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TAKE TWO KIDS PLAYING H O C K E Y, A D D I N F U L L - TIME JOBS, a missing glove or neck guard, a dash of scooping up the kids after school and a gener- al helping of "Mom, we're starv- ing " on the ride home from the rink, mix it all together and what do you get? The perfect recipe for the hockey season scramble. My secret ingredient for keep- ing hockey nights from boiling over was sitting on our kitch- en counter: the slow cooker. I'd throw a dinner together before work, turn it on and head out the door. After a long night at the rink, there was nothing bet- ter than walking into the house to the smell of chili simmering with tomatoes and spices. I swear my slow cooker logged almost as many hours as my kids on skates. The slow cooker didn't make our hockey schedule less crazy, but it did make one part of our crazy schedule easier. I quickly learned that avoiding the post-rink fast food pitstop had less to do with willpower and everything to do with planning. Check tomorrow's hockey sched- ule tonight. If you know you're going to be at the rink until 8 p.m., decide what you're eat- ing before the next day becomes a blur. Keep the supporting cast simple: salad kits, fruit, rolls, rice and frozen vegetables. Nobody is awarding style points for a week- night dinner. Pasta and sauce, grilled cheese and soup. Some nights, breakfast got called up to the dinner line. Eggs, pancakes and bacon didn't care what time the final buzzer sounded. A n d d o n 't f o r g et t h a t y o u r freezer can be your drive-thru. If you're cooking one m e a l , y o u m i g h t as well make two. Double the chili. Make extra soup and freeze half. Look, if you occasion- ally end up at the real drive-thru then so be it. We're hockey parents, a n d s o m e t i m e s j u s t getting everyone fed is the win. After a long day of work and hockey, know- i n g d i n n e r w a s already waiting at home felt like one less thing we had to worry about. M y s l o w c o o k e r didn't score any goals. But during those hec- tic hockey years, it had plenty of assists. P Outsmart The Drive-Thru: 5 Homemade Slow Cooker Meals BEH I N D T HE G L A SS THE HOCKEY MOM | By Christie Casciano Burns 20 // NOV/DEC 2026 USAHOCKEYMAGAZINE.COM Rink-night Chicken Tacos 1. Add boneless chicken, salsa and taco seasoning to the slow cooker. 2. Cook the chicken and then shred it and serve with tortillas and whatever toppings are in the fridge. Slap Shot Stir-Fry 1. Cut two pounds of boneless chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces. 2. Then pour 3/4 bottle of Teriyaki, stir-fry or honey garlic sauce into the slow cooker. Stir the ingredients together. 3. Cover and cook on low for 4-5 hours. Once you come home, add one bag of frozen stir-fry vegetables. 4. Then add the remaining sauce and heat on high. To keep it fast for your hungry player, then spoon it over microwaved 90-second instant rice. Hockey Night Chili 1. Brown ground beef or turkey, then add beans, tomatoes, onions, tomato sauce and chili seasoning. 2. Let the slow cooker do the rest. Add cheese and tortilla chips when you get home. Quick Release Quesadilla 1. Micheal Mouser from Villa Hills, Kentucky, shared that he whips up an easy chicken quesadilla with a pound of chicken breast, a can of diced tomatoes and green chiles. 2. He cooks it on low for six hours and later shreds it with a fork. ILLUSTRATION BY Michael Iver Jacobsen Soups and Stews Julie Bennet from Fulton, New York, helps her family stay warm with various soups and stews. Taco soup, stuffed pepper soup, pizza soup, salsa chicken and beef stew are some of her favorites.