When my mother bought her Subaru a few years back, she kept saying “I love my Subaru.” (In fact, she still occasionally says it). I feel the same way about my slow cooker. Since my daughter doesn’t, I use it these days mainly for making vegetable broth and cooking beans.

Why a slow cooker? Simple. You put in all your ingredients and come home to a hot cooked meal and house smelling delicious. My previous blog, “What’s for dinner?” talks about the difference between a slow cooker and an Instapot, so I’ll skip this here. Slowe cookers buy their name cook food low heat and long hours. Pork comes out tender and pulls apart easily for BBQ pulled pork. Beans cook up great for soups, stews, or chili. Not to mention if you device has a time delay function you can set it to go on in the night and wake up to hot oatmeal.

A slow cooker has many benefits:

· “Convenience! A slow cooker can usually be left unattended all day for many recipes. You can put recipe ingredients in it before going to work and come home to a meal. A slow cooker meal is an excellent choice for a busy day, whether you work in or out of your home.” — Diana Rattray, The Spruce Eats

· The interior of the unit is removable for placing on the table or the countertop.

· Most cookers are portable to take to a pot luck

· Reduced chance of burning the food or over cooking

Stews, soups, and chili are perfect winter foods as they are hearty, filling and warm us up from the inside out…

Vegetarian Slow Cooker Chili

1 package veggies grounds

1 onion

1 C. frozen corn

2 15 0z. cans tomato sauce

2 cans kidney beans, drained

1 can black beans, drained

1 ½ C. vegetable broth

1 Tbsp. Chili Powder

1 tsp. Cumin

Sour cream, shredded cheddar or Mexican blend cheese and/or dried cilantro for topping.

Chop the onion. Place the onion and all ingredients up to the toppings in the slow cooker. Turn it on to low and cook for 8 hours. Serve in bowls. Makes 8 servings.

Based on All Recipes Slow Cooker Chili.

Chili, anyone?

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