Starters and Snacks

Obviously, many starters are cold salad creations that don't require cooking at all but there are numerous dishes that lend themselves perfectly to the slow cooker - pâtés and terrines, mousses and custards, dried bean dishes and anything else that would be gently cooked either on top of the stove or in the oven. The advantage with the slow cooker is that these dishes need little or no watching and timings are rarely crucial - except, perhaps, for egg-based, rice and pasta dishes. There are many Mediterranean specialities here, from French pork rillettes to the Italian bagna cauda.

Piedmont Fontina Cheese Dip with Truffle Oil

Fonduta is a thick, creamy dish of cheese, milk, cream and eggs. The finished dish is slightly grainier than when cooked in a double saucepan but takes much less effort! You could use Cheddar, Edam or Gruyère cheese instead of Fontina, or a mixture of these. If you can, add some shavings of white truffle just before serving instead of the truffle oil.

Serves 4
Cooking time 2 hours low
Serve with ciabatta bread

20 ml/4 tsp cornflour (cornstarch)
150 ml/¼ pint/2/3 cup milk
2 large eggs
175 g/6 oz/1½ cups grated Fontina cheese
25 g/1 oz/2 tbsp unsalted (sweet) butter, cut into small flakes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
90 ml/6 tbsp single (light) cream
5 ml/1 tsp truffle oil

Whisk together the cornflour and milk in a small earthenware pot that will fit in the slow cooker. Whisk in the eggs.
Stir in the cheese and add the butter and some salt and pepper.
Stand the dish in the crock pot with enough boiling water to come half way up the side of the dish.
Cover and cook on Low for 2 hours or until thick, stirring well every 30 minutes.
Remove from the crock pot and beat well, then beat in the cream. Trickle the truffle oil over and serve straight away with ciabatta bread cut into small chunks for dunking.

Coarse Pork Terrine with Pistachios

This is the perfect terrine to serve for lunch with salad and crusty bread. I first had it in Marseilles in France many years ago. It is the ideal dish to cook in your slow cooker as it won't dry out but just becomes tender, rich and firm. Try it with a spoonful of cranberry sauce on the side or sliced apple tossed in lemon juice.

Serves 8-10
Cooking time 8-10 hours low
Serve with crusty bread, mustard and a side salad

12 rashers (slices) of streaky bacon, rinded
1 onion, quartered
2 garlic cloves, roughly chopped
6 sprigs of fresh parsley
450 g/1 lb belly pork, skinned
100 g/4 oz unsmoked bacon pieces, trimmed of any rind or gristle
350 g/12 oz pig's liver
5 ml/1 tsp dried herbes de Provence
1.5 ml/¼ tsp ground cloves
A good pinch of cayenne
30 ml/2 tbsp brandy
75 g/3 oz/¾ cup shelled pistachio nuts
7.5 ml/1½ tsp salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Line a 1.5 litre/2½ pint/6 cup terrine or large loaf tin with some of the bacon rashers, trimming to fit as necessary.
Using a food processor or mincer (grinder), process the onion, garlic, parsley, pork, bacon pieces and liver but not too finely.
Stir in the dried herbs, spices, brandy, pistachios, salt and a good grinding of pepper. Turn into the prepared terrine and level.
Top with the remaining bacon. Cover with greaseproof (waxed) paper, then a lid or foil, twisting and folding it under the rim to secure. Stand the terrine in the crock pot with enough boiling water to come half way up the sides of the terrine.
Cover and cook on Low for 8-10 hours until firm to the touch and the juices are clear.
Remove from the crock pot and remove the cover. Top with some clean greaseproof paper and weigh down with heavy weights or cans of food. Leave until cold, then chill. If liked (particularly if using a loaf tin), loosen the edges and turn out on to a serving dish. Serve sliced with crusty bread, mustard and a side salad.

Chicken Liver Pâté with Button Mushrooms

Here, I've added button mushrooms to a smooth classic liver pâté. It is very easy to prepare and makes a delicious starter or a light lunch with crusty bread and pickles. Cooking the mushrooms first in a little of the butter intensifies their flavour and eliminates some of their moisture.

Serves 8-10
Cooking time 6-8 hours low
Serve with triangles of toast

1 onion, peeled and quartered
2 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
450 g/1 lb chicken livers, trimmed
30 ml/2 tbsp brandy
2.5 ml/½ tsp dried mixed herbs
225 g/8 oz/1 cup butter, melted, plus a little extra for greasing
60 ml/4 tbsp double (heavy) cream
1 egg, beaten
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
175 g/6 oz button mushrooms, sliced
Mixed salad leaves and lemon wedges, to garnish

Place the onion, garlic, livers, brandy, herbs, about three-quarters of the butter, the cream and egg in a blender or food processor. Season generously and run the machine to make a smooth paste.
Put the remaining melted butter in a saucepan, add the mushrooms and fry, stirring, for 3 minutes until tender. Turn up the heat, if necessary to evaporate the liquid. Stir into the pâté mixture.
Grease a 1.5 litre/2½ pint/6 cup terrine or large loaf tin and line the base with non-stick baking parchment. Spoon the pâté into the tin and level the surface. Cover with greaseproof (waxed) paper, then a lid or foil, twisting and folding under the rim to secure, and place in the crock pot with enough boiling water to come half way up the sides of the terrine. Cover and cook on Low for 6-8 hours until firm to the touch.
Remove from the crock pot. Remove the lid or foil and re-cover with clean greaseproof paper. Leave to cool, then weigh down with heavy weights or cans of food and chill until firm.
Loosen the edge and turn out on to a board. Cut into thick slices and arrange on individual plates. Garnish each with a few salad leaves and a lemon wedge and serve with triangles of toast.

Warm Tuscan White Bean Salad

For this recipe, I've blended the white beans with diced Parma ham, olives, red onion and chopped fresh rosemary, all bathed in olive oil with a dash of white balsamic condiment. If you prepare the salad ingredients then leave the beans to cook in the crock pot, the dish can be thrown together in minutes when you are ready to serve.

Serves 4-6
Cooking time 6-8 hours low
Serve with ciabatta bread

225 g/8 oz/11/3 cup dried haricot (navy) beans, soaked in cold water for several hours or overnight
1 litre/1¾ pints/4¼ cups boiling water
4 slices of Parma (or similar raw) ham, diced
50 g/2 oz/1/3 cup black olives
1 red onion, thinly sliced
2 sun-dried tomatoes, chopped
1 red (bell) pepper, chopped
10 ml/2 tsp chopped fresh rosemary
15 ml/1 tbsp chopped fresh basil
1 garlic clove, crushed
60 ml/4 tbsp olive oil
30 ml/2 tbsp white balsamic condiment
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Drain the soaked beans and place in a saucepan with the boiling water. Return to the boil and boil rapidly for 10 minutes.
Tip the beans and liquid into the crock pot, cover and cook on Low for 6-8 hours until the beans are really tender.
When ready to serve, drain the beans in a colander and tip into a large salad bowl. Add all the remaining ingredients and season well. Toss well and serve while still warm with ciabatta bread.

Stuffed Garlic Mushrooms with Cream and White Wine

Use large open cup mushrooms for this dish but don't choose ones that are too flat because the stuffing needs to sit in the cups. The mushrooms can stay in the slow cooker for up to a further 2 hours on Low, but after that the texture becomes a little too soft. For added crunch, sprinkle the dish with some crisp crumbled bacon just before serving.

Serves 4
Cooking time 5-7 hours low
Serve with crusty bread

8 large open cup mushrooms
75 g/3 oz/1½ cups soft breadcrumbs
2 spring onions (scallions), finely chopped
2 large garlic cloves, crushed
45 ml/3 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 egg, beaten
150 ml/¼ pint/2/3 cup dry white wine
8 tiny knobs of butter
150 ml/¼ pint/2/3 cup double (heavy) cream
4 small sprigs of fresh parsley, to garnish

Peel the mushrooms and trim the stalks. Chop the stalks and mix with the breadcrumbs, spring onions, half the garlic and the parsley. Season well, then mix with the beaten egg.
Season the mushroom caps lightly, then press the stuffing mixture on to the gills of each one.
Pour the wine into the crock pot, add the remaining garlic and a little salt and pepper. Place the mushrooms on top, preferably in a single layer or just overlapping (if you have only a small round pot, put them in layers with baking parchment between the layers). Top each with a tiny knob of butter.
Cover and cook on Low for 5-7 hours until the mushrooms are tender and the stuffing has set.
Transfer the mushrooms to small warm plates. Stir the cream into the wine juices, taste, re-season, if necessary, then spoon over. Garnish each plate with a small sprig of parsley and serve with crusty bread.

Spanish Tortilla with Piquant Tomato Salsa

This is a classy way of serving Spain's favourite tapas. A tortilla is basically a potato omelette and you'd eat it in most Spanish households as well as in restaurants and bars. Here I've slow cooked the tortilla in the crock pot, then cut it into wedges and served it in a pool of spicy fresh tomato salsa.

Serves 4 as a light meal, 8 as a tapas
Cooking time 4-6 hours low plus 30 minutes high

For the tortilla:
90 ml/6 tbsp olive oil
2 onions, thinly sliced
4 large potatoes, peeled and very thinly sliced (ideally using a mandolin)
6 eggs
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the salsa:
15 ml/1 tbsp olive oil
1 small onion, chopped
1 garlic clove, crushed
1.5 ml/¼ tsp crushed dried chillies
4 beefsteak tomatoes, skinned and chopped
60 ml/4 tbsp apple juice
2.5 ml/½ tsp dried oregano
30 ml/2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley

To make the tortilla, brush the crock pot with a little of the oil. Heat the remaining oil in a saucepan, add the onions and fry for 2 minutes, stirring.
Add the potatoes and toss well. Cook for a further 2 minutes, stirring, then tip the whole lot into the crock pot (keep the pan for making the salsa). Spread out the mixture as evenly as possible. Cover and cook on Low for 4-6 hours until the potatoes are really tender.
Turn the slow cooker to High. Beat the eggs with some salt and pepper and pour into the pot. Stir well, then cover and cook for 30 minutes until set. (Note that the eggs are cooked on High to imitate frying.)
Meanwhile, to make the salsa, heat the oil in a saucepan. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes until they are softened but not browned.
Add all the remaining ingredients except the parsley. Bring to the boil and cook rapidly for 5 minutes until pulpy, stirring frequently. Transfer to a blender or food processor and blend to a purée. Taste and re-season if necessary, then return to the pan. Reheat when ready to serve.
When the tortilla is cooked, remove the crock pot from the base and leave the tortilla to cool for 5 minutes. Cut into wedges. Spoon the salsa on to warm plates and place one or two wedges of tortilla on top (if using two, put them at a jaunty angle one on top of the other). Sprinkle with the chopped parsley and serve.

Vine Leaves Stuffed with Rice, Herbs, Pine Nuts and Raisins

These delicate parcels are called dolmades in Greece, from where they originate. Although they are a bit fiddly to make, they are well worth it because the flavour is superb. Serve them as part of a mezze selection or salad plate, as finger food at parties - or just enjoy them as a tasty snack.

Makes 24
Cooking time 6-7 hours low

50 g/2 oz/½ cup pine nuts
50 g/2 oz/1/3 cup raisins
100 g/4 oz/½ cup short grain (pudding) rice
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 small onion, finely chopped
5 ml/1 tsp dried oregano
5 ml/1 tsp dried mint
15 ml/1 tbsp tomato purée (paste)
2.5 ml/½ tsp salt
Freshly ground black pepper
2.5 ml/½ tsp ground cinnamon
24 vacuum-packed vine leaves, rinsed and dried
75 ml/5 tbsp olive oil
Juice of ½ lemon
About 750 ml/1¼ pints/3 cups boiling vegetable stock

Mix the pine nuts with the raisins, uncooked rice, garlic, onion, herbs, tomato purée, salt, lots of pepper and the cinnamon.
Put a small spoonful of the filling on each vine leaf, fold in the sides and roll up. Pack them tightly into the crock pot (this will take a while).
Add the oil and lemon juice, then pour over enough of the boiling stock to just cover the vine leaves. Cover and cook on Low for 6-7 hours or until the rice is cooked and most of the liquid has been absorbed. Remove the crock pot from the base and leave the vine leaves to cool in the liquid.
Transfer the rolls to a serving platter with a draining spoon and serve at room temperature.

Spanish Mackerel with Roasted Red Peppers

This is an exciting version of pickled herrings or mackerel, which are also popular in northern Europe. They are often rolled up around flavourings but here the mackerel is cooked over the flavourings in the oil and white wine, rather than the more usual vinegar, then served with some colourful sweet red peppers.

Serves 4
Cooking time 2 hours low
Serve with crusty bread

1 large onion, halved and thinly sliced
2 celery sticks, cut into thin matchsticks
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 cloves
2 bay leaves
4 small mackerel, filleted
150 ml/¼ pint/2/3 cup dry white wine
90 ml/6 tbsp olive oil, plus extra for drizzling
5 ml/1 tsp light brown sugar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 red (bell) peppers
4 small fresh bay leaves, to garnish

Spread out the onion and celery in the crock pot and sprinkle with the garlic. Add the cloves and bay leaves. Cut the mackerel fillets in halves lengthways and lay them on top, preferably in a single layer or, if not, divided by non-stick baking parchment.
Heat the wine, oil and sugar together with a little salt and pepper. Bring to the boil and pour over the mackerel.
Cover and cook on Low for 2 hours until the mackerel is tender. Remove the pot and leave to cool but do not chill.
Meanwhile, put the peppers under a preheated grill (broiler) and cook, turning occasionally, for about 15 minutes until the skin has blackened. Put the peppers in a plastic bag and, when cool enough to handle, rub off the skins. Discard the stalks and seeds, then cut the flesh into thin strips.
Lift the mackerel out of the cooking liquid and discard the cloves and bay leaves. Drain the onion and celery and arrange a small pile on each of four small plates. Top each with two mackerel fillets, then a small pile of red pepper strips. Drizzle with olive oil, garnish each with a small bay leaf and serve with crusty bread.