There are a few tricks to remember when "baking" in one of these pots. First, turn the control to HIGH (or to the setting which is equivalent to the HIGH). The LOW setting is too low to give breads and cakes the texture you expect. With breads, remember to cover the container with a lid or foil. Tie the lid or foil onto the container and place the container on a metal rack or trivet inside the pot. If you don't have a metal rack or trivet to fit your slow cooker, crumple foil and place it in the bottom of the pot to support the baking continer. Pour 2 cups of hot water around the container to provide steam for cooking the bread.

When using a deep-dryer type slow cooker, check frequently to make sure the water hasn't evaporated. Add more water if needed.

As a rule, it is not a good idea to remove the lid or foil from the bread container during the first 2 hours of cooking. After that, check the bread by inserting a toothpick in the mixture. If the toothpick comes out clean, the bread is done.

When using a standard cake mix, the procedure is slightly different. Cakes are "baked" in a pan set directly on the bottom of the slow cooker, similar to the way you would do it in an oven. It is not necessary to use a trivet or water. Instead of covering the uncooked cake misture with foil or a lid, cover the top with four or five layers of paper towels. Because there is more moisture in a slow cooker than in an oven it is necessary to compensate for this with the paper towels to help absorb the moist top of the cake mix. Also, leave the lid of your slow cooker slightly open to let extra moisture escape.

The type and kind of container to use for breads and cakes will depend on the size of your pot. In addition to molds and coffee cans, spring forms or small bundt pans make excellent containers.

The containers at the top hold approzimately the same amount of batter so you can substitute one for another.