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First, fill the slow cooker at least 1/2 full and no more than 2/3 full. Filling the stoneware pot at least half full will ensure food is done in the time specified in recipes. You can cook smaller amounts, but monitor the cooking time, as it will change. In conventional cooking, water evaporates from cooking food through the seams of the pan lid or by other means. But in crockery cooking on the LOW setting, the tight seal of the lid causes steam to build up, condense into water, and drip back down into your meal.

Additionally, on the LOW setting, liquid doesn't come to a boil. The slow simmer of the liquid prevents too much water from evaporating as it does when liquid boils. Because of these reasons, additional moisture always builds up in the cooker, expanding the volume of the original contents. If the cooker is filled too full, expect boil overs and a delightful mess to clean up.

Second, cut vegetables evenly and layer on the bottom and up the sides of the crock. If you've ever bitten into a crunchy slow-cooked potato, you know that vegetables sometimes have a hard time completing the cooking process in a slow cooker. Unlike on the stove, where they cook in boiling water, the simmering water in crockery cooking can make getting vegetables done a very long process.

To boost your probability of tender vegetables, cut all the vegetables into uniform, bite sized chunks. Then, layer them on the bottom and up the sides of the crock. The heating element of the base unit circles up the sides and on the bottom of the unit. Vegetables layered nearest this heat will warm up faster and benefit from a longer cooking time than if they were placed in the center or at the top of the stoneware crock.

Third, trim fat from meat before adding it to the cooker. Unless you like your meat swimming in grease, cut away any excess fat before cooking the meat. One great thing about crockery cooking is that lean, less tender, and less expensive cuts of meat cook up deliciously supple without added fat. Choose cuts of meat containing words like chuck, round, stewing, brisket, or fore shank on the label.

Another way to remember which meats work best in the slow cooker is to picture a cow or sheep, etc. The meat that comes from the leg areas, where the animal exercises its muscles to walk is going to consist of a lot less fat (marbling) and be more overworked (less tender) than cuts of meat from the back or gut area (rib, loin). Reserve more marbleized, expensive, and tender cuts of meat for the grill, where they'll cook up fast, tender, and delicious.

Fourth, sear roasts before slow cooking. Yes, this is optional. You can simply place a roast in the cooker and turn it on. However, your finished roast will taste better and look delectable if you'll brown it on all sides first. It takes about 15-20 minutes, but it will help your roast hold in its natural, flavorful juices better and give it an oven-roasted brown color.

To sear, heat a small amount of oil in a pot large enough to accommodate the roast. When hot, add the roast. Turn and cook each side until nicely browned. Add the browned bits left in the pan to the pot and you'll enjoy a richer tasting gravy. Browning intensifies the flavor of vegetables as well, especially onions and garlic.

Fifth, avoid using frozen meats. Though older cookbooks and instruction manuals that come with slow-cookers suggest using frozen meats or poultry for better texture, it is now not recommended by food safety experts. In order for slow-cooking to be safe, food must reach 140 F. within the first 2 hours of cooking.

This ensures that the food isn't sitting in the temperature danger zone (40 -140 F.) allowing microorganisms to multiply erratically. It takes frozen meat longer than two hours to thaw and heat up to 140 F., allowing ample time for microbes to party. To test whether your crockery cooker will heat food to a safe temperature within the first two hours of cooking, run a slow-cooker test.

Sixth, don't add dairy products at the beginning of the cooking process. Dairy products, like milk, yogurt, cheese, and sour cream curdle and separate during the long hours of slow cookery. To overcome this trouble, stir dairy products into the dish right before serving.

Evaporated milk and processed cheese can be added during the final 30-60 minutes of cooking. Suitable alternatives for dairy products that can be added prior to cooking include reconstituted powdered milk and condensed cream soups. For desserts, condensed sweetened milk can be added during the final hour of cooking.

Seventh, don't lift that lid! I know it smells wonderful and looking at the cooking food might help your tummy stop grumbling (especially if you can sneak a taste). But every time you lift that lid, you are delaying your dinner by 15-30 minutes.

It took much of the day to get that food to a hot enough cooking temperature, and great amounts of heat escape when you peek. Patiently waiting to check the meal at the minimum cooking time suggested by the recipe will give you ample time to snitch as desired without delaying dinner too much.

Eighth, always season food to taste after the cooking process. Whole or leaf spices and herbs deepen in flavor, while ground herbs diminish in flavor. If you fail to taste and adjust seasonings before serving, your food may be too spicy or too bland to be enjoyed. When converting recipes, add whole or chopped dried herbs instead of ground ones but decrease the amount called for in the recipe by half. Then season as needed during the final cooking hour.

If you prefer to use ground forms of herbs and spices, add them during the final hour of cooking to ensure potency. Remember that 1 tablespoon fresh herbs = 1 teaspoon dried herb = 1/4 teaspoon ground herb. So, if a recipe calls for 1 teaspoon dried oregano leaves you'd use 1/4 teaspoon ground oregano, added in the final hour of slow cooking.

Ninth, remove the lid to thicken liquids. If after checking the food towards the end of the cooking time, you find it is swimming in liquid, remove the lid and turn the unit to HIGH. This will help moisture escape and evaporate, thickening the juices. Allow at least a half hour for the liquid to escape and the sauce to thicken. You can also thicken liquid with quick-cooking tapioca, flour or cornstarch.

The tapioca can be added at the beginning of the cooking process to thicken as it cooks. The flour and cornstarch should be mixed with water to make a thin paste before whisking it into the juices at the end of the cooking period. Add these thickeners at least 15-30 minutes before serving.

Tenth, don't leave food out in the pot. Convenient as it is, your crock can be a food-safety nightmare if food is left to cool in it over two hours from the time it finished cooking. In the "off" position, food can be kept safely up to that 2 hour time limit. With a "keep warm" setting, the food can be kept hot longer. After that time, remove the food from the stoneware pot and refrigerate it in shallow containers so it will cool down quickly.

The heat retaining abilities of the pot and the volume of the food contents prevents food from chilling down in that safe window of time. Warm food can breed a bed of bacteria that will put you to bed and into the bathroom if you eat it. Don't store cooked food outside of the refrigerator or freezer, and eat, discard, or freeze leftovers within 3-4 days of cooking.

Shared by Jean, Syracuse, NY

1. Cut vegetables uniformly and layer them at the top and sides of the cooker. Quick cooking vegetables (peas) can be added during the final hour of cooking time.

2. Add dairy products in the final 30-60 minutes of cooking, to prevent curdling. Warm them up slightly by whisking in some of the cooking liquid before adding them to the pot. Suitable replacements for fresh dairy products include condensed soups and reconstituted powdered milk. These can be added at the beginning of the cooking process.

3. To avoid pasty rice and pasta products cooked in the slow cooker, cook these on a stove top or in a steamer prior to adding them to the recipe at the end of the cooking time. Try not to overcook them; instead cook them just until barely tender. They can finish cooking in the slow cooker and won't turn mushy on you. Alternatively, you can add uncooked rice and pasta during the final 30-60 minutes of cooking. You'll need to add 1/4 cup extra liquid for every 1/4 cup of raw rice added to the cooker, though.

4. Add fish and seafood during the final 30-60 minutes of cooking. Because these are quick-cooking, they do not hold up well during the long cooking process.

5. Use only half of the liquid requested by a conventional recipe in slow cookery. Liquids don't boil away at low temperatures. Pour liquids over the food last to prevent splashing.

6. When adapting soup recipes, add all the ingredients to the pot, and then add only enough liquid to cover. This may be substantially less water than called for in the original recipe. If, after cooking, the soup is too thick. Thin it with additional liquid. For cream or milk based soups, add 1 to 2 cups of water, instead of the milk, and cook the soup. When it is done, add the requested milk or cream and heat thoroughly.

7. Choose conventional recipes to convert to slow-cookery with cooking times of 45-60 minutes. Usually, these recipes contain ingredients that hold up better during longer cooking periods.

8. If a recipe calls for 15-30 minutes cooking time, cook it 1-1/2 to 2 hours on HIGH or 4-6 hours on LOW. (At altitudes above 4,000 feet, expect longer cooking times.)

9. If the recipe calls for 35-45 minutes of cooking time, cook it for or 3-4 hours on HIGH or 6-10 hours on LOW. (At altitudes above 4,000 feet, expect longer cooking times.)

10. If the recipe calls for 50 minutes to 3 hours of cooking time, cook it for 4-6 hours on HIGH or for 8-10 hours on LOW. (At altitudes above 4,000 feet, expect longer cooking times.)

These are helpful tools; sites (not downloads) that you could add to your desk top.

Cooking Units Converter:
Converts metric, imperial, etc. units.
http://www.unitsconverter.net/

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Crazy Corner...

Shared by Jean, Syracuse, NY...

Dear Abby:
A couple of women moved in across the hall from me. One is a middle-aged gym teacher and the other is a social worker in her mid-twenties. These two women go everywhere together and I've never seen a man go into their apartment. Do you think they could be Lebanese?

Dear Abby:
What can I do about all the sex, nudity, bad language and violence on my VCR?

Dear Abby:
I have a man I just never could trust. He cheats so much I'm not even sure this baby I'm carrying is his.

Dear Abby:
I am a twenty-three year old, liberated woman who has been on the pill for two years. It's getting very expensive and I think my boyfriend should share half the cost, but I don't know him well enough to discuss money with him

Dear Abby:
I suspected that my husband has been fooling around, and when I confronted him with the evidence, he denied everything and said it would never happen again.

Dear Abby:
Our son writes that he is taking Judo. Why would a boy who was raised in a good Christian home turn against his own?

Dear Abby:
I joined the Navy to see the world. I've seen it. Now, how do I get out?

Dear Abby:
My forty-year-old son has been paying a psychiatrist $50 an hour, every week, for two and a half years. He must be crazy.

Dear Abby:
I was married to Bill for three months and I didn't know he drank until, one night, he came home sober.

Dear Abby:
Do you think it would be all right if I gave my doctor a little gift? I tried for years to get pregnant and couldn't, and he did it.

Dear Abby:
My mother is mean and short tempered. I think she is going through her mental pause.

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CROCKPOT AUTUMN PORK CHOPS

Ingredients
6 thick pork chops
2 medium acorn squash
3/4 tsp salt
2 tbsp margarine; melted
3/4 cup brown sugar
3/4 tsp Kitchen Bouquet or brown sauce
1 tbsp orange juice
1/2 tsp orange peel; grated

Instructions
Trim excess fat from pork chops. Cut each squash into 4 or 5 crossways slices; remove seeds. Arrange 3 chops on bottom of crockpot. Place all squash slices on top; then another layer of three remaining chops. Combine salt, butter, sugar, Kitchen Bouquet or brown sauce, orange juice and orange peel. Spoon over chops. Cover and cook on low 6-8 hours or until done. Serve one or two slices of squash with each pork chop.

Yield: 6 servings

JUMPING JOE'S JAMBALAYA

1 pound chicken, de-boned and cut in 1" cubes
1 pound smoked sausage, sliced
1 pound shrimp, cooked (21-25 count)
28 ounces crushed tomatoes
2 medium onion, chopped
2 green pepper, chopped
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup white wine
2 tsp oregano
2 tsp parsley
2 tsp Cajun seasoning
1 cup okra, cut into 1/2" pieces
2 tsp cayenne pepper
2 cups rice, cooked

Cut chicken and slice sausage. Chop onion and green pepper. Put all in crockpot. Add remaining ingredients, except shrimp and rice. Cook in crockpot on low for 6-8 hours. Thirty minutes before eating, add cooked shrimp and cooked rice, allow to heat. Can be cooked on high for 3-4 hours instead.

DELICIOUS SQUASHED APPLES

5 lbs Butternut squash
4 baking apples
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 cup brown sugar, packed
2 Tbs flour
2 tsp salt
1 tsp mace

Cut squash in half, remove seeds and fibers; pare and cut in 1/2 inch slices. Pare and core apples; cut in 1/2 inch slices. Combine the melted butter, sugar, flour, salt and mace. Layer one half the squash in the bottom of the removable liner; top with one half the apple slices and one half the sugar mixture. Repeat layers. Place in base. Cover and cook on auto 5 hours, low 6-7 hours or high 3 1/2 hours.

VEGETABLE GUMBO

1 onion, chopped
1/2 green pepper, diced
2 ribs celery, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
1 lb frozen sliced okra
1 lb canned sliced tomatoes
2 cups corn
1 tsp vegetable bouillon granules
1/2 cup white cooking wine
1/2 cup water
1/4 tsp tabasco sauce
1/4 tsp paprika
2 Tbs fresh parsley, chopped
1 Tbs fresh basil, minced

Combine all ingredients in crockpot. Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours.

[Seriously, that's all there is to it ... ain't Crock cooking great Wooers? LOL!]

BAVARIAN POT ROAST

3-4 lbs beef arm pot roast
1 tsp vegetable oil
1 1/2 tsps salt
1/8 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp ground ginger
3 whole cloves
4 medium apples, cored and quartered
1 small onion -- sliced
1/2 cup apple juice
3-4 Tbs flour
3-4 Tbs water

Wipe roast well and trim off all excess fat. Lightly rub top of meat with oil. Dust meat with salt, pepper and ginger. Insert cloves in meat. Place apples and onions in the bottom of the crockpot and put the roast on top of the apples and onions. Pour in the apple juice. Cover and cook on a low setting for 8 to 12 hours. Remove the roast and apples to a warm platter when fully cooked. Turn the crockpot to High setting. Make a smooth paste with the flour and water and stir the paste into the crockpot. Cover and cook until thickened. Pour gravy over roast when serving. Makes about 6 to 8 good sized servings.

CARRIBEAN JERKED CHICKEN

1/2 cup sliced green onions
2 tbs grated gingerroot
1 tsp ground allspice
3 fresh jalapeno chiles, seeded and coarsely chopped
1 tsp vegetable oil
2 tsp seasoned pepepr
1/2 tsp salt
1 clove garlic
1 tbs honey
5 chicken thighs and drumsticks (joined together)
Cooked rice
Papaya (optional, peeled and sliced

In a blender or food processor, combine onions, gingerroot, allspice, jalapeno chiles, oil, seasoned pepper, salt and garlic. Process until finely chopped. Stir in honey to form a paste. Brush on all sides of chicken. Place a rack in a slow cooker. Place chicken on rack. Cover and cook on low 4 to 4 1/2 hours or until chicken is tender. Serve with rice. Garish with papaya.

SALMON AND POTATO CASSEROLE

4 potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced
3 Tbs flour
Salt and pepper
1 can (16 ounces) salmon, drained and flaked
1 medium onion, chopped
1 can (10 3/4 ounces) cream of mushroom soup
1/4 cup water
Nutmeg

Place half of the potatoes in your greased crockpot. Sprinkle with half of the flour, salt and pepper. Cover with half the salmon; sprinkle with half the onion. Repeat layers in order. Combine soup and water. Pour over potato-salmon mixture. Dust with nutmeg. Cover and cook on Low for 7-10 hours. Serves 6

POTATO SOUP

Source: Better Homes and Gardens

Ingredients:

3 medium potatoes (1 pound), peeled and quartered
2 cups water
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup sliced celery
1/2 cup sliced carrot
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tablespoon snipped fresh thyme or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme, crushed
1 teaspoon instant chicken bouillon granules
1/8 teaspoon pepper
2 cups fat-free milk

Directions:

In a large saucepan combine potatoes, water, onion, celery, carrot, garlic, thyme, bouillon granules, and pepper. Bring to boiling; reduce heat. Simmer, covered, for 20 to 25 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Remove from heat. Cool slightly. Place, a portion at a time, in blender container or food processor bowl. Cover and process until nearly smooth. Return all to saucepan. Stir in milk; heat just to boiling. (If desired, divide hot soup among 4 airtight containers. Store for up to 3 days in refrigerator.)

Makes 4 side-dish servings.

To tote for lunch: Transfer soup to a preheated insulated vacuum bottle. (To preheat the vacuum bottle, fill the bottle with hot tap water. Cover with lid and let stand about 5 minutes. Pour out the water and immediately fill with the hot soup.) If using chilled soup, transfer to a small saucepan. Heat just to boiling, stirring often. Transfer soup to preheated bottle.

Nutritional facts per serving:
calories: 159 , total fat: 0g , cholesterol: 2mg , sodium: 314mg ,
carbohydrate: 33g , fiber: 3g , protein: 7g ,
starch: 1diabetic exchange, milk: .5 diabetic exchange ,
vegetables: 1 diabetic exchange

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Heart Healthy...

HEALTHY VEGGIE STEW

The combination of eggplant, tomatoes and beans is classic to the cuisines of many different countries. This recipe is easily made in the crock pot and is truly delicious served with some rice or couscous. You could add some spicy sliced sausage if you felt the need to add meat.

1 medium eggplant, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch cubes
2 cups chopped tomatoes
1 1/2 cups sliced carrot
1 (15-oz) can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1 (15-oz) can kidney beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup onion
1 cup sliced celery
3 cloves garlic, minced
3 cups vegetable broth
1 (6-oz) can Italian-style tomato paste
1/2 tsp dried oregano, crushed
1/2 tsp dried basil, crushed
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp fresh ground pepper
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
1 bay leaf

Combine all ingredients in crock pot. Cover and cook on low heat for 8-9 hours. Discard bay leaf before serving with some brown rice or fluffy couscous or polenta.

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For Two...

LEMON PEPPER CORNISH HENS

2 Cornish hens
1 (14 oz) can chicken broth
2 large garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp lemon pepper seasoning
Salt

Season hens with lemon pepper, salt, and sprinkle with minced garlic. Pour chicken broth in crockpot and carefully set hens into the broth. Cook all day on low. Serve with rice if desired.

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