When the kids were growing up and I had a 8am – 6pm job,  my saving grace many many times  was my slow cooker.   I rotated between that and a pressure cooker to keep my sanity.   Back then, dinner consisted of a meat dish, some kind of fish and vegetables. And rice.  Always rice.  In a table set formally each evening with  a family of five (sometimes more) that sat down to dinner at exactly 7pm.  That was then.  Structured, predictable. Same old weekly grocery list.  Until my kids feared pot roast and would call in sick for dinner when it was served.   I eventually gave the slow cooker away.

That was some moons ago.

Fast forward to today.  The kids are grown and on their own, all  building their families.  I am remarried to the most undemanding man on planet Earthling.  Dinner is never structured and always unpredictable (if there even is dinner).  On the rare occasions that I do put a meal together, there’s usually some kind of fanfare involved.  Like now.  And, by the way, I do have a slow cooker again although I have not make pot roast till today.  (Secretly, I can’t wait for dinner!! I miss you, Pot Roast!!!)

Say hello to Wine Country Kitchens‘ Slow Cooker Sauce.  It’s my new friend!  And it’s what’s for Valentine’s Day in my home.  Dinner for two.  Made last night.

Wine Country Kitchens' Country Pot Roast Sauce

The sauces are the concoction of Chef  James who I met at the Winter Fancy Food Show and chatted with briefly.  He’s working on a cookbook (stay tuned!).

Chef James Aptakin at the Winter Fancy Food Show 2012

I had recently served a dish with their  Coconut Curry sauce for my family during  the 49ers game that took us  to the semi-finals.  I was hooked-on-sauce thereafter and am a Chef James fan.  The dish was a hit and was consumed to the last drop.  Literally.  I’ve not seen my my family soak up sauce in a while.   Last night, after debating Valentine’s Day dinner (actually, we discussed the frou-frou-ness of the Hallmark holiday) I whipped my one last sauce that I picked up at the show and declared a V-Day  reprieve for the man.  I set up my ingredients (carrots and potatoes under my roast)  and turned the cooker on LOW  and all he had to do was turn it off when he woke up.  (note:  the goodbye kiss this morning included “I’m off, honey ~ Happy Valentine’s Day and dinner’s done!“).

That took about 1o minutes. Sleep was 8 hours long.

  

Cooking while asleep. Multi tasking!

Can you see how delicious this sauce looks?  It’s definitely NOT your ordinary pot roast mix and I tasted it this morning.  I’m excited for dinner now and will set up some candles around the house for when the man comes home.  Like the Coconut Curry sauce, this one will be good till the last drop.  Nom nom nom!

Note:  I like to cook at night so I can remove any excess fat from the dish the following morning as it cools off.