Cookworks “The Italian Slow Cooker”

Posted on February 2, 2010 by Bookworkers

This weeks pick was actually singled out by two Bookworkers at two totally separate times. The cover certainly doesn’t turn you away. Without further adieu, I give you The Italian Slow Cooker by Michele Sciolone.

Beef in Barolo

prepared by Cristina Blank

he Italian Slow Cooker by Michele Sciolone caught my eye… I am an Italian with a slow cooker and I love to use it, but only have about two recipes. I found that most slow cooker recipes involve using cans of Campbells soup (usually cream of mushroom) which I am not interested in using or eating.

This particular book is full of great recipes which do not involve cans of anything.I have tried two so far, one being the Peppercorn Beef Stew which was lovely and the other the Beef in Barolo which is delicious and perfect for a cold winter night. I am not usually good at following recipes and much to my husband’s delight only made a couple of small changes to this one(Beef in Barolo).

As I usually have a couple of bottles of my favorite Cabarnet in stock, I opted to substitute it for the Barolo, concluding that any dry red would do. I also left out the pinch of ground cloves as I dislike cloves intensely and find their taste taking over any other flavor. The rest of the recipe was easy as pie! easier actually. The ingredients are all basic and easy to find. We all know the Nantucket Stop and Shop is not exactly a food mecca. A few minutes to flour and brown the beef and in it went……six hours later and an amazingly scented house, I was ready for my guests.

I made some delicious mashers with all the “accoutrements” sour cream, butter, salt, milk, some set aside water from boiling the potatoes (whole of course) and a lemon rind. In Italy the person who finds the lemon rind on their plate or in their mouth is the lucky one. Che fortuna!

A side of sauteed baby artichokes, good wine, good friends and a few rounds of Liebrary (game)………priceless!

P.S. Liebrary created by Darryl Hannah and her sister is a board game in which the players are given the title and synopsis of a book and asked to write the first line. The “librarian” must then read all the first lines including the real one and the players must vote on which is the actual real one.

Chicken Ragout
prepared by Suzanne Keller
What can I say… slow cookers rule! This took about 15 minutes to put together. Not that Campbell’s cream of mushroom soup (again…)