Chocolate Mint Rice Pudding - Slow Cooker Recipe

Firstly, apologies for severe lack of posting of late, and visits to all your blogs! Am still job hunting whilst trying not to up the electricity bill!

Secondly, this dish is delicious but does not maketh a pretty photo! It really reminds me of chilli...

As mentioned above with trying to keep our bills low, I dusted off the slow cooker this week for making pudding, a girlfriend was coming around for dinner and I thought chocolate rice pudding would be a treat! The mint inspiration came about when I had assembled the pudding and was about to put the lid on the slow cooker - the fresh mint plant sitting on the windowsill suddenly caught my eye!

This makes 3 portions, though we were greedy and ate it all between the two of us...

40g pudding rice
450ml milk
3 tbsp dark soft brown sugar
2 heaped tsp cocoa powder
1 x 5 inch sprig of fresh mint (kept whole)

Heat the milk and cocoa powder together until just under boiling point, pour into the slow cooker, which needs to be on the 'low' setting (some slow cookers may require pre-heating so do check )

Add in the remaining ingredients and put your feet up! After an hour or so remove the mint and leave for a further 3 hours or until the pudding is all gooey and most of the liquid has been absorbed

This makes a gooey, mint-chocolatey pudding and as delicious as it smells when cooking please do allow it to cool a little before tucking in!

Beef and Spinach Stew

I am so sure I posted this months back but can't see it now!

Slow cooked beef and spinach stew

Serves: 4+
Prep: 10 mins
Cooking: 10 mins hob and 3 hours oven or can be adapted for slow cooker
Difficulty Low to medium

Ingredients

900g lean beef steak
300g fresh spinach
2 medium starchy potatoes cubed
1 pint* beef stock (Kallo cubes suitable)
75g pearl barley
100ml beer or lager
2 tsp cumin seeds
2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp dried coriander
1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 green pepper, cut into chunks
4 shallots (or 1 onion) diced
2 cloves garlic crushed
1/3 tsp garlic salt
1/3 tsp mixed ground peppers

Instructions for oven method:

1 - Pre heat oven to 170o elec, 150o fan. Place a large casserole dish in oven to warm through
5 - In a large frying pan, heat the oil to medium heat
6 - Add beef, shallots / onion and pepper, cook on medium for about 5-6 minutes till beef is browned, add beer and seasoning and simmer for 5 mins
7 - In the meatime rinse spinach and place in wide heavy pan and cook on medium-high till wilted down, should take no longer than 3-4 minutes
8 - Place pearl barley in a bowl with lots of water and microwave for 4 minutes, drain and put two one side (you can skip this stage if you soak overnight)
9 - Make your stock or if using fresh warm through
10 - Remove casserole dish from the oven
11 - Add beef mixture, pearl barley and spinach, mix well, pour on stock and mix thoroughly, add lid and place on middle shelf in oven
12 - Set timer for one hour
13 - Wash and roughly peel potatoes, chop into 2cm cubes, add to casserole mix, stir well, replace lid and set timer for one hour (in a slow oven you may need to par-cook the potatoes but I have a fan oven and doesnt require this)
14 - 1 hour later remove lid and stir, return lidless to oven
15 - 1 hour later mark check tenderness of beef by removing a small piece and slicing, if texture smooth then it is ready, if not return and check reguarly until happy with texture.
16 - Serve with fresh bread or tortilla wraps to mop up juices.


Instructions for slow cooker method:

1) If possible place the pearl barley in water and leave to soak overnight

2) Pre-heat slow cooker to low, make up stock if required, heat 1 tbsp olive oil in a large pan, fry the onions and meat until browned, add the spinach, green pepper, pearl barley, potatoes and the spices and the beer and bring up to the boil, add enough stock to cover and allow for the pearl barley to absorb its fair share and transfer to the slow cooker, cook on low for 8-9 hours.

Beef and Leek Stew

Serves 3

Quantity of leftover roast beef, about 2 handfuls say 450g
1 Large leek
1 onion
2 sticks celery
50g pearl barley
1 clove garlic
1 kallo organic veg boulion cube
1 tbsp beef gravy granules
1.5 pints boiling water

1) Rinse the pearl barley and place in a bowl (or microwave steamer) and cover with boiling water generously, microwave for 18 mins, stirring half way (not needed if slow cooking, just add a little extra liquid)

2) Make up the stock using the bouilion and gravy granules

3) Dice the onion and garlic, slice the celery chunkily

4) Heat 2 tbsp olive oil in a pan, add the onion and fry for 2 mins, add the garlic and celery, cover and fry for 5 mins, add the (drained) pearl barley, transfer to a casserole dish and cover

5) Warm through & brown the beef for 4-5 mins in the empty veg pan, add about 1/4 of the stock to simmer for a couple more mins, add to the casserole pan and mix well, cover with remaining liquid and transfer to the oven for 2 hours, starting on 200 elec and drop down to 150 elec*

Serve with fresh bread

Mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

*Can be done in slow cooker as well, about 5-6 hours on high, up to 10 on low.