I was given this crock-pot (also known as a "slow-cooker") for Christmas last year. To tell the truth, I really wasn't too excited about it. I had never seen anyone cook with one before, so I really didn't know what to expect from it. I mean, my mother always got by without a crock-pot, why would I need one?

Eventually, I decided to remove it from the box, and start playing around with it. I babysat for one of my neices and we read a book called "Stone Soup." I believe it's either a Newbury or Caldecott winner, but I don't remember which. At any rate, in this book, everyone chips in and makes a soup called "Stone Soup." They call it stone soup, because everyone brings something to put into the soup. Food is scarce, and even a stone is added to the soup.

I thought it would be interesting if the next time she came over we tried making Stone Soup for ourselves. I bought some ready made chicken broth, and some chicken for the soup. I asked her mother to help her select some ingredients for our soup. She brought pasta, celery, and carrots. Since all of my soup experience was with Campbell's, I really wasn't sure how to make soup. I dumped all of the ingredients into the crock, and started simmering. Oh, did I mention I ran a stone through the dishwasher, and threw it into our soup too, to make the experience more authentic?

My neice was delighted when our soup was ready. It cooked for most of the day, and before she left we enjoyed a bowl of home-made Stone Soup together. The verdict? Don't put your noodles in until the soup is almost done. They got very mushy. Other than that, our soup was wonderful, and she loved the time we spent together.

After I made the soup, clean-up was a breeze. I just threw the lid and the removable pot into the dishwasher. The base cannot be submersed in water, because it plugs into the wall. It was not messy, but if anything had gotten onto it, it can be cleaned with a wet cloth or sponge.

The pot can hold a total of five quarts. This is great if you are feeding a lot of people. You can throw all the ingredients for soup or stew into the crock, and let it simmer while you are at work (although, I am too afraid to leave it unattended for too long), or while you do other things around the house.

There are two settings with this crock -- low and high. I cooked the Stone Soup on low, because it is supposed to be slow cooked. The low setting is basically the "simmer" setting. If you need your food cooked faster, you can put it on "high." One hour of cooking on "high" is equal to about two or two and a half hours on low.

I really haven't made anything in the crock other than soup. Of all the appliances I own, this is definately the most useless. Then again, I tend to make quick meals. I am not the type of person to plan hours ahead of time what I will be eating.

If you are getting this crock as a gift for someone, I suggest you take into account what type of person they are. This is great for stay at home moms, or people who have time to plan meals ahead of time. For a college student like myself who eats "on the run" all the time, there are much more useful gifts. Although, since I use this so rarely, this crock will probably be around for a long time, and my life style will probably change in the future. Maybe I will get more use from the crock some day.



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