New Gadget in the Kitchen

For those who have not heard of this new gadget, I want to introduce you to some exciting fun in the kitchen.  Maybe about a month ago I saw a post in an online forum that talked about a Personal Pie Maker.  I did a little investigation at that time and thought it would be a neat thing to try.  Around that time I was talking to a good friend who said she had also heard about this new gadget.... Then I kind of put it on the back burner, out of mind.  Two weeks ago, she calls and says she bought one at a William Sonoma store.  Then she brought dessert to a meeting I had at my house and she made the little pies in her new Breville Pie Maker.  That is when I decided I just had to have one.  Last Friday I bought mine.  My husband wasn't too sure it was worth the cost, but he agreed that it looked very intriguing.

My first pies were cherry with two crusts.  I had a bit of a time getting the pies out, even though I had bought the two prong lifter that they suggested to go with it.  I used my regular pie crust recipe and the crust turned out nice and flaky as usual.  I then made pumpkin pies which do not have a top crust and they were just awesome... but again I had a bit of a time getting them out in one piece.  We have already had three different kinds of pies, and it is still not a week since I bought it.  My husband is not afraid of the kitchen, but he likes to know he can accomplish the task before he starts.  I told him that he could probably make himself a pie anytime he wanted one if I rolled out and cut the crust for him.  I figured I could layer the cut crust between wax paper in the fridge to have handy.  He wasn't sure he wanted to deal with the crust.

I was reading through the book that came with the unit and it indicated that you could use bread as the crust, or puff pastry... so not limited to just pie crust.  The unit comes with a two-sided cutter.... large on one side for the bottom crust and smaller on the other side for the top crust, and a press that forms the bottom crust to the pie shape.  Ron asked if I thought we could try using tortillas so I bought a fresh package to give it a try.  Today for lunch we had mini-chili pies.  I first put the 4 tortillas in the microwave with a damp paper towel over them so they would become a little more pliable.  I also heated the canned Wolf chili a little.  I pressed the bottoms in place, spooned in the warmed chili and put shredded cheese on top.  Ron thought I should try one with a top crust, so I only put a top crust on one.  These little pies were great.  I didn't get too fancy on these cause I wasn't sure how the tortillas would work, but the tortillas worked beautifully... and they were just as good with or without the top crust.  I can see making a meal out of these with a nice salad to go with a couple of these little gems.  The scraps from cutting the crusts could just be laid across the tops or eaten on the side... so there would be no waste.  I can see there will be no limit to creativity here.

What I did learn from the tortillas was the best part.  I like to roll my pie crust really thin.  I look at it as kind of an art to be able to roll thin pie crust.  Well thin is not good with the pie maker.  The filling is heavy enough with most pies that the thin crust is just not sturdy enough to allow a clean lift to a plate.  These tortillas on the other hand lifted out perfectly.  They turned out like baked shells, nice and sturdy and crispy on the edges.  So I will be rolling my pie crust for the pie maker just a bit thicker from now on.  Of course when you buy pre-made pie crust from the freezer section, it is rolled thicker anyhow, so this would not be an issue for alot of people.  Thicker is better, at least for mini-pies.

Ron has decided now that he has seen how nicely the tortillas work that he can make himself a pie with whatever he can find in the fridge, anytime he wants to... like when I'm gone to my quilt meetings.  Did I say that once the pie maker is heated up (about 4 or 5 minutes), the pies are done between 8 to 12 minutes.  How great is that?

 

Baking and Grilling

It's a beautiful day today.  Windows open to let the mild breeze freshen the closed up house.  This past week we replaced a bi-fold door in our kitchen.  It was a door we rarely closed because on the other side is the air intake for the heating/cooling system.  The bi-fold that was there was solid and we determined that a louvered door would allow us to close the door now and then and not worry that the fan might come on and create a vacuum in the laundry room.  Anyhow, we had the old, solid bi-fold with no place to put it, and there really was nothing wrong with it.  Lightbulb moment... we have a really great grill on our deck.  More often than not there is a wind tunnel between the house and garage, where the grill sits.  I have asked Ron if he could think of a way to create a wind block for the grill.  It took some doing, but we now have a bi-fold door attached to the garage and it folds back in place against the garage when we aren't using the grill.  It's white and blends in pretty well.  Now I'm anxious to grill something to see if it will make a difference.

On the cooking front, I tried a new recipe today.  It was for an unusual cake that I found while I was looking to see if there was a recipe feature that should be available somewhere in MasterCook.  I thought maybe one of the recipes that came with MC would show this feature, so I opened one of the MC cookbooks and then I stumbled on this recipe.

            Armenian Nutmeg Cake
  2          cups  firmly packed brown sugar
  2          cups  sifted flour
  2          teaspoons  baking powder
  1          teaspoon  baking soda
  1          teaspoon  salt
  1/2       cup  butter
  1          cup  milk
  1           egg -- beaten
  1           teaspoon  nutmeg
  1/2        cup  chopped walnuts

Combine sugar, sifted flour, baking powder, and salt. Rub in butter until mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Press half the mixture into a well-greased 20-cm square pan. Dissolve baking soda in milk; add egg and nutmeg and pour over remaining sugar and flour mixture. Mix well, then spoon into pan on top of pressed in mixture. Sprinkle walnuts over. Bake in preheated oven at 350F for 1 hour. Allow to stand 15 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack to cool.

A couple notes here... first 20 cm square is a 9" square pan - actually it is an 8", but I used a 9" pan.  Next when I made mine, I used soymilk, and I used pecans.  This cake turned out great.  It even got approval from my husband, which is always a good thing.  It is really great to stumble on a really good recipe now and then.  Hope you try it, and if you do, let me know whether you agree with my assessment.

Another year just around the corner

It is hard to believe that 2012 is just a couple days away.  So much has transpired in the last 12 months, it is hard to sit back and remember everything, although many of them were posted here on my blog.  I have been so involved with projects and such that I have not been here to update with anything new lately... that is since my "new kitchen".  Well, it got even better the week after my last post... I got a new stove.  It wasn't just a new stove, it has a smooth top, and a dual oven with convection in both ovens... I was afraid I would have to learn how to cook all over again, but I am finding it isn't such a big deal to learn how to use the convection oven.  I think with a little practice I could get pretty good at this. 

It has been a while since I really spent alot of time in the kitchen, but I am really enjoying getting back into the baking scene.  This is a raspberry cobbler that I adapted from my peach cobbler recipe. I thought it looked pretty when it came out of the oven. 

I made some oatmeal cookies and thought I would try putting 3 sheets of cookies in the convection oven at the same time.  What I had read said they would all bake evenly because of the circulating heat.  They all turned out awesome.  My husband isn't complaining.  I even made him a pie the other day... did I say he has a sweet tooth.


It is quite likely I will be sharing a few of my recipes in the weeks ahead as I get more comfortable with all my new toys in the kitchen.  All this has given me renewed energy to get creative in the kitchen.

It has been a couple years, maybe more, since my Christmas cactus has blossomed.  I have two, and they both have been loaded this year. 

The last picture here is a foggy morning last week and I thought it would make a cool picture the way the trees were peeking through.

Kitchen Delight

It isn't every day that I can come up with new pictures, but I just had to take some pictures of my new kitchen. We talked alot about a new addition we were going to put on the garage to give me more room for my quilting frame.  By the time we got back from Arizona we had talked ourselves out of an addition to the garage.  I then made a proposal to Ron... seeing that I saved us the cost of the new addition, I think it is a small consolation to upgrade the kitchen.  He had no objections... but of course I kept my requests reasonable.

First I wanted a new range hood.  The old one just never did a good job of pulling any air up the vent.  New one is stainless steel and has a great fan and extremely good lighting.  Next item was the removal of the microwave from the counter, down there on the left under the kitties.  I moved my mixer out there where it is easier to access.  Microwave got moved into a cupboard on the other side of the room that was built with the intention of putting  a microwave in it.  We were convinced our microwave was too big for the space... it fit just fine.

You can see the microwave in the upper right of this picture.  The next on my agenda was a kitchen island.  I don't have a very big kitchen, so my island is of modest size, but it sure is a beautiful addition to my kitchen.  The table that used to be there in front of the window only collected mail.  We typically eat at the dining room table. 

This island is actually a cart... it has heavy duty casters that make it easy to move to where you need it.  Like Friday morning we made peanut butter sandwiches to take to church for the "Take It To The Street" ministry.  We rolled the island out a bit and we worked from both sides of the counter space.  So much easier than standing side by side to do the same task.

Last, but certainly not least I wanted a new sink with a fancy new faucet.  The sink is granite composite and the color is Espresso.  The faucet has copper hi-lites.  The deep sink is a single basin, but it has a raised shelf on one side where I will put a stainless steel dish drainer that is narrow and intended for smaller spaces.  The drainer hasn't arrived yet.

For a finishing touch, I decided the backsplash behind the sink was a little plain... it needed to be spiced up.  The image here shows the tiles I started out with on the top row.  We have had the bucket of blank tiles for years now, just waiting for the right project.  I used Mod Podge to cover the tile with fabric that I bought in Arizona.  Right now they are just resting in place behind the sink, but Ron will put a shiny finish on them before he adheres them in place.



I know there are lots of bigger, more beautiful kitchens out there, but I could not be happier with my new expanded kitchen.  It really is the same size it was, it just seems like it grew a whole lot.  It is just gorgeous, and we didn't spend an arm and a leg.

Spending time in Arizona

We have been away from home for a week now, and it sure would be nice to be heading back home.  We are still awaiting the arrival of new grand-baby.  I have totally enjoyed spending time with my DIL and the whole family, but we have been in the house alot since we have been here.  As a result of having alot of  "free" time here, I have completed a few projects.  There was a mystery quilt I had been working on for a few weeks and the last step was released the Friday before we left.

The instructions were to add narrow sashing strips with cornerstones.  I didn't care for that option, so I decided to add the gold squares, which meant I had added more Y seams than I wanted to count.  I had a couple of fabrics with me that I had planned on using for the borders, but the two narrow borders were purchased at a quilt shop that is just down the road from here.  My DIL is not a quilter, but she really enjoys going to the quilt shops with me.

The next project I jumped into was the Fiesta quilt kit I brought with me to finish for my DIL.  Grandson's birthday was this week, so I had some curly ribbon at my disposal when it came time to add embellishments.  Most of my quilting has been done on my Featherweight that I brought with me, but I did use my DIL's machine for the zig-zag around the applique pieces.  Considering that she does not really spend a whole lot of time sewing, she has a very basic machine, and that works just fine for her... but it does do zig-zag. 

We have had the opportunity to do things with our grandson.  Makes you realize how much you miss by living so far away.  I am famous for finding projects to work with the younger set.

 GS and I made a necklace for his Mom.  She was very pleased with her gift, and he was excited to see her reaction.

While his Mom and Dad were out, GS and I were really busy.  Besides the necklace we made a wreath.  He poked most of the fabric squares into the straw wreath, but I think it turned out pretty cool.


 Did I say that I know where JoAnn's is here and I have already been there three times this week?  Last trip was this afternoon.  My husband and I decided we needed to get out of the house by ourselves and went back to JoAnn's and bought some candles for the fireplace.  My DIL was overjoyed at how neat it made her fireplace look.  I had seen it at a friend's house and told her about it.  The banjo on the side was a gift from grandpa to the birthday boy.  We will have to see if he will keep practicing once we leave.  He says he will play a song or two for us the next time we come.  Grandpa has had this banjo for 35+ years.