My slow cooker makes an appearance as soon as the cooler weather arrives. I don't use it during the summer months but I love it for making stews and casseroles, good hearty meals. I included beef, potatoes, carrots, swede, parsnips and onions, you can't really tell how much food there was but this is a 6.5l slow cooker so it's big. I bought it when the family was at home so it's a bit big now for just the two of us but I make extra and then it does for more than one meal.
Excuse the dribbles on the plate, Mick dished up and he's not the most careful!
It was delicious, even if I say so myself, and plenty of leftovers for another cold day.
My slow cooker earns its keep during the colder months. I live alone but use a 6.5ltr cooker and freeze the extras for easy meals at a later date.
ReplyDeleteI like having leftovers to freeze for another day, they make great quick meals when you don't fancy cooking.
DeleteThat looks delicious! We also have a slow cooker and we use it all year. As we grow a lot of veg we make stew with what we can't eat and freeze it, so as not to waste anything. John's a dab hand at pies and scones too. Did you see my post about his chutney? It's still in the cupboard, top shelf, where I can't get at it! We had our first frost, not a hard frost, but it's certainly chilly this morning. We have a 10.5tog and a small patchwork quilt that I made many moons ago, on top of our bed. We're just having breakfast and bracing ourselves for a chilly bike ride into town. Best, Jane :)
ReplyDeleteI'm sure the bike ride soon warmed you up, though it was cold again this morning, Mick had to scrape ice off the car before he went to work. I did see your post about John's chutney, that's something to look forward to, providing you don't get your hands on it before it's ready.
Delete4.5 tog!!!??? I must be soft. I have a 12 all year round.
ReplyDeleteSlow cookers are a godsend at this time of year. Mine will been in use again tomorrow. X
Mick's always too warm under a 4.5 but I really felt the cold on Friday night so he'll have to put up with a 10.5 tog this winter. There's a sausage and liver casserole in the slow cooker today, Archie's been going mad for the gorgeous aromas coming out of the kitchen.
DeleteWe are feeling the cold here too, after 26C on Thursday the artic winds are reaching us and its dropped to 15C brrr indeed. Like you, time to change the quilt! I have suggested to Rebecca about a slow cooker for ease of having hot tasty meals ready after work. Would you recommend any, or any pitfalls to look out for. xcx
ReplyDeleteIt comes as a shock to the system when the temperature drops suddenly. I've only ever had one slow cooker, mine is a Morphy Richards and I've had it years. I haven't come across any problems with it at all. Daniel and Jasmine bought a slow cooker at the start of the year and they use it on a weekend to make up meals ready for the week ahead, they find it very convenient.
DeleteIt's literally freezing here today, Jo, so we'll definitely be tucking into hearty soups and stews soon too!
ReplyDeleteWe don't really eat these kind of meals during the summer months but they're very filling and comforting when the colder weather arrives.
DeleteWhen we use our huge slow cooker, we have the meal and all the leftovers are blitz for soups.
ReplyDeleteThat's a really good idea. I must admit that I rarely make soup but I might just start using up the leftovers in this way.
DeleteBrrr indeed, it's really turned cold hasn't it? We've had the woodburner roaring away to make the lounge nice and cosy.
ReplyDeleteI love my slow cooker too, I tend to cook enough for four people and eat it two days in a row, it's lazy but it's a hard habit to get out of now I've started, simply heating something up is so quick and fuss free.
Glad you're keeping cosy and warm
xx
I'm all for quick meals, sometimes we'll eat the same meal two days in a row but we often freeze the leftovers too. It's nice to have some home made ready meals in the freezer on standby.
DeleteIt sure has, and there was a frost here this morning.
ReplyDeleteThat sure looks delicious. xx
The car needed deicing this morning, a sure sign that winter is on the way. I'm a big fan of slow cooker meals during the colder months.
DeleteYour stew looks so good! I will probably keep cooking the same amount when it's just the two of us as well, then we'll eat it for dinner for a few nights. He'll be so tired of everything I make. :)
ReplyDeleteHa ha, that's the only problem when you're eating leftovers. I like to make more than one meal at a time and then freeze some for use at a later date.
DeleteA lovely warm bed, to get into, and snuggle down in!!! A perk✨, of this time of year.
ReplyDeleteWe have not had to change to flannel sheets yet, but the time is coming. I do have allllll the puffs on, though. :-)
Oh yes, delicious Crock Pot meals!!!! Kind-of throw everything in, and let it bubble away, all day. Soooooo yummy! Another perk✨, of this time of year!!!
✨🍁🎃🍁✨
I do like to be warm in bed and my new quilt is so snuggly and warm. The slow cooker is in use again today, liver and sausage this time, one of Mick's favourites.
DeleteYum, yum! Slow cooker meals are the best - a bit of work in the morning and then a delicious meal is ready by dinner with none of the last minute prep. Interesting about your quilt rating - we don't have that here, but it seems like a great idea.
ReplyDeleteI like to get the majority of my jobs done on a morning so being able to also prepare the evening meal is great. I should have actually used the correct term of duvet in my post rather than quilt. Duvets were always called continental quilts here when I was young and the term quilt has stuck with me but I know a quilt can mean something different.
DeleteHello Jo,
ReplyDeleteIt is cold, my Husband and I were discussing whether or not we need a thicker quilt.
I like a light weight duvet with a
fleece blanket on top,but I don't think it
will be enough for this Autumn/Winter.
There is no doubt the weather is colder than usual
for this time of year.
Hearty comfort food is what we need in weather like this.
Take Care x
I don't know how we managed with a 4.5tog quilt throughout last winter but we did and I didn't feel the cold. I must be getting softer as I get older. Our eating habits definitely change as soon as the cold weather arrives.
DeleteThere's sausage and liver in the slow cooker today and that smells delicious, Archie has been patrolling the kitchen all day.
ReplyDeleteI've been and bought all the veg to make a stew tomorrow too, it's that time of year isn't it? although I don't like stewing beef so always put corned beef in mine, I don't make it in the slow cooker because i like a thicker stew and mine always come out thin and watery in the slow cooker, i don't know why. We have a 13.5 tog quilt on our bed, I do like to be warm in bed, having said that, my bedroom window is open all year round, even in the winter as I like the fresh air, lol
ReplyDeleteI've never tried corned beef in a stew, I'll have to try that. I like to make stews and casseroles in the slow cooker because my casserole dishes just aren't big enough. I have a Le Creuset one which is bigger than my Pyrex dishes but I still struggle with that. Eleanor has a 13.5 tog quilt on her bed the whole year round but Daniel's like us, he likes something cooler.
DeleteIt really has become chilly! I have the heating on all the time now and have the logburner roaring away. Stews and soups are the perfect autumn/winter meals!xxx
ReplyDeleteThe heating is on here too and it's nice to get some warming meals inside us on cold days.
DeleteLooks delicious. I love this time of year when the slow cooker comes out.
ReplyDeleteThe slow cooker is so convenient and I enjoy having dinner bubbling away in it. It was sausage and liver casserole tonight, delicious.
DeleteIt’s definitely stew weather.
ReplyDeleteIt's turned much colder, just the weather for stews and casseroles.
DeleteI love my warm quilt and my slow cooker now the cold weather has arrived. Your stew looks so delicious, Jo. Keep warm, dear friend! P. x
ReplyDeleteIt'll soon be time to hunker down with all the comforts for winter. I'm wishing that spring would hurry up already.
DeleteI'd never come across tog ratings on quilt inners until we lived in the UK. Nor quilts that snapped together, so you could have a winter warm one and then un-snap one layer for summer. I finally bit the bullet and bought NZ made wool quilt inners a few years back and they're on the beds all year round now and superb quality. Some will eat slow cooker food in this house, and others won;t touch it, no matter what it is.... I've been in winder clothing today down under too! Suddenly got cold again. Typical spring!
ReplyDeleteThe quilts which snap together are good, I suppose we could use each one separately but the double thickness would definitely be too warm for us, even in winter. Food cooked in the slow cooker does have a different taste, the veggies tend to take on the flavour of the meat which took me a while to get used to.
DeleteLooks good Jo & I use my slow cooker all year round. In summer it's great for pot roast or lemon chicken, which can then be used as cold meat with a salad on very hot days. The meat seems to stay a lot moister when slow cooked instead of drying out as in baking/roasting. I also make a lovely small Xmas pudding in mine, which is much lighter than the usual one & more edible here in the middle of summer (our Christmas time). Take care.
ReplyDeleteI suppose a slow cooker is good in a hot summer as you don't have the heat of the cooker warming up the house, I never thought of it that way before. Perhaps I'll have to start using my slow cooker the whole year round.
DeleteNice and snug under our warmer quilt too, its really been chilly these past couple of nights.
ReplyDeleteThat stew looks delicious.. I bet your home smelled wonderful all day with that cooking.
I can't believe the difference a warmer quilt makes, I've been nice and snug these past two nights. I think the thing I love most about a slow cooker is the aroma that comes from the kitchen all day.
DeleteOur cooking always changes during the seasons. Always! A nice heavy quilt usually makes me sleep more soundly. The weight of a coverlet has recently been talked about for sleep quality. For me, it appears to be true.
ReplyDeleteMick's having trouble sleeping since we changed the quilt, I don't know if it's the warmth or the weight that he's struggling with. I love it though.
Delete10.5 tog is so good for this time of year …
ReplyDeleteThat meal looks delicious, perfect for cooler days... and it's so wonderful to enjoy the aroma before you sit down to eat :)
All the best Jan
I love comfort food when the weather turns cold and you're right, the aroma can be enjoyed throughout the day whilst it's cooking in the slow cooker.
DeleteIt is so nice to have proper seasons, isn't it? You can celebrate them in so many details, bedding, cloths, cooking different dishes. The longer evenings also give a license to craft more :-)
ReplyDeleteAmalia
xo
I could quite happily forgo winter, it's my least favourite season so I'm looking forward to spring already.
DeleteThe smell of the slow cooker when you come home after being out is so welcoming! A bonus that there is leftovers for another meal too.
ReplyDeleteHope the duvet is keeping you toasty still!
Lisa x
I enjoy having leftovers, a nice easy meal. I'm lovely and warm in bed now I've got my warmer quilt.
Delete