Carolyn'sKitchen's Profile

I also have the Le Creuset butter dish, two actually, and like them very much but good butter dishes are VERY hard to find. My big complaint is that the ceramic ones, (including the Le Creuset actually) do not glaze the underside of the lid. The oils from the butter weep up into the pottery of the lid and sometimes actually show as oily spots underneath the glaze. So far, this hasn't happened with my current dishes. I like the idea of a stainless steel one and I think "Trudeau" might make one? I actually have one that belonged to my mother that is silver and looks like a dome on legs. Half of the dome slides back revealing the butter sitting in a glass dish underneath! Now I'm thinking I should dig that out for special occasions. It has the advantage of never getting butter on the lid (a pet peeve of mine) because of its unique construction. :)

I too would appreciate knowing how to make whipped cream with an immersion blender!! Mine gathers dust in the cabinet because I can't come up with uses for it, and also because I tend to make small batches of things and the immersion blender is very powerful and splatters all over the place. Unfortunately, it doesn't have the measuring cup attachment which might have made things easier. Any ideas would be appreciated!!

The article we are commenting on was discussing Thanksgiving and family, as was I. Our family includes my husband's mother and six siblings, their spouses, our nieces and nephews and their partners and children, our own children, etc. We serve turkey (raised by a friend), stuffing, mashed potatoes, 3 vegetables, homemade rolls and pies and cookies for dessert. Anyone can bring an additional dish if they desire but there is no way I would cater to specific tastes. Dinner is served buffet style so people can help themselves to what they find acceptable and ignore what they don't. An intimate dinner party where specific people are invited would be a different story of course.
However, I still believe that food and holidays should be about being together and should not become divisive because of specific food choices that our affluent society can afford to indulge in. I like to buy food responsibly but I don't expect others to cater to that and will happily eat whatever they are kind enough to provide when I am in their home. The obvious exception to this would be medical necessity if that was an issue.

I vote for the "Snow" apple that was popular when I was a child and appeared in lunch boxes everywhere. It is smaller, with a snow white interior, and an excellent crunch. I have found them at markets and farm stands but never see it in the grocery store.

I agree with lazy_lurker regarding the upper cabinet doors. I find the look cluttered and it makes the space look smaller. Love the black counter tops though. I'd like black myself even though I know it would show crumbs and dust so much more than a neutral colour.

I love the idea of using Nice biscuits for the crust!! We have no chocolate graham crackers in Canada either. Definitely giving this a try!

I have always loved the idea of the old kitchen to which "modern" touches have been added over time, in the way that farm families did for generations. You end up with antique things, retro things and up-to-date things all coexisting beautifully together. The first kitchen shown is especially beautiful and I would love to see more of all of them.