Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I've never been a "crock-pot" person, although I've always liked the idea of crock-pots - leaving a whole meal in the crock in the morning and returning to a complete meal in the evening - so easy, so good, so convenient. The problem, though, was that my family is not big on stews, which is what I thought crock-pots were for, so I left my crock-pot in a drawer and that is as far as the relationship has gone. Those days are over. Stphanie O'Dea has taught me that my crockpot is not my mother's crock-pot anymore. The crock-pot can be used used to make a traditional beef stew, yes, as described on page 211, but the crock-pot can also be used to make delicious soups, meats, side dishes, appetizers, dips, and desserts. The woman has a recipe for making banana bread in the crock-pot for goodness sake! All kinds of ideas are whirling around in my head. I can use the crockpot to prepare a new, sexy appetizer for the holidays, like the buffalo chicken dip described on page 25, instead of the same old stuff. I can use the crockpot to impress my friends with the delicious and fragrant chai tea latte like the one described on page 8 at the next Bunco meeting. I can also use the crockpot to help my children create caramel apples and look like the coolest mom ever! The sky is the limit with this book. It even has a recipe for recycling old candles to make new ones. Yes, I said candles, in the crock-pot! Excited, yet? There's more. There are 454 pages of easy to understand recipes with easy ingredients in this book and they all look delicious. There is also a description on most recipes that the author calls "the verdict" where she tell us how each recipe went over with her family, including the specific verdict of her young children - invaluable information for a mom who who can not afford to waste time or money on a recipe her family won't eat. This book was so well put together it inspired me immediately to put it to use. I've been through every page and while I started to dog-ear the pages of recipes I found interesting, I quickly stopped because I would have dog-eared the whole book! Last night, I made my first crock-pot dish in 15 years. I prepared Horseradish Scalloped Potatoes, p.95. They were delicious, just like the author's verdict said. Amazing. Cooking this fall/winter is going to be a lot more fun and a lot more satisfying!