The Great American Slow Cooker Book (119 page)

1
Generously grease the inside of the slow cooker canister with unsalted butter. Set the apricots cut side down in the canister.

2
Whisk the yolks, sour cream, brown sugar, milk, vanilla, and salt in a large bowl until creamy. Whisk in the flour until smooth. Pour over the apricot halves.

3
Cover and cook on high for 1 hour 15 minutes in a small slow cooker, 1 hour 30 minutes in a medium cooker, or 1 hour 45 minutes in a large cooker, or until the batter is set and firm to the touch. Scoop out by the spoonfuls to serve.

TESTERS’ NOTES

•
A clafouti (
clah-foo-TEE
) is an Old World dessert, a custard baked over fruit. The slow cooker makes it even creamier than the standard oven variety!

•
Substitute an equivalent amount of whole sweet cherries, such as Bing. Add up to ½ teaspoon almond extract along with the vanilla.

Serve It Up!
Rather than serving with whipped cream, sweeten additional sour cream with confectioners’ sugar and whisk in some vanilla extract to use as a dolloped topping.

1
To make the filling, stir the apples, granulated sugar, flour, tapioca, and lemon juice in the slow cooker until the sugar dissolves.

2
To make the topping, mix the walnut pieces, brown sugar, flour, butter, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl until the mixture is uniform, everything sliced with butter and sugar. Sprinkle over the top of the apple filling, making an even, full layer.

3
Lay overlapping lengths of paper towels over the top of the cooker. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours in a small or medium slow cooker, or 2½ hours in a large slow cooker, or until the apple filling is bubbling around the bits of topping. Uncover and let stand unplugged for 5 minutes before serving.

TESTERS’ NOTES

•
A crisp is a fabled American dessert: a pie filling underneath a crunchy, nut-laced crust.

•
For more flavor, before chopping them toast the walnut pieces on a large baking sheet in a 350°F oven until lightly browned and aromatic, tossing occasionally, perhaps as much as 10 minutes.

•
Substitute peeled and pitted peaches or nectarines for the apples, and increase by 50 percent the amounts of the flour and tapioca for the filling.

INGREDIENTS EXPLAINED
Instant tapioca, which is the consistency of coarse cornmeal, was your grandmother’s secret thickener for making perfect pies. It creates a rich, thick filling without the incipient gumminess of flour or the stiffness of cornstarch.

1
Use a melon baller to core the apples, working down through the stem end into the flesh, turning the baller in tight circles as you work down, until you have removed all the seeds and core without breaking through the sides or bottom and leaving as much flesh as possible.

2
Mix the pecans, figs, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt in a bowl; pack this into the core of each apple. Top the stuffing with ½ tablespoon butter on each apple. Set them stuffing side up in the slow cooker and pour the apple juice around them.

3
Cover and cook on high for 2½ hours or on low for 5 hours, or until the apples are soft—until you could cut them with a spoon. Use a large slotted spoon to transfer to serving bowls and cool a few minutes before you dig in.

TESTERS’ NOTES

•
Since you can cook these on low for so long, and they’ll stay warm for a while, you might also consider stuffed apples for breakfast, setting up the slow cooker before you’re off to bed.

•
Using a melon baller to core an apple is pretty easy once you get the hang of it. If this is your first time, you might buy one extra apple, just in case you slip and break through the flesh of the apple.

1
Peel the pears, then slice off about ¼ inch of their wide bottoms. Core them by circling a melon baller or a serrated grapefruit spoon up from their wide bottoms and into the flesh, pulling out the seeds and tough core without breaking through the sides.

2
Set the pears cut side down in the slow cooker. Pour in the wine—and perhaps more—until the pears are submerged, then remove the pears to a plate. (This is to determine how much poaching liquid you need.)

3
Whisk the sugar into the poaching liquid until it dissolves. Return the pears to the slow cooker, cut side down. Drop in the cinnamon sticks and cloves.

4
Cover and cook on high for 2 to 3 hours in a small slow cooker, 3 to 4 hours in a medium cooker, or 4 to 5 hours in a large one, or until the pears are still firm but easily cut with a spoon. Use a slotted spoon to transfer them from the poaching liquid to serving bowls. If desired, spoon some of the poaching liquid around them, after having discarded the cinnamon sticks and cloves.

TESTERS’ NOTES

•
Bosc or Forelle pears work best for this dessert because they’re firm but still very sweet. Some Forelle pears are exceptionally small; choose the largest ones you can find. However, the timings are stated in a range because firmer pears will take longer than softer ones.

•
Skip the deep red wines for this dish and go for a lighter Pinot Noir, Gamay, or even Lambrusco.

•
If a thick syrup is desired, remove the herbs from the poaching liquid, pour the liquid into a large saucepan, and boil it down until reduced by three-quarters.

Serve It Up!
Chill a large bowl and the beaters for an electric mixer in the fridge for at least 1 hour. Then beat heavy cream with an electric mixer at high speed in that bowl until soft and luscious, not yet stiff. Beat in 1 or 2 tablespoons of the poaching liquid to sweeten the cream, turning it back into a rather loose sauce to serve with the pears.

1
Pour the sugar into a large, high-sided skillet. Set it over medium-low heat and melt the sugar, stirring occasionally, until golden brown.

2
Pour in the water, but watch out: it will splatter like mad. Stir constantly until the sugar dissolves into a caramel sauce. Pour and scrape the sauce into the slow cooker.

3
Place the plums cut side down in the cooker. Drizzle the brandy over them, then sprinkle with cinnamon.

4
Cover and cook on low for 2 hours, or until the plums are tender and the sauce is bubbling. Use a thin spatula to transfer the plums to serving bowls, then spoon the sauce over them.

TESTERS’ NOTES

•
The sugar will seize into a ball the moment the water hits the pan. Put any children and pets out of the kitchen. Work carefully; keep stirring until that sugar melts again.

•
For a richer dessert, dot up to 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into little bits, among the plums before cooking.

1
Butter the inside of the canister. Toss the banana slices, brown sugar, and cinnamon in the cooker until the sugar coats the bananas evenly.

2
Dollop the jam in teaspoonfuls evenly over everything. Sprinkle the butter bits over everything.

3
Cover and cook on low for 1½ hours in a small slow cooker, 2 hours in a medium cooker, or 2½ hours in a large one, or until the bananas are soft and the sauce is bubbling around them.

TESTERS’ NOTES

•
You can hardly flambé bananas foster in a slow cooker! Still and all, this slow cooker riff will be welcome over vanilla ice cream, frozen yogurt, or (especially) gelato.

•
We used apricot jam here because many recipes for bananas foster call for the dish to be flamed with apricot brandy.