Packed with vegetables, beans and barley, this hearty bean and barley soup is not
only comfort in a bowl but it’s healthy too!
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Can you already believe it is mid-September?! I literally blinked and the summer was gone. Blinked and everyone around me fell into the back-to-school/back-to-normal routine. Blinked and I realized I’m 25, weeks away from completing my master’s degree (my thesis is under correction), and my favorite app is no longer Instagram but LinkedIn Jobs.
Does life have a
I know it doesn’t, but I also know there are ways I can slow it down.
PULL OUT THE SLOW COOKER!
Sometimes in food, much like in life, good things come to those that wait – so waiting a good long 10 hours to get the yummiest, un-fussy, deep golden dulce de leche is totally worth it.
What is dulce de leche?
Dulce de leche is a caramel-like spread made from cooking sweetened condensed milk (or a mixture of sugar and milk) until it becomes golden. The longer it cooks, the richer the color and more complex the flavor, thanks to the Mallard Reaction.
Like a good caramel sauce, you can use dulce de leche many ways. It’s great as a spread on toast or pancakes or drizzled on ice cream and other desserts. Also, if you have extra on hand, it makes a great dip for apples – aka. a delicious seasonal snack!
How to make dulce de leche?
At first, I wanted to make it in my pressure cooker. While other home cooks use this method, I ultimately thought that putting a pressurized can into a cooking vessel that would also become pressurized would be a recipe for disaster.
Other methods I considered were boiling a closed can of sweetened condensed milk in a water bath on the stove or boiling the milk directly in a saucepan over the stove. Of course, both of these will work, but I wanted a set-it-and-forget-it method.
So I turned to the slow cooker setting on my Fast Slow Pro (Beville’s version of the Instant Pot). I was less worried about this method because only one thing would be under pressure (the can) and the temperature would be constant over the cooking time; plus, it really was a set-it-and-forget-it-method.
Hope you enjoy!
P.S. Buy a bunch of cans of sweetened condensed milk at Costco with some cute jars and make a large batch to give as gifts!
Slow cooker dulce de leche is the fail proof way to get yummy, un-fussy, delicious dulce de leche! Great for toasts and drizzled over desserts and ice cream! You’ll love this caramel-like treat!
- 1 (14oz/300ml) can sweetened condensed milk
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Remove the label from the can of sweetened condensed milk.
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Place in slow cooker on its side and cover with water so that there is at least 1-inch of water covering the can.
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Set the slow cooker to cook on low for 10 hours.
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Remove can from the slow cooker carefully and let it cool to room temperature, about 6 hours. This is important, if the inside of the can is still very hot it will explode as you open it, which can cause burns.
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Use it for toasts, ice cream, and your desserts!
Did you make this recipe?
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I'm Michelle: an associate research scientist that loves to cook/bake and make jewellery! I live in Montreal, Canada with my boyfriend. Favourite things: playing music in the lab, cooking on the weekends and a good cup of coffee - or glass of wine depending on the hour! Least favourite things: thinking about it! Want to find out more?! Check the 
