FRESH FACTS – FOR RELEASE THE WEEK OF JAN 19, 2008 – JAN 26, 2008

Dreary damp or rainy winter weather may make you feel like pulling the covers over your head, but a sure-cure for the after holiday doldrums is to design your menus to highlight some delicious comfort food meals.

The concept of slow-cooking was introduced to America in 1971 when Rival Company premiered its original “Crock Pot”. More than three decades later, there are entire cookbooks devoted to this convenient and economical style of cooking, including “300 Slow Cooker Favorites” by Donna-Marie Pye (www.fireflybooks.com) and JoAnn Rachor’s

“Fast Cooking in a Slow Cooker Every Day of the Year” (www.familyhealthpub.com).

Cooks love the fact that once they add the ingredients and set the timer, they can go about the rest of their day to return hours later to the aroma of a delicious ready to eat meal made using fresh PRODUCE rather than processed foods.

For best success in slow-cooking, cut VEGETABLES such as CARROTS, TURNIPS and POTATOES into small, bite-size pieces for faster cooking. Because VEGETABLES cook more slowly than meat, place them in the bottom and sides of the cooker with your meat choice on top. Tender VEGETABLES such as PEAS and SNOW PEAS and strongly flavored VEGETABLES like CAULIFLOWER, KALE and BROCCOLI should be added to the pot during the last 15 to 60 minutes of cooking.

Soups are a slow-cooking favorite choice and the varieties are endless. Try Taco Beef Soup with KIDNEY BEANS, GARLIC and TOMATOES; Split PEA Chowder; POTATO CORN Chowder; Minestrone thick with GREEN BEANS,