Save money with a slow cooker

What if I told you that I have a special Recession-Fighting Machine and that it cost me less than $30? In fact, you can probably find one at a local thrift store for a lot less than that, or the odds are pretty good that you may already have one hidden away in your kitchen cupboard.
If the status-appliance of the last decade was a $10,000 Viking gas range, then the good old-fashioned Crock-Pot — AKA "slow cooker" — is the kitchen appliance du jour for today's tight economy.
My mom still has — and recently drafted back into active duty — the avocado green one with the funky paisley designs that I fondly remember her serving up a myriad of lentil concoctions from in the 1970s.
I guess those were relatively lean times too, at least for our family, but I'd be hard-pressed to name a time in my life when I was any happier. Maybe I'm just waxing nostalgic, but that Crock-Pot is no small part of the slow-cooked memories from that simpler time in my life that I still cherish to this day.
Save Energy Crock-Pots, particularly today's models, are energy-sippers compared to most other cooking methods like a traditional oven, stove-top, or toaster oven. Slow cookers use just 100 watts of electricity, which means that if you use it once a week for eight hours at a time, it'll only cost you about TWENTY CENTS a month in electricity!
Save on GroceriesSlow-cooking is the key to transforming inexpensive, sometimes tough cuts of meat into tender, fall-off-the-fork morsels. Chances are that the least expensive cuts of meat in your butcher's case are perfect for the Crock-Pot. And of course Crock-Pots are perfect for cooking beans and other legumes, among the healthiest and least expensive foods you can eat. Check out the 1,400 slow cooker recipes at southernfood.about.com.
Save TimeSlow-cooking is even faster than fast food! Most Crock-Pot recipes involve only a few minutes of prep time — maybe chopping up a few veggies, stirring together some basic ingredients, and then turning on the slow cooker and forgetting about it. Forgetting about it, that is,until you return home after a hard day's work and you're greeted by that heavenly aroma of a home-cooked meal ready for the table.
Save on Dining OutWhile you can cook smaller portions in a Crock-Pot, most of today's models hold anywhere from four to eight quarts. Cook a full pot, and even for a large family you're likely to have more than one meal's worth of a dish. Freeze the leftovers or serve them again later in the week, or package them in small containers for lunches.
Save Your HealthBecause very few Crock-Pot recipes call for adding extra oil or using grease, most slow cooking dishes are relatively low in fat. Professional health writers Chet and Josh Day share some particularly healthy — and delectable — slow-cooking recipes.
Save Your SanityThere's no denying that these are stressful economic times for most Americans. Rarely has comfort food been so essential. We may not be able to afford the kind of luxuries you buy with money, but maybe we afford something even more valuable: The luxury of slowing down and enjoying a delicious slow-cooked meal with family and friends.
As my mom always says, "The only thing more important than what's on the table is who's sitting around it."

Reducing the cost of living in a recession (and afterward)

The economy this year has made some people realize how much money we've wasted in the past for things that seem kind of foolish now. Big box stores like Circuit City are going under, while thrift stores are thriving. Cobblers are seeing an increase in business as people try to make their shoes last another season or two. Gardening has exploded onto the scene again as people try to reduce their food costs by raising their own favorite fruits and vegetables in that unused portion of their yards. Coupon websites are proliferating all over the internet as we look for ways to reduce the cost of food we can't grow in the garden.

With signs that the recession may be leveling out, we need look to our future and ask ourselves if the changes we've made are temporary or life altering. Let's hope that people don't go back to the way they were.