Antony Worrall Thompson joining us to answer your questions on slow cooking - Tuesday 18th January between 1 - 2 pm

[RachelMumsnet]

Antony Worrall Thompson is our guest next Tuesday lunchtime when he's going to be answering questions on how to get the most out of your slow cooker as well as giving us tips on how to prepare some delicious one-pot dishes either in a slow cooker or a casserole - just the thing for these cold wintry nights.

He will also be preparing one of the recipes from his new book Slow Cooking which we will film and show in Mumsnet Recipes. The webchat will run between 1 and 2pm so put the date in your diary and if you can't join us next Tuesday but have a question you'd like to put to Antony, post it to this thread.

[AntonyWorrallThompson]

Treacle Sponge

Ingredients
3 tbsp Golden syrup
175g (6oz) unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing
1 tbsp fresh white breadcrumbs juice of 1 and a half lemons
175g (6oz) caster sugar
Grated zest of 1 unwaxed organic lemon
3 eggs beaten
200g (7oz) self-raising flour
About 3 tbsp milk

To serve
Custard or cream

1. Place the golden syrup in a buttered 1.2 litre (2 pint) pudding basin with the breadcrumbs and juice of half a lemon.
   

1. To make the sponge: place the butter and sugar in a bowl and gently cream the together until pale, using an electric whisk. Mix in the lemon rind and then slowly whisk in alternate spoonfuls of beaten egg and flour until both have been used up. Fold in reminder of the lemon juice and just enough milk for the mixture to drop easily from the spoon.
   

1. Spoon the sponge mixture over the syrup in the pudding basin. Cover with a circle of greaseproof paper, pleated in the centre to allow room for expansion while cooking. Place a double piece of buttered foil on top and secure with string, making a handle so that you can easily lift the basin.
   

1. Place the pudding on an upturned plate or saucer inside your slow cooker, and pour in enough boiling water to come two-thirds up the side of the basin. Cover and cook on high for 3 and a quarter to 4 hours, until the skewer comes out clean. Occasionally, as the water evaporates, top-up with boiling water.
   

1. Remove the pudding basin from the slow cooker and allow to cool slightly. Cut away the string and remove the foil and greaseproof paper. Invert the treacle sponge onto a serving plate, ensuring that all the syrup comes out from the bottom of the basin. Serve with cream or custard.

[AntonyWorrallThompson]

@Calypso

Hi Antony, Why is slow cooking healthier than normal cooking? Doesn't all the goodness go out of the vegetables and into the stock?

Nobody ever said it was, did they?! It's just a convenient way of putting your supper on before you leave for work. However, because the lid creates a seal you do trap all the goodness in the pot. But healthy can only be based on the contents you're cooking with. If you use fatty products, you're going to die... one day!

[aristocat]

thank you

[deemented]

AWT - can i just ask, what's the best way to thicken a sauce using cornflour? I always end up using loads of it and it's still never quite thick enough.

[crazybutterflylady]

Hi AWT and welcome!

I am a bit squirmish about meat on the bone and have so far been unable to find a recipe for chicken that uses boneless breasts (say)... so all I cook in my SC is beef casserole (nice but snore!).
Do you have any suggestions as to how I could include boneless chicken (skinless preferably) in SC recipes?

Thank you

[lily06]

As a rule, when making any type of stew / casserole in the slow coooker, does the liquid need to cover the rest of the contents?

[AntonyWorrallThompson]

@jonicomelately

Brilliant.

Bless your little cotton socks MNHQ for listening to us

My question is do you have a recipe which is posh and impressive enough to serve to friends?

Thanks Anthony

Thanks for your comments, I usually wear wool. Or none at all

In answer to your food question, how about Arabian roast lamb and potatoes - deeeelicious. Or braised hare with tolosa beans? Or pot-roasted partridge with cider and Calvados?
You'll find lots more glamorous recipes in the book!

[molemesseskilledIpom]

AWT..Thank you!!

You star! I'm going to try that this weekend.

[jonicomelately]

Thank you Antony.
He seems really nice

[insertexpletive]

Thank you

Love the Treacle Sponge recipe

[AntonyWorrallThompson]

@deemented

AWT - can i just ask, what's the best way to thicken a sauce using cornflour? I always end up using loads of it and it's still never quite thick enough.

Well, cornflour needs the liquid to be boiling to work effectively, but on the other hand, if you boil it too long, it will revert back to being a thin sauce. With a slow cooker and lots of experimenting, I've found using the normal measurements for the amount of liquid you're trying to thicken works on a high setting.

[deemented]

Non SC question now - Did you enjoy doing Ready Steady Cook?

[no1chick]

Bless you antony we love your food when my kids have cooking at school i always send them in with your recipes hopin one day they will be as goood as you x

[AntonyWorrallThompson]

@crazybutterflylady

Hi AWT and welcome!

I am a bit squirmish about meat on the bone and have so far been unable to find a recipe for chicken that uses boneless breasts (say)... so all I cook in my SC is beef casserole (nice but snore!).
Do you have any suggestions as to how I could include boneless chicken (skinless preferably) in SC recipes?

Thank you

I have some recipes for using boneless thighs and chicken breasts in my new book, for example Aromatic chicken with orange, or Jerk chicken?

[deemented]

Fab, thank you!

[solo]

Thank you for the treacle sponge recipe...:)

[AntonyWorrallThompson]

@arentfanny

Any more pheasant recipes for the slow cooker, I have about 20 of them in the freezer.

You could take the breasts off and use anything you'd use chicken breast for, or the same with the thighs, but never use the drumsticks and carcass except for making a good stock or soup. The drumsticks are incredibly sinewy and no amount of slow cooking is going to help.
We'll post a partridge recipe in a sec!

[NessaRose]

Thans for the treacle sponge recipe I will try that one tonight.

[AntonyWorrallThompson]

@GoldFrakkincenseAndMyrrh

Can you recommend some good seasonal Spring/Summer slowcooker dishes? Everything seems to be for autumn/winter and really heavy!

This is also to Guacamole.
The nature of the beast means that recipes generally will be winter comfort food, but I have recipes such as smoked fish terrine, baked eggs with leeks and tomato, caramelised pork ribs with bourbon and ginger, or braised squid with peas and potatoes.

[AntonyWorrallThompson]

@deemented

Non SC question now - Did you enjoy doing Ready Steady Cook?

Yes, loved every minute of the 13 years that I was on there! I particularly loved beating Brian Turner and I think I'm the only person to have beaten your blue-eyed boy Gino Di'Campo, but I'm sure he'll never admit it!
In all seriousness, it started my TV career, and I have to thank it every day.

[jonicomelately]

Baked eggs with leeks and tomato sounds divine....

[solo]

Prefer you to Gino anyway Antony!

[soremummy]

If I was to cook about a 3lb piece of beef in the slow cooker how much liquid should I use and do I need to seal it first cooking on low how long would it take? Thanks

[insertexpletive]

Solo - you are such a flirt!!

[AntonyWorrallThompson]

@Housemum

My shelves are groaning under the weight of cookbooks, give me something to tempt me with your one - I do a Butter Chicken recipe in my slow cooker, but other than that it is just (like Fairy said above) vaguely weird tasting beef casserole, not sure what I'm doing wrong. What non-mushy, non casseroled recipes are in your book to make me want it?

Can you match the 6000 books I have? And I've read every one.
How about poached figs with blackberries, or a spiced apple terrine in yoghurt. Or then there's baked lebanese fruit with blue cheese, or a really nice beef rendang. Is that enough ideas? Have you ever heard of Ghugni? If not, you'll find it in my book, that's my tease...