Slow cookers achieved popularity in the US during the 1940s, when many women began to work outside the home. They could start dinner cooking in the morning before going to work and finish preparing the meal in the evening when they came home.
The Naxon Utilities Corporation of Chicago, under the leadership of electrical engineer Irving Naxon (born Irving Nachumsohn), developed the Naxon Beanery All-Purpose Cooker for the purposes of cooking a bean meal. Naxon was inspired by a story from his mother which told how back in her native Lithuanian town, his grandmother made a traditional Jewish stew called cholent which took several hours to cook in an oven.SA 1950 advertisement shows a slow cooker called the "Simmer Crock" made by the Industrial Radiant Heat Corp. of Gladstone, NJ.
The Rival Company from Sedalia, Missouri, bought Naxon in 1970, acquiring Naxon’s 1940 patent for the bean simmer cooker. Rival asked inventor Robert Glen Martin, from Boonville, Missouri, to develop Naxon’s bean cooker into a large scale production model which could cook an entire family meal, going further than just cooking a bean meal. Martin also designed and produced the mass-production machines for Rival’s manufacturing line of the Crock-Pot. The cooker was then reintroduced under the name "Crock-Pot" in 1971. In 1974, Rival introduced removable stoneware inserts, making the appliance easier to clean. The Crock-Pot brand now belongs to Newell Brands.
Other brands of this appliance include Cuisinart, GE, Hamilton Beach, KitchenAid, Magic Chef, West Bend Housewares, and the now defunct American Electric Corporation.
Slow cookers achieved popularity in the US during the 1940s, when many women began to work outside the home. They could start dinner cooking in the morning before going to work and finish preparing the meal in the evening when they came home.
Other brands of this appliance include Cuisinart, GE, Hamilton Beach, KitchenAid, Magic Chef, West Bend Housewares, and the now defunct American Electric Corporation.
A basic slow cooker consists of a lidded round or oval cooking pot made of glazed ceramic or porcelain, surrounded by a housing, usually metal, containing an electric heating element. The lid itself is often made of glass, and seated in a groove in the pot edge; condensed vapor collects in the groove and provides a low-pressure seal to the atmosphere. The contents of a crock pot are effectively at atmospheric pressure, despite the water vapor generated inside the pot. A slow cooker is quite different from a pressure cooker and presents no danger of an abrupt pressure release.
Basic cookers, which have only high, medium, low, or keep warm settings, must be turned on and off manually. More advanced cookers have computerized timing devices that let a cook program the cooker to perform multiple operations (e.g., two hours high, followed by two hours low, followed by warm) and to delay the start of cooking.
Because food cooked in a slow cooker stays warm for a long time after it is switched off, people can use the slow cookers to take food elsewhere to eat without reheating. Some slow cookers have lids that seal to prevent their contents from spilling during transport.
Slow cookers are less dangerous than ovens or stove tops due to their lower operating temperatures and closed lids. However, they still contain a large amount of foods and liquids at temperatures close to boiling, and they can cause serious scalds if spilled.
Asparagus and Artichoke Breakfast Casserole
- 10 eggs
- 1 cup cottage cheese (or ricotta)
- salt and pepper to taste
- 1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into bit sized pieces
- 1 (14 ounce) can artichoke hearts, coarsely chopped
- 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
- 4 ounces cream cheese, cubed
Each year on the fourth Thursday in April, National Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day encourages parents to take their children to work.
This annual event is an educational program in the United States and Canada where parents take their children to work with them for one day. The day is designed to help children explore the workforce. It inspires children to see the different roles required to run a business or to build a project. They may find an interest in engineering, accounting, or art while spending the day with mom or day. Perhaps a child’s natural proclivity for order leads them into logistics someday.
Children are observant and curious. Bring them into your work world so they can explore careers and skills. Empower them to set goals and create a path to their dream career.
- Share with your children what a day in your work life is like.
- If you work from home create activities to simulate what your day might involve. Perhaps they can join you on a conference call.
- Share with them the skills and education your job requires.
- Describe the process for completing a project and how ideas are sparked.
- Visit the Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Foundation for more at-home project ideas and information.
- Employers are encouraged to invite employees to bring their children to work.
NATIONAL TAKE OUR DAUGHTERS AND SONS TO WORK DAY HISTORY
Gloria Steinem and the MS Foundation for Women founded National Take Your Daughters and Sons to Work Day in 1993. It is the successor to Take Our Daughters to Work Day which, in 2003, expanded to include boys. Most companies allowed both girls and boys to participate from the beginning, renaming the day “Take Our Children to Work Day.”
Take Our Children to Work FAQ
Q. Do all employers participate in this event?
A. No. Some settings don’t accommodate children in the workplace. It is either unsafe or difficult to allow children in the workplace.
Q. Can children of any age attend an event like this?
A. Some workplaces will set a minimum age. Employers may also create a special time span for children to visit. It’s important to follow your employer’s guidelines.
