It’s easy to get stuck in the holiday routine. We tend to put same dishes on the table for friends and family, year after year. This holiday season, switch things up. Maybe make Italian food for Christmas dinner (lasagna is always welcome), or serve a beautiful rib roast instead of ham. Don’t have it in you to spend the day cooking? Make pot roast or short ribs and let the slow cooker do the work for you.
Whether you want to serve something completely different this year, or just want to revamp your go-to recipes, these festive mains are sure to to impress the hungry mouths at your holiday table.
Go guilt-free over the holidays with a dip recipe that will surely wow any crowd. In Episode 6 of our Make it with Hamilton Beach series, host Miranda Malisani shows us how to whip up a delicious bowl of spinach and artichoke dip using the Hamilton Beach White and Stainless 10 Quart Slow Cooker and MultiBlend Blender. The kicker? This dip is dairy-free!
Spinach dip is traditionally full of cream, butter and cheese. This version is free of dairy and uses the creaminess of cashews to add richness to this dip.
Watch step-by-step as Miranda demonstrates how to make it with Hamilton Beachin your kitchen by watching the video and check out the recipe details below.
In blender, pulse cashews until it becomes a fine powder.
Add milk, avocado, garlic, lemon juice, mustard, nutritional yeast and salt. Blend until smooth.
Pour the liquid into the slow cooker and add the spinach and artichoke hearts. Stir until well combined.
Cover and cook on high for 1.5 to 2 hours or low for 3 to 4 hours.
Serve warm directly from slow cooker or at room temperature in your favourite bowl.
Recipe Notes
Recipe by Miranda Malisani
Miranda Malisani, RNCP is a Toronto based Nutritionist who is recognized nationally for her expertise in holistic nutrition. Her down-to-earth attitude and ability to cater her services to an individual’s needs has made her a leader in the field.
Warm, comforting meals are officially in season. There’s just something about colder weather that invokes cravings for squash and pumpkin.
This slow cooker soup is a wonderful, yet simple, fall dinner when served with crusty bread or dinner rolls. Have you ever tried pumpkin soup? It’s a great way to use the pumpkin puree we made in the slow cooker last week. Instead of focusing on the sweetness, sage, garlic and onion make the pumpkin shine. It takes only a few minutes to put together, and the slow cooker does the rest. Top the finished soup with sour cream, crisp bacon and toasted pumpkin seeds to add a nice crunch to the creamy soup.
In a large skillet over medium-high heat, melt butter. Cook onion and garlic for 2 minutes. Stir in pumpkin, vegetable broth, sage, salt and pepper. Add mixture to slow cooker crock.
Cover slow cooker and cook on HIGH for 2 hours or LOW for 4 hours.
Stir in milk and set on WARM for 30 minutes before serving.
Serve with sour cream, crumbled bacon and pumpkin seeds.
We know canned pumpkin is easy to use and tastes fine, but in our eyes, nothing beats homemade. Pumpkin puree is actually quite easy to make at home, especially in a slow cooker. Use your finished puree in soups, breads and pies all season long. Freeze any leftovers in plastic bags or store it in jars in the fridge. All it takes is a couple pie pumpkins, a slow cooker and a food processor or blender.
Start by prepping the pumpkins with a good rinse. Then, use a knife to cut out the stem of each pumpkin.
Remove the stems and discard. You won’t need them anymore.
Slice each pumpkin in half.
Use a large spoon to scoop out the seeds and fibrous insides. Reserve the seeds if you want to make toasted pumpkin seeds later. (Highly recommended by us, of course!)
Place the pumpkin pieces and water in the slow cooker crock. The water isn’t absolutely necessary, but it helps the pumpkin steam faster.
Set the timer on your slow cooker and check on the pumpkins when it goes off, about 2 hours. The outer skin should be easily pricked by a fork, and the flesh should be soft.
Use a large spoon to scoop out the pumpkin flesh, then toss the pumpkin skins. Add the pumpkin flesh to a food processor or blender (or large container if using a hand blender).
Process the pumpkin until it becomes a smooth puree. This won’t take long, since the pumpkin is so soft.
Store the puree in jars in the refrigerator or use plastic bags to freeze it. Now you can make tasty soups, delicious pies, smoothies, bread pudding or even pumpkin butter. Check back soon for our favorite recipes using homemade pumpkin puree.
The slow cooker is one of our favorite cold-weather appliances. It’s great for making hearty chili and melt-in-your-mouth pot roast – two of our favorite fall meals. But if you’re looking for new recipes and want take a break from the slow cooker classics, add slow cooker ropa vieja to your must-try list.
We love experimenting with international recipes and lately, we’ve seen in influx of Cuban recipes online – whether it’s piled-high mojo pork on Instagram or traditional cuban sandwiches on Pinterest. Feeling inspired by Cuban flavors, the Test Kitchen developed a version of flank steak ropa vieja for the slow cooker.
Ropa vieja is a classic Cuban shredded beef dish. It’s packed full of flavor and will satisfy those with a love of all things tangy (there are plenty of delicious Spanish olives and vinegar to go around).
In the slow cooker crock, stir together diced tomatoes, tomato sauce, cilantro, basil, cumin, salt and pepper. Add flank steak to the crock and top with onions, red and green bell pepper, and garlic. Cook on HIGH for 5 ½ to 6 hours or on LOW for 10 ½ to 11 hours.
When the flank steak is finished cooking, remove it and shred using two forks (the meat should shred easily after cooking low and slow). Returned the shredded meat to the crock and stir in olives, capers and cilantro before serving. The bright olives, red and green bell peppers, and fresh cilantro make the dish truly a feast for the eyes.
Use your Hamilton Beach® rice cooker to make white rice or spanish rice to serve alongside your ropa vieja or plug in the deep fryer and make fried plantains for the ultimate Cuban feast. End the meal with a slice of tres leches cake and a piping hot cup of silky Cuban coffee to turn your dinner table into a day-trip to Havana.
