I’m in love with my slow cooker and I’ll tell you why. It’s gardening season and I’m outside a ton now, getting our vegetable garden prepped and planted. It’s getting warm and my husband likes to take me for motorcycle rides (Harley Davidson Soft Tail Deluxe) and then we also take off on long bicycle rides as well. In other words, I can buried in a project, or away from the home, or want to take off on a little excursion and dinner’s still covered—no last minute muss, fuss, and stress.

Do you relate? In other words, the slow cooker is THE answer to delicious meals without spending a chunk of time in the kitchen—it’s the culinary go-to for freeing up life. But back to the warmer weather issue—no one wants to heat up their kitchen in the summer, and cooking in a slow cooker keeps the heat down.

I know I’m not telling you anything you haven’t already discovered for yourself. And I’m guessing you use this appliance a lot as well. So from one slow cooker lover to another, here are 4 clever uses for it that you may not have thought of:

1. It makes perfect pizza.  Just nestle the dough into a greased slow cooker, add your toppings and forget about it! When the crust starts pulling away from the sides and turning golden brown, you know it's done. Pull it out, lay it flat on a cutting board, let sit for about 5 minutes, then slice.

2. It makes amazing French toast. Instead of flipping French toast over a hot stove in the morning, you can prep the night before. Sweet and gooey, this breakfast favorite comes out in casserole form and can be topped with fresh fruit, like sliced apples or blueberries.

Here’s what you do for 6-8 servings: Place 3/4 to 1 loaf of cubed bread in a large bowl. In another bowl blend 6 eggs, 2 cups of milk and cinnamon to taste; pour this over the bread and place bowl (covered) in fridge overnight. When ready to cook, spray the inside of your slow cooker with cooking spray and pour in bread mixture. You’ll want to top this with a crumble mixture, so blend together 1/4 cup butter and about 1/2 cup of brown sugar. Add some cinnamon to taste, maybe a dash of nutmeg and some chopped nuts—about 1/2 cup works well. Sprinkle this over the bread/milk ingredients and cook on low for about 4 hours or on high for 2. I’ve served this at several brunches and it always wins raves.

3. It makes incredible granola. Skip the store-bought stuff, and swap the oven for a slow cooker. Just toss your oats, nuts and dried fruit in the pot with melted butter and honey, and you'll have delicious, homemade granola with very little effort.

In a slow cooker that’s at least a 4-quart pot add 5 cups oats (I like old fashioned) and any other ingredients you like—raisins, craisins, dried cherries or cranberries, nuts, coconut, sunflower seeds, chia or flax seeds, etc. Stir it well so everything is mixed nicely. Then melt together some honey and butter—about 1 cup of each works for me—or more even. Pour this over the oats and combine well so everything is coated.

You’ll cover the pot, but vent it with a chopstick. Steam needs to escape so your end product is a crisp granola and not a mushy version. Cook on high for 3 or 4 hours. Stir it every 1/2 hour or so. Watch it closely—this can burn if you’re not careful. When it’s reached a consistency you like, pour it out onto parchment paper to cool. Store in a cool area in an air tight container.

4. It makes delicious breakfast casserole. Butter the inside of your slow cooker and layer your favorite recipe into it. Cook on low for 7 hours. I do this just before I go to bed and next morning breakfast is ready!