My mother-in-law just purchased us an automatic pressure cooker
because I have had a hard time making hearty meals at this time.
I was skeptical, but it is so quick and easy! You can even throw in the meat frozen! For us last minute moms-(usually me-I just don't have the energy to prep like I used to).
Four whole frozen chicken breasts only took 5 minutes to cook last night. Plus, we threw in some veggies! It can all cook together and with seasoning, it was delicious and moist!
They are around $100 or so. Money well spent!! It is also nice for my mother-in-law bc she can cook for one person, or she cooks several meals at once and freezes them!
Also, I would suggest you google pressure cooker cookbooks if you buy one. Mine was written by Wolfgang Puck.
You can check them out on www.HSN.com
P.S. A real alphabet soup recipe:
http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/emeril-lagasse/emerils-first-alphabet-soup-recipe/index.html