Make It Fast, Cook It Slow (4 page)

JALAPEÑO POPPERS

serves
5

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 4-quart slow cooker and wear plastic gloves when handling the jalapeños. I ignored this advice and had pain for about three hours in all of my fingers, even after taking a high dose of aspirin and sitting with an ice pack. Jalapeños are very powerful creations. Anyhow, wearing gloves, cut the tops off the jalapeños, and scrape out and discard the membrane and all of the little white seeds with a knife under running water. Set aside. In a bowl, mix together your stuffing mixture of cream cheese, Parmesan cheese, sour cream, and crumbled bacon. Fill the empty jalapeño cavities with the stuffing. You could probably be fancy and pipe it in with a plastic bag, but fingers will work (you’re going to wear gloves, right?). Put
¹
/
₃
cup of water in the bottom of your stoneware, and place the stuffed jalapeños on top. Cover and cook on high for 2 to 3 hours, or on low for 3 to 4 hours. The jalapeños are done when the skin starts to wilt and look wrinkly. Serve hot or at room temperature. I like them best at room temperature.

The Verdict

These are delicious, and aren’t overly spicy—the heat was just right for me. I made them for my brother and sister-in-law, but didn’t think to make them until right before we ate dinner. So we had them after dinner and dessert, which is a bit different. I was too full to enjoy them that night, but adored the leftovers, which I had for breakfast with coffee. Weird, I know.

NOT-TOO-SPICY BEAN DIP

serves
6

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 1-quart slow cooker. Pour the beans into the stoneware, and stir in the taco sauce. Add the cheese. Cover and cook on low for 3 hours, or on high for 1½ hours. Serve with your favorite chips. We used flaxseed chips so we could justify eating it for dinner. And then we sang the bean song.

ROASTED GARLIC

serves
6

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 4-quart slow cooker. With a sharp knife, carefully cut off the top end of the garlic bulb. You want to keep it wrapped in the outer skin layers, and have just a bit of some of the cloves exposed. Wrap each bulb in its own piece of aluminum foil. Plop all the foil-wrapped bulbs into your cooker and cook on low for 4 to 5 hours. Unwrap the foil, and squeeze the bulb. If the garlic pulp squirts out (like a tube of frosting), it’s done. If not, wrap it back up and cook for another hour or so.

The Verdict

Roasting garlic creates a mellow, somewhat nutty flavor. The softened garlic is easily spread on your favorite crackers or pieces of crusty bread, and makes a wonderful snack or appetizer. This is not only delicious, it will clear sinuses, and ward off vampires.

SPINACH AND ARTICHOKE DIP

serves
8
to
10

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 4-quart slow cooker. Put the artichoke hearts into the stoneware. Scrunch the spinach and chop it the best you can—you’re mostly trying to get the long stems off. Add it to the cooker and put in sour cream, cream cheese, and jalapeños. Top with ½ cup each shredded mozzarella and Parmesan. Cover and cook on low for 2 hours, or on high for 1 hour. Stir. The spinach should begin to wilt. If it hasn’t, cook some more. When the spinach is totally wilted, add the remaining ½ cup of mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses, and let them melt, with the lid off to allow the moisture to evaporate. Serve with your favorite chips, sliced veggies, or bread cubes.

The Verdict

I liked this a lot—the fresh spinach retained a bit of its crunch, and the cheeses and jalapeños complemented each other beautifully. This wasn’t too spicy for my kids, and they both ate more than I would have liked, since they then were too full to eat dinner.

SUN-DRIED TOMATO DIP

serves
8

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 2-quart slow cooker. Pulse the sun-dried tomatoes in a food processor or blender until finely chopped. Add to the slow cooker. Top with the cream cheese. Cover and cook on low for 3 to 4 hours, or on high for about 2 hours. Stir well and serve with your favorite chips, crackers, or cubed bread.

The Verdict

We were home, sick, for New Year’s Eve, but it was okay because we had this dip. And Boggle. This tastes better than most things in the world, and I couldn’t stop eating it. It even tasted good cold the next morning for breakfast.

SUPER DUPER GARLIC DIP

serves
8

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 1-quart or smaller slow cooker. Plug in the cooker to warm it up, and add the block of cream cheese. Add the mayonnaise and garlic, and cover. You won’t be able to stir it until the cream cheese has melted a bit. After 30 minutes, stir well, and cook, covered, for another 30 to 45 minutes. Serve with your favorite crackers and celery sticks. If you leave the slow cooker plugged in for too long, the dip might separate a bit, and the garlic will brown. If this happens, unplug the cooker and give the dip a quick stir—it’s definitely salvageable.

SWEET AND SPICY CHICKEN WINGS

serves
6

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 6-quart slow cooker. You can use frozen or thawed wings and drumsticks. Some people like to brown the wings before adding them to the slow cooker; I do not. Browning provides a bit of color and texture, but does not improve flavor. Put the chicken into the stoneware. Add the salsa and apricot preserves. Cover and cook on low for 8 hours, or on high for 4 hours. The chicken is finished when it is fully cooked and has reached the desired tenderness. (If your chicken is fresh and has been browned, it will cook faster.) These wings are a great change of pace from the tangy flavor of traditional wings, and are a bit “fancier” to serve to guests.

TERIYAKI DRUMETTES

serves
4

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 4-quart slow cooker. Plop the chicken into the crock. Add the soy sauce, brown sugar, sherry, and garlic. Toss with two large spoons to coat the chicken somewhat evenly. Cover and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours, or on high for 4 to 5 hours.

The Verdict

I served this with white rice, and my kids ate every single drumette I made. They were like savage beasts.

TOMATOES AND GOAT CHEESE WITH CRANBERRY BALSAMIC SYRUP

serves
6

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 6-quart slow cooker. Swirl the balsamic vinegar on the bottom of the stoneware. Cut the tomatoes into thick slices, and top with rounds of goat cheese. Put them into the cooker (you may need to stagger-stack to get them all in). Sprinkle with the salt and pepper, add the cranberries, and drizzle the sesame oil over everything. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours, or until the goat cheese is melty and tomatoes start to pucker. Serve as an appetizer with some bread to soak up the juice.

The Verdict

Oh My Little Pony, these couldn’t possibly be any better. Goat cheese is like a nice, creamy mild feta. This was the first time I had cooked with it, and now I buy it regularly. The kids loved these—I so wish they didn’t, so I could have eaten them all myself.

TURKEY MEATBALLS WITH CRANBERRY BARBECUE SAUCE

serves
4
to
6

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 4-quart slow cooker. Slice the cranberry sauce, and lay the slices on the bottom of the stoneware. Cover with the meatballs. Add the barbecue and soy sauce. Cover and cook on low for 4 to 6 hours or on high for 2 to 4 hours. The cooking time will vary depending upon whether your meatballs are fresh or frozen.

The Verdict

I made my own meatballs for this dish. The proportions of the sauce are for 1 pound of meatballs, but I stretched it to cover 2 pounds. My dad thought they could use some more sauce, my husband thought they were plenty saucy, and one of my kids washed all the sauce off hers. Use your best judgment as to how much sauce to make for your family.

WHITE BEAN AND PESTO SPREAD

serves
4

The Ingredients

The Directions

Use a 1-quart or smaller slow cooker. Smash the beans; I used a handheld chopper, but you could squeeze them in a ziplock bag or use a tiny food processor. Mix with the pesto. Add the mixture to a mini slow cooker, cover it, and plug it in. I cooked our dip for about 45 minutes, and it was warm and gooey. Serve with pita chips, tortilla chips, or crostini.

I made crostini out of leftover brown rice bread. It was easy. Brush the pieces with a bit of olive oil, then sprinkle them with salt and pepper. Bake at 400°F until the bottoms are toasty, then broil until the tops are toasty, too.

The Verdict

This is such a yummy spread, and it is so easy; it practically makes itself. It must eat itself, too, because I have no idea where it went. I made a batch, took a picture, and then it disappeared. Keep the ingredients on hand for last-minute company. You will thank me when your guests’ eyeballs roll back in delight.

W
aking up to a hot breakfast is pretty much the best thing, ever. While a few of these can be cooked overnight, others can be assembled the evening before for an easy morning plug-in. Do yourself a favor and load up the coffeepot the night before, too!