Cookaholics Bulletin Board

Mary,

I let the crock come back up to room temp before rewarming. Sometimes I move it to a regular pot for the second coo if I am going to be home. I have been known to put the crock back in the metal heater portion, and put that on a lamp timer to come on in 90 mins if I need to let the crock warm up to temp before turning it on and I am short on time for leaving for work. Definitely not USDA approved but we haven't gotten food poisioning yet from it. [I can't believe I just admited that.]

--Lisa

Yup...That is the nickname given to it in the 1800's due to all the killings. I suspect most involved sweet cornbread and beans in Chili.

There's a town near hear actually called cut and shoot, Google if in doubt

CC features a slow-cooker recipe every month. They assume a 6-quart crock, but I have halved all of their recipes and most will fit in a 2-quart. If the metric conversion page isn't lying to me, that should fit plenty well into a 3.5 liter crock. Their recipe for slow-cooker beef stew is divine. I like it better than conventional stews. The Country Captain chicken is a big favorite, too.

Potato soup is a slow cooker classic and may be the only recipe we hauled out a Crock Pot for some years. The latest version we tried was from Slow Cooker Revolution. I think we have the ingredients for slow cooker Pork, Leek, and Fennel stew later in the week.

Since bulgur wheat cooks in ten minutes, I think any chili recipe that includes it with butternut squash could be on the table in less than hour using conventional stove top methods unless it starts with dried beans.

I second the recommendation of "Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker"....I have the regular version, not the "for two" version

Carey, you are right! http://www.robertrose.ca/author/donna-marie-pye

Hey, she works in one of my favourite china stores now! I bought all of my Denby from them online (at a huge discount from retail prices).

I think you should come to visit and we could do a class there. I'm in K-W a few times a year to visit my old roommate. (hijack over, sorry)

Mary, I have The Italian Slow Cooker by Michele Scicolone but have yet to make anything from it. I will look through and see if anything jumps out but you might want to google and try some of the recipes. I have made several of her non-slow cooker stuff and she doesn't miss.

I just used another one of my time delay crockpot tricks that I didn't think of when I responded earlier - I have a mini crock I filled up earlier today with a little bit of raw pork butt, some baby carrots, baby potatoes, red bell pepper, coconut milk, curry powder, salt and hot pepper. I refrigerated the crock and put a lamp timer on the heater to go on a 1 am. When I go to bed at 11 or 11:30pm I will take the crock out of the fridge, put it in the insert and add four large square cubes of frozen chicken stock. It keeps everything colder than the danger zone in the cold crock for a couple of hours until the insert turns on. In the morning I will turn it off and pack it for lunch.

--Lisa

Mary,

Here is the recipe that I like best from Donna Marie Pye's book:

Burgundy Beef and Wild Mushroom Stew

1 pkg (5 oz/142g) dried mushrooms
1 cup boiling water
1/4 cup flour
2 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp salt
2 lbs stew beef
2 tbsp oil
1 cup beef stock
2 carrots, peeled, cut lengthwise and chopped into thirds
1 onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
8 oz button mushrooms, quartered (I often use cremini)
1/2 cup red wine
2 tbsp tomato paste
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 bay leaf

Soak mushrooms in boiling water for 20 - 30 minutes. (I often don't use the dried mushrooms).

Combine flour and spices through to the salt. Add beef to flour mix and toss to coat. Heat half the oil in nonstick skillet and brown the beef in batches, adding oil as needed. Transfer beef to slow cooker.

Deglaze pan with beef stock and add to the slow cooker.

Sauté onions and mushrooms and add to slow cooker ( she doesn't do this step but I do; she puts them in raw). Add carrots to slow cooker along with wine, tomato paste, vinegar and bay leaf.

Add coarsely chopped rehydrated mushrooms (if using) along with strained rehydrating liquid (I usually just add 1 extra cup of beef broth).

Stir well, cover and cook 8 - 10 hours on low. Serve over rice, or with starch of choice. Nice with a side of green beans.