Ingredients

• meat, here 3 lbs, 11oz of venison neck
• 2 onions
• garlic, lots
• a cup of marmalade (apricot seems best)
• 3 tablespoons or so of Dijon mustard
• 12 oz or so of beer, or perhaps half as much wine plus some water or dark stock

The ingredients are rough, because exact quantities don't matter much. This is roughly what Nathan used for this roast. Use a beef roast if Bambi's not available. Pork will cook a little differently, but the same basic method holds. Also, the alcohol can be replaced by enough dark chicken or beef stock. Alcohol helps disolve and spread flavors that aren't soluble in water.

Preparation

Dice the onion and dump it in a slow cooker. Smash the garlic and stick it in cracks in the meat. Cover the meat with mustard and place it in the slow cooker. Cover the meat with marmalade. Pour in the liquids. Turn the slow cooker to low. Go to work, etc. Come home. Eat. If you expect fewer than, say, five hours between cooking and eating, turn the cooker to high for the first hour.

Variations

You can sear and brown the roast first if you don't mind washing an extra pan. Orange marmalade seems a bit strong, but we think pairing it with a bit of ginger would work well.

Good sides

Roast vegetables and rice (or quinoa, etc.). Here the vegetables are sweet potato, parsnips, and beets. To roast most vegetables, peel them and chop them into roughly the same size pieces. Toss them in olive oil, salt, and whatever spices you want (pepper, thyme). Roast in the oven at 350°F to 400°F for around an hour, tossing them every once in a while if you want more even browning. They're done when you can easily stick a fork in them.

I'd suggest beginners avoid beets. They're not difficult, but they could be messy and hence discouraging. There is plenty of information on roasting beets on-line.