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It might be the final month of winter, but the chill’s still hanging in the air!
That means comfort food is firmly staying on the menu. Our Winter Warmers: Slow Cook Comfort Foods lineup is just what you need to ride out the last of the cold snap. Tuck into a nostalgic bowl of Tomato Soup with Cheese Toasties, perfect for lazy lunches or easy dinners. Or let your slow cooker do the work with our rich, melt-in-your-mouth French Onion Beef Stew, best served with a cheesy baguette topper. And for peak cosy vibes, the golden, buttery Shepherd’s Pie loaded with slow-cooked lamb is hard to beat. These dishes are hearty, wholesome, and exactly what we need to get through these final frosty weeks.
Tomato Soup with Cheese Toasties
Ingredients :
serves 4
Cooking notes:
serves 4
- 1.5kg tomatoes
- 5 garlic cloves (skin on)
- 1 bunch thyme (approximately 10g)
- 1 1/2 tsp smoked paprika
- 1 onion
- 2 carrots
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 1L water
- 1 tbsp vegetable stock concentrate
- 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1/2 tsp white sugar
- 1/2 cup cream, plus extra for drizzling
- 1 bunch basil
- 8 slices bread
- 150g shredded cheddar cheese
Method
- Preheat the oven to 200°C
- Halve tomatoes. Place on a lined oven tray with whole garlic cloves and 3/4 bunch of thyme. Drizzle with oil and season with smoked paprika, salt and pepper. Roast for 45 minutes or until tomatoes are slightly charred.
- Dice onion and carrot.
- Once tomatoes are roasted, heat a large saucepan over medium-high heat with oil. Add onion and carrot and sauté for 3-5 minutes until onion has softened. Add tomato paste and cook for further 1 minute.
- Remove peel from roasted garlic cloves, add to saucepan along with roasted tomatoes and thyme, 1L water, vegetable stock, balsamic vinegar and sugar. Reduce heat and simmer, semi-covered, for 10 minutes or until carrot has completely softened.
- Remove soup from heat. Use a stick mixer to blend to a smooth consistency. Add the cream and season to taste with salt and pepper.
- To make the toasties, lightly butter one side of each slice of bread. Place 4 slices of bread butter-side down and divide equal amounts of cheese among bread. Top with a second slice of bread, butter-side up. Sprinkle some thyme leaves onto the butter side.
- Heat a large frypan over medium heat and add toasties, in batches if necessary. Cook for 2-4 minutes each side until golden and cheese has melted.
- Label soup into bowls. Drizzle with extra cream, garnish with some finely chopped basil and serve with cheese toasties.
- Add a red capsicum or a celery stalk to the carrot/onion base for added depth.
- Cooked soup can be stored in the fridge for 4–5 days, or freeze for up to 3 months in an airtight container. Reheat gently on the stove or in the microwave, stirring in extra fresh cream just before serving.
- Most cheeses are great for toasted! Switch cheddar for mozzarella, gruyère or smoked or vintage cheddar. For some extra veg, add baby spinach to the toasties.
Want to make this at home? We used Tomatoes, Urban Forager Organic Vegetable Stock, and Colavita Balsamic Vinegar of Modena from the Dinner Twist Marketplace.
French Onion Beef Stew
Ingredients :
Serves 4-6
Cooking notes:
Serves 4-6
- 800g beef chuck roast
- 3 brown onions
- 4 tbsp butter
- 3 garlic cloves
- 2 tbsp beef stock concentrate
- 1 1/2L water
- 1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
- 3 bay leaves
- 1 bunch thyme (approximately 10g)
- 1 baguette
- 150g Gruyère or Swiss cheese
Method
- Halve beef, and season well with salt and pepper. Slice onions and crush garlic.
- Heat a large frypan over medium-high heat with oil. Add beef and cook until brown all over. Remove to slow cooker and reserve frypan.
- Reduce to medium heat. Add butter, 1 tbsp olive oil, onion and garlic to pan. Cook, semi-covered, for 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally, until onions are golden and caramelised.
- Add caramelised onions to slow cooker along with beef stock, water, Worcestershire sauce, bay leaves, thyme, salt and pepper.
- Cook on high for 3-4 hours or until the beef tender.
- Remove beef from slow cooker and use tongs or forks to pull into large shreds. Return to slow cooker and season stew to taste with salt and pepper.
- Set oven to grill or highest heat. Slice baguette into 3cm pieces. Place on a lined oven tray and top with even amounts of cheese. Grill until baguette is golden and cheese has melted.
- Divide stew into shallow bowls. Garnish with thyme leaves if desired, and serve with cheesy baguette.
- For a heartier stew, add thick-cut carrots, parsnip, or mushrooms in the last 1–2 hours of cooking.
- Worcestershire sauce can be substituted with balsamic vinegar or soy sauce with a pinch of sugar.
- Serve the stew and baguettes with a fresh side salad or sautéed green vegetables such as broccoli and green beans.
Want to make this at home? We used Mondo Butcher & Grocer Beef Whole Chuck Roast, Brown Onions, and Urban Forager Organic Beef Stock from the Dinner Twist Marketplace.
Shepherd’s Pie
Ingredients :
Serves 4-6
Cooking notes:
Serves 4-6
- 1kg butterflied lamb shoulder
- 1/4 cup plain flour
- 1 brown onion
- 2 carrots
- 2 celery stalks
- 3 cloves garlic
- 3 tsp dried thyme
- 3 tsp dried rosemary
- 2 dried bay leaves
- 2 tbsp tomato paste
- 2 cups water
- 2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 stock cube of choice
- 1 cup frozen peas
- 1kg potatoes
- 1/2-1 cup milk
- 2 tbsp butter
- 300g sheet short crust pastry
- 1/2 parmesan cheese (optional)
Method
- Quarter lamb and season well with salt and pepper. Sprinkle over flour until lamb is well coated.
- Dice onion and carrot, slice carrot and crush garlic.
- Heat a large frypan over medium-high heat with oil. Add lamb and cook for 2-4 minutes each side until browned all over.
- Add browned lamb, prepared veggies, dried thyme and rosemary, bay leaves, tomato paste, water, balsamic vinegar and stock cube to a slow cooker. Cook on high for 3-4 hours or until lamb is tender.
- Remove lamb from slow cooker and use tongs or forks to pull lamb. Return to slow cooker along with peas.
- Allow lamb mixture to cool for a minimum of 30 minutes.
- Roughly chop potatoes. Add to a saucepan and cover with plenty of water. Bring to a boil and simmer for 15 minutes or until tender. Drain potatoes and return to saucepan.
- Add milk and butter to potatoes. Use a potato masher or fork to mash to a smooth consistency. Season well with salt and pepper.
- Set oven to 200ºC. Use a rolling pin to gently roll out the pastry. Drape pastry into a pie tin (approximately 23cm diameter). Gently press pastry up the side of the tin and use a small knife or scissors to trim excess from the edges.
- Blind bake pastry for 10-15 minutes until it is just turning golden.
- Spoon cooled lamb mix into the pastry shell. Top with mashed potato and Parmesan cheese. Cook for 10-15 minutes until potato top is golden.
- Allow pie to cool for 15-20 minutes. Remove from tin and serve.
- Lamb shoulder is best for slow cooking. Lamb leg and lamb mince will both work well in this recipe.
- Lamb filling can be made up to 3 days in advance and stored in the fridge or frozen for up to 3 months.
- Peel potatoes if desired. Substitute milk with cooking liquid and butter with olive oil.
- To blind bake pastry, follow the instructions in step 9. To blind bake the pastry, place two large sheets of baking paper, crossways, over the pastry. Fill with baking beads, dry rice or dry beans and bake according to instructions at
step 10. - You can skip the pastry altogether if preferred. Add lamb to an oven dish, top with mashed potato and cheese and bake until golden.
Want to make this at home? We used Mondo Butcher & Grocer Butterflied Lamb Shoulder, Global Spices Dried Rosemary, and Potatoes from the Dinner Twist Marketplace.
