25 Slow Cooker Recipes We'll Be Making All Winter

Figaro's Orange Cake

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Aunty Florence's Orange Cake

Welcome to ieFood, your digital cookbook from the Irish Examiner.

We hope you enjoy browsing our brand-new food hub. As well as creating a more streamlined design for recipe content, we've added lots of new features to make your food experience the best it can possibly be.

So why did we develop ieFood?

We know that you love to cook, and we wanted to provide you with a searchable recipe database that would give you access to our archive of recipe content from writers including Darina Allen, Michelle Darmody, the Currabinny Cooks and Colm O'Gorman.

What can I search?

We know that most of us find recipes through search and our dedicated search engine will search our database by ingredient. Search your key ingredient (or two), and you'll receive a list of recipes that match. Our recipe database is growing every day, with fifty new recipes added weekly. We also have lots of recipe collections like Fakeaway, Chocolate and Midweek Dinners to inspire and delight.

Where can I give feedback on the site?

We want to give you what you want, and your feedback is important to us. To let us know what you think, or what you'd like to see more of, click here.

Recipe: Time To Interrupt January's Thoughtful Eating With A Little Treat: Carrot, Pecan Loaf Cake

Makes 1 large loaf

After the first few weeks of spare, thoughtful eating in January, it feels like time for a little treat. This loaf, which is not too sweet and, after all, contains a vegetable and some whole-wheat flour, is healthy but not health food-y. Grate the carrots in a food processor or by hand on the coarse side of a grater. To give a boost to the orange flavor in the batter, rub finely grated rind into the sugar to saturate it with orange oil. Slices of the cake are grand for breakfast, a midmorning snack with a cup of tea, or a late-night nibble. Let's all agree that cake has its place on the table. It's one of life's simple pleasures.

Vegetable oil (for the pan)

3

ounces pecan halves and pieces (2/3 cup)

1¼

cups all-purpose flour

¾

cup whole-wheat flour

2

teaspoons baking powder

¼

teaspoon baking soda

¾

teaspoon salt

1½

teaspoons ground cinnamon

¼

teaspoon ground cloves

1

cup sugar

Grated rind of 1 orange

3

eggs

¾

cup vegetable, canola, or safflower oil

2

large carrots, grated (2 cups)

1. Set the oven at 350 degrees. Brush a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with a light layer of vegetable oil. Line the bottom and 2 long sides of the pan with a sheet of parchment paper cut to fit so that it comes 1 inch above the top of the pan. This will be a sling later.

2. In a small baking dish, spread the pecans. Toast them in the oven for 10 to 12 minutes, or until they have a fragrant, nutty aroma. Leave to cool. Place them in a zipper bag and seal the bag. With the side of a rolling pin, tap them gently to break them up into medium-size pieces. Set aside 2 tablespoons for the top of the loaf.

3. In a bowl, whisk the all-purpose and whole-wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and cloves to blend them.

4. In a bowl large enough to hold all the ingredients, combine the sugar and orange rind. With your fingers, work the rind into the sugar until it is saturated with rind.

5. Whisk in the eggs, one at a time, then whisk in the oil. With a rubber spatula, stir in the flour mixture until evenly blended.

6. Stir in the carrots and pecans and mix well. Scrape the batter into the loaf pan. Smooth the top with the back of a spoon and sprinkle the reserved pecans in a line down the center of the loaf.

7. Transfer the cake to the oven. Bake for 70 to 75 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. The cake is not done until the middle of the cake is firm to the touch.

8. Set the cake in the pan on a wire rack. Cool for 15 minutes. Using the parchment paper, lift the cake out of the pan. Peel off the paper. Leave the cake to cool completely before slicing.

Sally Pasley Vargas

Makes 1 large loaf

After the first few weeks of spare, thoughtful eating in January, it feels like time for a little treat. This loaf, which is not too sweet and, after all, contains a vegetable and some whole-wheat flour, is healthy but not health food-y. Grate the carrots in a food processor or by hand on the coarse side of a grater. To give a boost to the orange flavor in the batter, rub finely grated rind into the sugar to saturate it with orange oil. Slices of the cake are grand for breakfast, a midmorning snack with a cup of tea, or a late-night nibble. Let's all agree that cake has its place on the table. It's one of life's simple pleasures.

Vegetable oil (for the pan) 3 ounces pecan halves and pieces (2/3 cup) 1¼ cups all-purpose flour ¾ cup whole-wheat flour 2 teaspoons baking powder ¼ teaspoon baking soda ¾ teaspoon salt 1½ teaspoons ground cinnamon ¼ teaspoon ground cloves 1 cup sugar Grated rind of 1 orange 3 eggs ¾ cup vegetable, canola, or safflower oil 2 large carrots, grated (2 cups)

1. Set the oven at 350 degrees. Brush a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with a light layer of vegetable oil. Line the bottom and 2 long sides of the pan with a sheet of parchment paper cut to fit so that it comes 1 inch above the top of the pan. This will be a sling later.

2. In a small baking dish, spread the pecans. Toast them in the oven for 10 to 12 minutes, or until they have a fragrant, nutty aroma. Leave to cool. Place them in a zipper bag and seal the bag. With the side of a rolling pin, tap them gently to break them up into medium-size pieces. Set aside 2 tablespoons for the top of the loaf.

3. In a bowl, whisk the all-purpose and whole-wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and cloves to blend them.

4. In a bowl large enough to hold all the ingredients, combine the sugar and orange rind. With your fingers, work the rind into the sugar until it is saturated with rind.

5. Whisk in the eggs, one at a time, then whisk in the oil. With a rubber spatula, stir in the flour mixture until evenly blended.

6. Stir in the carrots and pecans and mix well. Scrape the batter into the loaf pan. Smooth the top with the back of a spoon and sprinkle the reserved pecans in a line down the center of the loaf.

7. Transfer the cake to the oven. Bake for 70 to 75 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean. The cake is not done until the middle of the cake is firm to the touch.

8. Set the cake in the pan on a wire rack. Cool for 15 minutes. Using the parchment paper, lift the cake out of the pan. Peel off the paper. Leave the cake to cool completely before slicing.Sally Pasley Vargas

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