[madcat]

Posh folk have garages ....     Do you think the shed and an extension lead would do?   

[we are the nearest allotment holders to the plots, so virtually every meeting we are asked "can we put the association lawn mower in your garage to keep it safe?"    Nooooooo.....  we haven't got a garage! And you would never get it down the side to the shed which is only 6x4.   How many times!     It was too narrow for modern cars so we converted it into the kitchen.]

[arugula]

Ours is detached and as such is just a glorified shed.... as you say nowhere near big enough for a modern car. 

[Milly]

I made the chutney in the slow cooker yesterday. I've made it on 'the hob' for years but I think in future I'll stick to the slow cooker, much easier.
I won't put the recipe up because you could use what ever recipe you want but a little tip, if I were making it again I would mix all the ingredients in a large bowl, then add to the slow cooker. I have one of those large size ones but even so the ingredients were hard to mix initially.

At first the slow cooker was full to the top and and I wondered if the 200mls of vinegar would be enough liquid, it certainly was. The moisture in the fruit and from the cooking process means you don't need lots of liquid adding. I cooked it on high for 5 hours, stirring it a couple of times, then 30 mins with the lid off at the end. It's amazing how it reduced down to only filling about a quarter of the pot.

I'd definately do it again in the slow cooker, it didn't need watching, not much attention needed and the smell was more contained. A quick taste and I'm not sure if it's because it's a new recipe I used but I think it's the nicest I've made up to now. The flavours were intense and it'll be interesting to see how it tastes in about 6 months time.

[arugula]

Interesting. Thanks for that Milly. 

[plum crumble]

Milly - although you are not posting the recipe -as you say, there are so many! - however, would you mind confirming the vinegar proportions to the the other ingredients? ie - what general adjustment to you have to make to liquid proportion cos you are using a slow cooker?

ta
Plumx

[Milly]

Probably easier to explain if I post the recipe I used - Good job as well because having checked it was actually 100mls vinegar, apologies.

Recipe
1kg Green Toms
1 large onion
2 large baking apples
30g sultana's
30g raisins
1 Orange Pepper (only chose orange because I didn't have a red or green one in)
100mls of vinegar
250g brown sugar
chillies (I used 1/2 tsp of Sainsburys Easy Chilli)
6 cloves garlic (crushed)
1 cinnamon stick
1/2 tsp all spice
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1 large corgette (I took the soft middle out of it)

[Swing Swang]

Don't fully understand the advantages of a slow cooker - surely  a heavy crock in a very cool oven achieves exactly the same effect without having to have another kitchen gadgit? Am I missing something?

[mumofstig]

I think the main advantage was using the slowcooker outside, to reduce the cooking smell

No-one is suggesting buying a slowcooker just to make chutney a lot of us already have them 

[joyfull]

and they use less electric than a cooker I do believe 

[arugula]

Yes, have had a slow cooker for 10 + years and in my case, apart from the option to plug it in in the garage, it uses rather less gas than the hob. 

[PurplePixie]

I love my slow cooker but only ever seem to use it for stews or chilli.

I've got a recipe book here thats got Chillied Tomato & Garlic Chutney, Spiced Mango Chutney, Pickled Plums, Tangy Citrus Curd and Blackberry & Apple Jam ..... Just holler in a pm if you want any of the recipes 

[joyfull]

hollering away here - can I have the recipe for the chillied tom chutney and the tangy citrus curd and the .... oh heck can I have all the recipes please 

[PurplePixie]

PM sent....I forgot to put a subject but I was tooooo busy thinking about brown toast and lemon curd! 

[joyfull]

 
Thank you so much that really was appreciated  xx

[Milly]

Could I have the recipes as well please 

They certainly do use less energy than the cooker, it also kept the smells contained and I didn't need to keep stirring the chutney.