It's that time of the year again, when fall harvests completely take over your kitchen counter. Apples, in particular, are probably already piled up in a basket, waiting to be baked into pies and swirled with caramel. But as the season slips by, don't let pies be the only place you use this delightful fruit. Apples are just as wonderful in a panful of breakfast potatoes as in hearty desserts.
Obviously, in a dish with as few ingredients as aglio e olio, that bitter, burnt garlic is going to stand out front and center, and throw everything off. But even when it is hidden by other ingredients, such as in a tomato-based sauce, bitter garlic is a flavor best avoided. The root of good cooking is getting the best out of every ingredient, after all.
Compared to the same dish cooked on the stovetop or in an oven, food from a slow cooker can sometimes taste bland and dull (some people call this the "slow cooker flavor"). Well, your taste buds aren't tricking you - slow-cooking actually mutes flavor. In the slow cooker, steam coming off the food gathers on the lid, then drips back down. This closed circle means your food essentially stews in its own juices with almost zero evaporation throughout the entire process.
