Slow-Cooker Dulce de Leche

The Setting: Gorgeous day! We're talking stroller-out, take-the-baby-for-a-walk blue skies and tolerable temperatures.

The Soundtrack: House Hunters International.

Steaming up the Oven: Nothing...but we've got hot dogs on the Griddler!

The Scenario: Sometimes it's best to take things slowly...just not so slowly that they're forgotten.

I am obsessed with dulce de leche. I know, I've mentioned it before, but only recently did I become obsessed with making it work in the slow-cooker.

I was certain I had a fool-proof plan for flawless, clump-free dulce de leche.

....And I was just the fool to prove me wrong.

I am, however, a stubborn fool, and a Crock-Pot full of dog-food dulce de leche wasn't going to stand in my way.

So after a good scrub down of the slow-cooker, I set to it again.

And this time, I got it right.

Slow-Cooker Dulce de Leche
Two cans of sweetened condensed milk will make about 2 cups dulce de leche. Adjust cooking times as necessary for larger or smaller batches.

2 (14 oz) cans sweetened condensed milk
sea salt and/or vanilla (optional), to taste

Empty the cans of sweetened condensed milk into the slow-cooker. Set to low and cook with the lid ajar for 1 hour. Remove the lid completely, stir, set the slow-cooker to "keep warm," and continue warming for 3 hours or until amber-colored and caramelized, stirring occasionally. Add sea salt and/or vanilla if using.

Let cool. Transfer to an airtight container, and store in the fridge for up to three weeks.

Thanks for reading! Here's to Being the Secret Ingredient in your life.

Apple Butter

The Setting: Rainy day.

The Soundtrack: That 70s Show.

Steaming up the Slow-Cooker:  Apple Butter

The Scenario: Tons of apples in the fridge. Starting to get mealy.

Cracker Barrel is my favorite chain restaurant for a couple of reasons. Aside from having the best food at the best value of just about any place I've eaten, they come from Middle Tennessee like me, and their biscuits and apple butter are amazing.

Scrumptious at CB any time of year, apple butter comes out of my own kitchen primarily in the fall when the comforting aromas fill my chilly apartment with the warmth and wonder of the harvest and the holidays.

Real-estate agents wish they could harness its power.

Here is my recipe.

Warning: this apple butter smells so good by the third hour of cooking, it may induce premature festivity. I put Oia in a "My First Christmas" onesie and started digging out the holiday DVDs.


Apple Butter:
This recipe only yields about one cup of apple butter. If you want to make a larger batch, excess apple butter can be frozen in an airtight container for two-three months. This apple butter is a little more tart than that  of, say, Cracker Barrel. If you'd like to make it a little sweeter, add 1/4 cup brown sugar or 3 T maple syrup.

1 1/4 lbs peeled and cored apples, cut into eighths
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
scant pinch cardamom
3/4 cup water

1. Place all ingredients in a slow-cooker set to high. Cover and cook 4 hours.

2. Uncover, stir, place lid back on ajar, and continue cooking 1-2 more hours or till excess water has evaporated. Mixture should be dark and thick.

3. Use an immersion blender to process mixture till smooth and uniform, or simply stir to break up the largest pieces if desired.

Yields about 1 cup apple butter.