Some Cooking Keys

There are a few things little tools that make my life a lot easier:

1. My Crock Pot Cookbook (a Christmas gift from my MIL last year)
2. My Fix it and Forget It cookbook (a gift from my mom, I think)
3. Homemade gourmet (which I believe any of the recipes can be adapted to crock pot)

I'd say these are the staples for a busy mom who makes dinner a priority. Homemade gourmet is a mix of a lot of spices that really you could do on your own if you were so inclined, but I don't have the knowledge or the energy to measure out a bunch of stuff and keep it on hand. They offer their mixes in "Pantry Staple" size, which is a great value and can be scooped out and added to chicken or ground beef to make something kind of exciting for dinner (and they come with recipes, too!)

Things we always have on hand for last minute dinners:

1. Spaghetti sauce and whole wheat noodles. My favorite spaghetti sauce is Classico Tomato & Basil because it does not have any sugar in it. Sugar hides out in spaghetti sauce (and ketchup, too)--read the labels and you'll be surprised. You can always spice it up with black olives, chopped tomatoes, beef/sausage/chicken, or steamed zucchini or squash.
2. Taco seasoning, tortillas and cheese. You can make tacos, chalupas, burritos, quesadillas, taco soup, or taco salad.
3. Stuff to make Chicken Pie (can of Vegall or frozen mixed vegetables, chicken breasts-cooked and diced, frozen pie crusts, cream of chicken soup)
4. Giant jar of minced garlic (every recipe needs this...you can even sprinkle it over chicken breasts and serve with a box of mashed potatoes or a box of cous cous--which our favorite is whole wheat mixed with pine nut)



And, as I said before, the mountain of frozen meat that we have in the freezer, which I think is essential to making this all work.