You have a crowd coming for Christmas or the New Year and you are cooking for them.  How do you make sure this event is a success?

Do your homework!  What kind of foods do they like, what can you make, what can you buy, does anyone have food allergies and what is your budget are some of the questions you need to ask yourself.  Draft up a menu and don't forget snacks, bread and drinks.  Pin that up or put it on the fridge for a few days.  You will probably add or subtract to it in that time.

Now you need a grocery list for each dish on your menu.  Check your recipes so you don't forget anything.  Work out when you are going to buy everything.  Perishables will have to be left until last but other goods can be bought ahead and stored.  Work out how you are going to make all the food and which ones you will buy in.  Don't forget the crock pot recipes here as they can be made a day or two before your dinner/lunch.

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There is a little preparation with the browning of the leek and the lamb but then its a quick and easy recipe to make in the crock pot.  I make it on Saturday and there is enough to have again and I must admit that it is a soup that takes even better the next day.  Try it and see for yourself.

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I love this recipe called Low Fat Orange Chicken Fillets and I have adapted it for the crock pot.  The recipe has changed slightly over the years as my tastes have changed so don't hesitate to adapt it to yours.  Its doesn't take as long to cook as other crock pot recipes  so you can turn it on after lunchtime and have a delicious meal that night.  I prefer though to store it in the refrigerator and eat it the next night so I make it on Sunday for Monday night's meal.

Low Fat Orange Chicken Fillets

I hope you like this recipe as much as I do but if you are looking for a different chicken recipe you might like to try this previous post,  Looking for chicken recipes for the crock pot.

There are lots of great crock pot desserts recipes to try but one of my mother's favorite recipes that she has made in winter for as long as I can remember is rice pudding.   I have adapted her recipe for the crock pot slow cooker.  A 3.5 quart size crock pot would be ideal for this recipe but you can use a larger one, just cook for a little less time.

Rice Pudding

Serve with stewed or canned fruit and ice cream.

This crock pot desserts recipe is so quick to cook so you can put it on in the later afternoon for that evenings meal.  If you are looking for other great recipes for winter warming dishes then try Amazon for The Ski House Cookbook: Warm Winter Dishes for Cold Weather Fun.

Cookbooks to convert

So, you have a new crock pot and you haven’t tried it out yet.  Now is the time to start.  Cooking in the crock pot is simple and easy but the meals are delicious. Buy a crock pot recipe book first so you get experienced with how the crock pot cooks, then you can learn to adapt your own recipes.  Converting regular recipes to crock pot recipes isn't very difficult at all if you just remember these few facts.

Soups and stews are the easiest recipes and are natural slow cooker favorites so try them first.  The crock pot doesn’t brown the meat so if you like the look and taste of brown meat then you need to quickly brown it first before adding it to the pot.  Also this helps with reducing any fat you may get from the meat as the fat makes the food cook faster.

You need to reduce the liquid in a traditional recipe as these don’t evaporate in cooking as in regular cooking so as a general rule halve the amount of liquid you need except when using rice and pasta.

I like to cook most stews and meats on low for around 8 hours as this allows the meat to tenderize and the vegetable to soften but if you making a large quantity I would cook on high for 3 hours then reduce to low for another 6 hours.  As a general rule if a recipe says to cook for 30 minutes then adjust that to 5 hours, 45 minutes to 6-7 hours and 1 hour plus to 8 – 10 hours.

Vegetables cook slower than meats so cut or dice them into small pieces and you can put them at the bottom of the crock pot too if the recipe method allows.  If the recipe includes milk or cheese then add them near the end and you should thicken your cooking around the same time.  Also use fresh herbs rather than dried when available.

Converting regular recipes to crock pot recipes isn't that difficult if you just remember the tips and ideas above.  If you are a new cook and don't have any favorite recipes to convert yet then I suggest you check out a book from Amazon called  Rival Crock-Pot Incredibly Easy Recipes (Incredibly Easy)

Now get your crock pot out and make something nice for dinner.