Bibliovore's Profile

I like the looks of pretty much everything -- especially the clock over the sink, and the planter mugs -- except the silding-door pantry. I think with that layout, I'd've added a door in front of the washer-dryer and put cabinet doors on the rest of the shelving rather than blocking off that additional window. But maybe the light that comes in there is at exactly the wrong angle when they tend to be in the kitchen?

Several years ago, NPR posted a fantastic piece called "Cook's Commencement: Mastering a Meal for One." The premise was that new graduates often need to learn to cook for themselves; the article includes extremely newbie-friendly instructions and tips plus six basic recipes, as well as suggestions for how to change them up and a good beginning equpiment list. The recipes are indeed for one, but they scale up easily to feed as many as you wish.

Of course, there's no one right or best way to get started. Enjoy the experience and all the wonderful meals you'll be making!

The easiest way I've found to juice key limes is to cut them in half and squeeze them in a (thoroughly cleaned, of course) garlic press.

My grandmother sometimes used to change up her key lime pies by making them with a ladysfinger crust. The contrast with the tart filling is quite nice, and the rounded tips form a lovely rim around the pie.

We got a very similar one for last Thanksgiving, for about $60 at a local Target. Ours also has little wheels to make it easier to tote around when folded. It stows neatly behind the sofa when we don't need it, and a tablecloth pretties it up just fine. Definitely a great space solution!

To the "Look for good bones" suggestion, I would add to know your own limits when it comes to refinishing/repurposing items. Buying a great piece to redo is wonderful if you have the wherewithal and time/energy to complete it, but it can become a headache if it instead sits around being an eyesore instead of getting redone. A friend of mine has a room full of such unfinished projects.

An old friend of mine's family had a raw-milk dairy farm. They made their own butter from it, and kept it out on the counter. I was startled when I first saw it and asked, "Doesn't it go bad?" They smiled, and said no, it did not. With that in mind, I've always kept mine out on the counter in a standard covered butter dish. In all the years I've done so, it's only gone bad once: when I was away for a month in summer and forgot to put the butter back in the fridge before leaving.

So here's another vote to skip the hassle of the bell or the unspreadableness of the fridge (as long as your kitchen isn't meltingly hot) and just go with a butter dish that you like.

This is a great idea. The closest we come to that is sharing actual cooking space: friends sometimes go to homes of those with bigger kitchens or equipment to cook sometihng, sharing the bounty with the owner.

We share some non-entertainment supplies and know-how, too. We have a carpet cleaner, one friend has electrical-testing equipment, one has a truck, one has a power washer, one can fix almost anything computer-related, and so on; we all help out as we can.

I'm with you at least part of the way, coconutandberries. I love chocolate and usually keep some good stuff around for nibbling, but many desserts with chocolate in them leave me unhappy. Somehow the flavor just isn't always the same. But things with chunks of chocolate in them, sure, yum, great. And I rarely object to chocolate cake, even if I often prefer other flavors.

How far past the exposed surface does oxidation occur? That is, how large does a chunk of cheese need to be before its center will have the same (?) hasn't-hit-air taste as if it were from a fresh wheel?

I think one big thing is to plan other homes for things than on the kitchen counter. If you have somewhere else to routinely place your keys or mail or whatever, you can put them there instead, either immediately or in an end-of-each-day clean-up sweep. For stuff like Food n' Focus mentions, maybe a wall-mounted shelf or mail sorter with pegs to hold purse and keys? Or drop them in a different room, or in a designated basket?

Ros, what about a fold-up rack that could stow away when not full, or a wall-mount one to go over the sink? For a really small footprint, you might search for things designed for RV or boat use.