A post about food? Nah, couldn't be.

For my more recent readers, you may not know that this blog used to be primarily about food. I used to try lots of recipes and write about the results here. Then, along came a baby...

I haven't done a whole lot of cooking during the past 9 months, and when I do, I don't feel inspired to write about it. But I'm feeling a little inspired tonight. That's because I have a new toy. My mom got me a slow cooker (Crock Pot for those of you who remember the '70s). With the slow cooker, she gave me a cook book called Fix it and Forget it. This book has 8,000 different ways to make beef stew and pot roast using onion soup mix and a can of Pepsi. While we're not vegetarians, I rarely cook meat and I'm not a big fan of using highly processed ingredients in my recipes.

So, I've been searching for some good, healthy, but hearty vegetarian slow-cooker recipes and I tried this one that I found on-line and modified it slightly:

Greek Crockpot Stew

• 4 cups cubed butternut squash


• 2 cups chopped carrots


• 2 cups chopped zucchini


• 2 onions, chopped


• 4 garlic cloves, pressed


• 2 14oz cans diced tomatoes


• 1 14oz can vegetable broth


• 1 15oz can chick peas


• a little extra water from the tomato cans


• salt, pepper, cumin, allspice (a little more of each than the original recipe calls for)


• dried oregano


• cooked cous cous


• crubled feta cheese

The night before you want to eat this, throw everything except cous cous and fete into the ceremic slow cooker insert and mix well. Refrigerate over night. The next day, turn on the slow cooker 9 hours before you want to eat dinner. Come home to a yummy-smelling house. Serve over cous cous and top with feta cheese.

My measurements were different than what the original recipe called for, so I was a little nervous, but it turned out pretty well. There are enough left overs for a couple of dinners, which is important when you have a baby.