Friday 19 March 2010

Chicken Cacciatore cooked in Mr D's Thermal Cooker



This classic Italian dish, also known as hunter’s stew was originally designed as an easy dish that could be cooked outside. The dish was adapted by individual hunters and was sometimes made from rabbit or sometimes chicken.
Chicken cacciatore is an ideal meal to make in Mr D's Thermal Cooker as it is easy to prepare and benefits from slow long cooking.
This dish should be served with rice or pasta and some crusty bread to mop up the wonderfully rich sauce.

INGREDIENTS


  • 2-3 tbsp olive oil

  • 1.5 kg chicken portions, legs and thighs

  • 40 g seasoned flour

  • 1 onion sliced

  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed

  • 125 ml white wine

  • 1 tbsp white wine vinegar

  • 125 ml chicken stock

  • 400g tin chopped tomatoes

  • 2 tbsp tomato puree

  • 1 tsp brown sugar

  • 100 g stoned black olives

  • 4 anchovy fillets

  • salt & pepper to season



METHOD



  1. Rinse chicken, pat dry and dust with the seasoned flour.

  2. Heat the olive oil in the inner pot on medium heat, add the onions and cook until translucent, stirring occasionally.

  3. Remove the onions to keep for later.

  4. Add the garlic and ½ the chicken pieces, skin-side down. Cook until the chicken skin is golden brown, then turn pieces over and brown on the other side.

  5. Once brown, remove and keep for later while you cook the remaining chicken pieces until they also are golden brown on both sides.

  6. Add the first batch of chicken pieces back into the inner pot.

  7. Add the onions you cooked earlier.

  8. Add the white wine, white wine vinegar, chicken stock, the tin of chopped tomatoes, tomato puree, brown sugar, stoned black olives and anchovy fillets.

  9. Mix everything and bring to the boil.

  10. Turn the heat down and simmer for 5 minutes with the lid on.

  11. Turn off the heat and put the inner pot into the insulated outer container.

  12. Shut the lid and thermal cook without power for a minimum of 2 hours.

  13. Before serving check the seasoning adding salt and pepper if necessary.

  14. Serve with pasta and crusty bread.


Serves 4-6.

Thursday 18 March 2010

Lemon Drizzle Cake cooked in Mr D's Thermal Cooker for Mothers Day



For afternoon tea on Mother Day what could be better than a lemon drizzle cake. This is a wonderful cake gets eaten very quickly and is loved by everyone.
Using a thermal cooker this cake can be cooked anywhere and does not need an oven. All you need is a thermal cooker and a heat source to get the cake started. The main cooking is done without power.
The cake is cooked in a stainless steel cake/pudding tin with a lid to stop water from dripping on the cake.

INGREDIENTS

  • 150g margarine, softened

  • 150g caster sugar

  • 3 large eggs, beaten

  • 150g self-raising flour

  • 1 tsp baking powder

  • 1 lemon zest, finely grated

  • 30ml milk


INGREDIENTS FOR THE DRIZZLE

  • juice and finely grated zest of 1½ lemons

  • 90g caster sugar

  • 2 tbs honey


Lining the tin: Cut two circles of baking paper to fit a cake tin (one for the base and one for the top) that will fit in your thermal cooker. Grease the tin and line the base with one circle.

METHOD

  1. Prepare the cake/pudding tin as described above.

  2. Whisk the eggs in a bowl.

  3. In another bowl cream the margarine and sugar until it becomes pale in colour.

  4. Whisk in the flour, baking powder and milk.

  5. Slowly add the eggs bit by bit and continue to beat until well combined.

  6. Mix in the lemon zest.

  7. Spoon the mixture into a cake/pudding tin and spread it out evenly.

  8. Put the lid onto the cake/pudding tin and clip down (If using another cake tin without a lid, cover with foil and tie securely with string).

  9. Place the cake/pudding tin inside the inner pot on a trivet.

  10. Add enough boiling water to come ¾ the way up the side of the cake/pudding tin. If you are using a Mr D's Thermal Cooker and trivet you need the water 2cm above the trivet.

  11. Bring back to the boil and then turn down the heat to a low simmer. Simmer gently with the lid on for 20 minutes.

  12. Turn off the heat and transfer the inner pot into the vacuum-insulated outer container.

  13. Close the lid and leave to cook for a minimum of 2 hours. It can be left overnight.

  14. Once cooked, allow to cool in the tin for a few minutes.

  15. Remove from the cake/pudding tin and place on a wire rack.

  16. Put all the ingredients of the lemon drizzle mix into a saucepan and heat until the sugar has melted.

  17. Put the cake on a plate and prick it in several places with a wooden skewer.

  18. Pour the hot sugar/lemon syrup over the warm cake.

  19. Decorate with some lemon zest and a little icing sugar when cool before serving.

Click to play this Smilebox slideshow: Lemon Drizzle Cake