Ode to a Slow Cooker

Slow cooker, Crockpot, vessel of deliciousness, whatever you call yours, they're wonderful. You don't have one? Go now! I'll wait. Buy a huge one! Buy three!

Ok, everybody ready? Excellent. I love my slow cooker. We have this one.

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It combines all my favorite ways to cook. First, there's no need to follow a recipe. I can throw in whatever combination of things I think will be delicious and BLAMMO! Dinner! What's more, you couldn't ask for an easier process: round up ingredients, dump 'em in, wait. Not that I don't love dicing, sauteing and broiling but sometimes, everyone once in a while and definitely not most days, I do not find myself in the mood to make dinner. Finally, the variety of dishes you can prepare in this most wonderful of kitchen appliances is endless. We make chili, barley and veggies, soup, rice and beans, potatoes, anything!

I discovered one of my favorite slow cooker combos by total accident. I was in one of those moods where I wanted a real dinner, not Jimmy John's...again but the fridge wasn't calling out suggestions (rude). So, I dumped a few chicken breasts, a can of V8, some frozen bell pepper slices and some barley into the slow cooker and voila! A tasty, relatively healthy and most importantly, effortless dinner was had! I'm expecting a call from Food Network any day now. I'll have a show in one of those totally over the top kitchens you're supposed to believe is real. Dump and Stir with Caitlin! Glamorous, right?

I've spotted a number of breakfast and dessert recipes for slow cookers but I have yet to try them. Any suggestions? Blueberry cobbler? Sausage, egg and cheese explosion casserole?

No really, I love my job.

As the title indicates I am one lucky girl. I love my job. Not blogging- hard to believe this revolutionary (albeit sporadic) blog doesn't pay the bills, huh? The concept of loving one's job has been a hard sell for me. I spent a couple years after college at random retail jobs- working weekends, folding and refolding sweaters and being treated not so much like a person but as a means to an end. Oy. I don't miss it.

These days I am an elementary school teaching assistant- with hopes of starting grad school this fall to become a teacher. For now, I help kiddos with sounding out words, fractions, telling time and following directions without completely melting down.

I so love this job that regularly gets me sneezed on, coughed at and stepped on. I mediate bickering, attend to paper cuts and I wash crayon and glue out of dress pants. I wake up hours before Boyfriend and think about struggling students long after I'm home. I'm planning to take on student loans to pursue a career notorious for it's small paycheck.

But, when was the last time you walked into a room and several small but enthusiastic voices announced your arrival? Sure, they can't quite pronounce my last name, that's part of what makes it great. Random waist-high hugs are a regular thing in my line of work and in five short months I've become completely addicted to seeing that moment when a student "gets it".

It used to be when someone told me "I couldn't imagine doing anything else", I assumed they were exaggerating- they couldn't actually feel that way about their job. A job is something you tolerate in order to do the things you actually like. Apparently it doesn't have to be. Yes, I've been sure some days that my head would actually explode. Yes, I wrestle with the idea that I've chosen a stereotypically "female" career. Does that mean I can't be a feminist? Am I bowing to social pressure? Nope. I just really enjoy helping these small, messy people figure things out.

It may have taken me until almost 26 years old but I know what I want to be when I grow up. 

2013

Happy 2013! It's the month of resolutions. Do you make them? Do you hate them? Are you just annoyed at how busy your gym has become?

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I'm neither for or against the making of resolutions. I find the whole "fresh start" thing appealing and generally use that feeling to reenergize goals I've pushed to the back burner. I should learn to knit something other than a scarf. We could probably be recycling more. This year I'm not going to let my car go too long between oil changes.

I also use the new year to instill some good, old-fashion self loathing. You are not going to spend another year 10 pounds overweight. I know, being hard on yourself in the longterm is not the answer. But, small doses, I find, get me on the treadmill.

Getting carried away is easy but being unrealistic won't end well. If your resolution is to cook more and currently you've got multiple restaurants on speed dial, a fondue shouldn't be step one. Step one should maybe be to stop using the oven as shoe storage. Try not to compare your goals to others either. I'm guilty of this one and it drives me crazy. Oh sure, she's cutting refined sugar completely out of her diet. Apparently she's super-human! Gah!

This year what I'm finding more motivating is that I turn 26 in April. That means I'll be closer to 30 than 20. While this may not seem significant to everyone, to me it signals a need to be more of an adult than a child. Time to kick some bad habits: waiting to do dishes until the kitchen is toxic, waking up fifteen minutes before I need to be out the door, forgetting to send thank you notes. So, January is serving as a reminder that I'm only a few months away from that significant birthday. Better get moving.  

Messy Kitchen: Baking Triumph

I try not to stress out too much when I trash the kitchen because that usually means I've cooked something of some significance instead of ensuring that every single Jimmy John's delivery guy has seen our house. For this particular adventure, I got to destroy two kitchens!

I know gift-giving season has come and gone but chilly weather hasn't (especially in Indiana) so this is still topical. We made some of our Christmas gifts this year. No, we're not super handy/crafty/Amish and no, we did not spend a million dollars on fancy foods/materials/indentured servants. We made cocoa mix and marshmallows. From scratch! Entirely!

I found the cocoa recipe on Pinterest. It is from Brown Eyed Baker. To be honest, I was sure it would not be as easy as it seemed. It totally was, though! Mix cocoa powder, powdered sugar, dry milk and white chocolate chips in a food processor. The toughest part is that you have to do the mixing in phases unless you have a food processor the size of a farm sink. After about 10 minutes of mild effort you'll have homemade cocoa mix! No creepy chemicals or paper pouches! It's awesome with almond milk. We put ours in small mason jars, added tags with preparation directions, pretty ribbon and name tags. 
Ta Da! (forgot to take pictures, d'oh!) Packed up and brought them to Kansas City where our holiday festivities took place. 

As for the marshmallows, Pinterest led me to a recipe from 
Not Without Salt. I had never attempted making marshmallows before. I like to bake but homemade marshmallows were intimidating. The toughest part was spreading the mix out on a cookie sheet. I had my mom spray my hands with non-stick spray which helped for a while (and is a fun question to ask of family members). So, if you're planning to attempt this yourself the more non-stick preparations you take, the better off you'll be. 

Overall, the marshmallow making process went smoothly even though I didn't have a candy thermometer as the recipe used. The best part? They taste amazing! Everyone was impressed and kept telling me how fresh they tasted! Success!

Please forgive my lack of pictures. I am still getting used to the concept of documenting my goings on for the blog's benefit. I promise to try harder!