There is nothing better than coming home in the evening to the aroma of dinner ready and waiting, a complete meal in one pot ready to eat when you walk in the door. All you need to do is assemble a few ingredients in the morning. I have even assembled a meal in the slow cooker the night before, stored it in the refrigerator, then put it in the base in the morning to start cooking.

Cooking in a slow cooker is a little different from the usual kind, so you have to keep in mind:

• Don't be tempted to add too much liquid; you end up with more liquid at the end of cooking. You don't want soupy meals (unless you're making soup).
• Vegetables take longer to cook then meats. Unless you want crunchy vegetables, put them in the cooker first and cut them into small pieces.
• You don't have to brown meats first; it's just that the cooker won't brown them either. Who cares? Why spend extra time browning?
• The cooker works best when it is at least two-thirds full. If you're going to use it, you might as well fill it up.
• Don't peek. It takes a long time for the cooker to come back up to temperature when you take the lid off.

Here are three of my favorite slow-cooker recipes:
• Beef Stew
• Minestrone
• Cassoulet