Slow Cooker Thanksgiving Sides

– November 22, 2011Posted in: Holiday, Side, Slow Cooked Goodness, Two New a Week

There’s a few things in life I am grateful for since this is the week of Thanksgiving we should probably talk about them. I can think of three things in particular brought up the top of my head, my two small crock-pot and in my one large one. There’s not much you can’t take on in a kitchen with three crock-pots running on high. So, the other day when Pillsbury sent me an e-mail saying they could streamline some Thanksgiving recipes by making them in the crock-pot I rewrote this week’s menu of posts, and ran to the grocery store.

But does making any of the classic Thanksgiving recipes in a slow cooker really cut down on any of the prep time, stress, or hassle? At first I figured keep it simple and go with those Pillsbury recipes. Lord knows, that little doughboy gets it right sometimes, but ultimately I decided that if this is going to be true experiment to make your Thanksgiving better I should stick with the experts. To America’s Test Kitchen, Slow Cooker Revolution it was. And darned if they didn’t have exactly the recipes I was looking for.

Keeping with the classics, I stuck with green bean casserole and mashed potatoes to what Thanksgiving spread is complete without them. I’ll be honest though 30 min. of prep of forgetting the crock-pot going then to cook for another four hours, doesn’t seem like streamlining to me. And then there’s a footnote stating that the recipe for green bean casserole does not keep well on warm so you can’t even make it ahead of time and let it sit until company arrives.

Now as for the mashed potatoes, the prep work was pretty quick, and not but unlike traditional mashed potatoes. Slice, cover with water, and let hangout until mashable.

Slow Cooker Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes

from America’s Test Kitchen Slow Cooker Revolution

Ingredients:

  • 3 lbs Yukon gold potatoes (about 6 medium), peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
  • 1 1/2 cups water
  • 2 garlic cloves, peeled
  • 1 bay leaf
  • Salt and Pepper
  • 3 tbs unsalted butter, melted
  • 1/2 buttermilk, warmed, plus extra as needed
  • 1/2 cup sour cream, room temperature
  • 3 scallions, sliced thin

Preparation:

Combine potatoes, water, garlic cloves, bay leaves, and 1 teas salt in slow cooker. Cover and cook until potatoes are tender, 4 to 6 hours on low.

Drain potatoes, discarding garlic cloves and bay leaf, then return to slow cooker. Mash potatoes thoroughly with potato masher. Fold in butter, then buttermilk and sour cream. Add more buttermilk as needed to adjust consistency. Fold in scallions, season with salt and pepper to taste, and serve.

This dish can be held on warm setting for 1 to 2 hours before serving; loosen with additional warm buttermilk as needed before serving.

Slow Cooker Green Bean Casserole

from America’s Test Kitchen Slow Cooker Revolution

Ingredients:

  • 3 cups canned fried onions
  • 2 slices high-quality white sandwich bread, torn into quarters
  • 5 tbs unsalted butter
  • 10 ounces white or cremini mushrooms, trimmed and sliced 1/4 inch thick
  • 4 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 teas minced fresh thyme, or 1/2 teas dried
  • 3/4 teas salt
  • 1/2 teas pepper
  • 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
  • 1 1/4 cups heavy cream
  • 2 lbs green beans, trimmed and cut into 1-inch length

Preparation:

Pulse 1 cup fried onions in food processor until finely ground, about 10 pulses; set aside. Pulse bread in food processor to coarse crumbs, about 10 pulses. Melt 2 tbs butter in 12-inch skillet over medium heat. Add bread crumbs and remaining 2 cups fried onion and toast, stirring often, until golden brown, 5 to 7 minutes; set aside for serving.

Wipe skillet clean with paper towels. Melt remaining 3 tbs butter in skillet over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms, garlic, thyme, salt and pepper and cook until mushrooms are softened and lightly browned, 8 to 10 minutes.

Stir in processed fried onions and flour and cook for 1 minute. Slowly whisk in broth and cream, scraping up any browned bits and smoothing out any lumps. Bring to simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until very thick and creamy, about 10 minutes.

Add beans to slow cooker and coat evenly with sauce. Cover and cook until beans are tender, 4 to 6 hours on low. Sprinkle with reserved bread-crumb mixture before serving.

This dish does not hold well on warm setting.

Both dishes turned out fantastically. I am not sure either streamlined or would make your Thanksgiving preparation any easier, but it certainly is a way to mix up the traditional this year.

This post brought to you by Tesco Direct, however photographs and thoughts expressed are my own.

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