Tuesday, February 27, 2018

Simplify Your Kitchen and Make it Work for You!




Over the years, as a Short Order Cook, A Caterer, and now an Everyday Cook working in a compact kitchen, I have picked up a few tips and ideas as to how to really enjoy your time in the kitchen. In my opinion, that starts with having what you need and using what you have, as well as knowing where everything is - especially when you need it now!

So here are lots of things to think about and evaluate.  None of us is going to do everything, and I am pretty sure that my kitchen will never, ever make it to a magazine!  As you can see by the pictures at the end here, I do use some of the counter top for those things that I use the most.  The issue for all of us who do a lot of cooking is:  does it work for me?  


Start with the Dishes and Appliances! 
*Stop storing too many of anything!  Mugs, Flatware, Dinner Plates.
*Please don’t buy Non-Stick Cookware - you are throwing your money  away on a product that can become toxic.  You do not need it to cook.
*Avoid “One Use” glassware - if you must have separate Rocks, Wine, Sherry, etc.  glasses, limit yourself to 8 maximum.  If you are hosting more folks than that, you probably will use something more standardized and easier to wash and store.
*Get rid of unused Cookware - be honest with yourself.  Ask yourself the last time that you actually used something. Items in this category often are what I call, "what's hot" items.  I know the One Pot will change humanity forever but how many will be taking up space in cabinets untouched in a year?  Items like Ice cream makers, mussel pots, slow cookers, etc. also fall into this category.
*Evaluate how many spatulas, whisks, etc. that you need to have.  And remember, it is essential that you buy good products to begin with so you aren’t replacing cheap, subpar equipment regularly.  

*Get rid of the pop up toaster - unless you are turning out tons of toast a day.  There are a number of small, easily storable products that you can use to toast bread*** - OR - you can use your oven! Retake the counter space! Also, mice regularly go into toasters over night to get at crumbs, and sometimes they leave something behind. Just something to think about. 
*If you are still using a Microwave Oven, my first question is, “What are you eating?” Because if you are popping boxes from your freezer or cabinet into a microwave, or if you are eating microwave popcorn, you are indeed living dangerously! 
Keep a small lidded pot on your stove - use it to melt butter. Buy an electric hot pot for boiling water. Move the microwave out! You'll find something to do with all of that space!
*A Bread Maker?  Really?  Why? This is one of those fad things that has always baffled me.
If you make rice regularly, then by all means keep your rice cooker.  We were gifted with a very high end Japanese rice cooker years ago.  I love it.  For rice, for oatmeal - it has a number of functions.  That said, if it went belly up I know that I would not replace it, given its size and expense.  I’d go back to a pot, lid and clean towel, I’m sure. 
*A panini maker is totally unnecessary. Put your sandwich in a pan and put a heavier pan on top of it.  
*Control the Tupperware volume - storage is good, but too many storage items are an avalanche waiting to happen!

Organize.  Declutter. Plan Ahead
*Do not buy large jars of spices; spices lose their “spice” relatively quickly
*On TV cooking shows, you see olive and other oils beautifully displayed right over the stove - generally on a lovely stainless steel shelf under the exhaust fan.  Unless you go through your oils at a really brisk pace, this is a really bad idea.  The heat and smoke will kill those oils quickly. Almost all oils should be stored in a cool, dark cabinet.  If you must keep your olive oil out on a counter, it should be stored in dark containers to keep out the light.
*Have a designated space for everything - in the middle of cooking, you want to know exactly where to go for what you need.
*Group similar items together - Have your go-to things all in one place.
*When you cook, take the time to "mis en place" - get out and measure all of your ingredients ahead of time. 
*Get rid of the Knife Block - they are pretty much germ colonies and a drawer with wide spaces and dividers works much better for you and your knives.

It all comes down to what works for you, and when things aren’t working, you know it. Most of us have more than we need, want, or use in our kitchens.  But maybe some of those things would be used happily by others. So, it is not always about throwing away - it is about giving away, donating, and re-homing. 
Start with looking at one cabinet or a few drawers and see what you really use and need. Be tough about it. Let us know how you made out - we are all learning from each other.



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***We use a tool called a "Tostapane" - we fell in love with them in Italy.  Placed over a burner they heat up and you toast on the hot metal.  They are flat and hang to store.  Also, if you are a fan of cast iron, the flat crepe like pan can be heated up in a few minutes and toasts beautifully. We make our home made pizzas on it too.




EAT REAL FOOD




Monday, February 19, 2018

Lots Happening! Sicilian Chicken Recipe

Blog:  Holidays, Flu, Eagles Oh My! And Sicilian Chicken.

Are You Making the Effort?
Hello Everyone.  I am sorry to have been away for what seemed like such a long time, but January took all sorts of twists and turns and is really a blur to me.  
We did get some important canning in - beef  and chicken and vegetable stocks are all done as we approach the remaining colder months. Other than that Life was, first “sick food”, followed by comfort food, followed by Football food.  
During the week days we basically did a lot of freezer diving.

If the actual flu or one of those horrific bugs of another type caught you, you know that there is very little of anything that you can actually do.  First my Better Half went down; I was confident that i had her care and the care and tending of the fur kids under control.  And I did. I was just so grateful that it was not growing season, so I didn’t have the responsibility of the gardens.

Alas, as Better Half improved, I deteriorated.  
Two major lessons for me from those two and a half weeks of being really knocked on our butts:
We are very dependent on two of us to keep our urban homestead going; and, 
A stocked freezer and larder - especially during the cold months is not a crazy indulgence. The things we had in the freezer and on our canning shelves kept us going when the concept of going to the Farmers Market or store seemed entirely impossible.

Of course, we got at least somewhat recovered for the start of the football play offs, so Saturdays and Sundays of wings, chili, mac ’n cheese, chips, dips, etc. took front and center stage for a few weeks. Not our usual menu planning for sure.  But oh, so worth it!  
It now seems that the bugs have totally exited us, our energy levels are almost back to normal, and we are cooking again.  Obviously, it is February and time for the Seed Catalogs, garden diagraming and the building of the gardens’ To Do list!
Who is anxious for growing season to start?  I am!

Here’s one of the first things we made when we were both back to normal.  We adapted it from a New York Times recipe.  Our adaptation is for 2.  It is so delicious - and one pot!
RecipeChicken with Salami and Olives
Ingredients
2 whole chicken legs, separated
1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
1/2 of a small yellow onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
3 inch stem of fresh rosemary
1/3 cup (heavy) of diced salami (we used fennel salami)
1/3 cup pitted cerignola olives, pitted and sliced in half
1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
1/4 red pepper flakes (more if you like more heat)
3 tablespoons dry white wine
2 teaspoons of tomato paste
2 teaspoons of flour
1 cup of unsalted chicken stock (homemade if you have it)
2 small dried bay leaves
2 teaspoons of lemon juice
Technique
NOTE:  The entire recipe was done in an All Clad Chef’s pan.  Anytime you can use one pan or pot for dinner - that is a good recipe!

Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Heat the olive oil in the pan on medium heat
Season chicken with salt & pepper
Sear the chicken in the olive oil
When the chicken is browned, remove it to a platter
Saute the onions in the pan until browned
Add the garlic, rosemary, salami, olives, oregano and red pepper flakes to the pan and mix together to blend
Add the white wine to the pan to deglaze a bit and get the good brown “fond” mixed into the mixture
Create a “spot” in the center of the pan and add the tomato paste and cook it for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally
Mix the tomato paste with everything else in the pan; stir in the flour and cook for 2 minutes
Add the stock to the pan; simmer for 2-3 minutes until mixture thickens a bit
Add the bay leaves and the lemon juice
Add the chicken back into the pan, spoon the sauce over the chicken well
Put the pan into the hot oven and roast for 30 minutes
Baste the chicken
Put the pan back into the oven and roast for 30 minutes
Remove the pan from the oven and take the bay leaves and rosemary out before service
Delicious over egg noodles, rice, or with cooked greens or with garlic toasts and a salad.
Enjoy!


Straight Forward and Very Do-Able!

Eat Real Food!