Fruit and Horseradish Cream Cheese Spread
serves 8
The Ingredients
1 pound Little Smokies sausage
½ cup ketchup
½ cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon gluten-free Worcestershire sauce
½ cup barbecue sauce
The Directions
Use a 4-quart slow cooker. Put the sausage into your stoneware insert, and add the ketchup, brown sugar, Worcestershire sauce, and barbecue sauce. Stir to combine. Cook on low for 4 hours, on high for 2, or until heated throughout. Serve with toothpicks right out of the slow cooker.
The Verdict
These are great Smokies. The flavor is a bit more sophisticated than the Grape Jelly and Chili Sauce Little Smokies (page 25), and tastes better than just using plain barbecue sauce. You can also add ½ teaspoon dried red chile flakes to the pot for a spicy flavor.
serves 8
The Ingredients
1 (14-ounce) can artichoke hearts, rinsed, drained, and chopped
1 (6.5-ounce) jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
1 (4-ounce) can chopped green chiles (mild or hot, your choice)
¼ cup mayonnaise
3 cups shredded cheddar cheese
bread cubes, crackers, or tortilla chips for serving
The Directions
Use a 2-quart slow cooker. Drain the two containers of artichokes, and chop the hearts coarsely with a knife. Put into the slow cooker with the chiles. Stir in the mayonnaise and shredded cheese. Cover and cook on low for 3 to 4 hours, or on high for about 2 hours. Stir really well, and serve with bread cubes, crackers, or tortilla chips.
The Verdict
Artichoke dip is always a hit at parties, and I really like how artichoke-y this tastes. Sometimes all you can taste is the mayonnaise or cream cheese, but in this dip the artichoke is the key player. I like using hot chiles, but that makes it too spicy for my kids to enjoy. Maybe that’s why I like it like that . . . ?
FRUIT AND HORSERADISH CREAM CHEESE SPREAD
serves 8
The Ingredients
1 (8-ounce) package cream cheese
1 tablespoon prepared horseradish
⅓ cup apricot preserves
1 (1-ounce) box dried unsweetened cranberries (¼ cup)
crackers or salted corn tortilla chips for serving
The Directions
Use a 2-quart slow cooker. Unwrap the cream cheese and put it into the cooker. Top with the horseradish and preserves. Pour in the dried cranberries. Cover and cook on low for 2 to 3 hours, or on high for 1 to 2 hours. Serve warm with your favorite crackers or salted corn tortilla chips.
The Verdict
This tastes great, even though the ingredient list sounds a bit odd. Adam, the girls, my grandma, and I all really liked it a lot. Next time you’re in a dip rut, give this a try.
serves 5
The Ingredients
20 frozen meatballs (Coleman Natural® and Aidells® make a gluten-free variety)
1 (12-ounce) jar orange marmalade
¼ cup orange juice
3 green onions, sliced
1 jalapeño pepper
The Directions
Use a 4-quart slow cooker. Put the frozen meatballs into the bottom of your slow cooker. Add the marmalade, orange juice, and sliced green onions. Toss the meatballs with a large spoon to cover with the sauce. Throw in a washed whole jalapeño pepper. Cover and cook on low for 5 hours, or until the meatballs have heated through. Serve with toothpicks as an appetizer.
The Verdict
These are sweet meatballs with an infused smoky spiced flavor thanks to the jalapeño. They make a great appetizer, and are a nice change from traditional party meatballs in barbecue sauce. I like cooking with jalapeños this way. Even when wearing gloves, I somehow find a way to sting my fingers when chopping jalapeños. Leaving them whole in the pot allows the spicy flavor to steam out without injury.
serves 10
The Ingredients
1 egg white
1 tablespoon water
1 tablespoon gluten-free soy sauce
1 pound raw almonds
2 teaspoons cornstarch
2 tablespoons wasabi powder
1 teaspoon kosher salt
The Directions
Use a 2-quart slow cooker. Mix the egg white, water, and soy sauce in a small bowl until foamy. Toss the almonds with this liquid. Combine the cornstarch, wasabi powder, and salt in a plastic zippered freezer bag. Drain any remaining liquid from the almonds and pour the almonds into the bag. Close tightly and shake to coat the almonds with the powder. Dump the bag contents into your slow cooker and cover. Cook on low for 2 to 4 hours, or until toasty. Let the almonds dry completely on a length of aluminum foil or parchment paper spread out on the kitchen table or kitchen countertop. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
The Verdict
What a terrific snack! The almonds toast nicely in the slow cooker (if a few on the edge brown too much, that’s okay, that’s what makes them homemade!), and the combo of soy sauce and wasabi powder can’t be beat. I didn’t find these nuts spicy at all. If you’d prefer a stronger flavor, increase the wasabi measurement.
My regular neighborhood grocery store sells tiny cans of wasabi powder in the Asian cooking aisle for $3.99 a can. If you can’t find this spice locally, you can purchase it online (I love shopping in my jammies!).