Feeding my Family

I've had several really good days in a row, which has resulted in a flurry of baked goods. There's something so satisfying about seeing rows upon rows of homemade raspberry poppy seed muffins.

The knowledge that my family will get to enjoy them feeds something deep in my soul. 

Maybe appreciate it. Maybe they won't. 

(Three of them are teens, after all. One is ever mindful of "the gains, Mom, I gotta watch the GAINS!" The second doesn't ever seem to be hungry when dinner is ready, and the third commicates almost entirely with grunts That could mean anything from, "This is the best food I've ever HAD!!!" to, "I would rather eat dirt".)

Still, I find such joy in getting my hands covered in flour and kneading up a fresh batch of bread for sandwiches or soup. 

It's not miraculous or marvelous, but I hope these simple acts of love feed their hearts. 

Pots and Pans Review

 

After Handyman burned my last two pots, I decided to get a new set of pots and pans (my old set was a wedding gift).  I did an awful lot of cooking with my old set, but I knew they weren't very good and I was determined to get a much better set this time around if I could.

Purchasing something so important can seem overwhelming task with the number of choices on the market, so I decided to go with reviews I trust by America's Test Kitchen.  (You have to be a member to see their reviews).

(Side Note: I love America's Test Kitchen.  They have shows on PBS, and they are delightfully geeky with how they go into the molecular structure of a recipe and why it works or doesn't.  Their reviews of kitchen gadgets are also top-notch.  While you can see some of their recipes for free online, a membership gives you access to everything and is worth it in my opinion).

 

I was shocked at what I read.  All-Clad ranked highest in their line-up, which wasn't surprising, but the second highest rated cooking set was Tramontina by - wait for it - Wal-Mart?!! 



(I thought it slightly funny that Rachael Ray's cookware was listed as "not recommended to buy".)

 

This set was rated as ATC's "Best Buy", because it performed as well as All-Clad, with the exception of being slightly smaller, and a much better price range (my set was $139 as compared to All-Clad's $800).



 

Okay, enough about their reviews, here are mine:

 

I like the size of the two skillets.  The largest one would be what I would call a midway between large and medium (cooking two pounds of ground beef just about fills it), and the smaller one is perfect for frying two or three eggs.  I already have an extra-large skillet, and I've found that it's too big for my stove burners anyway so I don't use it much.

The sides of the pans angle really well. It's not so sloped that I can't flip stuff without spilling it over the rim, but not so vertical that I can't easily access the contents with a spatula.

I love the handles.  There's a hole in the end so that the pots can be hung, although I don't currently have plans to store them that way, but it's nice to have the option!  They also fit in my palm well, and I really like the angle to pan ratio.  A handle that curves too far up doesn't have enough leverage and is harder on the wrist to lift.  These handles are nearly horizontal, which is important as the cookware is hefty (but not "heavy", if you know what I mean).

You probably should use a hot pad when holding them as the handles might get hot, but since I always do that anyway so it's not an issue for me.  The handles are well-insulated but not heat proof because these pots are also oven safe (plastic heat-safe handles usually aren't also oven safe).

Another thing about the handles is that they're welded onto the pot instead of just being held by screws/pins.  No worries about handles coming loose and splattering hot food around!



The pots are a thing of beauty.  What's awesome about these is that they are an 18/10 ratio of stainless steel and aluminum and are fully clad.  No scantily dressed pots around here, no-sir!  These pots have modesty!  You can tell right away just by lifting them that they're exceptional quality.  They're heavy and also balanced (don't worry though, it's not like having to haul cast iron around).

 

What "clad" means, is that the stainless steel and aluminum layers are hammered together and then formed into the entire pot, instead of having the steel sandwiching the aluminum, or worse yet, only used as the base of the pot like many cheaper sets.  A lot of sets will say they have a good ratio of aluminum to steel, but only on the base.  The problem with this is that it doesn't conduct heat well up the sides of the pot, especially if you have a gas stove (which I don't).  Since a base only radiates heat from the bottom instead of from all sides, the bottom will cook faster than the top/middle of the pot, and scorching is more likely to occur.  It's the 18/10 clad part that makes this set so fabulous.

 

It's a bit of an adjustment for me to get used to cooking on a lower temperature.  With my old set a "high" setting on the stove was just that, "high", but with the better heat conduction of this new set I only set it on a 6 for it to get to the "high heat" temperature. (If Handyman scorches this set I'm going to bury him.  In pieces.  Alive.)

 

Okay, next I took at look at the lids.  They're also stainless steel and aluminum (not glass).  While it's nice to have glass for the obvious see-through properties, once the interior gets hot the glass steams up anyway, making it a moot point.

 

They fit very well into the pot, with no danger of them sliding off if you're moving the pot around.

 

I found the grips to be perfect for my hands, which are medium-to-small in size, but if you have larger hands you might be in danger of burning your knuckles, so beware or use a pot holder.

 

I also liked how the lids of the pots can double as lids for the pans as well.  This is useful because you don't have excess cookware cluttering the cupboard and lids for pans are very handy.

One of the things I did like about my old cheapy set was that I could put the lids on the pots upside down and then stack each pot on top of the next. 

Unfortunately I can't do that with this set.  If I put the lids on upside down they slide around.  I hate having to store lids separately from the pots, but I don't have the cupboard space for each pot to have it's own section of the pantry, meaning I'll stack them into each other and put the lids in a magazine holder or use a towel rod to hang them on the door.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

 

I purchased a steamer set, also by Tramontina, but while this set was an 18/10 aluminum to stainless steel ratio, only the base of the bottom pot was clad instead of the entire pot, and the difference is obvious.

 I definitely wouldn't want to rely on these pots for all-purpose cooking, but for steaming and gentle cooking I think the bottom pot would be okay.  I have doubts about the middle one being useful for much as it's very thin and would scorch the contents easily. (Frankly, I'm not entirely sure what it's for.)

The handles aren't stainless steel like the other set but instead have a plastic coating.  They're supposed to be heat resistant, meaning I don't necessarily need to use a pot holder.  They're therefore not oven safe, but I don't think I'd ever be tempted to use these in the oven anyway.

The size of the steamer insert is perfect.  We tend to eat a lot of veggies, and I think this insert could hold two heads of cut up broccoli (stalk removed).  I'm so sick of trying to steam vegetables with my old cheapy folding insert steamer, and despite this set not being up to the quality of my other new cookware, I'm very pleased!

Of Pots and Men

The other night I had the oddest dream.  I was in a very deep sleep, and I dreamt that the house was burning.  (Not a pleasant dream, I can assure you.)

The next morning, I woke up and sleepily made my way downstairs, where I found these in the sink.

My last two remaining pots from the set I had gotten at my wedding 13 years ago.

 

Handyman's response to how they mysteriously got that way?

Response #1: "I can sand off the burns with my hand sander".

 

Response #2: "This is why men shouldn't be in the kitchen except to eat or brew beer".

I can't be too mad at him, mostly because I was wanting an excuse to get a better set of pots and pans anyway, and also because he braved our horrific snowstorm to pick them up at the store for me!

(Some of you were asking what type of pots and pans I purchased and how I like them.  I'm planning to do a review post soon!)

Homemade Applesauce Tutorial

Fall is such a wonderful time of year, and if you're lucky enough to have a lot of apples, you might want to make some applesauce.

(This is an especially good idea if you have apples that might be a bit too tart to just eat fresh.)

 

Start with a lot of apples and a very happy baby.  (Happy baby optional).

 

Peel and core all the apples, or as many apples as you can fit in your large stockpot.  An apple corer like this is invaluable if you have a lot of fruit to get through. 

 

A cute helper is also invaluable too, but I wouldn't recommend going to the store and grabbing one.  Stick with grabbing an apple corer.  Much safer.

  

(If you leave the peel on the apple and your apples are very red, you will get "pink applesauce".  Be aware that this will add a few minutes to the cooking time and I wouldn't recommend doing this unless you have organic apples.)

Once you have them in the pot, add about two inches of water.  Add more water if you like your sauce more runny, or less if you like your sauce thicker.  (Just be warned, if you don't add enough water your sauce is more likely to burn.)

 

Stirring occasionally, cover and cook on high until the apples are nice and soft, about 20 minutes or so.

 

Add your ingredients.  Generally for 16 cups of applesauce I add 2 cups of sugar, 1 teaspoon of cinnamon, 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, and 1 teaspoon of salt.  If I were making this purely for my own tastes (and not for those of my picky but boring-palated family) I would also add 1 teaspoon of nutmeg and 1/2 teaspoon of allspice, as well as a pinch of ground cloves. A bit of ground ginger might also be a nice touch. 

(Please note that the amount of sugar will depend on the sweetness of your apples.  Start with 1 cup of sugar and add more to suit your taste.)

Hmm, perhaps I'll make a small batch just for myself . . .

I like to use an immersion blender, but you can also transfer your sauce to a blender or food processor if you want it to be smooth.  Otherwise, your apples should be soft enough that you can blend them fairly well by just using a sturdy spoon.

If you have enough sauce that you want to can it, ladle the hot sauce into clean mason jars, leaving about a 1/2 inch of head space.  Cover with new (and washed, of course) lids and rims and put in a water bath canner for 20 minutes.  You can also use a pressure canner, but I never do it that way as for me the water bath method is easier.

 

All done!  Let the jars sit on the counter until they cool before storing in your pantry.

(I realize that there are different was to make applesauce and lots of cool gadgets that might make things easier.  This is just how I do it and I thought I'd share my method with anyone who might be interested.  Let me know if you make some and I'll commiserate with you on the state of your kitchen!)

Basil and Spices

In the spring I planted two small basil plants in my herb splotch of bare ground garden, and then I ignored them all summer.  When one of the basil plants got big enough to start wandering over the walkway, I finally decided to pay them some attention and cut them up for pesto.

Why, oh WHY have I never experienced the aromatic and culinary delights of pesto before?!!!!  If I'd known the practically religious ecstasy of gustationary bliss that would have occurred I would have been a pesto making priestess all summer!

I didn't want to spend the money on pine nuts (plus I couldn't seem to find any in our area, but I live in the Midwest where basil is a bit of an exotic herb) so I used walnuts instead.  Before adding them to my blender with the washed basil, I toasted them a bit first in my little toaster oven.  The flavor was much better, and well worth the small extra step.  Then I added a bit of parmesan cheese and olive oil for a typical pesto mix.

To preserve it, I put it into ice cube trays (thanks Penny for the idea!) and once they were frozen I popped them out and put them into a large ziploc bag for later use.

Pure ecstasy.  Sometimes when I'm stressed I pull them out of the freezer and sniff them.

I know, I'm weird.  It's my version of crack.

The other spice that I've been whipping up is my own homemade version of chili powder.  It's much better than the store bought thing for several reasons.

1) it's not too difficult
2) it gives you an excuse to grow lethal peppers
3) it provides an excellent method of torture should you ever need it on an unsuspecting family member or friend
4) the flavor has more depth and the heat is muuuuuuuuuuuch more intense, (which I should have probably listed as reason number 1 before reason number 3, but then, we all have our own set of priorities)


See how innocent and innocuous it looks? 

Looks can be deceiving.

(I have a tutorial here that you can view if you'd like to learn how to make your own pepper powder spice)

Expedition in St. Louis

This past Monday I drove several hours south to visit my dearly departed friend, FFM (a.k.a Flipflopping Mama).

She lives in a beautiful old house with lots of character and very high ceilings. (No that's not her house. It's just a good illustration of the landscape.)
Since I had my usual order of priorities in place, I remembered to take a picture of the chocolate on my pillow, but completely forgot to get a picture of her lovely home.
After a restful night's sleep, we leisurely drove to St. Charles, a historic town on the banks of the Missouri river, and a stopping off point for the Lewis and Clark Expedition.
The buildings fascinated me, with their antique colors and beautiful brickwork.
It was rainy most of the time we were there, but it wasn't bad because F.F.M remembered to pack two umbrellas. The old streets were so pretty in the rain. (Only a blogger thinks to take pictures of streets in the rain.)
I resisted the urge to do a "Singing in the Rain" impersonation for several reasons; I am not as flexible as Gene Kelly, and I was afraid F.F.M. would leave me stranded in St. Charles.

We had a lovely time going into the quaint shops and exclaiming over the quaint items and equally quaint prices ("Oh yes, I believe that wallet is definitely worth the $300"). We were heartily amused by the number of "No Strollers, No Children Touching Anything" signs. I must admit it felt rather liberating to not have to threaten, "Keep your hands in your pockets and if you break anything I'll kill you!" every few minutes.
Our friend Nikki got sick last minute and wasn't able to join our Expedition, so her arch-nemesis the squirrel decided to come in her place. (Nikki has a phobia of squirrels. And spiders. And turkeys. And bats. And flying.)
When we found a yarn shop called Knit and Caboodle, I knew I was in heaven.
They had lots of pretty yarn to fondle and caress, but their selection of sock yarns was especially nice.
I had lots of fun trying to decide how much money to blow on socks.
Squirrel Nutkin joined us shortly before the yarn store, and helped me decide what colors I liked best.

When we left the yarn store to soggily slosh our way back to the car, I noticed this little soap opera going on in someone's front yard.
I am easily amused, apparently.

From St. Charles we drove to the Chesterfield Mall, where F.F.M. taught me the art of Mall Shopping. I think in my next post I'll have more pictures of some of the stuff I bought, because this post is already getting rather picture heavy.
I had to snap a picture of the playland.

See those kids playing?
None of them are mine. (Smug grin).

After we finished Malling, we went to Macaroni Grill to get a bite to eat.
We had a fabulous Italian waiter, and equally fabulous food. (Please tell Handyman that I want to eat here again. Soon.)
F.F.M and I changed into our Hot Mama boots, and then we drove downtown to see The Pioneer Woman.
Naturally, we couldn't see P.W. in frumpy shoes! Gasp, Horror!

The book signing venue had been changed from the bookstore to a beautiful old church (I think it was called Christ Church of St. Louis, but I'm not sure.)
The architecture was magnificent.
We were shocked at the number of people there to see Pioneer Woman. I don't think it's an exaggerated estimation to say there were at least 800 highly charged estrogen enriched bodies in that one room.

Needless to say, we had to wait a looooooong time to see P.W. Thankfully, I came prepared for a wait.
(Squirrel Nutkin is showing off my socks.)

F.F.M. evilly snapped a photo of me praying (*cough cough* napping). We were in church, after all!
F.F.M. took courage and managed to ask P.W. a question about blogging times and when she does it.
Two great women in such close approximation - the world is not ready for this yet.

While we waited in line to have P.W. sign our copies of her amazing cookbook (go get it, it's amazing), her husband Marlboro Man also let us snap pictures with him and autographed our books.

He was very, very charming, and nicely did what I told him and held my knitting for the photo. I just love his expression, don't you?
Woo-hoo, now I have TWO celebrities Kinneared! (See here for Celebrity #1, and here for an explanation of Kinnearing.)

F.F.M. was even more bold and had Marlboro Man sign a picture of his, um, chaps. (You have to read Pioneer Woman's blog to understand this one. Or maybe not. Marlboro Man is really hot.)

The Pioneer Woman was equally charming and gracious, and seemed to appreciate the handknit gifts we brought her. (I knit a scarf, and F.F.M. knit a matching pair of fingerless mitts.)(That's F.F.M's charming but evil sister on the right. She and her sister breathe in a similarly sadistic fashion, and tried to get me to believe that cars need blinker fluid as well as oil. Thankfully I discovered that they have a nervous twitch when they're lying, which saved me much more humiliation.)

When we finally got back to F.F.M.'s house that night, it was in the wee hours of the morning, but what fun we had! Definitely worth the bloodshot eyes and manic expressions of the next day. That's what coffee's for, after all!