Make It Fast, Cook It Slow (35 page)

CHOCOLATE AND MARSHMALLOW FONDUE

serves
4

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 1-quart or smaller slow cooker. Break chocolate into the stoneware and add the almond extract or Amaretto and heavy cream. Scoop the marshmallow fluff from the jar, and push it in with your fingers (so you can then lick them). Cover, and cook for about 90 minutes, stirring every 30 minutes or so. Serve with cut-up fruit, almonds, and graham crackers. I used gluten-free animal crackers.

The Verdict

The best part of this (for me) was that I sent Adam to the store to get the chocolate and he came home with the good stuff: Cadbury and Ghirardelli. I totally would have cheaped out, and he didn’t. I love that man. This stuff rocks. Make sure you brush your teeth afterward.

CHOCOLATE FONDUE

serves
4

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 1-quart or smaller slow cooker. Put the chocolate chips into the stoneware. Add the heavy cream and vanilla, and cover. Plug in and cook for about 1 hour. Stir. Serve with apple chunks, banana slices, cubes of pound cake, strawberries, or marshmallows. Or all of them, and invite me over!

The Verdict

You can’t not have fun while dipping stuff in chocolate. If you don’t have fun dipping stuff in chocolate, seek help. This is simple and easy and wonderful and amazing. The kids liked the marshmallows the best, surprise, surprise.

CRACKER JACK

serves
8

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 6-quart slow cooker. Put the sugar, corn syrup, molasses, and butter into your cooker and set on high for 1 to 3 hours, or until the mixture is hot and bubbly. While waiting, pop the popcorn in the air-popper. Spread out long pieces of parchment paper on the countertop or table. When the sugar mixture is bubbly, carefully mix in the popcorn and peanuts. You may need to add a bit at a time and ladle the hot syrup over the top. Spread the popcorn and peanuts out on the parchment paper and sprinkle with the kosher salt. Store in an airtight container.

CRANBERRY-ORANGE DIP

serves
4

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 1-quart or smaller slow cooker. Plug in the cooker to warm it up. Shove the block of cream cheese into the stoneware. You may need to squish it in with a spoon, but I promise it will fit. Add the Swiss cheese, orange zest, and apple juice. Cover and let cook for 45 minutes to 1 hour. When the cheeses have fully melted, stir in the dried cranberries. Serve with your favorite crackers or apple slices.

The Verdict

This looks like a big pile of fluffy snow.

CRUNCHY ROASTED GARBANZO BEANS

serves
6

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 4-quart slow cooker. Place the garbanzo beans into the stoneware. Pour on lemon juice, and add salt and cayenne. Toss well to distribute the flavors. Prop the lid of your crock open with a wooden skewer or chopstick to release any condensation, and cook on low for 8 to 10 hours, or until the garbanzo beans have shriveled up and have a crunch. I cooked my batch on low for 9 hours overnight. Store in the refrigerator.

The Verdict

These are fun to munch on, beyond healthy, slightly addictive, and super easy to make. Every once in a while you will get a soggy-ish bean, but the crunch of the beans is nice. They are reminiscent of corn nuts, without fear of damaging teeth. The kids decided they look like shrunken brains.

FANCY CHEESE FONDUE

serves
6

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 1-quart or smaller slow cooker. Shred the hard cheeses and put into the mini cooker. Add the goat cheese. Pour in the white wine and sprinkle the nutmeg on top. No need to stir—it will melt together. Cook for 45 minutes, then stir. Cover again and heat until the cheeses have melted and are bubbly. Serve with bread, crostini, crackers, or your favorite dipping vegetables.

I made crostini out of a loaf of brown rice bread. All I did was brush olive oil on both sides of each slice, and sprinkle with kosher salt and pepper. I baked them at 400°F until golden, flipping once.

NUTS AND BOLTS TRAIL MIX

serves
6

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 6-quart slow cooker. Put the nuts, pretzels, and cranberries into the stoneware. Combine the melted butter with the water, vanilla, and sugar. Pour the mixture over the top of dry ingredients. Stir well to coat. Cover and cook on high for 2 to 3 hours, stirring every 30 minutes. When the pretzels have browned and the nuts are toasty, pour the mix out onto a parchment-lined baking sheet to cool. Store in an airtight container.

The Verdict

I was worried that the pretzels would taste stale after being coated, but once they cooled, they regained their original crunch. This tastes delicious and makes a fantastic after-school snack.

PEANUT BUTTER FONDUE

serves
4

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 1-quart or smaller slow cooker. Scoop the peanut butter into the stoneware. Add the brown sugar, vanilla, and cream. Push the marshmallows into the mixture. Don’t bother to stir now; the peanut butter will just stick to the spoon. Cover and cook for about 1 hour. Stir well. Heat some more if it isn’t all melty. Serve with apple slices and celery sticks, and eat in bed while watching
Oprah
.

PIZZA FONDUE

serves
4

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 1-quart or smaller slow cooker. Count out 10 pieces of pepperoni, then eat the rest of the package. Put the pasta sauce into the mini cooker, and plug it in. Add the Italian seasoning and diced pepperoni. Shove in the cup of shredded cheese. Cover and cook for 45 minutes or so. Stir well and serve with tortilla chips, bread sticks, or bread cubes.

PUMPKIN PIE DIP

serves
6

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 1-quart or smaller slow cooker. Add the cream cheese to the stoneware, and top with the sour cream. Pour in the pumpkin pie filling. Cover and cook for about 1 hour, then stir well. If the cream cheese hasn’t fully melted, cook a bit longer. Garnish with the chopped walnuts, if desired.

The Verdict

I served this with gluten-free gingersnaps, pretzels, and apple slices. It was a big hit; it tasted like pumpkin cheesecake. This would be fun to serve along with Pumpkin Spice Lattes at a pumpkin-carving party.

PUPPY CHOW/MONKEY MIX

serves
12

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 6-quart or larger slow cooker. Put the chocolate chips and butter (add peanut butter now, if using) into your stoneware. Turn the cooker to low for 90 minutes, or to high for about 45 minutes. When the chocolate chips are beginning to lose shape, stir in the cereal, cranberries, seeds, and almonds. Turn off the slow cooker. Spread out a big length of parchment paper on your countertop. Add
¹
/
₃
cup confectioners’ sugar to each freezer bag. Shake about one-third of the chocolaty cereal into each bag. Spread out on the parchment paper to cool. Get hugs.

The Verdict

This is a snack for good kids. Really good kids. If you want your kids to finish their homework promptly, make their beds, or rub your back, say you’re going to make Puppy Chow/Monkey Mix. Thankfully we packed up half of this to send home with some friends, or I would have eaten my weight in it—this makes a lot.

RICE KRISPIES TREATS

serves
10
to
12

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 6-quart slow cooker; it needs to be large enough to stir the ingredients easily. Put the butter and the marshmallows into your stoneware and turn the cooker to high. Add the cereal. Cover and let cook for 1 hour.

While waiting, prepare an 11×9-inch cake pan with parchment paper or greased foil. When the time has elapsed, stir well. If the marshmallows and butter haven’t fully melted, cook for another 30 minutes on high. Spread the contents into the prepared pan, and let cool fully before cutting into squares.

The Verdict

This is the best way I’ve found to make Rice Krispies treats (we don’t use the real stuff, but Barbara’s Organic Gluten-Free Brown Rice Treats doesn’t sound quite as nice). I like that the kids can be in charge of making the whole thing without me being worried they’ll burn themselves on the stove, and that for the hour the marshmallows and butter are melting they are on their absolute best behavior.

ROASTED AND SPICED NUTS

serves
12

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 6-quart slow cooker. Spray the inside of your stoneware with cooking spray. This is the only grease/butter, which creates a fantastic non-oily nut. Put in your nuts/seeds, and add the spices and the maple syrup. Toss well to coat. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours, stirring every 20 minutes or so. The nuts will burn if you don’t stir them (don’t worry if a few get burned; they still taste good and get that rustic homemade look). Spread the nuts out on a layer of foil or wax paper to completely cool, and store in an airtight container.

The Verdict

We all really liked these, and so did my dad. The kids ate a bunch, then fanned their tongues because of the slight kick from the cayenne. Both the maple syrup and cayenne are there, but they are not overpowering, which is sort of scary because you can eat a bucket load. These make a fantastic gift, unless your recipient is allergic to nuts. Then you should make something else.