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There is a book coming out tomorrow (March 6 2007) — “The Enlightened Bracketologist”, which uses NCAA/March Madness style bracketology to help you make decisions. Using brackets, you narrow down the choices until you are left with a clear winner.

Just for fun and to waste time, I used bracketology to figure out what to cook for dinner for a client that is coming over tonight. On the left are the choices of my recipes that I know I CAN make, based on what is in my refrigerator. From there, I take each two choices and narrow down a preference, based on a variety of factors, such as taste, ease of preparation, and circumstances. I’m tempted to order takeout, the easiest choice,which leaves me with more time to clean the house and more time to talk to the client. However, knowing the client is an older widower who lives alone, I conjecture that he may eat takeout and tv dinners a lot and therefore might appreciate a home-cooked meal.

I narrow down to the final two, and pick a winner. I decide to serve Chicken Dijon WITH broccoli on the side. If only all my decisions were this easy!

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Being a working Mom and getting a nutritious tasty dinner on the table is a constant challenge. By the time I get out of work, pick up the kids and get home, I usually only have about half an hour until the family is expecting dinner on the table.

The crockpot has been a lifesaver because I can throw ingredients in before leaving for work in the morning and dinner is magically cooked for me by the time I get home. It also smells great when you walk into the house.

Crockpot cooking also saves money because very cheap cuts of meat taste tender and great after slow-cooking in the crockpot.

Some of the obvious recipes for crockpot cooking include:

• Chili
• Pot Roast
• Beef Stew
• Soups

Yet other recipes translate well to the crockpot, including:

• Meatloaf
• Pulled Pork
• Potato casseroles
• Oatmeal

Bean dishes also are very tasty if you use canned beans. Several times I have attempted cooking dried beans in the crockpot. They never got soft enough. I believe that the temperature does not get high enough to fully cook the beans.

There are many great crockpot recipe cookbooks out there. I recommend Fix-It and Forget-It Cookbook: Feasting with Your Slow Cooker . A good website to check is Slow Cooker Recipes . But usually you don’t even need a recipe. Just throw some meat, vegetables, and some kind of liquid (can of beef broth, jar of spaghetti sauce, lipton soup mix with water) into the crockpot, turn it on low. By the time you get home, you have a tasty main course. Add a salad and some fresh rolls and dinner is served!

For today, I am cleaning out the refrigerator and trying a meatloaf in my crockpot. I’m shaping a meatloaf out of some ground top round that I ground with my Kitchen-Aid, a couple of eggs, a packet of Lipton Soup, and some oatmeal. I’m pouring a jar of spaghetti sauce over it and hoping it turns out well. It’s no gourmet-meal, more like Mrs. Brady, but hey — it’s easy!!!