I love Autumn because of the memory of Summer, the warming tone in the sunlight, the rustling leaves, the promise of Christmas without the cold and bleak days, and the onset of stews.
As a vegetarian, I'm quite limited in my stew range, but there's nothing to me that tastes better on a Sunday evening than soft, root vegetables in stock and herby dumplings.
Ingredients:
- sweet potatoes
- carrots
- leeks
- mushrooms
- brocolli
- swede
- parnips
- stock cubes
- a knob of butter
- 1tsp of ground nutmeg
- 3ooml of hot water
- 50g Atora suet (vegetarian)
- 100g self-raising flour
- salt and pepper
- 2tbsp of dried onions
- 1tbsp mixed herbs
- 5tbsp of cold water
- Melt the butter in the slow-cooker pot on the hob and add the finely chopped mushrooms and leeks to 'sweat'. Stir in the crumbled stock cube and nutmeg.
- Chop the root vegetables into large, square chunks and with the other vegetables to the pot, transfer to the slow-cooker. Pour in 100ml of the hot water and stir to combine the sauteed vegetable mix with the root vegetables and liquid.
- Cook on high for 2-3 hours, or medium for 4 hours.
- Mix up the Atora suet, self-raising flour, salt and pepper, dried onions and mixed herbs with enough of the cold water to form a pliable dough. Divide into balls.
- Add the remaining 200ml of hot water to the pot and stir thoroughly. Gently place the dumplings into the slow-cooker and press down carefully to cover with liquid. Cook for 30 minutes on high.
- Turn the slow cooker off and let it rest for five-ten minutes before serving.
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Linking up to Mediocre Mum's Slow Cooker Sunday
