Today is May 21... Today is May 21, and I haven't planted a single vegetable, anywhere, in my yard, this year. Everytime my garden boxes start to dry out, we get more rain. My husband is having the same issue, on a larger scale. Of the 5 springs we've been together, he's finished planting his corn and soybean crops, on, or with in a few days of May 21. He's just getting his planter switched over to plant soybeans, and needs at least 10 fully plantable days, for his planter, and our other planter, to get the crop in the ground.
Did I mention, we have a baby on the way? My due date is June 13, but our first came 13 days early, and you just never know when babies are going to decide to arrive. Extra stress on him.
Anyway, back to my garden... I looked out my kitchen window this morining, and the one box that contains my strawberry plants, has blossoms. I have no vegetables, and my strawberries are blossoming... My garden is screwed... So, this afternoon, I hope to seed my salad pots, I hope to seed my rainbow swiss chard into my flower beds (they're pretty). My peppers have always done better in pots, and I hope to get those cleaned up and painted (all pots are getting painted white this year), today, for planting later this week.
I would like to sew some beans and peas, as quickly as possible, but might save the peas for a late summer planting, and harvest into fall...
I need to get off the computer, and get busy. Happy planting, everyone!
Tuesday, May 21, 2013
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Creative Cooking Part 2
A few more things you can do, without a kitchen:
Dessert has been almost non-existant... lucky for us, we have Schwans Home Delivery, where we get Rocky Road Ice Cream, and Strawberry fruit bars. But, my son loves pudding. So here's a not to Jello... thank you for instant pudding... I made it before I set out dinner, and it was ready when we were. He was a happy boy.
And, I noticed on the Honey Maid Grham Cracker Box, there is a recipe for a dessert, that is no bake... And it looks really good, but pregnancy brain has set in, and I can't remember what it was called.
So, in an electric skillet, fix up maceroni and cheese, or rice (be warned, rice needs an extra few minutes). Put it in a glass dish, and wrap the whole dish in aluminum foil, to stay extra warm. Then, fix up pork chops, however you like your pork chops, I use a little EVOO, and Worchesire Sauce, some garlic, and some pepper, with a few shakes of basil or italian seasoning. I prefer the sirloin chops, dark meat seems to stay more moist. Cook those babies up for a few minutes on each side, while you prepare a salda, and viola! Pork Chops!!!! We are actually having these tonight.
Sausage and Squash...
last night, I fixed up some chicken and apple sausage. I sliced up the sausage links, and cooked them in a little bit of EVOO. (in the electric skillet). When it was done, I transfered to a heavy glass serving bowl, and covered with aluminum foil. I took several small zucchini's and two small summer yellow squashes, sliced them once length wise, and chopped them. Threw them in the skillet with EVOO, and a bit of worchesire sauce. A little garlic, a little pepper, a little oregano, cooked those up a bit. Diced a big ol' red tomato, added that to the sausage, in the bowl. When the squash started to get soft, I added back the sausage and tomatoes, coverd it up, cooked it about 15 more minutes, then served it with a fruit salad and a green salad... it was a hit. And the squash was AMAZING!
My days of cooking without a kitchen are coming to an end, but maybe fun, new, exciting things I cook up in my new kitchen, will be worthy of a blog post or two :)
Dessert has been almost non-existant... lucky for us, we have Schwans Home Delivery, where we get Rocky Road Ice Cream, and Strawberry fruit bars. But, my son loves pudding. So here's a not to Jello... thank you for instant pudding... I made it before I set out dinner, and it was ready when we were. He was a happy boy.
And, I noticed on the Honey Maid Grham Cracker Box, there is a recipe for a dessert, that is no bake... And it looks really good, but pregnancy brain has set in, and I can't remember what it was called.
So, in an electric skillet, fix up maceroni and cheese, or rice (be warned, rice needs an extra few minutes). Put it in a glass dish, and wrap the whole dish in aluminum foil, to stay extra warm. Then, fix up pork chops, however you like your pork chops, I use a little EVOO, and Worchesire Sauce, some garlic, and some pepper, with a few shakes of basil or italian seasoning. I prefer the sirloin chops, dark meat seems to stay more moist. Cook those babies up for a few minutes on each side, while you prepare a salda, and viola! Pork Chops!!!! We are actually having these tonight.
Sausage and Squash...
last night, I fixed up some chicken and apple sausage. I sliced up the sausage links, and cooked them in a little bit of EVOO. (in the electric skillet). When it was done, I transfered to a heavy glass serving bowl, and covered with aluminum foil. I took several small zucchini's and two small summer yellow squashes, sliced them once length wise, and chopped them. Threw them in the skillet with EVOO, and a bit of worchesire sauce. A little garlic, a little pepper, a little oregano, cooked those up a bit. Diced a big ol' red tomato, added that to the sausage, in the bowl. When the squash started to get soft, I added back the sausage and tomatoes, coverd it up, cooked it about 15 more minutes, then served it with a fruit salad and a green salad... it was a hit. And the squash was AMAZING!
My days of cooking without a kitchen are coming to an end, but maybe fun, new, exciting things I cook up in my new kitchen, will be worthy of a blog post or two :)
It's not just lipstick on a pig...
When we made the announcement, that we were going to remodel our kitchen, it was half assumed by my husband, and totally assumed by many, that it would be a cosmetic job. Our house is more than 60 years old. Why put lipstick on a pig? Or a chandiler in a condemned house? Not that our house is a pig, or condemned. But before we moved in, many updates were just cosmetic.
We chose our contractor wisely. We chose my incredibly particular brother-in-law. We chose him because we love every house he's done, that we've stepped foot into. We chose him, because we know he is relentless when it comes to perfection.
We stripped our kitchen back to the studs, we added insulation to the exterior.
When taking apart the old plumbing to the kitchen, our contractor discovered just how much build up there was in our pipes. Luckily, my husband was also witness to the build up, and they decided then, it needed to be a complete plumbing replacement, to the whole house.
My theory, and I hope my husband agrees, is, we spent money to get our kitchen updated. It would not have been a good expierence if we had all the new flooring installed, and all of the new cabinets, counter tops, and backsplash installed, just to have to rip it all out, to get to those other projects that needed done. Not to mention, the all new wiring to the kitchen and laundry room, making them much safer.
The reason for this blog entry is because I wanted people to be aware, prepare for these types of things to come up while you've got the house open, guts exposed. This is the best time to get it all done. And, for those who aren't so happy that we are spending our money on updating these types of things, be supportive, even if you'd rather we just put the lipstick on a pig, know, we are raising a family here, we don't want to have to demo a kitchen again, at least not while we live here. We want clean water, and safe electrical outlets. Investing in us, our family, our home, isn't a waste of money. If you're worried we've spent too much, we haven't. We know our budget, and we know what our safety is worth. Be supportive. Be excited for us. That goes a long way.
We chose our contractor wisely. We chose my incredibly particular brother-in-law. We chose him because we love every house he's done, that we've stepped foot into. We chose him, because we know he is relentless when it comes to perfection.
We stripped our kitchen back to the studs, we added insulation to the exterior.
When taking apart the old plumbing to the kitchen, our contractor discovered just how much build up there was in our pipes. Luckily, my husband was also witness to the build up, and they decided then, it needed to be a complete plumbing replacement, to the whole house.
This picture is in our "fruit room" (more of a basement pantry) where the water comes into the house, a new pressure gauge, and this picture was taken partway through the plumbing job. We now have fast hot water, and clean clean water. No more junk coming though our pipes. My son LOVES getting to use the bath tub, for the first time in his life (almost 3 years).
And, since we did some moving of wall openings and doorways, some of which got closed, other openings were created, we are getting some updates to our central heat and air system. Our mudroom/breezeway will actually have air flowing through it, and not be so cold in the winter and so hot in the Summer. We are also getting a wireless system, to help our bedroom out so it won't be sweltering in the summer. We will have two control pannels. The A/C guy comes back to finalize plans this week.
The reason for this blog entry is because I wanted people to be aware, prepare for these types of things to come up while you've got the house open, guts exposed. This is the best time to get it all done. And, for those who aren't so happy that we are spending our money on updating these types of things, be supportive, even if you'd rather we just put the lipstick on a pig, know, we are raising a family here, we don't want to have to demo a kitchen again, at least not while we live here. We want clean water, and safe electrical outlets. Investing in us, our family, our home, isn't a waste of money. If you're worried we've spent too much, we haven't. We know our budget, and we know what our safety is worth. Be supportive. Be excited for us. That goes a long way.
Thursday, April 18, 2013
Food... fresh from the basement
Just what have I been fixing, in my basement laundry room turned kitchen??? (that almost sounds like I've been cooking up something illegal, no such luck.) Paninis, lots of paninis. Although, Chicken Noodle Soup is in the crock pot right now, because it's April 18, and it's snowing outside... Anyway, back to Panini's. I found the Food Network's 50 best Panini Recipes, and printed them up, I also found "Panini Happy" a wonderful blog, dedicated to Panini's.
I've discovered my husband had NO CLUE what he was talking about, when we were in San Francisco, and he opened his mouth to tell me "I don't like sourdough bread." Because what he ment to say was "I've never had sourdough bread." It's a panini favorite for him. He likes ham, whatever sliced Cheese I have on hand (kraft singles do not count as cheese when it comes to paninis, they're really runny, harder cheese, stiffer cheese works a lot better), typically Mozzerella, Provalone, Meunster. Virginia Ham is terriffic. Some sliced tomatoes, and something dark green; Spinach leaves, or Arugula, are delicious. Put them on hard bread, Sourdough, Seeded or Unseeded Rye, Chibata Rolls, and press :). Last night, we had Turkey Bacon Ranch sandwiches. Sourdough bread, ranch on the bread (thin), Provalone, Spinach, Tomatoes, Turkey, Bacon, and Tomatoes. Really good.
A few nights ago, I was tired, and I was stumped. I cooked up some Schwans chicken patties (my husband used to love these, almost as much as he loves a burger fresh off the grill), I brought them out, and his face fell. He wanted a Panini. Oh, good to know, he's in love with the panini press too.
Sun Dried Tomato Pesto works great as a sandwich spread, so does traditional Basil Pesto, so does olive oil. And I just keep mixing up the combinations...
And as great as Paninis are, I really miss an oven baked chicken breast. I'm looking forward to my kitchen being done. Soon. I might even get to put stuff in cabinets next weekend... So soon... and when our kitchen is done, what will we do with the panini press? Find a nice spot for it in the kitchen. It doesn't need to live in the fruit room (pantry) downstairs, with the crock pots and electric skillet. It will get used more often than those. Because the man I married, who had said, "I don't like lunch meat sandwiches, I eat enough of them when I'm in the tractor" has become a fan of a hot deli sandwich, a Panini, and I've always been. :)
PS: even peanut butter and banana sandwiches taste better off the panini press.
I've discovered my husband had NO CLUE what he was talking about, when we were in San Francisco, and he opened his mouth to tell me "I don't like sourdough bread." Because what he ment to say was "I've never had sourdough bread." It's a panini favorite for him. He likes ham, whatever sliced Cheese I have on hand (kraft singles do not count as cheese when it comes to paninis, they're really runny, harder cheese, stiffer cheese works a lot better), typically Mozzerella, Provalone, Meunster. Virginia Ham is terriffic. Some sliced tomatoes, and something dark green; Spinach leaves, or Arugula, are delicious. Put them on hard bread, Sourdough, Seeded or Unseeded Rye, Chibata Rolls, and press :). Last night, we had Turkey Bacon Ranch sandwiches. Sourdough bread, ranch on the bread (thin), Provalone, Spinach, Tomatoes, Turkey, Bacon, and Tomatoes. Really good.
A few nights ago, I was tired, and I was stumped. I cooked up some Schwans chicken patties (my husband used to love these, almost as much as he loves a burger fresh off the grill), I brought them out, and his face fell. He wanted a Panini. Oh, good to know, he's in love with the panini press too.
Sun Dried Tomato Pesto works great as a sandwich spread, so does traditional Basil Pesto, so does olive oil. And I just keep mixing up the combinations...
And as great as Paninis are, I really miss an oven baked chicken breast. I'm looking forward to my kitchen being done. Soon. I might even get to put stuff in cabinets next weekend... So soon... and when our kitchen is done, what will we do with the panini press? Find a nice spot for it in the kitchen. It doesn't need to live in the fruit room (pantry) downstairs, with the crock pots and electric skillet. It will get used more often than those. Because the man I married, who had said, "I don't like lunch meat sandwiches, I eat enough of them when I'm in the tractor" has become a fan of a hot deli sandwich, a Panini, and I've always been. :)
PS: even peanut butter and banana sandwiches taste better off the panini press.
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
What is this Mess? Uh...it's life during a renovation
When we moved to the farm, summer 2009, we had pulled up all of the carpet on the main floor, exposing the original wood floors, and had them refinished. We also had drywall repaired, and retextured, to cover almost 60 years of a setteling house. We didn't touch the kitchen floor, though, because under that carpet, was subfloor, not wood floor. That was put on the "5 year plan". I had been given the option, fix the floors throughout the house, or fix the kitchen, before we moved in. I chose the wood floors through out.
Before, our house had thick carpet. Almost each room, was a different color. Our bedroom and hall had light grey carpet, one guest room had dark red carpet, another bedroom had Navy carpet, our office had blue grey carpet, and our living and dining rooms had pink carpet, although I was told it was Mauve, because that was much more appealing sounding than pink. Either way, it was not for me. It was heavy. It made my house feel closed in.
Fast forward to Fall 2012. We have a 2 1/2 year old, and have just found out we are pregnant with #2. My husband turns to me, one day out of the blue, and says, "Would you rather redo the kitchen this spring, during planting season, or this summer, after you've just had another baby." It was like being told I'd won the lottery!!!! THE EARLIER THE BETTER!!!! So, we started talking to my contractor/brother-in-law, at Thanksgiving. In between 3 new builds he has going on, 1,500 miles away, where they live, he's going to help me with my renovation :)
When you gut your kitchen, be prepared for things to come up... weird things. We are refinishing the stairs to our basement. We've rewired the entire kitchen, and laundry room. We insullated the two exterior walls of the kitchen (I only wish we could insullate all the exterior walls). We are having the whole house replumbed!!! THE WHOLE HOUSE IS GETTING NEW PLUMBING!!! Our exterior doors are all getting new seals. We are getting new cellulose insullation added to the measly 6", already there (like 30" more). All of which leads to new drywall, new flooring, new lighting, new switches, new layout for new cabinets, new sink, new dishwasher, refrigerator, cook top, two single ovens, a microwave with a trim kit to be "built in". And a bonus, a new faucet for outside :) This really is a bonus, because to fill our hot tub, I run a hose through the breezeway, and out to the back, and to water the plants back there, it takes that same process, or 8 watering cans, every other day.
And I can't forget to mention, hardwired smoke detectors, throughout the house, when one goes off, they all will. Our dryer hose is getting a blower, to push the lint and heat out of the house. The statistics are staggering. It's something totally insane, like 90% of house fires start in the laundry room or kitchen... and it would be our luck, to spend all this money updating the place and have it burn down a few months later. So, thank goodness for safer electric, and smoke detectors everywhere.
I'm not allowed to build my own house, until my kids are out of this one. Then, I'll get one with lots of space, and a layout condusive to family time. When it's just my husband and I. But, I'm going to make sure this one isn't neglected. And just because it was "good enough" for the generations before, doesn't mean it has to be good enough for me. If I'm here for 25 years, I'm not doing bandaids, I'm doing surgery. I hope to leave this place better than it was when I started. And our checking account is reflecting that :)
By the way, it'll be done before baby #2 arrives. :)
Take care of your house, improve upon it when you can. It's your home, you should want to spend time here. And even with the noise and the dust, I'm liking it a little more each day.
Before, our house had thick carpet. Almost each room, was a different color. Our bedroom and hall had light grey carpet, one guest room had dark red carpet, another bedroom had Navy carpet, our office had blue grey carpet, and our living and dining rooms had pink carpet, although I was told it was Mauve, because that was much more appealing sounding than pink. Either way, it was not for me. It was heavy. It made my house feel closed in.
Fast forward to Fall 2012. We have a 2 1/2 year old, and have just found out we are pregnant with #2. My husband turns to me, one day out of the blue, and says, "Would you rather redo the kitchen this spring, during planting season, or this summer, after you've just had another baby." It was like being told I'd won the lottery!!!! THE EARLIER THE BETTER!!!! So, we started talking to my contractor/brother-in-law, at Thanksgiving. In between 3 new builds he has going on, 1,500 miles away, where they live, he's going to help me with my renovation :)
When you gut your kitchen, be prepared for things to come up... weird things. We are refinishing the stairs to our basement. We've rewired the entire kitchen, and laundry room. We insullated the two exterior walls of the kitchen (I only wish we could insullate all the exterior walls). We are having the whole house replumbed!!! THE WHOLE HOUSE IS GETTING NEW PLUMBING!!! Our exterior doors are all getting new seals. We are getting new cellulose insullation added to the measly 6", already there (like 30" more). All of which leads to new drywall, new flooring, new lighting, new switches, new layout for new cabinets, new sink, new dishwasher, refrigerator, cook top, two single ovens, a microwave with a trim kit to be "built in". And a bonus, a new faucet for outside :) This really is a bonus, because to fill our hot tub, I run a hose through the breezeway, and out to the back, and to water the plants back there, it takes that same process, or 8 watering cans, every other day.
And I can't forget to mention, hardwired smoke detectors, throughout the house, when one goes off, they all will. Our dryer hose is getting a blower, to push the lint and heat out of the house. The statistics are staggering. It's something totally insane, like 90% of house fires start in the laundry room or kitchen... and it would be our luck, to spend all this money updating the place and have it burn down a few months later. So, thank goodness for safer electric, and smoke detectors everywhere.
I'm not allowed to build my own house, until my kids are out of this one. Then, I'll get one with lots of space, and a layout condusive to family time. When it's just my husband and I. But, I'm going to make sure this one isn't neglected. And just because it was "good enough" for the generations before, doesn't mean it has to be good enough for me. If I'm here for 25 years, I'm not doing bandaids, I'm doing surgery. I hope to leave this place better than it was when I started. And our checking account is reflecting that :)
By the way, it'll be done before baby #2 arrives. :)
Take care of your house, improve upon it when you can. It's your home, you should want to spend time here. And even with the noise and the dust, I'm liking it a little more each day.
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
toy blocks, in the wall...
Through out the remodel process (and this is JUST THE KITCHEN), we've found a few things, and scratched our heads, wondering how in the world it got there. First, we discovered water damage, and signs of an electrical fire. We found a recipe card, and then, a dead bird, that had been behind the drywall. How did a bird get drywalled over way back in 1950?
After today, I assume, a child was around during the drywall process, and thought it'd be funny to put it there. For three weeks, we've had a cutout in our hallway, that was going to be for light switches, but then it was discovered, we could connect the old, low voltage system, to the new can lights in the hall, and all 8 of the hall switches would run them, so it's going to get patched. For three weeks, it's been unmolested by my 2 1/2 year old, this open hole, that he can reach up to, if he streches. But today, while the drywall guys work in the kitchen, he fills his tractor wagon with blocks, and drives it up and down the hall, and today he notices, really notices, that hole. What to put in that hole? Hmm? How about some blocks. Why not. I am not sure how many blocks got dropped down that hole before he noticed they were not retrievable. He asked me to get them out. And really, the only way to get them out, would be to punch another hole, this time, at the bottom, to reach in and retrieve them. That's not going to happen.
So, I've decided I need to buy a journal, and keep track of things we do to this house. Summer 2009, reattach all drywall with screws, get it all textured. Uncover the original wood floors, and have them refinished. Janurary 2012, put in the water filtration system, for the whole house (yeah, right, our plumbing is so screwey, we're lucky anything gets filtered). Spring 2012, pour a new patio in the back, for the hot tub. Late winter, early spring 2013, gut the kitchen, insulate the two exterior walls in the kitchen, rewire the kitchen and laundry room, add whole house smoke detectors, replumb the whole house, seal up some toy blocks in the wall between the hallway and the living room. I might as well do this, because this house belongs to my husbands family, and it will be passed on to our children, to raise a family in, if they choose. Which is half the reason we are doing all these updates to it. For them.
After today, I assume, a child was around during the drywall process, and thought it'd be funny to put it there. For three weeks, we've had a cutout in our hallway, that was going to be for light switches, but then it was discovered, we could connect the old, low voltage system, to the new can lights in the hall, and all 8 of the hall switches would run them, so it's going to get patched. For three weeks, it's been unmolested by my 2 1/2 year old, this open hole, that he can reach up to, if he streches. But today, while the drywall guys work in the kitchen, he fills his tractor wagon with blocks, and drives it up and down the hall, and today he notices, really notices, that hole. What to put in that hole? Hmm? How about some blocks. Why not. I am not sure how many blocks got dropped down that hole before he noticed they were not retrievable. He asked me to get them out. And really, the only way to get them out, would be to punch another hole, this time, at the bottom, to reach in and retrieve them. That's not going to happen.
So, I've decided I need to buy a journal, and keep track of things we do to this house. Summer 2009, reattach all drywall with screws, get it all textured. Uncover the original wood floors, and have them refinished. Janurary 2012, put in the water filtration system, for the whole house (yeah, right, our plumbing is so screwey, we're lucky anything gets filtered). Spring 2012, pour a new patio in the back, for the hot tub. Late winter, early spring 2013, gut the kitchen, insulate the two exterior walls in the kitchen, rewire the kitchen and laundry room, add whole house smoke detectors, replumb the whole house, seal up some toy blocks in the wall between the hallway and the living room. I might as well do this, because this house belongs to my husbands family, and it will be passed on to our children, to raise a family in, if they choose. Which is half the reason we are doing all these updates to it. For them.
Tuesday, March 19, 2013
Creative Cooking part 1
With the Kitchen being gutted for a total renovation, and me not wanting to figure out how to move the stove back upstairs, from the basement, I've got a limited arsenal to cook with. I've got the BBQ Grill (haven't used it yet), a panini press/griddle, an electric skillet, and a crock pot. I've got a microwave, too, but I don't like microwave cooking. The chest freezer makes for great prep space, and my gadgets sit nicely while I cook.
Spaghetti:
So, did you know, you can freeze your spaghetti sauce? I did, and luckily I typically make 2 batches each time I make it, so I had some frozen, just ready for use. I put it in the crock pot, and let it heat all day. Why not all day? I knew I wanted spaghetti, the day before, so I was ready. I didn't even thaw the sauce completly, first, just dumped it in. When it came time to cook the noodles, I grabbed my electric skillet. It holds water, it heats up a lot faster than my old stove ever did, and in less than 10 minutes, I had noodles, ready for the sauce. It was wonderful!
Chili:
Really, for me, the best way to do chili is in the crock pot. When I cook it on the stove, it always wants to stick to the bottom. Take your chili recipe, and put it in the crock pot. Cook your meat first, use the electric skillet if you don't have a cook top :) Let it cook on low all day, or high for about 3 or 4 hours.
Sandwiches, Gourmet:
Any sandwich, any bread, and a panini press, is an amazing combination. Some mustard and miracle whip mixed up to make a nice little sauce, a few types of deli meat (several types of ham is kiler!), some tomatoes, some nice dark green lettuces, or spinach leaves, press for a few minutes, and you are a master of the laundry room kitchen!!!
BBQ Beef:
Again, the only way I do this, is in the crock pot. A hunk of beef roast, and sauce. Sauce: Katchup, worchesire sauce, a little liquid smoke, mustard, and some brown sugar. Cook on low all day (or if you forget, just do high for 3 or 4 hours), throw it on some hoagie buns, and viola, you're a lean, mean, bbqing machine!
Stuffed Pork Chops:
Luckily, HyVee had these all prepared for me. I cooked them on the panini press, and I cooked them at high. I don't reccomend High, maybe medium would be better, the outisdes got a little tough, but the flavor was delicious. I added a side of Rice Pilaf (cooked in the electric skillet) and a spinach salad. All my meals come with a salad, or a fruit salad.
This is just what I've done, so far, along with Schwan's Chicken patties (those are pretty good on the panini press, too), and Schwan's fish sticks. The fish sticks cook up really nicely in the electric skillet, foil on the bottom, lid on the top, cook about 5 minutes longer than the package suggests. Delicious!
Hope that some of you find these ideas helpful! :)
Spaghetti:
So, did you know, you can freeze your spaghetti sauce? I did, and luckily I typically make 2 batches each time I make it, so I had some frozen, just ready for use. I put it in the crock pot, and let it heat all day. Why not all day? I knew I wanted spaghetti, the day before, so I was ready. I didn't even thaw the sauce completly, first, just dumped it in. When it came time to cook the noodles, I grabbed my electric skillet. It holds water, it heats up a lot faster than my old stove ever did, and in less than 10 minutes, I had noodles, ready for the sauce. It was wonderful!
Chili:
Really, for me, the best way to do chili is in the crock pot. When I cook it on the stove, it always wants to stick to the bottom. Take your chili recipe, and put it in the crock pot. Cook your meat first, use the electric skillet if you don't have a cook top :) Let it cook on low all day, or high for about 3 or 4 hours.
Sandwiches, Gourmet:
Any sandwich, any bread, and a panini press, is an amazing combination. Some mustard and miracle whip mixed up to make a nice little sauce, a few types of deli meat (several types of ham is kiler!), some tomatoes, some nice dark green lettuces, or spinach leaves, press for a few minutes, and you are a master of the laundry room kitchen!!!
BBQ Beef:
Again, the only way I do this, is in the crock pot. A hunk of beef roast, and sauce. Sauce: Katchup, worchesire sauce, a little liquid smoke, mustard, and some brown sugar. Cook on low all day (or if you forget, just do high for 3 or 4 hours), throw it on some hoagie buns, and viola, you're a lean, mean, bbqing machine!
Stuffed Pork Chops:
Luckily, HyVee had these all prepared for me. I cooked them on the panini press, and I cooked them at high. I don't reccomend High, maybe medium would be better, the outisdes got a little tough, but the flavor was delicious. I added a side of Rice Pilaf (cooked in the electric skillet) and a spinach salad. All my meals come with a salad, or a fruit salad.
This is just what I've done, so far, along with Schwan's Chicken patties (those are pretty good on the panini press, too), and Schwan's fish sticks. The fish sticks cook up really nicely in the electric skillet, foil on the bottom, lid on the top, cook about 5 minutes longer than the package suggests. Delicious!
Hope that some of you find these ideas helpful! :)
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