My Crock-Pot

(Note: the terms “slow cooker” and “crock-pot” are interchangeable and here mean the same thing.  Crock-Pot is the original trademarked name for slow cookers)

My kitchen would not be complete without my Crock-Pot.  Growing up my mom often utilized her slow cooker to get dinner on the table and I was trained early on how to cook in the crock pot.  I remember making beef stew in the crock pot for a Girl Scout badge task when I was in about fifth grade.

It should come as no surprise that as I grew up and had my own home, a crock-pot became a necessary appliance.  When we moved into our apartment in Pasadena seven years ago, a six quart slow cooker arrived at my door, a housewarming gift from my mom-in-law.  This beauty still works just as good as the day I opened it and I have give it quite the workout.

I started with meats, soups, stews, sauces and beans.  Then when I found Stephanie at A Year of Slow Cooking I got a little more creative and tried her Crème Brule recipe (yeah, it was pretty good!) and yogurt (ok, but I’ve gotten my method perfected now).  On occasion I still look for creative recipes but most of the time my slow cooker is just my workhorse for batch cooking items destined for the freezer.  It cooks while I go about my day.  No minding things on the stove.  It’s great!

So, if you’ve not tried a slow cooker, you should!  If you’ve wanted to start batch cooking, the crock-pot is a great place to start.  Fill it up, let it cook, eat some and freeze the rest.  It doesn’t get any easier than that!  If you enjoy slow-cooking, what is your favorite thing to cook in the crock-pot?