Crockpot Cooking

I love my crockpot. In fact, I have 3 of them of various sizes. (And I could really use another.) It's rare that a week goes by without me using the crockpot at least once. I have learned that you can cook almost anything in the crockpot. My newest discovery... crockpot mashed potatoes.

I had some little red potatoes that needed to be used up, so I decided to just drop them in the crockpot and see what happened. I kind of thought they would be like when you roast them in the oven - cooked, but still a little firm. They probably would have been that way if I'd taken them out a little earlier. But it turns out that if you leave them in for a while, then just stir - they turn into perfect mashed potatoes!

I LOVE real mashed potatoes, but it's usually too much trouble to cook and mash them to the right consistency. But this method is so easy. I truly just stirred it around with a big spoon and they broke up with no effort. So good, and it made plenty. In fact, I'm having the leftovers for lunch today (which is what inspired me to post about them).

If you want to give it a try, use olive oil, butter or cooking spray to coat the inside of your crockpot (otherwise the potatoes stick to the sides and are very hard to scrub off). Add potatoes and cook for 6-8 hours on low or 3-4 hours on high. Add a splash of milk or butter if you like your potatoes creamy, stir them up and serve!