Baking In The Crock Pot

 Owning a crockpot is like having a little mini oven. You can actually use it for baking most cakes. Fruit cakes and self topped cook well in the crock pot.  I am amazed at how well the cakes rise in the crock pot.

You can use a crock pot cake tin or an ordinary cake pan or even the crock pot base itself to cook the cake.  Some people use empty coffee or soup cans.  These are good for fruit cakes and rolls. I've been trying some crock pot baking myself lately and very successfully, even if I do say so myself.

I found these 10 tips for crock pot baking on another site. They have been helful to me.

   1. Preheat the crock pot on high for about 10 minutes if you are using a regular pan.
   2. Use several sheets of paper towel on the top of the cake pan and cover with the crock pot lid, except when using the crock pot cake pan.
   3. Cook your cakes on the high setting.
   4. Don't lift the lid during cooking, only at the end as you let the heat out.
   5. Use a rack if you have one in the bottom of the crock pot base and if you haven't one you can use 2 or 3 egg rings as a substitute.  This helps the heat to circulate around the pan for more even cooking.
   6. Grease and line the cake pan to prevent the cake from sticking.
   7. Only half fill the cake pan or cut the liner at least an inch above the top of the sides.
   8. Use your oval based crock pot for cakes that can be decorated as faces, clocks, footballs etc.
   9. Test the cake with a skewer and if cooked let it cook a few minutes before getting turning out.
  10. Use prepared cake mixes in the crock pot for an improved taste over conventional cooking.

The holidays is great time to be baking in your crock pot. Too often, I need more oven space.

Most recipes are adaptable; however, their presentation, appearance wise, will be different from the traditional look.

Here's a good beginner's recipe. It's a good one to practice on. The more you bake in your crock pot, the more confident you will be in your experiments. It's a fun way to create great desserts and breads for your family.


Cherry Cobbler

1 (21 ounce) can cherry pie filling
1 c. all-purpose flour
1/4 c. white sugar
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 c. butter, melted
1/2 c. milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
non-stick cooking spray

What to do:

Coat the inside of your slow cooker with non-stick cooking spray. Pour in the cherry pie filling. In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt. Make a well in the center, and pour in the melted butter, milk, and vanilla. Mix until well blended. Spread evenly over the cherry pie filling. Cover, and cook on High for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, or until a toothpick inserted into the topping comes out clean.

This recipe does well with substitutions also. You can use strawberry, blueberry, blackberry, etc. So, if one turns out well, the next time you can bake a different flavor.

Remember to set a timer because it's easy to overcook in the crock pot, just as it is in the conventional oven.


*Crock pot inserts are hard to find. I found the one pictured above on ebay.