Slow Cooker: The Best Cookbook Ever (49 page)

Autumn fruits pair in this sweet and savory condiment that is terrific served with pork or poultry. Try using this chutney to glaze a ham or pork roast; the sauce from the roasting pan will be a delicious combination of the drippings and the chutney.

1½ cups cider vinegar

1½ cups firmly packed dark brown sugar

2 teaspoons crystallized ginger, finely chopped

Two 4-inch cinnamon sticks

1 cup golden raisins

1 cup dark raisins

1 medium onion, finely chopped

Grated zest of 1 lemon

Pinch of cayenne pepper

6 under ripe pears, peeled, cored, and coarsely chopped

6 crisp cooking apples, peeled, cored, and coarsely chopped

combine all the ingredients in the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 4 to 5 hours, until the chutney is thick and the apples and pears are softened.

cool to room temperature, remove the cinnamon sticks, and store in airtight containers in the refrigerator for up to 4 weeks or in the freezer for up to 1 month.

makes about 10 cups

This sweet and savory sauce is scrumptious served alongside poultry and pork. I serve this at Thanksgiving classes to rave reviews, but it’s so good that many students make this all year-round to glaze ham or pork loins.

Two 12-ounce packages fresh or frozen cranberries, defrosted, washed and picked ovr (discard any white cranberries)

Two 16-ounce bags frozen sliced peaches, defrosted and coarsely chopped

3½ cups sugar

2 medium onions, chopped

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground ginger

2 cups pecan halves

combine all the ingredients in the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 3 to 4 hours, until the cranberries have popped and the chutney is thickened.

cool to room temperature and store in airtight containers in the refrigerator for up to 4 weeks or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

makes about 8 cups

Dried fruits make terrific compotes to serve on the side with roasted or grilled entrées, particularly pork or chicken. Fragrant with sweet Riesling, cinnamon, and dried fruits, this compote is also delicious spooned over vanilla ice cream.

4 cups Riesling wine

3 cups dried apples, coarsely chopped

1 cup dried cranberries (craisins work, too)

Two 4-inch long cinnamon sticks

1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar

combine all the ingredients in the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 5 hours, until the liquid has been absorbed and the fruit is plump.

cool to room temperature, remove the cinnamon sticks and store in airtight containers in the refrigerator for up to 4 weeks or in the freezer for up to 3 months.

makes about 4 cups

Scents of the holidays will waft from your slow cooker when this sauce is bubbling away. Fragrant with ginger, cinnamon, and cloves, the sauce is terrific for Thanksgiving dinner but also complements chicken and pork. It can be used to glaze ham or pork roasts and is terrific on a turkey sandwich the day after Thanksgiving!

Two 12-ounce packages cranberries, washed and picked over (discard any white cranberries)

1 cup granulated sugar

¾ cup firmly packed light brown sugar

½ teaspoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

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teaspoon ground cloves

2 cups golden raisins

1 cup ruby port

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

combine all the ingredients in the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 2½ to 3 hours, until the cranberries have popped and the sauce is thickened.

cool to room temperature and store in airtight containers in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks or the freezer for up to 3 months. If the sauce is frozen, defrost it in the refrigerator for 36 hours before planning to serve.

makes about 6 cups

A friend’s dad makes a jalapeño turkey every Thanksgiving, and I thought, “What better condiment for it than a margarita-flavored cranberry sauce?” Lime is one of my favorite flavors, and the contrast with the cranberries is scrumptious. Serve with pork or poultry.

3 cups sugar

1 cup water

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cup fresh lime juice

½ cup tequila

Two 12-ounce bags fresh cranberries washed and picked over (discard any white cranberries)

½ teaspoon ground ginger

½ teaspoon ground allspice

combine all the ingredients in the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 2 to 3 hours, until the sauce is thickened and the cranberries have popped.

cool the sauce and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks.

makes about 4 cups

I remember during my childhood a relative once made cranberry orange relish, which I didn’t like much. I think the bitterness from the orange pith put me off. Since that time, I’ve learned to make an orange cranberry sauce, without bitterness, in the slow cooker. The orange and cranberry flavors melt together with cinnamon, clove, and ginger to give you a sauce you’d be proud to have grace your celebration table.

2 cups sugar

1½ cups orange juice

Grated zest of 2 oranges

Two 12-ounce packages fresh cranberries washed and picked over (discard any white cranberries)

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground ginger

¼ teaspoon ground cloves

combine all the ingredients in the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 2 to 3 hours, until thickened and the cranberries have split.

allow the sauce to cool to room temperature and store in airtight containers in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

makes about 4 cups

Jams are foolproof when made in the slow cooker, but you do need to stir them a few times during the cooking process to make sure they aren’t sticking. Once the jam is made, it can be refrigerated for two weeks or frozen for up to two months.

Follow this basic recipe for any type of berry you would like to make into jam; the proportions should be the same. This recipe will give you six one-pint jars that can be refrigerated or frozen.

12 cups (3 quarts) strawberries, hulled and cut into quarters

10 cups sugar

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cup fresh lemon juice

combine all the ingredients in the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 2½ hours. Uncover the cooker, stir the jam, and cook covered for another 2 hours.

cool to room temperature and store in airtight containers for 2 weeks in the refrigerator or 2 months in the freezer.

makes about 12 cups

Prosecco syrup combines with peaches to create a jam with the taste of the delicious effervescent cocktail that originated at Harry’s Bar in Venice, the Bellini. In Venice, white peaches are juiced, and the pits are left in the peach juice to give it a pink tone. The juice is poured into champagne flutes and topped with Prosecco, an Italian sparkling wine.

2 cups Prosecco

10 cups sugar

16 cups peeled, pitted, and coarsely chopped firm but not overly ripe fresh peaches

One 7.5-ounce box powdered pectin

bring the Prosecco to a boil in a saucepan. Add the sugar and boil, stirring, until the mixture is thickened. (It should coat a spoon.) Transfer to the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker. Add the peaches and pectin and stir to blend. Cover and cook on high for 2½ hours. Uncover the slow cooker, stir the jam, and cook covered for an additional 2 hours.

cool to room temper ature and store in air tight containers in the refriger ator for up to 2 weeks or in the freezer for up to 2 months.

makes about 12 cups

Brilliantly colored and intensely flavored, this marmalade makes it worth getting up in the morning. I have made this with pink oranges and blood oranges, and they are spectacular, but even regular navel oranges will turn out a fine marmalade. The addition of lime that has been cooked in tequila sugar syrup gives this marmalade a delicious new twist. It’s important to wash the fruit thoroughly, because the peel will be a major player in the finished marmalade; if it has any wax on it, it will affect the taste of your marmalade.

2 cups tequila (white tequila is fine for this)

8 cups sugar

1 medium lime, washed thoroughly, cut in half, and thinly sliced

1 cup orange juice

16 large navel oranges, washed thoroughly, cut in half, and thinly sliced

stir the tequila, sugar, lime, and orange juice together in a large saucepan. Bring to a boil and continue to boil, stirring, until the mixture becomes thick, about 5 minutes. Transfer to the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker. Add the oranges and stir to combine. Cover and cook on high for 3 hours. Uncover the cooker, stir the marmalade, and cook cover wed for an additional 3 hours.

cool to room temperature. Transfer the marmalade to airtight containers and store in the refrigerator for up to 4 weeks. The marmalade doesn’t freeze very well, so I don’t recommend it.

makes about 12 cups

Desserts in the slow cooker can be anything from a fruit cobbler, rice pudding, bread pudding, hot fudge cake to brandied peaches. All require only a few minutes of prep work and then a long, slow cooking time to bring out the best in the ingredients. You may wonder why you would want to make a dessert in the slow cooker, but if oven space is a concern or if you want to make something and not have to tend it during a busy day, the slow cooker is your ticket. Also, in the heat of summer, a slow cooker can take the place of your oven, so that your hot fudge cake does not heat up the kitchen as well.

Peaches poached in brandy with cloves and cinnamon are delicious served with a dollop of crème fraîche in the center, or warm over ice cream, or garnishing a platter of roasted meats. The peaches keep in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.

½ cup brandy

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted

1½ cups firmly packed light brown sugar

Two 4-inch cinnamon sticks

4 whole cloves

½ cup peach nectar

8 large large peaches, peeled, halved, and pitted

combine the brandy, butter, sugar, cinnamon sticks, cloves, and nectar in the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker and stir to dissolve the sugar. Add the peaches to the slow-cooker insert and turn to coat them with the syrup.

cover and cook on high for 2 hours. Allow the peaches to cool slightly. Using a slotted spoon, remove the spices from the sauce.

serve the peaches with the sauce poured over.

serves 8

Soft, tender baked apples are nostalgia food from the nursery, but there is no need any longer to crank up the oven to make these. They are simple to load into the slow cooker, and then simmered low and slow until they are tender and delicious. This version stuffs the apples with a mixture of walnuts and golden raisins flavored with cinnamon and rum.

8 medium apples (see savvy)

½ cup golden raisins

½ cup finely chopped walnuts

1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

2 tablespoons dark rum

4 tablespoons (½ stick) unsalted butter, melted and slightly cooled

1½ cups apple juice or apple cider

Unsweetened whipped cream for garnishing

Cinnamon sugar for garnishing

core the apples. Place them in the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker. Stir together the raisins, walnuts, sugar, cinnamon, rum, and butter in a mixing bowl and fill the apples with the mixture. Pour the apple juice into the bottom of the slow-cooker insert. Cover and cook on low for 2½ to 3 hours on high, until the apples are tender.

remove the apples using a spatula to catch any filling that may fall out of the bottom of the apple.

serve the apples with some of the sauce from the bottom of the slow cooker and a dollop of whipped cream, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar.

serves 8

apple savvy

This preparation works with any apple; my favorites are Granny Smith, Gala, Fuji, Braeburn, and Rome.

When amaretto, brown sugar, and pears are cooked together, the pears are infused with a caramelized almond flavor. A sprinkling of crushed amaretti cookies and chopped toasted almonds completes this delicious dessert. Serve warm or at room temperature. Refrigerate any leftover pears and syrup for up to three days.

½ cup amaretto liqueur

1 cup pear nectar

1½ cups firmly packed light brown sugar

½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted

6 firm red pears, peeled and cored (see savvy)

½ cup crushed amaretti cookies (about 6)

½ cup chopped almonds, toasted

combine the amaretto, nectar, sugar, and butter in the insert of a 5- to 7-quart slow cooker and stir until the sugar is dissolved. Stand the pears in the liquid, stem-ends up. Cover and cook on low for 4 hours until the pears are tender.

combine the cookie crumbs and almonds in a small bowl and set aside. Uncover the pears and allow to cool.

serve each pear in a pool of the sauce and sprinkled with some of the almond mixture.

serves 6–8

pear savvy

The easiest way to core the pears is to use a melon baller and go up through the bottom of the pear.