Oh What a Crock by Angie Ledbetter

I woke to the delicious aroma of a roast cooking this morning, at first thinking it was a dream. Then I remembered I'd put that roast in my beloved crock pot last night so it'd be ready for my daughter and friends to take on their beach vacation. On busy days, my trusty crock is indispensable, and it also helps me save money as I can buy lesser cuts of meat and still have them come out tender and yummy when everyone lands home from work, school, etc.

What a wonderful invention the crock pot is! With a few simple ingredients and spices, meals practically prepare themselves, and I appreciate anything that cuts down on my time in the kitchen. For years I had the old type that was all one heavy piece and a pain to wash. The one I have now is like a huge crockery serving bowl that comes out of the heating element base with ease. I just pop it into the dishwasher and it's ready to go again. Even if I still had only the old 25-year-old model, there are now crock pot liners available which make clean up a breeze. We use these in the school baseball concession stand to heat chili and nacho cheese, and boy does it make cleaning them so much easier.

If you've thought crock pots were only good for making dishes for big gatherings or for keeping something warm for a gathering, or for chili in winter only, it's time to think again. Cooking in a crock pot is fun and produces wonderful meals...like that roast simmering away slowly in my kitchen. All I do for that is add salt, pepper and lots of garlic, cook each side on high for 30 minutes or so, then simmer away until people are ready to eat. If you want gravy, you can add a can of lite cream of mushroom soup after the browning stage. For crock recipes, surf the Net or simply check this site: http://http://familycrockpotrecipes.com/

Oh, great crock pot, I'm ever so thankful for you!