Getting more out of my Actifry

I've made a decision. From now on, my gadgets are going to have to earn their keep. I really don't have enough kitchen space to allow an unused gadget to take up space. So they work - or go.  The food processor is in daily use, so that stays. The rice boiler too, stays, although the current one will have to learn to behave itself a bit better or it will get replaced. The bread machine is usually in use several times a week but since I was ill in the summer I've lacked a bit of enthusiasm for using it. However I've dusted it off and right now there's a mixed grain loaf churning away in it.

That leaves two items that are going to have to start to work a LOT harder, the slow cooker and the Actifry. I've made a start on the slow cooker...... no, I've not actually cooked anything in it. But I have pinned an awful lot of recipes to try on my Pinterest recipe board. Well, it's a start, isn't it?

That leaves the Actifry. The poor machine doesn't see the light of day very much. I make chips in it. I cook sausages in it (have you ever cooked sausages in one? They come out really evenly browned, it's by far my favourite way to cook them). And that's about it. I'm aware it can do so much more, so I'm going to play with it a lot more often.

For my first "playtime" I added baby potatoes, halved Chantenay carrots, a chopped shallot and some chopped fresh thyme, drizzled over a tablespoon of rapeseed oil and cooked for 35 minutes. The result was a delicious roast root mixture

To go with this, I cooked some duck breasts skin side down over gentle heat until the fat had run off, then finished them in the oven. I tipped off most of the fat from the pan (and saved it for roast potatoes) then added a chopped onion and softened it. Then I threw in a handful of cranberries, a good slug of post and a bit of chicken stock and cooked it until the cranberries were soft.

 

Finally I served up the meal with some tiny and delicious Brussels Sprouts, fresh from the garden.