My Crock Pot Has Become My Friend

Recently in my surfing the web, I stumbled upon a very helpful blog www.crockpot365.blogspot.com . Since discovering this blog I have dusted off my crock pot and put it into major use. In fact, I have used it daily and sometimes up to 3 times in a day. One thing that I do have to remember is that if I need to use it again immediately then I must not place cold water in it as it will crack the pot. I wash it in the hottest water I can stand since it has already been cooking and it is super easy to clean. Just sitting here thinking about it I have made turkey soup, crock roasted root vegetables, roasted cabbage and sweet potatoes, butternut squash cooked whole (with the peeling still on makes it easier to cut when it is done), chicken with baked beans filling for burritos, cranberry sauce, creamy cranberry dip, southwestern beans with ham, lasagna, macaroni and cheese, and french toast. Plus I looked up 12 new recipes I will be trying for breakfast. I am planning on putting this baby to use as much as I possibly can. After reading Stephanie's blog, she inspired me to try and use it every day. She was a dedicated woman because she not only used her crock pot every day in 2008, but she also took pictures and blogged about it daily due to a BlogHer challenge she was presented. Then she went so far as having a cook book published that detailed her entire year of crock potting. If this is what it takes for me to have meals on the table at decent hours and save money in the process, then I want to take this same challenge. I will not guarantee that my readers will see recipes posted each day by me, but I will occasionally try to remember to take pictures and reference where I found the recipe. Since Stephanie has already done this, why duplicate? All I want to do is help to make my life easier by using what I have and then sharing with others the things that have helped me and hopefully inspire others to pull out your crock pots and put them to use. During my last pregnancy (when I had no desire to cook), my friend recommended a cook book, Not My Mother's Slow Cooker Cook Book. It is a great cook book. I also plan on searching the web for recipes, asking every one I know, and purchasing more crock pot cook books. I love trying new recipes! When my son found out that I was making french toast and pancakes in the crock pot he asked, "can we make cookies in the crock pot?" I told him that I did not know, but we could certainly try. It might be a big mess or a big cookie. If you, too, know of favorite crock pot recipes that you would like to share I would love this.