Bonfire Bangers and Barbecue Bean Casserole

for

Crocktober

Here we are half way through October……it’s been a funny old month with some very cold, wet days, and then today the sun has decided to show its face again and I am hankering to get out and have a long walk…….the sort of autumn walk where you kick your way through dried leaves and hunt for conkers……it’s also just the day to think about winter warmers, dishes that cook all by themselves whilst you are at work or are out busy kicking leaves…….a day that ends the week with glimpses of celebrations and festivals to come, such as Bonfire Night and Halloween – yes, I am ready for woolly hats, scarves, hot chocolate, carved pumpkins, toasted marshmallows, soup, hot dogs and fireworks!

To aid and abet me in my task (to cook a comforting autumn meal) I turned to a new toy in the Lavender and Lovage kitchen – a shiny new Crock-Pot; my Crock-Pot is a 4.7 litre Countdown Slow Cooker, which means you can set the cooking time, which is really helpful. I love cooking in my slow cooker, but this one takes the stress out of the cooking times and settings as it turns off and on to a “keep warm” function at the end of the cooking time, which is really useful. I decided to test drive it the other day with a new recipe I created, Bonfire Bangers and Barbecue Bean Casserole, a hearty sausage and bean casserole with bags of veggies and a tangy barbecue sauce. JUST the thing for this time of year.

This is such a GREAT recipe, even if I say so myself; it’s got organic high-meat content British sausages in it, as well as mixed beans (in a tomato sauce), loads of onions, red pepper and chorizo sausage for a bit of a spicy surprise, and that essential barbecue sauce (I used Stokes Barbecue sauce). I fried my vegetables and bangers in extra virgin British rapeseed oil (I used Hill Farm rapeseed oil) to brown them before adding the whole lot to the crock-pot, where it all simmered together for three or four hours. You could just throw all the ingredients straight into the slow cooker without the preliminary browning, but I like to have the added “fried” taste and the sausages look more attractive with a “tan”!

Serve this hearty winter barbecue sausage and bean concoction with spiced red cabbage and mashed potatoes for an autumn dinner party dish, or with jacket spuds for the children on Bonfire night…….I have a lovely recipe for SPICED RED CABBAGE WITH APPLES that also uses the Crock-Pot (or a Le Creuset) that is perfect for this time of year – and you can freeze to too. The recipe for my Bonfire Bangers and Barbecue Bean Casserole is shared below, and this is my offering for CROCKTOBER, an annual event heralding in autumn and the month of October by using your slow cookers…..you can check out all the other recipes using the hash-tag #crocktober on FaceBook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram. With thanks to the lovely people over at Crock Pot UK who sent me this Crock-Pot® 4.7L Countdown Slow Cooker AND a Crock-Pot® Food Warmer (£74:98) in order to cook my #crocktober recipe!

That’s all for today and DON’T forget, I have a GIVEAWAY for a Crock-Pot® 4.7L Countdown Slow Cooker AND a Crock-Pot® Food Warmer worth £74:98 for ALL Lavender and Lovage readers HERE:

Giveaway: WIN a Countdown Slow Cooker Crock-Pot & Crock-Pot Warmer RRP: £74:98