Tons of time to cook

March 8, 2008 8:00 AM

My girlfriend and I are going away to a remote cabin in a few weeks and we are trying to think of what to cook while we are there.

So, what is your favorite recipe that has many steps, takes hours to cook, and will make the cabin smell delicious all day? The only things I don't eat are beans and peas so please keep those nasty ingredients out of your recipe.

P.S. On another cooking note, does anyone have a recipe for Haitian Chicken Patés?

posted by toddst to food & drink (11 comments total)

Get a crock pot, some really cheap meat, and throw in whatever veggies you have. Let it run all day, and there you have it. Its a pretty easy dish (low prep-slow cooking)...but if you are looking into something thats slow AND is pretty labor intense, I suggest making a cheesecake.
posted by hal_c_on at 8:20 AM on March 8, 2008

This question was asked a while ago, which is along the same lines and had some good answers.

Also, what about making chocolates or truffles, or some other kind of sweets? They can take all day, with icing or decorating or whatever, and they will be yummy to eat while watching a movie or something in the evening!
posted by schmoo at 8:36 AM on March 8, 2008

If you've got a good oven where you're headed, I'd roll up my sleeves and start baking some bread. This book will get you started. Nick Malgieri's challah and sourdough baguette are particularly awesome, time intensive and will make your cabin smell pretty dang fantastic all day long.

Also not to be missed is his chicken pot pie recipe. That would be delicious, too.
posted by TryTheTilapia at 9:17 AM on March 8, 2008

If you have a fireplace, do String Roasted Chicken. I used to do this at a living museum in front of the fireplace, and it looked and smelled wonderful. All you need is string and a pan to catch the juices in, and the time to give the string a twist every few minutes. The linked site also has a Leg of Lamb recipe.
posted by saffry at 9:27 AM on March 8, 2008 [1 favorite]

Baking pizza from scratch is great. You can make bread and pizza dough at the same time, then roast a bunch of veggies, fry up some pepperoni, blacken some peppers, sautee some mushrooms, crush your own tomatoes.... whatever. Time intensive and fun and yummy, and you can then eat fresh bread for breakfast the next morning.
posted by Rumple at 9:53 AM on March 8, 2008

So many great ideas. (schmoo-thanks for the link to the older post- I did not see that when I searched the site.) I'll post in a couple day and let you know what we decide to make. Right now, I'm heading to the library to pick up Nick Malgieri's book.
posted by toddst at 10:04 AM on March 8, 2008

Apple pie?
posted by salvia at 11:22 AM on March 8, 2008

When I make spaghetti sauce from my Italian MIL's family recipe it smell fabulous but I'm afraid one day isn't long enough. That reminds me: need to make another big batch.
posted by trinity8-director at 11:49 AM on March 8, 2008

trinity8-director: recipe?
posted by Jupiter Jones at 1:22 PM on March 8, 2008

Make a good oven roast - chicken, pork, beef, whatever you prefer - with lots of potatoes and root vegetables. It takes hours to cook and makes everything smell wonderful. You don't have to stand over the stove, either. While the meat is roasting, you can put together a pie, and when you're eating dinner bake the pie.

Sorry its not a recipe, but everyone does roasts a little different, based on what spices and vegetables they like.
posted by sandraregina at 4:35 PM on March 8, 2008

I made some nihari (aka "nehari," and all other vaguely reasonable transliterations you can imagine) recently and found it to be an exceptionally delicious Pakistani take on stew. See also 3 Quarks Daily's video. Take no shortcuts -- toast and grind your own whole spices, employ cuts of shank instead of more tender sirloin, roast marrow bones toward the end for a special meaty treat... you can easily spend much of a day prepping, fiddling, etc. Particularly if you also make bread to go with it. I served it at a breakfast-themed dinner party, but that was a bit tricksy of me, since it really eats like a Western dinner entree. You can eat it whenever you like. It's difficult to imagine that I'll be making it very often, what with it being such an all-day affair... this seems to me like a perfect dish to help make the most of your vacation in remote environs.
posted by mumkin at 12:55 AM on March 10, 2008