I wholeheartedly appreciate Irving Naxon.  If you don’t know who he is, you more than likely have either been the benefactor of his invention or quite possibly have a descendant of his invention in your own home.  You see, back in 1936, Mr. Naxon invented the ‘Naxon Beanery,’ which was sold to Rival Manufacturing in the early 1970’s, which was then renamed the ‘Crock Pot.’

I was curious, so I did a little research and discovered that as many as eighty-five percent of households in the United States are thought to own a slow cooker. Eighty-five percent! That’s pretty high!  Admittedly, I would be one of them.  In fact, it is probably my most favorite portable appliance.  Well, maybe second favorite.  I really love the convenience of my immersion blender too.

This recipe is perfect for one of those days when you don’t want to have to spend much time in the kitchen, yet you want something that tastes like you did.  The beauty of a slow cooker is you put all the ingredients into the pot, set it on low and literally walk away.  Eight to ten hours later, dinner is served!

And as usual, the chili-head in me, made sure this recipe has a little heat too!

Ingredients:

3-5lb. pork butt roast
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
3 carrots, peeled and chopped
1 chocolate habañero pepper, seeded and chopped
½ cup dried figs or dates, chopped
½ cup dried apricots, chopped
¼ cup brown sugar
5 fresh thyme sprigs, leaves removed and stems discarded
2 whole adobe peppers, roughly chopped
2 tablespoons adobe pepper sauce
1 cup chicken or vegetable broth
Salt and pepper

Directions:

1) Place roast in the bottom of a slow cooker and season generously with salt and pepper.

2) Scatter the next eight ingredients over the roast.

3) Combine the adobe sauce with the broth and pour the mixture over the roast.

4) Cover the roast and cook on low for 8-10 hours or until meat is tender.

5) When roast is done, transfer it to a platter and serve it along with a side of cous cous or brown rice.