Vegan MoFo 2014 #14: Robin Robertson Rocks - Fresh from the Vegetarian Slow Cooker

I've had a super busy few days at work, too busy to read or post anything for MoFo. So here is my next post, and I am going to go and attack the rather large number of unread posts in my Feedly. Hope everyone is having a great September!

A few years ago I was given a slow cooker, and a year later I bought a second, larger one. I just love the idea of slow cookers and slow cooking, of coming home to delicious, ready cooked meal. Of course that doesn't happen, when I work I am out of the house for twelve hours, and I have no time for prepping anything into a slow cooker before I leave for work!

Wild Mushroom Risotto turns out a bit gluggy, but the taste very nice. This made more like 3 servings rather than four. Leftovers are great made into risotto balls. The photo here is a big batch I made for a Christmas party (serve with cranberry sauce, yum), but if you have more time I highly recommend stuffing with some melty cheese (I love Sheese smoked cheddar here) and made into arancini.
Rating: :)





Farmhouse Fricassee gives a choice of seitan or tempeh (I chose seitan) and lots of vegetables. I got three big servings out of this recipe, which was absolutely delicious!
Rating: :D



Miso-Braised Tofu and Shallots only has a few ingredients, but the result is amazing. Succulent, tasty tofu and sweet shallots, I served it with some brown rice and baby pak choy.
Rating: :D



Slow-Fashioned Potpie with Biscuit Crust is so damn tasty. The biscuit crust is baked on top of the filling during the last hour of cooking in the slow cooker. The crust had quite a strong olive oil taste, and only just covered the top of my 3.5L oval cooker, but went nice and brown and delicious.
Rating: :D



Cornbread-Topper Southwestern Potpie was kind of bland, but in the good sort of way. Adding some spices to the vegetable and bean mixture would add a little bit of extra pop. The recipe instructs you to roll out the topping and lay it over the top to cook for the last hour. However, my topping was too sloppy for rolling, so I just plopped it on top and spread it out and was fine.
Rating: :)



Cute Kitty Photo of the Post



Sleepy kitten tummy! This little guy is one of our previous adoption kittens, who has since found himself a wonderful home and is now a big handsome man!

AusNZVeganMoFo: Let's take it slow...

... with some delectable slow cooking! Oh yes! A question for you now - what is better than a new slow cooker? How about a FREE new slow cooker? One of my friends who got married earlier this year got given a slow cooker. They have no desire to have a slow cooker, but they knew I had been wanting one fora while. So meet my friend:


This is my Sunbeam 3.5L Slow Cooker. The picture is taken from the Sunbeam website.

To go with my slow cooker, I needed a book of recipes! Actually, I bought the book first on a sale, so it was good timing when my friend gave me the cooker. The book is Fresh From the Vegetarian Slow Cooker by Robin Robertson (of Vegan Planet fame). It is a book full of so many different slow cooker recipes - from appetisers to mains to baked goods and desserts! Robin uses three different types of slow cookers - 1 quart, 4 quart and 6 quart. There are instances where you can use a different size, but recipes make small quantities or require a certain amount of space so it's not all interchangeable.

The slow cooker is great for days where I work a 6 hour shift in the evening. Put it on before I leave for work, then when I get home just a few bits and pieces and then delicious, slow cooked dinner! It freaked me out at first the small amount of liquid you use in the recipes, and the first time I used it I was certain my potatoes would be raw. But I was silly, for I have had a some delicious and perfectly cooked dinners. But enough waffling on, how about some actual food?


Vindaloo Vegetables: This was pretty tasty, though not super filling despite a can of kidney beans for protein. It's not as hot as traditional vindaloos, but you can adjust the spice as much as you like!


Mediterranean Vegetable Stew - the first thing I made, and let me say the potatoes here, despite my initial fears, were tender and perfect. It includes artichokes and fennel as well, so lots of great flavours.


No Hurry Vegetable Curry - This was a bit bland, though I did only have some mild curry powder in the house at the time. But there are lots of great vegetables in it!


Slow and Easy Mushroom and Green Bean Stroganoff - This is great, really tasty. Instead of adding green capsicum at the beginning, I added some thawed frozen peas in the last 20 minutes when you add the mushrooms.

One thing I will say about this book is that the serving sizes seem very small to me. Most of these recipes claim to make 4 - 6 servings, but for my appetite it would be closer to three servings. Maybe I am just a great big guts... hee.

Cute Cat Photo of the Post


This is Possum, the family cat. Possum is turning 15 years old at the end of the month, but her still thinks he is 15 months old! He is the master of rolling around on the grass or the pine bark, looking as cute as anything and obviously having a great time. He is a bit of a show off though - as soon as he sees me outside with the camera he throws himself down in front of my and commences rolling around in a variety of cute poses. Hee.