Comments on: Sisters In the Kitchen: Slow Down

By: Betsy

Betsy — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 22:37:25 +0000

I made Marion’s NO-HO CHILI on Saturday and it was YUMMY! I added a little extra meat & spices. Couldn’t find Bison (guess it’s “not in season” right now), so I used grass-fed beef instead.

By: Chris

Chris — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 14:59:49 +0000

Margaret,
apple butter in a slow cooker? You are a genius!!! I love apple butter (I am from PA) but i can’t get it in california. i will make some as soon as the apples are in…
Thanks
Chris

By: Marion

Marion — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 13:23:40 +0000

I think most people pass right by the bison assuming it’s ground beef. It’s in both of my regular supermarkets, nothing fancy, right there in the red meat section, both ground and in steaks. Along with presenting those hormone and anti-biotic pluses, bison also has less fat and cholesterol than beef. So go ahead and eat your bison.

By: Paige

Paige — Mon, 02 Feb 2009 11:27:42 +0000

Christine–that polenta sounds AMAZING.
Elizabeth–don’t worry–nothing in the world could convince me to make cookies in the slow cooker. And yes, that 365 site is incredible. It’s a great, thorough resource.
Marion–ditto AMAZING re your chili. I’ve never tried bison, but am going to look for it at the market. Your no-hormones argument is persuasive beyond belief.
Mary–thanks for the cut o’ meat update.
Leslie–I knew I liked your wife :-) And as for pressure cookers–I love mine. That’s a recent acquisition for me, as well, and I’m a total convert. You can read about my PC cooking adventures here.

By: Elizabeth Edwardsen

Elizabeth Edwardsen — Sun, 01 Feb 2009 01:17:35 +0000

Paige,
Thanks for the crockpot365 link – that woman is a crockpot goddess! (And she, of course, has a book contract.) I am going to try her Jamaican Pumpkin soup and her Baba Ganoush and, perhaps first, her Crock Pot Cracker Jacks. I even sent the link to my *sister.

By: Leslie

Leslie — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 17:50:09 +0000

A quick note to those pressed for time in the morning… if you have energy the night before, put everything in the carafe and put it in the refrigerator. In the morning drop it in the pot, turn it on and walk out the door. We’ve been doing this in my home for about 7 years thanks to my lovely wife as I did not grow up with a slow cooker. My mother’s trick was a pressure cooker (I haven’t adopted that one)

By: mary

mary — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 10:55:56 +0000

Hi Paige – we call it silverside – you might call it round I think – same general end of the beast!

By: marionroach

marionroach — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 18:42:48 +0000

The Today Show reported that there will be 7.5 million Super Bowl parties. With a projected 1 billion viewers, that’s a whole lot of hormones per room, leaving me wondering if I might bring something to the mix that leaves the hormones at home.

I think my slow-cooker bison chili is the ticket. In my house, we eat a lot of bison, the only red meat in America to which no hormones have ever been added, as stipulated by federal law; no hormones, and no unneeded antibiotics–ever. So for these hormone high holy days, I offer a slow cooker recipe I call, “Keep Your Damn Hormones Chili.” My best friend prefers to call it “No-Ho Chili,” which works, as well.

Call it what you like, sisters, but crock on!

Keep Your Damn Hormones Chili
By Marion

*3 tbs olive oil
*2 medium onions
*3 cloves garlic
*2 pounds ground bison
*2.5 tbs chili powder
*1 tsp cumin
*1 tsp allspice
*1 tsp cinnamon
*1 tsp coriander
*2 15.5-oz cans red kidney beans
*1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes
*1 28-oz can diced tomatoes
*1 4-oz can tomato paste
*1.5 tbs red wine vinegar

1. Sautee bison in large frying pan until done. Remove with slotted spoon, and transfer to slow cooker.
2. Wipe out frying pan.
3. Add olive oil to frying pan.
4. Pulse together onions and garlic in food processor until chopped.
5. Transfer to frying pan and add spices. Sautee on medium heat for five minutes or until onions are soft.
6. Transfer to slow cooker.
7. Add remaining ingredients to slow cooker and set for 6 hours on low or whatever suits your schedule.

(I add a dollop of organic plain strained or Greek yogurt to mine before eating. Also, all the beans, spices and oil are organic in my version, but that’s your call).

By: Elizabeth Edwardsen

Elizabeth Edwardsen — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 17:29:59 +0000

Before anyone moves ahead and tries to make Epicurious’ chocolate chip cookies in their slow cooker (and really, why would you?) – read the comments. Not one person had a good outcome. Actually, one person had an OK outcome, but that is because they misread the recipe. But overall, the community advice was to stick with the oven when making chocolate chip cookies.

By: Christine

Christine — Fri, 30 Jan 2009 16:44:51 +0000

Hi Paige,
First, I hear you! I’m a foodie too and it’s taken its toll on my hips and thighs, so I’m trying to lose, too. What a drag.

I’ll share a recipe I got out of Reader’s Digest a couple years ago — a slow twist on Polenta that we love on a cold Sunday night. I’ve doctored it a little to fit my (spicier) tastes, as noted.

Rustic Polenta
3 TBS olive oil
7 cups boiling water (I use broth)
2 cups course-ground cornmeal
2 cloves garlic, peeled (I use chopped garlic and more!)
1 small onion, minced
4 links sweet Italian sausage, cut into bite-size pieces (I always use turkey or chicken sausage and mix them up, some sweet, some hot, some exotic — asiago, for example)
1 red bell pepper, cut into bite-size pieces
2 cans chickpeas, drained (I used cannellinis last time and it was great!)
2 tsp. salt (I never use more than 1 tsp)
1 tsp. freshly ground black peper.

Use 1 tablespoon of olive oil to grease sides of slow cooker. Add water (broth), and then remaining ingredients. Stir and cook on low for 6 to 8 hours. Serves 6.