. What’s the difference between the two? Very little!

‘CrockPot’ is a brand, and was the original slow cooker. Many people consider it as the best type of slow cooker, as it heats food from both sides as well as the base, for more even cooking.

For the purposes of readability, this guide will use the terms ‘slow cooker’ and ‘crockpot/ interchangeably. They are the same!

Tips on slow cooking

Slow cooking has various advantages, including:

●  Boosting your food’s flavor: The long cooking time at a relatively low heat allows the flavors of each ingredient to develop properly. This extra cooking time allows vegetables and meat to release their aroma and flavors better, and infuse each other. Slow-cooked meals often taste better than those made in a more traditional way

●  Saving your time: Crockpot cooking doesn’t require much effort. Often all you need to do is chop a few ingredients, which usually takes no more than 10-15 minutes! Once chopped, mix your ingredients together in your slow-cooker and you’re set to go!

●  Saving money: Slow cooking means you can use cheaper pieces of meat that you might otherwise avoid if you were using a stove or oven (they would otherwise be too tough and would take too long to cook). For a slow cooker, tough pieces of meat are exactly what you want. The long cooking time means the meat becomes incredibly tender, and it won’t fall apart when you serve it.

●  Less stress: There is no need to watch the crockpot while it cooks (except maybe the first time): You can get on with other things while the slow cooker creates an exquisite meal

●  Healthier: Slow-cooked food is healthier! Using a crockpot means you should cut off as much fat from your meat as possible, which leads to lighter meals and fewer health problems

●  Versatility: You can cook almost anything in it – breakfast, lunch, dinner, dessert, bread – and I’ve included recipes to cover all of these options!

●  Save money: Slow cooking saves you money on your electricity bill, and it’s easy to clean up afterward!

How to choose the best slow cooker

It’s not difficult to choose a good slow cooker, as all crockpots work the same way. Your biggest decision comes down to personal preference.

Most simple slow cookers consist of a base (which contains the heating element), the pot-shaped ‘insert’ (which holds the food), and a lid, usually made of heatproof glass. More expensive crock pots have additional features, but they aren’t necessary.

Remember, crock pots work best under the KISS principle (Keep It Simple, Silly!)

Pro-tip: When you buy a crock pot, choose one with a removable liner. They are much easier to clean! When I think about trying to clean a hot-to-the-touch slow-cooker... my fingers just cringe at the thought!

However, if you have a crock pot without a removable liner, you can line it with a cooking bag to reduce the amount of cleaning up you have afterward.

General slow cooker tips

●  Don’t over-water! If you are adapting a traditional recipe, cut your liquid amounts in half, except for soup recipes. Traditional cooking methods via stove-top or an oven see a lot of liquid evaporate. However, with a crockpot this doesn’t happen as much of this liquid is trapped inside the pot itself. Also, keep in mind that many ingredients (such as mushrooms) will actually add additional liquid to the recipe!

●  Vegetables cook slowest: Believe it or not, for some strange reason vegetables cook slower than meat in the crockpot! As a result you should put denser vegetable ingredients such as carrots, sweet potato, squash, onion on the bottom or sides so they receive the most heat!

●  Cut ingredients the same size: This means everything will be ready at the same time.

●  Add your herbs and spices at the end: Adding them too early can mean they dissipate and lose their punch. For this reason consider using concentrated flavors.

●  Dairy: If your recipe calls for milk or cheese, add them to the pot near the end of the cooking time. Milk-based products tend to separate or curdle if they cook for long periods of time, so it is best to add them in the last hour of cooking.

●  Seafood/nuts: Add any seafood to the pot close to when the recipe has finished cooking. These ingredients cook quickly, so they should be added late in the piece. Don’t add nuts directly to a crockpot – instead, it is best to wait until it is served and add them as a garnish

●  Ideal temperature: For most slow cookers, the ‘low’ setting is meant to reach about 200 degrees Fahrenheit, while the ‘high’ setting should hit about 300 degrees Fahrenheit. The minimum safe cooking temperature for food is 140 degrees Fahrenheit, but to be sure, check that your crockpot reaches this

●  Don’t put frozen ingredients directly into your slow cooker! Make sure you defrost them first (especially if you are using dense ingredients such as meat cuts or heavy vegetables)

●  Timing: As a rule, two hours on LOW is equivalent to cooking one hour on HIGH

●  Don’t overload your crockpot: Fill to no more than three-quarters full. This is so that your food is cooked properly. If you find yourself going above this level, it’s best to purchase a larger model!

●  Leave it be: Once the ingredients are in the pot, resist the temptation to lift the lid and ‘check how it is going’! By doing this you will lose all the heat that you are cooking with . It will take your slow cooker at least 20 minutes to heat back up again... who’s got that time to waste?

●  Soak, don’t scrape: If food gets stuck on your crock pot liner, soak it for half an hour in a sink of hot water, then use a sponge to clean it. Don’t use harsh abrasive cleaners or scratchy metal brillo pads  - you’ll ruin the finish!

●  Remove as much fat as possible from cuts of meat and poultry before cooking them. Remove the skin from chicken as well. This is because excess fat in slow cooking recipes can make food extremely greasy, as it can’t escape the pot when cooking.

●  Size matters: Slow cookers range in size from 2 ½ quarts (2.4 liters) to 5 ½ quarts (5 liters). Five quarts holds enough for 8 people!

●  Flavor boost: Pour up to half of the liquid in any crockpot dish into a saucepan and boil it down by half, then put it back into the pot. Half the volume means double the flavor!

●  Even more flavor: Browning meat or poultry before putting it in your slow cooker can boost the flavor out of sight! (Yes, I think the extra mess is well worth it!)

●  Don’t overcook: Don’t stretch the cooking time of any slow-cooked meal past what the recipe recommends by too much – your food may end up mushy and overdone.

●  Timing tricks: If you’re cooking overnight or while at work all day, you can add an hour or two to the specified cooking time by chilling your ingredients in the fridge until the last minute. However, if you do this, you absolutely must not preheat the slow-cooker – you may crack the base!

●  More timing tricks: Another way to extend cooking time is to plug your crockpot into a timer – this means you can safely leave your food sitting in your cold slow-cooker for two or three extra hours if you leave it in the refrigerator until the last minute.

●  Size matters more: The size of your slow cooker can affect your cooking time. If you have a 5 ½ quart slow cooker and it is only one quarter full, then you can reduce the cooking time by an hour or so. If you fill your slow cooker above the ¾ level (but not too much above!) then add an hour’s cooking time.

●  Oh, the joy: Take a nap, watch a movie, read a book – and your dinner is cooked! Fantastic!

Soups

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Badlands Beef Soup

This staple recipe is a must-try for any slow-cooking beginner. It’s filling, tasty, simple, gluten-free and nutritious – what more can you want?

Prep time: 15 minutes

Cooking time: 8 hours

Servings: 8

Ingredients:

1 pound (450g) beef roast, cubed

½ pound (225g) green beans, sliced

4 potatoes (450g), peeled and cubed

1 cup (200g) green peas

1 can (400g) diced tomatoes

1 sweet onion, chopped

1 celery stalk, sliced

2 carrots, sliced

Salt and pepper to taste

3 cups water

1 thyme sprig

Directions:

1.