Another episode in the slow cooker diaries! I know that a couple of you actually purchased a slow cooker when I posted my recipe for Slow Cooked Pork so I’m trying to make the appliance useful and not a dusty fixture in your kitchen cabinets.
Here’s the thing… I had an allergy test a few weeks ago and to my utter shock, I found out that I am allergic to soy! For someone that adores tofu and drinks organic soy milk like it’s life’s sustaining power, this was a very sad revelation. By no means am I cutting it from my diet (good news is that I don’t turn into a swollen pumpkin when I eat it) but I suppose I should limit my intake a tad to avoid the small irritations it does cause.
So, there might be a wee more meat in my diet to fill my reduced tofu gap. But as a disclaimer, I try very hard to buy meat that is farmed responsibly, partly because I can’t bear to think of a caged, unhappy animal and partly just because it tastes better! Enjoy this easy, work free recipe!
For the Recipe, click here:
Hoisin and Apricot Slow Cooked Beef with Lemon Basmati Rice
I’ve been dreaming about BBQ pulled pork. Usually, I dream about flowery broccoli heads and juicy tomatoes dancing around with crisp asparagus spears. Yup, I am that weird, but lately, my cravings have been for pork. Since I really don’t like to deny myself and at even the mention of slow cooked pork, Ivan’s eyes nearly popped out of his head, I gave in.
I literally threw this into the slow cooker in 10 minutes and ran off to play some tennis. When I returned, the house smelled wonderful and all through the Boston Red Sox’s victory over the Yankees and the Celtics’ victory in Game 2, I was drooling. So when the time finally came (6 hours later) to shred this baby up, I was euphoric! Next BBQ we have, I am definitely making this easy, inexpensive and amazing piggy chow down. Paired with some cool coleslaw, it just about can’t be beat.
For the Recipes, click here:
BBQ Pulled Pork
Summer Coleslaw
Breakfast with Quinoa: Part II
I spend a ridiculous amount of time playing crazy food scientist in my kitchen. There are times I wash a mixing bowl three times in one day, which inevitably makes me think “Should I get more mixing bowls?” and a shiver of excitement goes through me, thinking about scanning the aisles at Marshalls for a bright colored and shiny new bowl of possibilities.
And then, there comes a week where I am literally cooked out and cannot stand to pick up a spoon, let alone a measuring cup. So I have a few things that I make that are easy and require no washing of bowls or cleaning of floured surfaces.
I quite get that some people find the slow-cooker to be elementary. However, if you scoff at this lovely little machine for morning munchies, you are a narcissist! It’s honestly like having a personal chef, or at least what I assume having a personal chef would be like. Arise and eat!
A slight disclaimer: This is for serious quinoa lovers. It has a porridge-like texture and since quinoa has a particularly earthy aroma, some oatmeal die-hards may not be convinced. But give it a try and you just might find yourself going back for a second bowl.
For the Recipe, click here:
Quinoa Porridge with Pears
I don’t really have much to say other than a HUGE thank you to Jay who let me borrow his insanely rad camera. I feel like a total fraud because I have absolutely no idea how to use this thing, but he was nice enough to give me a short tutorial. I’m playing with things like “Aperture” and laughing at myself, having fun in the process.
But back to the food… These Island Short Rib and Mango Chutney Tortillas were just devoured by Ivan and me. I think we deserved it after smelling the tantalizing flavors coming from the kitchen for the last 10 hours… Cue my new slow-cooker, which by the way, is going to be my new best friend. I have a feeling that any real chef out there would sniff at the slow-cooker, but I just love it. Anything that takes the fuss out of cooking you know? The coconut flavoring is the star of this dish. Use a teeny tiny bit, but it will add such an interesting exotic flavor to the meat, you won’t regret it. Even if it smells overpowering when you make the sauce, have no fear, it mellows out during the cooking process.
So toss it all in and 10 hours later, believe me, your patience will pay off!
For the Recipe, click here:
Tropical Short Rib and Mango Chutney Tortillas
