WINTER VEGETATABLE STEW WITH CHEDDAR AND CROUTONS: A hearty, flavorful stew for healthy appetites. And its vitamin A is okay, courtesy of carrots and broccoli. Use a 5 to 6 quart cooker. Makes 4 servings. Combine the potatoes, turnips, carrots, celery, leek, broth, savory and pepper in an electric slow cooker. Cover and cook on LOW until the vegetables are tender, 7 to 9 hours (or on HIGH for 4 to 6 hours). Add the broccoli. Cover and cook until the broccoli is tender, about 15 minutes or longer. Divide the stew among 4 bowls; top each serving with croutons, cheese, and bacon-flavored bits. Per serving with regular cheddar cheese: 320 calories, 11 g fat (30% of calories), 6.3 saturated fat, 30 mg cholesterol, 604 mg sodium, 3.8 g dietary fiber. McEstimates with at-free cheddar and store bought croutons: PER SERVING: 232 cals, 3.7 g fat (15.3% cff). To make toasted croutons, cut 3 slices of crusty bread into 1/2-inch cubes. Spread the cubes on a baking sheet or perforated pizza pan. Mist the cubes with nonstick spray, then broil them until theyre golden, about 5 minutes. shake or stir cubes to expose the uncooked sides; broil them until golden, about 3 minutes. Carol Heding Munson, Smart Crockery Cooking (1996: Sterling IBSN 0-8069-6106-6 paper)/patH 4 hr method. Recipe by: Carol Heding Munson, Smart Crockery Cooking (1996) Posted to Digest eat-lf.v097.n316 by KitPATh on Dec 13, 1997