chanie's Profile

I first encountered this when, as a child, my grandmother sent me to buy some that she could use to make some sort of balm for her swollen legs. Unfortunately, I can no longer ask her about it and am curious about this non-culinary usage. Anybody else use or see it used, in this way?

I will say that I love the pink color, when cooked, and it is great mixed with apples and pear.

As for other non-culinary inspiration, see the excellent ( if slow) movie "El Sol del Membrillo" about the Spanish painter Antonio Lopez trying to paint the quinces on a tree in his yard.

i had my 5 year old write the names of the spices on tape and stuck them on the top of the jar so i can find them in a drawer more easily.
he's 11 now, and the tape looks kind of old, but I love the little kid handwriting, and occasionally misspelled name.

my kids have been doing a lot of the things mentioned above since they were younger and now, at 11 and 13, sometimes ask me to clear out of the kitchen so they can make dinner or bake. they call me back for "Super-vision!" when they need to handle something that they dont feel comfortable with or deal with the stove etc.
They will both find recipes or make up combinations that work well. My 13 year old daughter looked up her favorite cookie recipe online and taught it to her grandmother last time she was at her house to visit, and my 11 year old son is constantly cutting up salads for snacks after school.
For those of you with little ones - hang in there - they get (slightly) less messy - or at least you can also teach them to wash up after themselves. At this point, that is considered part of the job.
Definitely a life skill I'm proud to have passed on.

does anyone know what the real story is with dried fruit and braces? my daughter was told not to eat dried fruit and nuts with braces on, and it was a favorite to take to school for snacks.
she sometimes eats things that are softer, or chews carefully.
and while i agree that fresh fruit is better, she has a long day at school, so the dried holds better for a snack at the end of the day.

(and - agreed on the language - i usually make the snacks since i enjoy cooking/food stuff more, but the gendered language an role assumptions is disturbing)

i've also done potted herbs for a friend who i knew wanted to start a kitchen garden on their new porch.
otherwise, i'll never forget the friend who brought us dinner the first night we moved into our new apartment. we had gotten caught up in unpacking before we realized that all the stored withing walking distance were closed, and we had no food around! she knocked on the door with a huge salad and cheese and when we asked how to thank her, she said 'pay it forward to the next person who moves in'
was lovely.

gorgeous. i've been considering doing something similar, but the fact that you used your grandmother's scraps makes it all the more meaningful. just lovely.

when watching some episodes recently, i was trying to figure out what is going on to the left of the built in ovens. stovetop? but there is one on the island. oven? but there are two next to it. thoughts? grill? i'm stumped.

grain or bean salads. using dried lentils or dried chickpeas makes it cheap. we do a couscous and chickpea salad for potluck bbqs, and people always ask for the recipe.
couscous (or bulghur), chickpeas, scallions or red onion. can put in red peppers (or leave out due to cost). dress with lemon, olive oil, curry powder, salt. you can improvise, but that's the basic idea.
lentil salads are also super easy and cheap - can even just do lentils, red onion, and a dressing. both are hits with vegetarians too.

i'm thinking you could also add a shelf, or at the very least, another piece of wood on the bottom, to store a couple books or games.

we've done couscous (the kind that cooks with boiling water), and a stew - a quick take along one is a can of chickpeas, can of tomatoes, and baby spinach - dump it all in a pot, cook (doesnt take long) and serve on top of the couscous.
if you are lucky enough to be near a farm stand or market, you can pick up fresh veggies and do the same. we liked the chickpeas as a non meat protein alternative, but could do a quicker cooking lentil instead.