Saturday, October 31, 2009

A Word About Kitchens

This month 13 years ago, we moved into our home. And I still love my kitchen. You can see it in my DVD and in pictures on this web site especially if you look at the slide show on the helpful resources tab. This week as I was cooking my meal which had a lot of "moving" parts, I was thankful for it's modest size- any bigger and it would be too many steps from sink to stove top to refrig. And unlike many magazine kitchen photos- I do not have an island in the middle of my kitchen and I do not have a big hood over the cook top. I have a microwave with a fan over my gas cook top. An island can crowd and/or block your path to the needed item. When I recently asked a homeowner where she had her microwave(she instead had a beautiful wood vent over her cook top), she confessed it was in the utility room. It is so convenient to have the microwave right over the cook top and it is so perfect to have shelving above the microwave as that is where I keep my non-stick sprays, soy sauce, vinegar, worchester sauce etc. My countertops are white formica- not the expensive variety but they sure "pop" in pictures, slide show and my DVD. Small and affordable kitchens cook many a good meal. Easy does it!


Monday, October 26, 2009

Peak Fall Foliage= Brunswick Stew Time

I delivered my Brunswick Stew to my new cooking co-op along with ham rolls and some home-made chocolate cake(my daughter came home from NYC and so while making her a surprise, I made an extra cake to share with my co-op). Brunswick stew is one of my easiest meals to make. But once again, I found it to be everyone's favorite- one husband said it was his favorite meal and the male gourmet cook in our co-op loved it. One mom was surprised how much her children enjoyed it. See the menu on the recipe tab and in my DVD "If It's Tuesday, It's My Night To Cook" I demonstrate the making of this recipe. It also helped that it was a cool, rainy day that I delivered my meal. Read the tab About Ginny and click the memorable moment in which I first received the best Brunswick Stew of my life from a soon to be cooking co-opper. Her recipe was wonderful but time-consuming so I simplified it. It's best to have 2 slow cookers and make 2 batches because you can give some away to someone with the flu and freeze the rest. It's easy to shop for as most of the ingredients come from the freezer section. So ladies and gents- start your engines..um..slow-cookers!

Monday, October 19, 2009

Resolution: Resolve to Perform What You Ought

This week I read a fascinating article on US Airways Capt. "Sully" Sullenberger http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703790404574469160016077646.
.html. And I also read a statement: " Character" and "Virtue" have been replaced by "Values". So what's the difference? Values implies a benefit but character and virtue implies something right and true. The title above is one of Benjamin Franklin's 13 virtues which he wrote at age 20 as a plan for how he would live his life. Often I try to share the benefits of preparing and having dinner together as a family. Samuel Johnson talks of "private duties" leading to happiness. What if having regular mealtimes with your family-even if just husband and wife- is a duty? Jeffrey Zaslow in the above article said:"...it wasn't only his skills...that carried him in those tense moments over Manhattan. It was also his upbringing, his family bonds, his sense of integrity...Sulley's entire life led him safely to that river." The name of the book on Sully's journey-"Highest Duty:My Search for What Really Matters." Duty calls!


Resolution: Resolve to perform

Resolution: Resolve to perform

Resolution: Resolve to perform

Monday, October 12, 2009

10th Cooking Co-Op in 22 Years

Once you are hooked on the benefits of cooking co-op, just realize your first group will not last forever. A move to a new city interupted my first incredible co-op. My last group, which are featured in my DVD, changed as Rick's co-worker heard about the wonders of banding together to make dinnertime special and wanted in. I had wanted to see co-op formations at work as a way to get to know my co-workers better and to help more families answer the question: "What's for dinner?" When one group ends, do not look at it mournfully. Look at it as an opportunity for new recipes. My new co-op works like this: Kim and I cook every week. Then the gourmet cooks, Craig and Cynthia cook every other week and we brought in Maryanne and Kim to cook on the alternate week. We literally go home with the "bacon". After Kim's first week, she shared with me the benefits: Grocery bill was cut in half, children ate what the "friends" at work prepared, adults enjoyed more variety, less stress, and they found free time on the nights she was not cooking. After receiving 3 co-op dinners, Kim's very young daughter made the "friends" at work a gift- home-made chocolate cookies-better than bacon!

Monday, October 5, 2009

U-2, You Too Can Have Dinner With All The Elements

What an incredible concert! As I was waiting for the concert to begin, I first was amazed by the staging and the creativity of the set - it had color, moving parts- impossible to describe. Then came Bono. Why do I think his incredible talent and presence on stage is one of the greatest of all time? He has substance- he cares about the crowd, he cares about those in Iran and throughout the world whose governments deny people freedom. The songs he sings have substance- look up the lyrics to Pride-One Man in the Name of Love, I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For. Bono also sang Amazing Grace. These same elements make for incredible dinners! Be creative with your set- the table. Use color. Have a centerpiece. Light candles- have your own light show. Cooking co-op can help bring all the moving parts onto your table. Cooking co-op can also help your dinner to have substance- substantial quality. When you are cooking one night a week, you put extra effort into that meal vs. throwing something together at the last minute. Now multiply that by 4(4 is the perfect # for co-op cooking) and you have 4 dinners of substance. Play the music on low- it's a "Beautiful Day ".