Kitchen Gadgets
Robin Sanborn
for our weddings!
Okay, now that I've got the disclaimer out of the way, what are your
favorite (or least favorite) kitchen gadgets? I'll start...
Newest gadget:
garlic peeler. It's a tube of rubber that you roll the garlic in to
take the skin off, and IT WORKS! I was very ashamed for spending $7 on
a piece of rubber, but the fact that it worked more than made up for
it. Highly recommended.
flexible cutting board. It's about...11x17, thin piece of...some
material you can cut on. Lift it up, fold it in half, dump chopped
tomatoes into pan. Very handy.
Garlic press: indispensable.
Magnetic knife holder. I'd been in the market for a knife block, and
not finding anything that was "just right". Also, I have *very* little
counter space, so anything I can mount on the wall is a big plus. This
is a piece of hardwood, 17" long with two very strong magnets that hold
knives. Moy bien.
Egg slicer: works great for mushrooms.
Least useful: pasta pot. The concept is great...big stock pot with a
strainer that fits down into it. When the pasta's done, you just lift
out the strainer. Problem: it's designed to be a steamer as well, so
there's several inches between the bottom of the strainer and the pot.
You have to use a *ton* more water (takes longer). It also doesn't fit
in the dishwasher, and I'm morally opposed to things that don't fit in
the dishwasher.
--
While this email address is valid, I don't check it due to spam. Please post all replies.
Vicky Larmour
>This is on topic...I swear....I'm sure lots of us got kitchen gadgets
>for our weddings!
:-) Good thread!
>Okay, now that I've got the disclaimer out of the way, what are your
>favorite (or least favorite) kitchen gadgets? I'll start...
>
>Newest gadget:
>garlic peeler. It's a tube of rubber that you roll the garlic in to
>take the skin off, and IT WORKS! I was very ashamed for spending $7 on
>a piece of rubber, but the fact that it worked more than made up for
>it. Highly recommended.
Hmm. I've seen these advertised but never been convinced. I mean, it's 10
seconds work to peel a clove of garlic anyway, isn't it?
>flexible cutting board. It's about...11x17, thin piece of...some
>material you can cut on. Lift it up, fold it in half, dump chopped
>tomatoes into pan. Very handy.
my version of this is a cutting board with a small lip around the edge and a
kind of funnel-thing on the end, so you can cut on the flat bit, lift it
up, and pour it into the pan.
>Garlic press: indispensable.
..again, never used. Just chop it up by hand! (Although I will admit
chopping garlic is a chore, but it always seems to me that washing the
garlic press would be just as much hassle!)
>Magnetic knife holder. I'd been in the market for a knife block, and
>not finding anything that was "just right". Also, I have *very* little
>counter space, so anything I can mount on the wall is a big plus. This
>is a piece of hardwood, 17" long with two very strong magnets that hold
>knives. Moy bien.
We got two knifeblocks for our wedding, due to a misunderstanding with the
list :-) It turns out they've both got 5 knives, and they hardly overlap at
all (apart from fruit knife and general purpose knife). Wouldn't be without
either of them!
>Egg slicer: works great for mushrooms.
Never thought of this - excellent idea. Will try it out.
Also useful:
- microwave rice steamer - exactly-cooked rice every time, with little or no
intereference (stirring etc) to be done while it cooks. Takes about 12 mins
to do rice for 2, which is quicker than it would be in a pan.
- spoon rest (made out of the soldering-iron rest from an old soldering iron
kit!) - useful for not getting worktops all yukky while cooking
- hand-held blender - you can blend soup (etc) in the saucepan without
having to pour it into a special container
Not so useful:
- slotted spoon - thought I would use it a lot, but hardly ever have
- pastry brush - hardly ever make pastry, and when I do the brush inevitably
sheds bristles all over it!
Other things I would like if we had more room for gadgets:
- automatic orange juicer (do it with a manual juicer at present)
- popcorn maker (could just do it in the microwave, I know)
- electric tin opener
- wall-mounted scales
Vicky
--
vicky.larmour[at]camcon.co.uk Disclaimer: All opinions mine.
When Rabbit said, 'Honey or condensed milk with your bread?' he was
so excited that he said, 'Both' and then, so as not to seem greedy,
he added, 'But don't bother about the bread, please.' -Winnie The Pooh
Wende A. Feller
>
> Okay, now that I've got the disclaimer out of the way, what are your
> favorite (or least favorite) kitchen gadgets? I'll start...
>
isn't meant to be just a hallway?), I am wary indeed of kitchen gadgets.
Having lost the grip strength in my right hand when I severed a tendon
12 years ago, my favorite "gadget" is probably the rubber thing that
helps you loosen tight jar lids. I am fond of my potato scrubber because
it's, um, cute. I could not cook without a handheld mixer and am
grateful to now own a blender and a toaster, as well as the inevitable
microwave. Everything small and all the pots are mounted on bulletin
boards or pegboard, if that counts as gadgetry.
Least popular among the gadgets we actually own: pizza stone. We got it
as a wedding gift (without the paddle, which we can't seem to remember
to go buy). It *ought* to be a great hit, but I rarely feel like making
my own pizza dough, so it sits in the oven and makes me feel guilty and
undomestic.
Things I refuse to own: food processor, bread machine. Call me Luddite,
but I cherish my 15 inches of counter space. I've also owned a food
processor, and it takes more time to clean the dratted blades than to
slice things by hand.
Oddly, we did not receive a single crockpot. We may have to buy one
ourselves, as making baked beans in the oven heats up the kitchen way
too much during the summer.
Wende
K. Zaruba
>
> This is on topic...I swear....I'm sure lots of us got kitchen gadgets
> for our weddings!
>
> favorite (or least favorite) kitchen gadgets? I'll start...
Mark discovered OXO "good grips" gadgets and slowly has bought every
single thing they make. Even stuff we'd have no use for (Men!) My
absolute favorite is a good grips knife with a very wide blade (almost
like a huge butcher knife) but it is scaled much smaller in length, so
it's about 5" long. I LOVE that knife.
I'm glad no one got us the pasta pot we registered for, after reading
your message!
Robin Sanborn
> >take the skin off, and IT WORKS! I was very ashamed for spending $7 on
> >a piece of rubber, but the fact that it worked more than made up for
> >it. Highly recommended.
>
> Hmm. I've seen these advertised but never been convinced. I mean, it's 10
> seconds work to peel a clove of garlic anyway, isn't it?
I guess it depends on how you peel garlic. I usually do it by hand (I think
some people use a knife?) and this keeps my hands from smelling garlicy.
> >Garlic press: indispensable.
>
> ..again, never used. Just chop it up by hand! (Although I will admit
> chopping garlic is a chore, but it always seems to me that washing the
> garlic press would be just as much hassle!)
Washing? So far (as long as I dump the remainder out of the press right away)
our dishwasher has had no complaints, and rewards us with a sparkling clean
garlic press every time.
> Also useful:
> - microwave rice steamer - exactly-cooked rice every time, with little or no
> intereference (stirring etc) to be done while it cooks. Takes about 12 mins
> to do rice for 2, which is quicker than it would be in a pan.
People keep saying this...hmm, perhaps I'll have to tell Santa?
> - spoon rest (made out of the soldering-iron rest from an old soldering iron
> kit!) - useful for not getting worktops all yukky while cooking
I use butter wrappers =)
> - hand-held blender - you can blend soup (etc) in the saucepan without
> having to pour it into a special container
Good one that I completely forgot! We have two (Eric and I each had one. I
think it's "his" sole kitchen gadget!) and I'm planning on giving one to my mom
when I think of it. Works *wonderfully* for pureeing pumpkin for pies/bread
(I'm willing fall to get here. It's to danged hot!)
> - pastry brush - hardly ever make pastry, and when I do the brush inevitably
> sheds bristles all over it!
My pastry brush gets the most excercise removing grated lemon zest from the
grater! I don't use mine that often, but when I need it, hardly anything else
will do =)
> Other things I would like if we had more room for gadgets:
> - automatic orange juicer (do it with a manual juicer at present)
Get one! My mom's always had one, and we got one for our shower. Mmm...fresh
orange juice.
> - popcorn maker (could just do it in the microwave, I know)
I'm perfectly happy making the one bowl of popcorn we (I) eat once every two
months on the stove, but my dad *swears* by this new microwave popper. I think
it's by (forgive the spelling) Orville Redenbacher, it's a bowl with some sort
of a paper disk in the bottom that you put normal (not microwave) popcorn in.
He swears it's just like "the real thing".
> - electric tin opener
We're thinking about one of these, as Eric has a bad elbow. Anyone have one
with a knife sharpener and actually *use* the knife sharpener?
kathry...@pharma.novartis.com
Robin Sanborn <rfut...@my-dejanews.com> wrote:
> This is on topic...I swear....I'm sure lots of us got kitchen gadgets
> for our weddings!
>
> Okay, now that I've got the disclaimer out of the way, what are your
> favorite (or least favorite) kitchen gadgets? I'll start...
>
>
I agree 100% Now if I could just convince my husband to clean it after he
uses it.
> Magnetic knife holder. I'd been in the market for a knife block, and
> not finding anything that was "just right". Also, I have *very* little
> counter space, so anything I can mount on the wall is a big plus. This
> is a piece of hardwood, 17" long with two very strong magnets that hold
> knives. Moy bien.
We ahve a knife block which is perfect, although I do wish it didn't take up
so much counter space.
>
> Egg slicer: works great for mushrooms.
>
I got one of these in the wishing well at my shower and I was like "Oh well,
too bad Stan is allergic to eggs." Then someone mentioned the mushroom idea.
I have not yet actually used the dang thing.
> Least useful: pasta pot. The concept is great...big stock pot with a
> strainer that fits down into it. When the pasta's done, you just lift
> out the strainer. Problem: it's designed to be a steamer as well, so
> there's several inches between the bottom of the strainer and the pot.
> You have to use a *ton* more water (takes longer). It also doesn't fit
> in the dishwasher, and I'm morally opposed to things that don't fit in
> the dishwasher.
You know, I was just saying to Stan the other day that I wished that I had a
pasta pot because we always have a few dishes in the sink and I hate to have
to clean it out everytime I need to use the collander to drain the pasta.
Now I'll have to think about it again.
Other: Stan loves the Ice Cream/Sorbet/Frozen Yogurt Maker. He is always
making some fun concoction. Last night it was red and white wine sorbets for
our Friday night dinner party (we'll serve them as an intermezzo). He also
loves the food processor. I'm glad that he enjoys these gadgets.
I can't really think of any one thing that I can't do without. But, we did
get about 20 vegetable peelers at the shower, and wouldn't you know it...
last night I needed one and couldn't find any. I have no idea where they all
went (OK so maybe it wasn't 20, but I received at least 7).
>
> --
> While this email address is valid, I don't check it due to spam. Please post
all replies.
>
--
-- Kathy Kula
-----== Posted via Deja News, The Leader in Internet Discussion ==-----
http://www.dejanews.com/rg_mkgrp.xp Create Your Own Free Member Forum
Robin Sanborn
> as a wedding gift (without the paddle, which we can't seem to remember
> to go buy). It *ought* to be a great hit, but I rarely feel like making
> my own pizza dough, so it sits in the oven and makes me feel guilty and
> undomestic.
We've got one of these too, and the jury's still out. The one time we did
make our own pizza it was wonderful, but notice I said the one time. I've
been experimenting with keeping it in the oven to see if it improves
things. So far not so much. I didn't preheat it when I baked shortcakes
(bad Robin!) and they were less than wonderful. I did preheat it and baked
a tart on it, didn't see any noticeable difference. Guess I gotta make more
pizza!
> Things I refuse to own: food processor, bread machine. Call me Luddite,
> but I cherish my 15 inches of counter space. I've also owned a food
> processor, and it takes more time to clean the dratted blades than to
> slice things by hand.
I'm with you on the bread machine, but will have to *strongly* disagree with
your food processor stance. I use mine all the time (built a shelf for it
so it would quit taking up *my* fifteen inches of counter space!) especially
for grating things like squash, and making pie dough (as long as you don't
put too much liquid in, it's impossible to over-work) also great for
grinding up oatmeal for cookies. We have no blender (and don't want one) so
there would be no other way!
Vicky Larmour
Robin Sanborn <rfut...@my-dejanews.com> wrote:
>> Hmm. I've seen these advertised but never been convinced. I mean, it's 10
>> seconds work to peel a clove of garlic anyway, isn't it?
>
>I guess it depends on how you peel garlic. I usually do it by hand (I think
>some people use a knife?) and this keeps my hands from smelling garlicy.
I use a knife to cut the ends off and then peel the rest off by hand - I
love the smell of garlic so have no problem with the smell transferring to
my hands :-)
>> >Garlic press: indispensable.
>>
>> ..again, never used. Just chop it up by hand! (Although I will admit
>> chopping garlic is a chore, but it always seems to me that washing the
>> garlic press would be just as much hassle!)
>
>Washing? So far (as long as I dump the remainder out of the press right away)
>our dishwasher has had no complaints, and rewards us with a sparkling clean
>garlic press every time.
I always assumed they weren't dishwasherable. I'll have to have a look in
that case, might be one for my Santa list! :-)
[snip]
>> Other things I would like if we had more room for gadgets:
>> - automatic orange juicer (do it with a manual juicer at present)
>
>Get one! My mom's always had one, and we got one for our shower. Mmm...fresh
>orange juice.
Tee hee! When I read this, I thought "but why would you use a *juicer* in
the *shower*?". We don't really have "showers" in the wedding present sense
here, just in the pouring-water-on-top-of-your-head sense :-)
:-)
ta...@4taconic.com
Robin Sanborn <rfut...@my-dejanews.com> wrote:
> This is on topic...I swear....I'm sure lots of us got kitchen gadgets
> for our weddings!
>
> Okay, now that I've got the disclaimer out of the way, what are your
> favorite (or least favorite) kitchen gadgets?
Does a KitchenAid stand mixer count as a gadget?
No?? Shucks. Well, then I guess my next favorite is a melon baller. I am
partial to my zester, too.
-Tara
I'll start...
>
> Newest gadget:
> garlic peeler. It's a tube of rubber that you roll the garlic in to
> take the skin off, and IT WORKS! I was very ashamed for spending $7 on
> a piece of rubber, but the fact that it worked more than made up for
> it. Highly recommended.
>
> flexible cutting board. It's about...11x17, thin piece of...some
> material you can cut on. Lift it up, fold it in half, dump chopped
> tomatoes into pan. Very handy.
>
> Garlic press: indispensable.
>
> Magnetic knife holder. I'd been in the market for a knife block, and
> not finding anything that was "just right". Also, I have *very* little
> counter space, so anything I can mount on the wall is a big plus. This
> is a piece of hardwood, 17" long with two very strong magnets that hold
> knives. Moy bien.
>
> Egg slicer: works great for mushrooms.
>
> Least useful: pasta pot. The concept is great...big stock pot with a
> strainer that fits down into it. When the pasta's done, you just lift
> out the strainer. Problem: it's designed to be a steamer as well, so
> there's several inches between the bottom of the strainer and the pot.
> You have to use a *ton* more water (takes longer). It also doesn't fit
> in the dishwasher, and I'm morally opposed to things that don't fit in
> the dishwasher.
>
> --
> While this email address is valid, I don't check it due to spam. Please post
all replies.
>
-----== Posted via Deja News, The Leader in Internet Discussion ==-----
Wende A. Feller
>
> I can't really think of any one thing that I can't do without. But, we did
> get about 20 vegetable peelers at the shower, and wouldn't you know it...
> last night I needed one and couldn't find any. I have no idea where they all
> went (OK so maybe it wasn't 20, but I received at least 7).
Your vegetable peelers ran off with my pillowcases, and they are now
living happily in Bermuda.
Seriously -- we were doing a lot of laundry because one of our cats got,
well, "pissed off" is the best term, given how he chose to express his
displeasure with our being away for a weekend. This is when I discovered
that we can find only two pillowcases, one of them permanently grey.
Now, I *know* I had four pillowcases before I got married, and I know
Phil had two pillowcases because pillowcases come in packages of two and
I watched him buy the blasted things. So WHERE are the other four
pillowcases??? The places where we store linens have been cleaned
recently -- it's the one thing we ought to be able to find.
Wende
kathry...@pharma.novartis.com
ta...@4taconic.com wrote:
> In article <36122669...@vt.edu>,
> Robin Sanborn <rfut...@my-dejanews.com> wrote:
> > This is on topic...I swear....I'm sure lots of us got kitchen gadgets
> > for our weddings!
> >
> > Okay, now that I've got the disclaimer out of the way, what are your
> > favorite (or least favorite) kitchen gadgets?
>
> Does a KitchenAid stand mixer count as a gadget?
>
> No?? Shucks. Well, then I guess my next favorite is a melon baller. I am
> partial to my zester, too.
>
> -Tara
>
You have a KitchenAid stand mixer? I would love to have one of those. i
would definitely consider it a gadget.
--
-- Kathy Kula
-----------== Posted via Deja News, The Discussion Network ==----------
http://www.dejanews.com/ Search, Read, Discuss, or Start Your Own
K. Zaruba
under-cabinet-mounted CD player! They've just started making these in
the last year or so--a great way to listen to music (or radio) while
cooking without having to put a boombox on your counter. This was my
treat to myself.
Mine also has a little light that shines down onto the counter, which is
nice.
Now if only they'd come up with an under-cabinet-mounted CD rack!
--KZ
Wende A. Feller
>
> I forgot, my OTHER coolest thing in the kitchen is an
> under-cabinet-mounted CD player! They've just started making these in
> the last year or so--a great way to listen to music (or radio) while
> cooking without having to put a boombox on your counter. This was my
> treat to myself.
TELL ME who makes this and where it can be gotten! (pants with envy,
falls off chair)
The only place I can put a boombox is on my rolling kitchen cart. The
cats going through the window onto the enclosed porch step on the
controls.
Thanks!
Wende
Jean Peters
have an L-shaped kitchen. On the short arm is the sink, with the
washer/dryer under the drainer (to the left of the sink), and a piece of
worktop around 2'X2' (to the right of the sink and in the corner). On the
other free side of this worktop is the cooker hob with the oven built in
underneath. To the right again another piece of worktop 2'X2', with the
fridge underneath. Three cupboards, one under the sink, and one over each
piece of worktop.
Wende, if your kitchen smaller than that, then I will personally present
you with a medal :-).
Jean
--
Remove .remv to reply directly.
I can only please one person per day.
Today is not your day.
Tomorrow isn't looking good either.
Wende A. Feller <vybo...@skypoint.com> wrote in article
<36123413...@skypoint.com>...
> As owner of the World's Smallest Kitchen (hey, Phil, you're SURE this
> isn't meant to be just a hallway?),
snipped gadget stuff
kathry...@pharma.novartis.com
Aha! Bermuda. Now I know where to look. Thanks Wende, you're the best. I
hope that you find your pillow cases.
ta...@4taconic.com
kathry...@pharma.novartis.com wrote:
> In article <6utn7s$pr0$1...@nnrp1.dejanews.com>,
> ta...@4taconic.com wrote:
> > Does a KitchenAid stand mixer count as a gadget?
> >
> > No?? Shucks. Well, then I guess my next favorite is a melon baller. I am
> > partial to my zester, too.
> >
> > -Tara
> >
> You have a KitchenAid stand mixer? I would love to have one of those.
i
> would definitely consider it a gadget.
>
> --
> -- Kathy Kula
>
Yep - birthday gift from DH!! One problem - it makes cookie preperation
entirely too easy!! I cannot say enough good things about it!!
I think I'm ready to start collecting some of the accessories (whcih I'm sure
would qualify as gadgets). Maybe the pasta press next...
-Tara
Wende A. Feller
>
> I'm sure I can beat you in the "World's Smallest Kitchen" competition. We
> have an L-shaped kitchen. On the short arm is the sink, with the
> washer/dryer under the drainer (to the left of the sink), and a piece of
> worktop around 2'X2' (to the right of the sink and in the corner). On the
> other free side of this worktop is the cooker hob with the oven built in
> underneath. To the right again another piece of worktop 2'X2', with the
> fridge underneath. Three cupboards, one under the sink, and one over each
> piece of worktop.
In lack of square footage, you probably have me beat! Our motif here is
wasted space -- there is a direct path from the hallway door at one end
of the kitchen to the backdoor opposite, plus there's a bedroom door on
that wall. And then there's the radiator that can't be blocked...
Let's see if I can describe it:
Facing west from the hallway door... to your left is the wall. Take one
step in and dodge sharply right, as a freestanding cabinet sticks out
into the room and would block the doorway if moved two inches east. Then
comes the bedroom door, then the wall has to stay blank because the back
door opens into it.
Back door is on west wall, followed by window that goes very low.
Rolling cart is under window. Radiator is wedged in corner beyond cart.
And we're out of wall!
The north wall jogs back slightly to accomodate a furnace pipe, thus
allowing the refrigerator to not block the window or cart. Next to the
refrigerator is the stove. Then there's 15 inches of counterspace before
the sink. This is a single sink -- we have to use a dishpan to do
dishes. There is exactly enough counterspace beyond the sink to hold the
dish drainer.
The built-in buffet-type thing is on the east wall. It has maybe five
feet of counter, most of it taken by the microwave oven, none of it
useful for anything but storage, as the upper cabinets block access for
chopping. One lower cabinet is unusable for anything but long-term
storage as the sink cabinet (built later) prevents the door from opening
all the way. There are three drawers, one reachable lower cupboard, and
two big upper cupboards, although we have to stand on a ladder to reach
most of the shelves.
Needless to say, we've talked about ripping the hole thing out and
starting over. But we'd have to eliminate the back bedroom in order to
gain any space.
Wende
Robin Sanborn
Of course not, that's an essential! (and our first wedding present. Eric was
afraid I'd call off the wedding once I got it, because that was what I was *really*
marrying him for =)
> No?? Shucks. Well, then I guess my next favorite is a melon baller. I am
> partial to my zester, too.
Melon baller...works great for coring apples! (cut in half, scoop out seeds/core,
cut out stem.)
I just bought a zester, haven't used it yet. Any tips? Does it cut strips? Do
you need to cut them up?
KayBooo
>> I'm sure I can beat you in the "World's Smallest Kitchen" competition. We
>> have an L-shaped kitchen. On the short arm is the sink, with the
>> washer/dryer under the drainer (to the left of the sink), and a piece of
>> worktop around 2'X2' (to the right of the sink and in the corner). On the
>> other free side of this worktop is the cooker hob with the oven built in
>> underneath. To the right again another piece of worktop 2'X2', with the
>> fridge underneath. Three cupboards, one under the sink, and one over each
>> piece of worktop.
>
>In lack of square footage, you probably have me beat! Our motif here is
>wasted space -- there is a direct path from the hallway door at one end
>of the kitchen to the backdoor opposite, plus there's a bedroom door on
>that wall. And then there's the radiator that can't be blocked...
Until I moved in with Tom, I lived in what I called The World's Smallest House.
It was basically a freestanding studio apartment. I loved it dearly and it
taught me to be very organized.
In that house, my U-shaped kitchen featured: a stove oven combo. A
refrigerator. A sink. No counter. Two cabinets over the stove. Two below the
sink. That's it.
I had to use the stovetop as my workspace--made me really chop everything up
before I started cooking--and put things in the sink until I began using them
on the stovetop. I could, however, just about stand in the middle of the room
and accomplish everything.
And don't even _ask_ me about the bathroom at this house!
So I think I win--in my old house. Now I have a 1950s kitchen with loads more
space, but none of it used in a sensible manner. I sometimes lay awake at
nights moving things around in my mind, saying to myself, "Well, if I put the
dishwasher on this wall, then I could unload dishes directly into their
cabinets." Because of where it's located now, when I open the door, I can't
reach the cabinets (I'm only 5'3".) So I unload the dishes onto the countertop,
close the dishwasher, and then put the dishes in the cabinets. Clearly a man
who never entered a kitchen designed this one.
Kathy
KayBooo
> This is on topic...I swear....I'm sure lots of us got kitchen gadgets for
our weddings!
>
> Okay, now that I've got the disclaimer out of the way, what are your
favorite (or least favorite) kitchen gadgets?
Favorite: We didn't get it for our wedding, but I love our food processor
dearly. While there seems to be a difference of opinion on this topic, I would
have a difficult time cooking without mine--well, doing prep work--and it
cleans up pretty easily.
I also adore my Henckel knives with a deep and burning passion. And The Perfect
Measuring Cup (I think that's its name--it's from Williams Sonoma) which I
thought was ridiculous, though the friend who gave it to me swore by it, and
have grown to love. It really is much easier to use and far more accurate.
Also, though they're not necessarily practical, I received some handcrafted
pewter measuring spoons, very stylized, in the shape of fish. I love them and
often just gaze on them adoringly.
Most wasted: A brush thingy to take the grease off of things. We don't eat
meat--well, Tom will eat it when we go out, but I don't and don't cook it, so
we eat vegetarian at home--and just don't produce that much grease. It lies in
its drawer, confusing me every time I see it. I think, "What's that?" and then
I remember.
Hmmm. I seem to be taking the kitchen a bit too seriously these days.
Kathy
Wende A. Feller
>
> Until I moved in with Tom, I lived in what I called The World's Smallest House.
> It was basically a freestanding studio apartment. I loved it dearly and it
> taught me to be very organized.
These may be becoming fashionable again... we stopped by UC Davis, where
I did my master's work. They are building new housing on the south edge
of town, and behind each multi-unit (fourplex?) building, there was a
tiny cottage that couldn't have had more than one room. They were SO
CUTE! They all faced onto this little lane behind the big new Border's
bookstore.
Actually, what I want is a little pink Spanish cottage in the Rockridge
neighborhood of Berkeley. Fat chance of affording THAT on a Minnesota
income!
Wende
Wende A. Feller
>
> In article <36125B2B...@skypoint.com>,
> "Wende A. Feller" <vybo...@skypoint.com> wrote:
So WHERE are the other four
> > pillowcases??? The places where we store linens have been cleaned
> > recently -- it's the one thing we ought to be able to find.
>
> for guests the other day. Looked *everywhere*. I *knew* I just had them a
> couple of weeks ago. I had concluded that Steve had them balled up in a
> cupboard somewhere (not unlikely, since he has a bazillion cupboards in his
> bedroom). Then I remembered! I washed them!!! Magically, they appeared in the
> dryer :)
Oh, I know it's serious! I've been guilty of leaving stuff in the dryer
for a week. I am often grateful that we have tenants, as they will find
the laundry I've left in the washer and put it in the dryer for me. This
is one of the many reasons why I refuse to install coin-operated laundry
equipment -- I'd rather pay the water bill for tenants who decide to do
27 tiny loads a week than search for quarters or have to remember to
move my own washing from one machine to the other.
Alas, the laundry room yields no pillow cases. Our dryer may have been
hungry -- it doesn't get to eat socks, as the youngest cat runs off with
those.
Wende
Robin Sanborn
> hungry -- it doesn't get to eat socks, as the youngest cat runs off with
> those.
Your cat does this too?!?! Fiji likes to march down the hall with a sock (or a
ball of socks) in her mouth, occasionally putting them down to hollar "mrowr" to
announce her capture.
Wende A. Feller
>
> > Alas, the laundry room yields no pillow cases. Our dryer may have been
> > hungry -- it doesn't get to eat socks, as the youngest cat runs off with
> > those.
>
> Your cat does this too?!?! Fiji likes to march down the hall with a sock (or a
> ball of socks) in her mouth, occasionally putting them down to hollar "mrowr" to
> announce her capture.
Yes, the hunting noise! Fortunately, Xanthippe has decided to limit
herself to socks; for a while, she also hunted underwear, which could be
embarrassing if she left her prey in the living room.
Since we got Benedict, though, she has started to drop some of her
kittenish habits. I think she's trying to impress the big fluffy boy
that she's a serious cat. Xippy-Tippy switched rather suddenly from
chasing him around the house, snarling, to alternating bites with him at
the bowl and doing a lot of "Hi there, big boy, wanna wash me?"
manuevers.
Wende
Rachel Sanfordlyn Shreckengast
Robin Sanborn wrote:
> This is on topic...I swear....I'm sure lots of us got kitchen gadgets
> for our weddings!
>
> Okay, now that I've got the disclaimer out of the way, what are your
> favorite (or least favorite) kitchen gadgets? I'll start...
I actually have quite a few kitchen gadgets, mostly the result of X-mas gifts and such. I
like to cook so I use quite a few of them.
**Bread Machine - I love my bread machine. I love fresh bread and can't knead due to carpal
tunnel in one wrist, so this is a great machine. It's my newest gadget (X-mas gift last year)
and gets used every other week or so.
**Crockpot - another favorite and another X-mas gift. Used for a lot of bean soups as well as
cooking meals on days I don't feel like being in the kitchen.
**Blenders - I have two (both used and given to us when we first moved in together). Used a
bit, but for the most part, I only use at a time.
**Food Dehydrator - (wedding present). This is great for the summers as I usually have a
decent herb garden and I also use it to dry roses and flowers for crafts. I almost never use
it during the winters though.
**Hand Mixer - my most used gadget so far. Makes life much easier. (We bought this one)
**Toaster - We finally bought a toaster year before last. It gets used almost every day for
Sam's breakfast.
**Electric Can Opener - this was a wedding gift and is used constantly.
**Microwave - generally gets used every day. It's a small one that we bought a year or two
into our relationship, but it still works for our needs. When it goes kaput, we'll probably
replace it with another small one.
Those are the items that have worked well for us for the most part. I have made a few
mistakes though. :-)
**The food processor that did everything. It was hard to clean, and the food processor and
stand mixer part of it broke after two years. I still very rarely use the ice cream maker
attachment that came with it and use the two glass bowls for everything, but all of the other
attachments are useless now. Too expensive for the quality and use I got out of it.
**The manual pasta maker thing was a gift, but I hated it. You had to crank the pasta
manually (through tiny little holes) and it didn't quite work the way it was intended. I
think I only have the little stamps left from this (which I use to make little designs on
cookies)
**The slicer thing was another gift that never worked for me. I ended up tossing it in
frustration. It was one of those things that supposedly slice things evenly (like cukes or
carrots). I ended up slicing things ahead of time so they would fit on the tiny board and
would occasionally end up with cuts (like for carrots) because I had to press too hard to get
the thing to even slice.
**The juicer wasn't bad necessarily, I just had no real use for it. I gave it to a health-nut
friend and hear that she uses it all of the time. Another gift.
Then again I also have a wish list.
**I desperately want a Kitchen Aid mixer. With the bad experience from the food processor
though, we've been hesitant to spend that amount of money on one. I'll probably eventually
get one, but keep waiting for a great sale.
**Something that will slice/chop, but will also last for a while. I also want something
that's easy to clean and doesn't have a ton of parts. I try to limit usage of knives for
chopping because of the carpal tunnel (my left hand will slip on occasion without my noticing
it and I'll usually cut myself without feeling it). Hubby usually ends up doing the chopping
now, so this is more of a "to make his life easier" want.
The little essentials include a metal ice pounder (which has really come in handy lately
as I have been drinking a lot of liquids), the kitchen timer (which I'd be lost without) and
the ice-cream scoop :-).
--
*Weddings @ miningco - http://weddings.miningco.com
*WedFrugal,Crafts,etc. - http://www.geocities.com/Paris/Rue/1940/
*WedSense - http://www.wednet.com/wedsense/wedsense.asp
Ranee & Rich Mueller
In article <36123413...@skypoint.com>, "Wende A. Feller"
<vybo...@skypoint.com> wrote:
(snip)
>Least popular among the gadgets we actually own: pizza stone. We got it
>as a wedding gift (without the paddle, which we can't seem to remember
>to go buy). It *ought* to be a great hit, but I rarely feel like making
>my own pizza dough, so it sits in the oven and makes me feel guilty and
>undomestic.
Wende,
You can use the pizza stone for frozen pizzas, too, if you eat them,
improves them immensely. Or if you buy the take and bake kind. Also, the
stone makes great cookies. I have made homemade pizza on ours and it is the
best, but it really does make all sorts of crusty things better.
We love the crockpot, indispensible for slow cooked meats and bean soups
etc, plus we can leave the house with it on and not feel distressed about
it. Espresso machine, I make my coffee drinks and steam milk for Rich's hot
cocoa. Electric mixer (the hand held kind with two beaters on it) is handy,
but it seems to bother Rich if I don't use it and beat things by hand.
There are some things that really are simple enough to do by hand, and
quicker if you count clean up time, but it offends him if we have a gadget
and don't use it. Microwave, of course. Potato masher, we love mashed
potatoes. I really love most of our gadgets from the simple to the
convoluted.
We did get something that I consider totally useless: a ceramic apple
baker. Now, I like baked apples, but I didn't realize that I needed a
specific tool to make them, it's pretty though. We're trying to decide if
it had been a wedding gift to the couple who gave it to us. *grin*
Something I would love to own, but we can't afford right now, is a
Kitchenaid Mixer with lots of cool attachments. It would make bread making
_much_ easier, and I know I would use it, because I used it all the time
when I lived at home. Made the best cinnamon rolls in it, and relatively
quickly. I would also love a deep fryer so I wouldn't have to live with the
smell of fried food for years after we made it. Actually there are tons of
neat kitchen things I would love to own (can you tell I like to cook?), but
we either don't have the room (d*** small apartment kitchen) or the money.
I do enter _every_ kitchen related contest to get gadgets, haven't won yet.
Ranee Mueller
Legal Warning: Anyone sending me unsolicited/commercial email WILL
be charged a $100 proof-reading fee. Do NOT send junk email to me -
consider this an official notice:
"By US Code Title 47, Sec.227(a)(2)(B), a computer/modem/printer
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Ranee & Rich Mueller
In article <6ut9f8$jj1$1...@andromeda.camcon.co.uk>,
vicky....@camcon.nospam.co.uk (Vicky Larmour) wrote:
(snip)
>- electric tin opener
>Vicky
We bought one of those miracle can openers that takes off the whole top
of the can, it works for lefties and righties, doesn't require the muscle
strength that regular can openers do and wont break after 6 months (my
experience with the electric kind). However, I'd keep it away from kids
because the way it takes the whole top off it leaves a sharp edge. I saw
one in the Wiliams-Sonoma catalog that actually unrolls the binding on the
top of the can, but it was too rich for our blood, we'll wait till someone
makes a knock off, or the price goes down on its own.
Ranee & Rich Mueller
----------
In article <6utkka$mg6$1...@nnrp1.dejanews.com>,
kathry...@pharma.novartis.com wrote:
(snip)
>Other: Stan loves the Ice Cream/Sorbet/Frozen Yogurt Maker. (snip)
>-- Kathy Kula
Ditto on this. We got one for Rich's first Father's Day present (14
days till d-day!!! eep!)
and we love it, it is very loud, but makes such great ice-cream that we
don't care, also is pretty easy to use.
Ranee Mueller
Jean Peters
<19980930141454...@ng143.aol.com>...
>
> >> I'm sure I can beat you in the "World's Smallest Kitchen" competition.
We
> >> have an L-shaped kitchen. On the short arm is the sink, with the
> >> washer/dryer under the drainer (to the left of the sink), and a piece
of
> >> worktop around 2'X2' (to the right of the sink and in the corner). On
the
> >> other free side of this worktop is the cooker hob with the oven built
in
> >> underneath. To the right again another piece of worktop 2'X2', with
the
> >> fridge underneath. Three cupboards, one under the sink, and one over
each
> >> piece of worktop.
> In that house, my U-shaped kitchen featured: a stove oven combo. A
> refrigerator. A sink. No counter. Two cabinets over the stove. Two below
the
> sink. That's it.
>
You had *FOUR* cabinets!!!!
> I had to use the stovetop as my workspace--made me really chop everything
up
> before I started cooking--and put things in the sink until I began using
them
> on the stovetop. I could, however, just about stand in the middle of the
room
> and accomplish everything.
>snipped
I still use the hob as extra worktop space. The space between the sink and
the hob is basically useless, as there's no free edge to work at. This
space has the kettle, espresso maker and coffee grinder (and dirty dishes
most of the time). The other piece of worktop has the toaster, utensil
jar, chopping boards, knife block and spice rack (which is going on the
wall *very* soon). I actually only have about 12" square as work space.
Jean Peters
Robin Sanborn <rfut...@my-dejanews.com> wrote in article
<36122669...@vt.edu>...
> This is on topic...I swear....I'm sure lots of us got kitchen gadgets
> for our weddings!
>
> Okay, now that I've got the disclaimer out of the way, what are your
> favorite (or least favorite) kitchen gadgets? I'll start...
>
Favourite: Espresso/cappocino maker - although it's not used that much.
Most Used: Knife block and decent set of knives.
Least favourite: Anything that smacks of "gadgetry" ie something that can
quite easily be replaced by basic equipment (eg rice cookers, electric
steamers).
Least used: Hand blender - I nomally use an egg whisk instead.
little...@my-dejanews.com
Robin Sanborn <rfut...@my-dejanews.com> wrote:
> Your cat does this too?!?! Fiji likes to march down the hall with a sock (or
a
> ball of socks) in her mouth, occasionally putting them down to hollar "mrowr"
to
> announce her capture.
Okay I'm reading this newsgroup early....
We use to have a cat that did this, Tabitha, but it wasn't hunting. We had two
sisters cats (Tabitha and Samatha - yes there where named for what you think),
who both had kittens at about the same time. If Tabitha wanted to move her
kittens she would carry a pair of socks to where she wanted then and then meow
for Sam to move the kittens. Which Sam would do.
Once the kittens where given away both cats were desexed, but for the rest of
her life Tabitha would carry socks around asking for her kittens to be moved.
The joys of cats...
Little Mother.
HollyLewis
>I am fond of my potato scrubber because
>it's, um, cute.
Hee hee. I bought my dad a coffee grinder cleaning brush once and put it in
his Xmas stocking. The same year, my husband received a packet of self-stick
googly eyes in his stocking (see other thread about husbands and toys). The
brush, which has a little nose-like red tip, promptly acquired eyes. It's so
adorable that way my parents have never actually used it for its intended
purpose, as that would require eye removal. :-)
>I could not cook without a handheld mixer
I would never use one. Well, I might make fudge frosting with it once in a
blue moon. What do you do with it?
I could not manage without my stand mixer though. I had all the important
appliances long before the wedding. It is NOT a KitchenAid, because I don't
*like* the KitchenAid ones. It's a 12-speed Sunbeam Mixmaster, Euro style
(more compact, so it fits in the cabinet) but otherwise just like the one my
mother inherited from her mother and still uses.
and am
>grateful to now own a blender and a toaster, as well as the inevitable
>microwave.
We don't have and can't imagine needing a blender. And we have a toaster oven
rather than a toaster. After all, you can't heat Bagel Bites or tater tots in
a toaster, and we very rarely eat, you know, toast. :-)
>Least popular among the gadgets we actually own: pizza stone. We got it
>as a wedding gift (without the paddle, which we can't seem to remember
>to go buy). It *ought* to be a great hit, but I rarely feel like making
>my own pizza dough, so it sits in the oven and makes me feel guilty and
>undomestic.
My Cuisinart serves this function. It's too big and unwieldy to drag out and
use much. Someday when I have a bigger kitchen, maybe it can be more
accessible and will get used more often. Again, however, I acquired this
appliance considerably pre-wedding -- in fact, at about the time Ken and I
started dating. I bought it from a friend who was moving to Boston, more as a
favor to him than because I desperately wanted it.
Anyway, I MUST have my little mini-chopper. It mostly chops nuts for cookies
and crystallized ginger for gingered whipped cream. Can you tell I'm a baker
rather than a cook? :-)
>
>Things I refuse to own: food processor, bread machine. Call me Luddite,
>but I cherish my 15 inches of counter space.
The bread machine is just not necessary in Berkeley. We have tons of great
local bakeries, some of which supply the local supermarkets, even, so why
bother making your own bread?
>Oddly, we did not receive a single crockpot. We may have to buy one
>ourselves, as making baked beans in the oven heats up the kitchen way
>too much during the summer.
Gosh, do they still make crockpots? ;-)
>Wende
>
I've no use for spoon rests, as I always have to wipe up the counters anyway,
nor for an electric can opener as I don't have any difficulty using the hand
kind and don't really use canned goods very often. I DO use a pastry brush --
for pastry -- often enough that I'd miss it if I didn't have one. We have half
a dozen slotted spoons (How could you not use this? I guess you're the one who
thinks you can make a meal without pasta...). And I have a flexible, scored
cutting board which I bought, again, long before the wedding.
We got a garlic press as a wedding present and it works pretty well. It's like
a corkscrew in a tube, rather than the sort of tong-shaped kind. But I do peel
garlic by hand; the odor clinging to my fingers doesn't really bother me.
Actually my very favorite gadget is probably the push-up measuring cup.
Perfect for shortening, peanut butter, other gloopy stuff. Ken's favorite is
probably his peanut butter maker (yes, it's an electic appliance designed
specifically to make peanut butter and nothing else).
My current wish list: A good zester, and a mushroom slicer with *blades*
rather than wires. Half the wires on the one I had are broken so I never use
it any more.
Holly
HollyLewis
> and making pie dough (as long as you don't
>put too much liquid in, it's impossible to over-work) also great for
>grinding up oatmeal for cookies. We have no blender (and don't want one) so
>there would be no other way!
You would make pie dough in a blender? ;-)
Actually, I'm a pie snob. My pie crust is made by hand with an old-fashioned
pastry cutter.
And I've never ground up oatmeal for cookies. Why? But as I said elsewhere,
the mini-chopper is essential for the walnuts.
We just gave my sister a sort of mini-sized food processor for her birthday and
she loved it. It's a fully functional Cuisinart with all the various slicers
and dicers, but about half the size of the original full size model. I think
the base is like 13" by 5" so it doesn't take up much space. I may eventually
decide to buy one of these for myself and get rid of the old, overly-huge one.
Holly
HollyLewis
>Actually, what I want is a little pink Spanish cottage in the Rockridge
>neighborhood of Berkeley. Fat chance of affording THAT on a Minnesota
>income!
Heck, Wende, we can't afford it on a California income. That is, if we could
find it, which we wouldn't, as the properties for sale in Rockridge are either
1-bd, 1-bath condos with no yard or 7-bd hills mansions -- very little in
between that's not rental. Rockridge, by the way, is in Oakland. It only
*thinks* it's in Berkeley. :-) We *like* our Rockridge duplex, but we'll be
buying in North Berkeley. Schools are better over the border, anyway. And I
don't like pink. :-)
Our kitchen is a fairly small galley type, but it's very well-organized for its
size. Especially after we installed pull-out drawers inside some of the lower
cabinets. And fortunately, I'm short enough to like storing things in the
bottom of the bottom cabinets and Ken's tall enough to like storing things on
the top shelves of the top cabinets, so we make pretty good use of the
available storage space. 'Course, the "china cabinet" is technically in the
living room, but that's only two steps out of the "dining room" (living and
dining are really one room, with an open shelf dividing them).
Anyway, our counters hold a coffee maker, coffee grinder, knife block, fruit
basket, cookie jar (Kermit the Frog -- one of our more humorous wedding
gifts!), toaster oven, and microwave, and we still have sufficient working
space. It's one of the things that attracted us to this house... we've both
lived with much smaller and less well-thought-out kitchens.
Amy
>**Bread Machine
I don't use mine often, but I love it. Somebody gave it as a gift and
I'm very glad!!
>**Crockpot
I LOVE my crockpot!!!! I actually have more than one and am really
glad! We had a party where I needed to keep stuff heated, but didn't
have the chafing dishes and such. My crocks worked great!
>**Hand Mixer
I have the Braun multi-mix and love it. It is a handy tool!
>**Toaster
Love toast......
>**Electric Can Opener
We got the Black and Decker under counter mounted one and think it's
great!
>**Microwave
I use this EVERY day!!!!!
Another thing I love is my 3 qt Mr. Coffee Iced Tea Maker. I just put
the water, tea bags, sugar, and ice in and can go on about my business
while it makes my tea. I use it all the time.
Oh! One other thing is the portable, insulated casserole dish things
that keep your food hot......That is great so when we go to parties or
work dinners they can have whatever casserole still warm.
Amy
Please check out my website at:
http://www.geocities.com/heartland/ridge/7589/index.html
NOTE: I just wanted to pass on some advice to people considering
purchasing a computer through mail-order. Do NOT buy one from
Royal Computer Inc out of City of Industry, CA. I recently did
and had an awful experience. I tried numerous times to get in
touch with them regarding my faulty computer and didn't get a
response until we sent an email stating that we were considering
contacting an attorney. I just wanted to pass this information on
so nobody else would have to deal with the same mess we've dealt with.
JulieD3964
>Does a KitchenAid stand mixer count as a gadget?
>
>partial to my zester, too.
I consider the stand mixer to be a large appliance rather than a gadget. We
were shocked to receive one at our engagement party. The only drawback to it
that I've found is that I like to use a spatula on the sides of the bowl when
mixing things and it would be much easier if it rotated like the Sunbeam one we
actually registered for. Aside from that minor quibble, I love ours.
My favorite kitchen "gadget" is the lemon zester. I must make more recipes
that use lemons, limes and oranges than most people becuase I used to sit and
cop rind by hand for at least an hour a week before getting a zester. Now it
takes all of five minutes. (My husband loves a lemon cake I bake for him and
we eat a lot of orange-yogurt chicken plus the recipes for the ice cream
maker!)
The next most used gadget in our kitchen is a set of whisks. After that, we've
got some old Tupperware measuring cups that see the light of day quite
frequently.
Julie
Julie...@aol.com
"Anybody can skate, but not everyone can entertain." - Kurt Browning, April
1998, Binghamton, NY
jhm...@my-dejanews.com
> >> Hmm. I've seen these advertised but never been convinced. I mean, it's 10
> >> seconds work to peel a clove of garlic anyway, isn't it?
> >
> >I guess it depends on how you peel garlic. I usually do it by hand (I think
> >some people use a knife?) and this keeps my hands from smelling garlicy.
>
> I use a knife to cut the ends off and then peel the rest off by hand - I
> love the smell of garlic so have no problem with the smell transferring to
> my hands :-)
I use a large chef's knife. Lay it on top of the clove and give the side of
the blade a good whack. This "squashes" the garlic somewhat, releasing oils
in the process, and the peel more often than not lifts right off. I think I
learned the trick from a TV chef many years ago.
Joshua McGee
Vicky Larmour
>**Microwave - generally gets used every day. It's a small one that we bought a
> year or two
>into our relationship, but it still works for our needs. When it goes kaput,
> we'll probably
>replace it with another small one.
:-) We bought a microwave together about two weeks into our relationship. We
were students and needed a microwave to survive :-) but neither of
us could really afford one unless we shared the cost. It cost 80 Pounds
(about $120 ?) and we paid half each, with the condition that if we split
up, the one initiating the split would forfeit their half of the microwave
:-)
And yes, 6 years later we still have it :-)
Vicky
--
vicky.larmour[at]camcon.co.uk Disclaimer: All opinions mine.
When Rabbit said, 'Honey or condensed milk with your bread?' he was
so excited that he said, 'Both' and then, so as not to seem greedy,
he added, 'But don't bother about the bread, please.' -Winnie The Pooh
Vicky Larmour
> We bought one of those miracle can openers that takes off the whole top
>of the can, it works for lefties and righties, doesn't require the muscle
>strength that regular can openers do and wont break after 6 months (my
>experience with the electric kind). However, I'd keep it away from kids
>because the way it takes the whole top off it leaves a sharp edge.
My parents have one of those. The first time my Dad used it, he was holding
the handles with one hand, and turning the wheel-y bit with the other ...
but he was not doing this with the tin resting on a worktop, eh was just
wandering around the kitchen. That's perfectly OK with a normal tin-opener,
because the opener grips the tin even after it's opened, but with the
miracle one it results in beans all over the floor :-)
Vicky Larmour
>We have half
>a dozen slotted spoons (How could you not use this? I guess you're the one who
>thinks you can make a meal without pasta...).
??? Why do you need a slotted spoon for pasta? I just drain the water out of
the side of the pan by holding the pan lid just a fraction away from the
edge of the pan.
kathry...@pharma.novartis.com
I use slotted spoons for serving vegetables that have been cooked in water
onto a plate. I think that they're wonderful
BTW, I'm having a dinner party tomorrow night. I'm going to see if I can try
to use every single kitchen gadget we have to make the 7 course meal. I'll
let you know if I can accomplish my task.
--
-- Kathy Kula
KayBooo
>CHeck the dryer.... seriously :) I was trying to find fresh towels to put out
>for guests the other day. Looked *everywhere*. I *knew* I just had them a
>couple of weeks ago. I had concluded that Steve had them balled up in a
>cupboard somewhere (not unlikely, since he has a bazillion cupboards in his
>bedroom). Then I remembered! I washed them!!! Magically, they appeared in the
>dryer :)
The dryer? You mean the Laundry Storage Unit or LSU? I can't tell you how many
times I've done this--searched the entire house for something that was clean
and dry and awaiting LSU removal.
:)
Kathy
K. Zaruba
>
> K. Zaruba wrote:
> >
> > I forgot, my OTHER coolest thing in the kitchen is an
> > under-cabinet-mounted CD player! They've just started making these in
> > the last year or so--a great way to listen to music (or radio) while
> > cooking without having to put a boombox on your counter. This was my
> > treat to myself.
>
> TELL ME who makes this and where it can be gotten! (pants with envy,
> falls off chair)
>
>
> Wende
Mine is made my GE, and I got it at the local "Best Buy." I believe
Sony now makes one, too. I can't remember where I first heard of them,
but I hot-footed it over there to get one as soon as I learned of the
existence of such a thing!
Jean Peters
Vicky Larmour <vicky....@camcon.nospam.co.uk> wrote in article
<6uvi91$9tq$7...@andromeda.camcon.co.uk>...
> In article <19980930214414...@ng151.aol.com>,
> holly...@aol.com (HollyLewis) wrote:
> >We have half
> >a dozen slotted spoons (How could you not use this? I guess you're the
one who
> >thinks you can make a meal without pasta...).
>
> ??? Why do you need a slotted spoon for pasta? I just drain the water out
of
> the side of the pan by holding the pan lid just a fraction away from the
> edge of the pan.
>
> Vicky
>
I tip it into a sieve or a colander - works fine for me. I mainly use my
slotted spoon for lifting vegetables.
--
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I can only please one person per day.
Today is not your day.
Tomorrow isn't looking good either.
Jean Peters
us a microwave as a wedding present. My problem, which of my two precious
worktop spaces do I sacrifice??????
I have a feeling that a lot of rearrangement will occur in our kitchen when
we get back from our honeymoon.
Jean
--
Remove .remv to reply directly.
I can only please one person per day.
Today is not your day.
Tomorrow isn't looking good either.
Vicky Larmour <vicky....@camcon.nospam.co.uk> wrote in article
<6uvhtj$9tq$5...@andromeda.camcon.co.uk>...
> In article <36125F10...@ptd.net>,
> Rachel Sanfordlyn Shreckengast <shr...@ptd.net> wrote:
>
> >**Microwave - generally gets used every day. It's a small one that we
bought a
> > year or two
> >into our relationship, but it still works for our needs. When it goes
kaput,
> > we'll probably
> >replace it with another small one.
>
> :-) We bought a microwave together about two weeks into our relationship.
We
> were students and needed a microwave to survive :-) but neither of
> us could really afford one unless we shared the cost. It cost 80 Pounds
> (about $120 ?) and we paid half each, with the condition that if we split
> up, the one initiating the split would forfeit their half of the
microwave
> :-)
>
> And yes, 6 years later we still have it :-)
>
> Vicky
>
aq...@my-dejanews.com
> > those.
>
We have a dog who thinks she's a cat (she spends a great deal of time in her
Sphinx pose on the back of the couch) that does this as well. Any socks left
unattended become chew toys with the hour. She also thinks we do laundry for
the sole purpose of giving her the thrill of playing in the warm clothes when
they come out of the dryer. Complicates the whole folding clothes thing
somewhat. Personally, I don't let her in my clean laundry but... the
roommates do and she just thinks it's greatest thing in the world.
Rose
Kellie Whitehurst Gaines
>
>Least popular among the gadgets we actually own: pizza stone. We got it
>as a wedding gift (without the paddle, which we can't seem to remember
>to go buy). It *ought* to be a great hit, but I rarely feel like making
>my own pizza dough, so it sits in the oven and makes me feel guilty and
>undomestic.
We got one of these too, Wende. This is what I use it for: everything except
for cooking pizza! =) I make these really good stuffed things by taking
biscuit dough (the kind already in the tin) and smooshing 2-3 together, putting
stuff in the middle, rolling and cooking on the pizza stone. I'll usually also
use it for making garlic bread.
>Things I refuse to own: food processor, bread machine. Call me Luddite,
>but I cherish my 15 inches of counter space. I've also owned a food
>processor, and it takes more time to clean the dratted blades than to
>slice things by hand.
Don't have a bread machine because God only knows we don't need any more carbs!
I do have a mini-food processor, which is awesome. Once a month, I chop about
5 heads of garlic in it, and then I make pesto - both keep in the fridge for
about 3 weeks. Then I just throw all of the pieces in the dishwasher and it's
done.
>Oddly, we did not receive a single crockpot. We may have to buy one
>ourselves, as making baked beans in the oven heats up the kitchen way
>too much during the summer.
GOT to have a crockpot! We have 3 - one large one with removable crock, one
medium one with removable crock (the cow-print one!), and a really small one.
I use them all pretty frequently.
kellie
>
>Wende
aq...@my-dejanews.com
roh...@nd.edu wrote:
> Well, I don't know if these count since i didn't live in them myself, and
> they're both studio apts, but, I think I have seen two of the smallest
> kitchens ever imaginable.
I think the "kitchen" in the place we rented for 9 months in Hawaii would
have to be right up there. Small bathroom as well. Of course, we were in
travel mode at that time so we didn't care but... the kitchen was about 5 ft
of counter space between the bathroom and the closet. It had a miniature
version (14 or so inches across) of your basic stainless steel kitchen sink.
There was a cupboard and 3 drawers under the counter and a cupboard above.
The "appliances" was a single 2 burner hot-plate. Not even a fridge.
The bathroom was the width of a shower stall + about 15 inches and the length
of the shower stall plus the width of a toilet. There was about 4 square
feet of space in that bathroom.
As a matter of fact, my office is bigger than that apartment was. Of course
we didn't spend much time in it anyway.
hillary gorman
* Something I would love to own, but we can't afford right now, is a
*Kitchenaid Mixer with lots of cool attachments. It would make bread making
*_much_ easier, and I know I would use it, because I used it all the time
*when I lived at home. Made the best cinnamon rolls in it, and relatively
Oooh! My brother and his girlfriend just got us one of those things!! I'm
dying to try it.
--
hillary gorman...........Official Token Female..........hillary@netaxs.com
"So that's 2 T-1s and a newsfeed....would you like clues with that?"
hil...@hillary.net: for debugging your net or deworming your pet
Net Access...The NSP for ISPs....The NOC that rocks around the clock.
Heidi Thurtle
My really really good kitchen knives....cut through meat like butter. I
trim fat on all our meat and we also eat fajitas fairly often, so these
really come in handy.
Blender: I love to make smoothies
Electric can opener: 1 cat and 1 dog who both eat canned food - damn
right i have an electric can opener
we dont seem to use the food processer much tho
Heidi
--
Go check out my K1 Visa Homepage at
http://www.angelfire.com/ny/heidichris/index.html
"All you need is love" - The Beatles
HollyLewis
>holly...@aol.com (HollyLewis) wrote:
>>We have half
>>a dozen slotted spoons (How could you not use this? I guess you're the one
>who
>>thinks you can make a meal without pasta...).
>
>??? Why do you need a slotted spoon for pasta? I just drain the water out of
>the side of the pan by holding the pan lid just a fraction away from the
>edge of the pan.
>
>Vicky
I am not coordinated enough to do this. I drain the pasta in a colander. Ken
used to drain the pasta this way, but even he can't get all the water out of
the pan. Anyway, I use the spoon to stir the pasta while it's cooking, and to
serve it. Not to drain it. I suppose a big non-slotted spoon would work
almost as well, but we don't have any of those.
The smaller slotted spoons get used to serve veggies, so that the water in the
bottom of the container doesn't wind up on your plate.
Holly
Amy
>In article <36128C95...@vt.edu>,
> Robin Sanborn <rfut...@my-dejanews.com> wrote:
>> > it doesn't get to eat socks, as the youngest cat runs off with
>> > those.
>>
>> Your cat does this too?!?!
>
>We have a dog who thinks she's a cat (she spends a great deal of time in her
>Sphinx pose on the back of the couch) that does this as well. Any socks left
>unattended become chew toys with the hour.
My 2 Siberian Huskies think they're cats. They're awful with socks
and such.
Michelle
>My favorite kitchen "gadget" is the lemon zester. I must make more recipes
>that use lemons, limes and oranges than most people becuase I used to sit and
>cop rind by hand for at least an hour a week before getting a zester. Now it
>takes all of five minutes. (My husband loves a lemon cake I bake for him and
>we eat a lot of orange-yogurt chicken plus the recipes for the ice cream
>maker!)
Okay, I think I got the meaning of "zester" wrong. My zester is a
little hand held apparatus. Are you talking about an electrical one or
is it the same simple gadget that I have (smaller than a peeler)? I
tried it once, and Zested my finger with it! I am totally convinced
that it is righthanded biased and that you cannot use it with your
left hand.
Speaking of lefthanded, I found myselft having to specify lefthanded
items on my gift list. Lefthanded can opener and (got an ambidextrous
one by Starfrit), a lefthanded (or ambidextrous) knife are two items
which I really wanted. If you're righthanded, you're probably thinking
that knives are ambidextrous. Some aren't. For example, steak knives
aren'te because they have the sharp part of the blade on one side
only. That's one of my big beefs.
I found some other annoying things:
1. Huge Salt and pepper shakers with handles with the S and P written
on one side only. I always have to twist it to see what it is I am
holding.
2. Measuring cups. Measurements on one side only
3. Laddles with the spout on one side only
4. Anything with a spout
5. I'm having a hell of a time to dismantle my food processor. I have
to do it with my right hand. I would have to have it placed
differently in my kitchen to ease the lefthanded use of it.
Michelle - who always seems to use the lefthanded excuse for her
clumsiness.
aq...@my-dejanews.com
holly...@aol.com (HollyLewis) wrote:
> >??? Why do you need a slotted spoon for pasta? I just drain the water out of
> >the side of the pan by holding the pan lid just a fraction away from the
> >edge of the pan.
>
> I am not coordinated enough to do this.
I can relate to this. Of course, I always have to try anyway. This usually
results in half the pasta (or whatever I am draining) ending up in the sink
because I am not holding the lid right, or rising steam is burning me or I
just slip or something... it's not pretty. Phil has seen this enough times
that now when he sees me starting to do this he just gets me the colander.
Suffice it to say that the kitchen is not where I do my best work.
Michelle
<rfut...@my-dejanews.com> wrote:
>Okay, now that I've got the disclaimer out of the way, what are your
>favorite (or least favorite) kitchen gadgets?
My favorite gadget is quite simple. It's a plastic bottle that had a a
pump on it. You pump by taking the cover off, putting it back on, etc.
You put your favorite olive oil in it and you got yourself a homemade
PAM spray bottle! I don't like using aerosol bottles because they are
a waste but missed the idea of being able to spray the oil in the pan.
This thing is just perfect.
Michelle
Vicky Larmour
>In article <19981001175410...@ng120.aol.com>,
> holly...@aol.com (HollyLewis) wrote:
>
>> >??? Why do you need a slotted spoon for pasta? I just drain the water out of
>> >the side of the pan by holding the pan lid just a fraction away from the
>> >edge of the pan.
>>
>> I am not coordinated enough to do this.
>
>I can relate to this. Of course, I always have to try anyway. This usually
>results in half the pasta (or whatever I am draining) ending up in the sink
>because I am not holding the lid right, or rising steam is burning me or I
>just slip or something... it's not pretty. Phil has seen this enough times
>that now when he sees me starting to do this he just gets me the colander.
I wouldn't say co-ordination is the problem for me, but Jonathan has been
known to wonder why I'm pouring half the spaghetti into the sink as I drain
the water and then realising that I can't actually *see* that this is
happening because the steam has completely misted over my glasses! :-)
JulieD3964
>Okay, I think I got the meaning of "zester" wrong. My zester is a
>little hand held apparatus. Are you talking about an electrical one or
>is it the same simple gadget that I have (smaller than a peeler)? I
>tried it once, and Zested my finger with it! I am totally convinced
>that it is righthanded biased and that you cannot use it with your
>left hand.
Actually, the zester we're using is the Oxo one. We registered for one by
Henckels but I decided it wouldn't be bad to have two and bought one for myself
way before the wedding. It has a really big handle which means it doesn't slip
and I've never zested myself with it, unlike the Henckels one which I've used
at a friend's house. After using the Oxo zester, the other one was deleted
from the registry!
I've used it with either hand and don't see anything that is "right-handed"
about this particular brand of zester - it's just a piece of metal that is a
bit curved. You place the zesting "holes" at the top of the fruit and draw it
straight down. The curve isn't in either direction (to the left or the right -
it's up from thehandle). As long as you draw straight down, it's an
ambidextrous tool.
>I found some other annoying things:
>1. Huge Salt and pepper shakers with handles with the S and P written
>on one side only. I always have to twist it to see what it is I am
>holding.
This is just me, but why would anyone want these? When I was looking for salt
and pepper shakers, our everyday ones are clear so you can see the salt inside
and the pepper in the pepper mill. We didn't want the shakers that are part of
our good china set because there is no way to differentiate between the salt
and the pepper - same with Nambe Flare salt & pepper shakers. We chose the
Nambe Kissing ones instead because one has one hole in the top and the other
has three so you can tell them apart.
>2. Measuring cups. Measurements on one side only
What kind of measuring cups are you using? We use Tupperware (measurements on
the top) and Pyrex (measurements on both sides - with the English measurements
on the left-handed side). I also but the measuring cups on the counter and
then fill them instead of filling them over a mixing bowl which makes things
easier.
>4. Anything with a spout
Anything in particular here that you're referring to? I can't think of anything
in our kitchen with a spout that isn't ambidextrous - the handle is at the rear
and the spout is directly opposite. Are you talking pots & pans? I don't own
anything with a spout although a nice saucepan with a pouring spout would be
nice for stovetop hot chocolate in the wintertime.
Robin Sanborn
My little brother is a leftie, so while all the scissors in the world work for me,
I did work him through his "cutting trauma" poor kid thought he couldn't work
scissors!
> I found some other annoying things:
> 1. Huge Salt and pepper shakers with handles with the S and P written
> on one side only. I always have to twist it to see what it is I am
> holding.
We use a pepper grinder that has salt on top. We also have s&p shakers that are
clear (from wal-mart)
> 2. Measuring cups. Measurements on one side only
> 3. Laddles with the spout on one side only
> 4. Anything with a spout
> 5. I'm having a hell of a time to dismantle my food processor. I have
> to do it with my right hand. I would have to have it placed
> differently in my kitchen to ease the lefthanded use of it.
Hmm...actually, I dismantle it with my left hand! Don't quite know why...
I'm a card carrying rightie, but I *cannot* ride my bicycle with only my right
hand, I open jars with my left hand, and can only snap with my left hand. Perhaps
I'm just a freak?
>
>
> Michelle - who always seems to use the lefthanded excuse for her
> clumsiness.
--
While this email address is valid, I don't check it due to spam. Please post all replies.
mi...@my-dejanews.com
julie...@aol.com (JulieD3964) wrote:
> I've used it with either hand and don't see anything that is "right-handed"
> about this particular brand of zester - it's just a piece of metal that is a
> bit curved. You place the zesting "holes" at the top of the fruit and draw it
> straight down. The curve isn't in either direction (to the left or the right
-
> it's up from thehandle). As long as you draw straight down, it's an
> ambidextrous tool.
Sure it's ambidextrous, but I still can't use it. How are you supposed to
hold your lemon when using this tool? It always seems to slip out of my hand.
I guess it's the fact that I'm bad in the kitchen, not the fact that I am
lefthanded.
> >I found some other annoying things:
> >1. Huge Salt and pepper shakers with handles with the S and P written
> >on one side only. I always have to twist it to see what it is I am
> >holding.
>
> This is just me, but why would anyone want these? When I was looking for salt
> and pepper shakers, our everyday ones are clear so you can see the salt inside
> and the pepper in the pepper mill. We didn't want the shakers that are part
of
> our good china set because there is no way to differentiate between the salt
> and the pepper - same with Nambe Flare salt & pepper shakers. We chose the
> Nambe Kissing ones instead because one has one hole in the top and the other
> has three so you can tell them apart.
I didn't register, I made a list of the things I wanted. Do you really think
that when I put the item on the list, I actually thought that there were some
that are righthanded? Let's just say that it's not the first thing that pops
in my mind when I think salt & pepper shaker. Any by the way, other than the
fact that they are lefthanded, they are amazing. Wouldn't change them even
with the lefthanded problem.
>
> >2. Measuring cups. Measurements on one side only
>
> What kind of measuring cups are you using? We use Tupperware (measurements on
> the top) and Pyrex (measurements on both sides - with the English
measurements
> on the left-handed side). I also but the measuring cups on the counter and
> then fill them instead of filling them over a mixing bowl which makes things
> easier.
I really don't know. I don't pay attention to the brand of my measuring cup.
But this has happened to me often. I don't get the "put cup on counter"
thing. I do that too. The problem remains. You always have to spin the cup
around after you're done, which again, is just an annoyance.
> >4. Anything with a spout
>
> Anything in particular here that you're referring to? I can't think of
anything
> in our kitchen with a spout that isn't ambidextrous - the handle is at the
rear
> and the spout is directly opposite. Are you talking pots & pans? I don't own
> anything with a spout although a nice saucepan with a pouring spout would be
> nice for stovetop hot chocolate in the wintertime.
Actually, I was thinking of my saucepan with a spout. Can only pour when
holding it with right hand. I also have a plastic one that goes in the
microwave, but that one happens to have a spout on both sides.
No offense, but from your response, you are obviously a right handed person
that cannot appreciate the frustrations that us lefthanders run into
everyday. The kitchen is just one of the places where problems occurr. Call
me picky, but it just gets annoying. They just add frustration to everyday
tasks. I don't want to start a flame war, but I hate it when right handed
people tell me I'm complaining for nothing. Which you are not, of course, but
that's what you seemed to be implying. Trust me, if we would change all
righthanded things to lefthanded things for a few days, the righthanders
would get really annoyed.
Michelle
Wende A. Feller
>
> No offense, but from your response, you are obviously a right handed person
> that cannot appreciate the frustrations that us lefthanders run into
> everyday. The kitchen is just one of the places where problems occurr. Call
> me picky, but it just gets annoying. They just add frustration to everyday
> tasks. I don't want to start a flame war, but I hate it when right handed
> people tell me I'm complaining for nothing. Which you are not, of course, but
> that's what you seemed to be implying. Trust me, if we would change all
> righthanded things to lefthanded things for a few days, the righthanders
> would get really annoyed.
I hear you! Early in grad school, I had to have my right arm in a brace
for 10 weeks. I'm right-handed. Everything in the kitchen was so turned
around and upside down, as far as left-handed use was concerned, that I
ended up figuring out how to do a lot of tasks with the barely movable
fingers on my right hand.
This experience meant that I *also* have experience trying to do things
with my non-dominant hand, the way a left-hander in a right-hand world
sometimes must. Ugh! Ugh! It's not just that stuff favors the wrong hand
-- it's that two-handed tasks and tasks that are normally divided
between hands are all turned around, so you end up knocking things over.
I just looked at my Pyrex bowls. There are measuring lines on both
sides, but the measures on the two sides are different. One side will do
1/4 and 1/2 fractions of a cup, and the other side will do 1/3, 2/3,
etc. I *thought* this had been driving me crazy, as the fractions I need
for recipes with liquids always seem to be on the wrong side of the cup
for however I'm holding it at the moment. I have also noticed that,
since I started using this kitchen, where I reach for the measuring
spoons with my LEFT hand, the spice tins with the spoon scraper for a
level spoonful no longer seem to be designed correctly.
Wende
Jean Peters
> In article <01bdecb5$03554ec0$0100007f@l>,
> "Jean Peters" <jeanp...@tinet.ie.remv> wrote:
>
> > I still use the hob as extra worktop space. The space between the sink
and
> > the hob is basically useless, as there's no free edge to work at. This
> > space has the kettle, espresso maker and coffee grinder (and dirty
dishes
> > most of the time). The other piece of worktop has the toaster, utensil
> > jar, chopping boards, knife block and spice rack (which is going on the
> > wall *very* soon). I actually only have about 12" square as work
space.
> Well, I don't know if these count since i didn't live in them myself, and
> they're both studio apts, but, I think I have seen two of the smallest
> kitchens ever imaginable.
>
cabinets,
> a 2 burner stove, not sure about an oven. But there was barely enough
space
> for her to even stand in there - and she's 5'0" and 100 lbs! (Of course,
she
> was living on the Upper East side and only paying ~$300 per month, so she
> couldn't complin..)
I've lived in university housing in Manchester, one kitchen between 12
people. It had a *huge* double sink, an iron & board, a small fridge (with
a tiny icebox), a water boiler (not a kettle, it was wall mounted) and
three cupboards that the cleaner kept locked at all times. The "cooker"
had a *single* burner, and a grill tray underneath so you could have one
pan on top and make toast or grill something at the same time, no oven.
The funny thing was that this room was almost the same size as our
bedrooms!!!! just a lot of wasted space.
> 2. a friend's place in Bern, Switzerland (great location, right across
from an
> Embassy and a gorgeous park). I'm not sure what he had constitutes a
kitchen -
> it had a stove and a fridge. The fridge fit under the counter top (dorm
> style).. the stove had 2 burners, not sure about an oven again. A trash
bin
> space - (very important), and a couple of shelves for food. Now, the
smallest
> part was that it wasn't really a room - it truly was part of the hallway.
It
> had "shutter-style" doors to close it off when you didn't want to feel
like
> being in the kitchen, so you could stand in your living room. I've been
in
> other studio apts, but all seemed to have a defined kitchen space, even
if it
> was part of the living room...here it was a little knook.. quite comfy
place
> though :)
>
> Cherise
My current kitchen is off the living room, there's a "wall" with frosted
glass inset to let some natural light in (alledgedly - even with a south
facing window in the living room, very little light makes it through to the
kitchen). The Estate agents call it a kitchenette - I call it a pain in
the rear.
I'm sure it must have been designed by a man - even I could do a better job
of rearranging it to add more space, light and work area. My kitchen is my
biggest pet peeve at the moment, but we can't afford to move at the moment.
Apart from the fact that we've got this wedding thing in three weeks,
rents here have practically doubled in the last two years. Our landlord is
nice though - we're still paying the same rent as in 1996 when we moved in.
Jean Peters
<361459ec....@news1.newscene.com>...
> Speaking of lefthanded, I found myselft having to specify lefthanded
> items on my gift list. Lefthanded can opener and (got an ambidextrous
> one by Starfrit), a lefthanded (or ambidextrous) knife are two items
> which I really wanted. If you're righthanded, you're probably thinking
> that knives are ambidextrous. Some aren't. For example, steak knives
> aren'te because they have the sharp part of the blade on one side
> only. That's one of my big beefs.
>
> I found some other annoying things:
> 1. Huge Salt and pepper shakers with handles with the S and P written
> on one side only. I always have to twist it to see what it is I am
> holding.
> 2. Measuring cups. Measurements on one side only
> 3. Laddles with the spout on one side only
> 4. Anything with a spout
> 5. I'm having a hell of a time to dismantle my food processor. I have
> to do it with my right hand. I would have to have it placed
> differently in my kitchen to ease the lefthanded use of it.
>
> Michelle - who always seems to use the lefthanded excuse for her
> clumsiness.
>
Although I'm technically right-handed (I write, hold knives etc with my
right hand), I seem to use my left hand a lot more than most others do. If
I practised for a bit, my left-handed writing would be almost as good (or
bad :-) ) as my right-handed - it's fairly legible as is.
I know your frustration with jugs and spouts, cos pouring seems to be one
of my lefhanded things. I also have to go looking for lefthanded or
ambidextrous things with spouts etc - they ain't easy to find. Other items
that are for the purely right-handed are kettles (with a measure on the
side) and irons (measure & flex wrongly positioned).
Am I the only one with this problem - no-one else I know is as ambidextrous
as I am, they're all either right or left handed. My younger brother is
totally left-handed, and it's only in the last couple of years that he's
managed to master the tin-opener (he's 15 years old). Then again he plays
guitar right-handed because he couldn't find one strung for a left-hander,
and didn't know how to change the strings.
Jean Peters
Kellie Whitehurst Gaines <kel...@qualcomm.com> wrote in article
<6v0mav$fbt$1...@thefuture.qualcomm.com>...
> In article <36123413...@skypoint.com>, vybo...@skypoint.com
says...
>
> >Least popular among the gadgets we actually own: pizza stone. We got it
> >as a wedding gift (without the paddle, which we can't seem to remember
> >to go buy). It *ought* to be a great hit, but I rarely feel like making
> >my own pizza dough, so it sits in the oven and makes me feel guilty and
> >undomestic.
>
> We got one of these too, Wende. This is what I use it for: everything
except
> for cooking pizza! =) I make these really good stuffed things by taking
> biscuit dough (the kind already in the tin) and smooshing 2-3 together,
putting
> stuff in the middle, rolling and cooking on the pizza stone. I'll
usually also
> use it for making garlic bread.
I just use a regular baking tray for making pizza. We tend to make pizza
about once a fortnight & always make our own dough. I've never had any
problems with using a baking tray.
ta...@4taconic.com
> In article <01bdecb5$03554ec0$0100007f@l>,
> > "Jean Peters" <jeanp...@tinet.ie.remv> wrote:
> > 1.My sister's in Manhattan (University housing) - it probably had 4
> cabinets,
> > a 2 burner stove, not sure about an oven. But there was barely enough
> space
> > for her to even stand in there - and she's 5'0" and 100 lbs! (Of course,
> she
> > was living on the Upper East side and only paying ~$300 per month, so she
> > couldn't complin..)
>
> My current kitchen is off the living room, there's a "wall" with frosted
> glass inset to let some natural light in (alledgedly - even with a south
> facing window in the living room, very little light makes it through to the
> kitchen). The Estate agents call it a kitchenette - I call it a pain in
> the rear.
>
This reminds me of one of my favorite books (and the book thread from last
week that died). It's a collection of essays by Fran Lebowitz and I can't
remember the title now (Social Studies?). In it is "Diary of a New York
Apartment Hunter" - absolutely wicked and totally hilarious. Anyone who's
ever lived in NYC, searched for an apartment or longed for a wood-burning
fireplace will love it!!
-Tara
JulieD3964
>How are you supposed to
>hold your lemon when using this tool?
I hold the zester in one hand (actually my LEFT hand) and the lemon in my right
hand. You know how you might pick up a jar in the supermarket and turnthe palm
of that hand up so you can read the ingredients? That's the same way that you
hold the lemon. I put the holes of the zester at the top of the lemon and draw
down toward the bottom of it - however, I'm holding the lemon horizontally, not
vertically. That means it doesn't slip as much. After you've zested a section
of the lemon, rotate it to a fresh section. It also helps if you roll the
lemon around on the countertop before zesting. It also makes juicing the
leftover lemon much easier!
>> >2. Measuring cups. Measurements on one side only
I don't pay attention to the brand of my measuring cup.
>But this has happened to me often. I don't get the "put cup on counter"
>thing. I do that too. The problem remains. You always have to spin the cup
>around after you're done, which again, is just an annoyance.
Everyone I know (left and right handed) has this problem when using liquid
measures. There are measurements on both sides of the cup but it's never the
one you want facing you. Personally, I don't worry about only using my
dominant hand to do things. If the cup is facing the direction for my left
hand, I pick it up that way and vice versa.
>No offense, but from your response, you are obviously a right handed person
>that cannot appreciate the frustrations that us lefthanders run into
>everyday. The kitchen is just one of the places where problems occurr. Call
>me picky, but it just gets annoying. They just add frustration to everyday
>tasks. I don't want to start a flame war, but I hate it when right handed
>people tell me I'm complaining for nothing. Which you are not, of course, but
>that's what you seemed to be implying. Trust me, if we would change all
>righthanded things to lefthanded things for a few days, the righthanders
>would get really annoyed.
I'm predominantly right handed (writing and throwing) but I do many things in
an ambidextrous manner because of multiple childhood accidents one of which was
severely burning my right hand as a child (enough so that the skin of my
fingers grew together and had to be cut apart). I also have broken my right
wrist five times and it's always going to be weakened because the last time,
the bones never refused properly. I physically cannot pick up anything
weighing more than 5 pounds in my right hand without also using my left hand.
The last time I broke that wrist it was when I was making the bed of all
things. My husband is now responsible for putting new sheets on the bed.
Maybe I have some ambidextrous tendencies anyway because when I skated as a
child I used to spin CW but when I restarted as an adult, I spin CCW. I don't
know.
Most of the work I do in the kitchen is of an ambidextrous manner - I pick up
all of the pots and pans in the kitchen using my left hand. I do all of the
pouring left handed. Same goes for mixing by hand. Most knives I do right
handed. Cleavers are left handed. We have an electric Black & Decker handheld
can opener which I operate with my right hand. The manual ones give me fits.
Since I was a small child, I've learned that I've had to do this and that's why
I have a lot of kitchen gadgets - for me, they make my life easier to have a
specialized tool to take the strain off of a bad right hand.
I'm sorry if you feel threatened by this in some manner.
Teri George
up so poorly that it's unbelievable. They put all the appliances
(including an in-wall oven) on the two interior walls, with doorways
that cut the space even more. I have 2.5 feet of counter space on one
side of the sink, 2.5 feet on the other side of the sink (all used for
washing and drying dishes), and another 2 feet of counterspace next to
the cooktop on the other wall.
Needless to say, this kitchen is getting a major overhaul.
Teri ~~ remove "lessspam" to email a reply
http://www.craftsoft.com for the CraftSoft Embroidery Floss
Color & Conversion Chart
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
An emerald leaf pierces the crusty white mantle.
Softly green, a bud lifts its head and opens
Raising petals of alabaster satin to the sun.
A snow rose blooms...
mi...@my-dejanews.com
julie...@aol.com (JulieD3964) wrote:
>
> >How are you supposed to
> >hold your lemon when using this tool?
>
> I hold the zester in one hand (actually my LEFT hand) and the lemon in my
right
> hand. You know how you might pick up a jar in the supermarket and turnthe
palm
> of that hand up so you can read the ingredients? That's the same way that you
> hold the lemon. I put the holes of the zester at the top of the lemon and
draw
> down toward the bottom of it - however, I'm holding the lemon horizontally,
not
> vertically. That means it doesn't slip as much. After you've zested a
section
> of the lemon, rotate it to a fresh section. It also helps if you roll the
> lemon around on the countertop before zesting. It also makes juicing the
> leftover lemon much easier!
I always held the lemon vertically, not horizontally. Duh. It makes so much
sense. Thanks!
> I'm sorry if you feel threatened by this in some manner.
Not threatened, just plainly frustrated. I used to be a a regular on
alt.lefthanders and constantly discussed the frustrations of being
lefthanded. I don't know how that group is now. I'll have to go back and
check it out!
Michelle
JulieD3964
>I always held the lemon vertically, not horizontally. Duh. It makes so much
>sense. Thanks!
Not a problem - the first time I zested a lemon, I made the vertical mistake
too and zested the heck out of my knuckles!
>> I'm sorry if you feel threatened by this in some manner.
>
>Not threatened, just plainly frustrated. I used to be a a regular on
>alt.lefthanders and constantly discussed the frustrations of being
>lefthanded. I don't know how that group is now. I'll have to go back and
>check it out!
I guess I've just always been a person who usually takes a less than optimal
situation (at least when it comes to mechanical things) and tries to either a)
ignore the problem and procede as usual just using another hand or direction or
b) jury-rig a solution. I've never sat down and gotten frustrated because I
can't do something with my right hand - I just try it with the left or make my
husband do it for me these days :)
MARK E GAINES
Right after we returned from our honeymoon, Mark had to go on a business
trip. I don't know why it was so lonely for me, but sleeping alone and
_married_ was just depressing, and for the first time, I was nervous being
at the apartment alone.
Anyway, one morning I woke up and saw a single black wool glove on my bed.
I was scared to death, thinking that someone had been in the apartment (or
still was). I got up and looked around but didn't see anything unusual.
That night while sleeping, I woke up to Hunter (about 3-4 months old)
making these horrible noises. I turned on the light, and there she was
with the glove in her mouth, on the end of the bed.
Ever since, she'll often drag that glove around and always cries when she
does. You will hardly ever see her doing it, but will come home to find
the glove in the strangest places. We've attempted to take the glove away
but after a few days, she'll wander around and look for her "baby", so we
always give it back.
kellie
little...@my-dejanews.com wrote in article
<6uunvi$1d9$1...@nnrp1.dejanews.com>...
> In article <36128C95...@vt.edu>,
> Robin Sanborn <rfut...@my-dejanews.com> wrote:
> > Your cat does this too?!?! Fiji likes to march down the hall with a
sock (or
> a
> > ball of socks) in her mouth, occasionally putting them down to hollar
"mrowr"
> to
> > announce her capture.
>
> Okay I'm reading this newsgroup early....
>
> We use to have a cat that did this, Tabitha, but it wasn't hunting. We
had two
> sisters cats (Tabitha and Samatha - yes there where named for what you
think),
> who both had kittens at about the same time. If Tabitha wanted to move
her
> kittens she would carry a pair of socks to where she wanted then and then
meow
> for Sam to move the kittens. Which Sam would do.
>
> Once the kittens where given away both cats were desexed, but for the
rest of
> her life Tabitha would carry socks around asking for her kittens to be
moved.
>
> The joys of cats...
>
> Little Mother.
Lynn
my left arm in 1st grade and my Mom saw all the trouble I went through
trying to do some things only with my right, she sorta went out of her way
to teach me how to be ambidextrous. Granted, that doesn't work with a lot
of things, we are, after all, born that way...but it certainly helped.
BTW, have you ever noticed that even PENCILS are right-handed???
When we lefties hold a pencil to write with it, the lettering is upside
down! (Sorry, it's a pet peeve of mine!)
Lynn
Kelli Hughes
> Least useful: pasta pot. The concept is great...big stock pot with a
> strainer that fits down into it. When the pasta's done, you just lift
> out the strainer. Problem: it's designed to be a steamer as well, so
> there's several inches between the bottom of the strainer and the pot.
> You have to use a *ton* more water (takes longer). It also doesn't fit
> in the dishwasher, and I'm morally opposed to things that don't fit in
> the dishwasher.
>
We got one of those too!! Same problem. You have to use so much water that it takes forever
to boil!! If you are cooking for a whole bunch of people, it is nice, but we have only used
it once. A regular pot works fine.
Kelli
Kelli Hughes
> Also useful:
> - microwave rice steamer - exactly-cooked rice every time, with little or no
> intereference (stirring etc) to be done while it cooks. Takes about 12 mins
> to do rice for 2, which is quicker than it would be in a pan.
It only takes 20 mins in a pot, and it tastes soooo much better. We have
discovered that there are many different kinds and grades of rice. We used to
buy the cheapest, but now we are spoiled and try to buy some with flavor after
tasting some at one time. We will never buy the cheap stuff again, much less
cook it in a microwave!!!
Kelli
Michelle
>BTW, have you ever noticed that even PENCILS are right-handed???
>
>When we lefties hold a pencil to write with it, the lettering is upside
>down! (Sorry, it's a pet peeve of mine!)
Actually, I hadn't noticed, but there are so many little insignificant
things like that. For example, I have a right handed barette (hair
clip). If I put it on with my left, the figurines are upside down. I
put it on crooked if I try with my right hand. I had to have it
soldered so that it works the "right" way.
Anyways, now that I think of it, me being lefthanded could have been a
problem when doing the cake feeding at the wedding. However, it did
not. I will have to look at the pictures to figure out why that wasn't
a problem. Hmmmm.
Also, when we had our rehearsal, we were pretending to sign the
registry and I pretended with my left hand. When our pastor saw this,
his said "Are you sure this is going to be a valid wedding if you're
going to sign with your left hand?"
It brought me memories of when I was a kid going to the mall with my
parents. He would always head for the handicap parking because he
apparently had a handicap in the car.
Les Sticks
Robin Sanborn wrote:
>
> This is on topic...I swear....I'm sure lots of us got kitchen gadgets
> for our weddings!
>
> Okay, now that I've got the disclaimer out of the way, what are your
We didn't get kitchen gadgets as wedding presents partly because we didn't ask
for any and partly because I don't know why. I guess most people knew we had
been running a kitchen together for years.
Thus said, I think of kitchen items in two ways: 1) Tools; 2) Gadgets.
I love tools, hate gadgets (My opinion Only! <g>)
Tools are things I can't live without, gadgets are things that are hard to
clean and take longer to put together and take apart then doing the job
(whatever it is) with a good knife (usually). Probably things on my tool list
may be on someone else's gadget list but hey, there's beauty in diversity.
Tools: My knives. I have mostly Wusthoff-Trident knives. I use the 12" chef's
knife for almost everything and the 3 1/2" paring knife for the rest. I don't
end up sharpening them quite often enough but they still perform. While I do
have both a blender and a cuisinart (picked up at a garage sale for $15), I use
them only for pureeing.
I have a number of reasonable good stock pots, one good vegetable peeler,
pastry cutter, wooden spoons, a good hand-crank, hand-held can opener, wire
whisks, corkscrews (both traditional and ah-so type). Although it's not
strictly necessary, I do have a KitchenAid mixer, professional model which
whips the cream without whipping me.
Gadgets: A bulb-type baster (yes, I bought it but I almost never use it),
garlic peelers (I use either the smash with knife or microwave* for 3 seconds
approach), garlic press (see tools above), pizza cutter (a plastic freebie
which Doug insists on keeping). There may be other stuff but I don't use it so
I don't remember it.
What I would like to get: Poultry shears, boning knife, mandoline.
Is a microwave a tool or a gadget? While I use it for peeling garlic and
melting leg wax, I never would have purchased one if left to myself. I prefer
to steam vegetables on the stove top and I use my old gas Wedgewood stove (c.
1940s) for everything.
Miriam Lewis
Please reply to <mi...@jps.net> not this account. Thanks
Jodi Graham Wood
>BTW, have you ever noticed that even PENCILS are right-handed???
>
>When we lefties hold a pencil to write with it, the lettering is upside
>down! (Sorry, it's a pet peeve of mine!)
>
Hi Lyn-
I'm a lefty, too! The best thing is that Peter and I can hold hands while
we eat!
Jodi G.W.
aq...@my-dejanews.com
jsgr...@cs.indiana.edu (Jodi Graham Wood) wrote:
> I'm a lefty, too! The best thing is that Peter and I can hold hands while
> we eat!
Speaking of being left-handed and eating... lately I realized that Phil and I
have been together long enough that he knows to leave/save the appropriate
corner seat for me when we go out to eat with other people. Nothing like
have a steak dinner at a crowded table and sitting to the right of a RH
person.
Growing up in our family of 10 I always had the corner at the "left" end of
the table.
Rose
Jan A. Cordes
Re: Lefties
I'm left handed and so is Drew. The difference is that the only two
things I do left handed are eating and writing. Everything else I
learned right handed. Drew owns a pair of left handed scissors. I
can't use the darned things to save my life. Using them right handed
doesn't work very well and I can't seem to make them work in my left
hand to save my life. They're kept in the kitchen so I'm always picking
them up without thinking about it to clip coupons or whatever. I usually
manage to fumble through but at times I give up and go hunt down my own
regular scissors.
Jan
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HollyLewis
>Phil and I
>have been together long enough that he knows to leave/save the appropriate
>corner seat for me when we go out to eat with other people.
Why do I think it's romantic that Ken and I automatically know what things to
eat from each other's plates? (He gets all tomatoes, I get all pickles.)
I always go for the left-handed seat too, but I can't recall that Ken ever
saved it for me. I guess I usually get to the table before he does...
Holly