GRANDMA HAD A CROCKPOT, TOO!

And so should you.

I can see some of you scratching your heads already. You're probably thinking that this 'ole guy has lost his mind making a statement like that.

You see, I'm not thinking of today's masterpiece of engineering sitting on your kitchen counter, red eye glowing, with its tail snaking across to the wall socket.

What I have in mind is that old, beat-up, ugly thing that you may have hidden away in the garage. Or maybe you stored it away in the back corner of your basement under a stack of boxes. You may have even decided that it would look better filled with potting soil and flowers.

After all, who in their right mind would cook with a utensil so ugly?

You should, that's who.

Remember those great pot roasts and stews that you enjoyed at Grandma's house? Well, they were created in that ugly old thing that you made into a planter.

I'm talking about the one item that no kitchen, modern or not, should be without - The Cast Iron Dutch Oven.

Sure, it's not pretty or fancy. It might be beat up looking. It's probably blackened from years of hard use, and its heavy wire handle may even be bent in a place or two. But, you know what, that ugly looking 'ole thing will cook like you wouldn't believe - until you try it.

You see, Grandma was a busy, busy lady who didn't have the time to stand at the stove all day.

For example, she did her wash by hand - no washing machines in those days. Then, of course, the wash was hung out back on a clothesline to dry. Then came the ironing, the mending, the housecleaning, and a multitude of other chores.

But, she still needed to have a good, hot, nourishing meal ready for her hard working family.

Her secret was that beat up, ugly, cast iron pot - and she could work wonders with it.

Soups, stews, and pot roasts were all part of her arsenal of great, end of the day, recipes. All of these made not only nourishing, but stick-to-the-ribs meals when her family came home after a long day.

She would put all the ingredients in that ugly 'ole pot, early in the morning, and it would sit all day simmering away. While it simmered, on top of the stove, the flavors would marry and the house would fill with the wonderful aromas of "down home cooking."

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