DanielleM's Profile

I've never used verjus, but I've been on the hunt since I saw it mentioned in a NY Times article last year. Thanks for the brand suggestion - now maybe the guy at my wine store will have a better idea of what I'm talking about!

So beautiful! Thanks so much for sharing the whole process! We're at the very early stages of designing our kitchen and I'm struggling/wondering if we'll have enough storage space when we're done. But then, is there really ever truly enough?? ;)

Yay to marble! I've been dreaming about marble countertops for years and with our imminent kitchen renovation, I knew I had to make a decision one way or another. We met with our kitchen designer for the first time 3 weeks ago and when he asked about our countertop preference, I took a breath and said 'marble', fully expecting him to try to talk me out of it. Needless to say, I was shocked when our designer said he used marble all the time and was always trying to convince people how great it was! I knew he was the guy for us right then and there! :)

My husband and I are in the very early stages of our kitchen renovation and I can't get enough of this series - thank you so much for all the informative posts!

As for our appliance preferences, we bought a new LG french-door style refrigerator when we moved in to our house 6 months ago and I absolutely love it. It's not counter depth, but I could never give up all that space, especially when we entertain. Our kitchen designer wasn't thrilled, but he's come up with some ways to make it seem less imposing.

We haven't bought our other appliances yet, but I'm seriously leaning towards the Thermador 6-burner range top (slide in, not drop in) becuz two of my sisters have them, love them and I've had the opportunity to cook on them and feel the same way. I'm also leaning towards the Thermador double wall ovens, 30" (for the same reasons), but can't decide if I really need a warming drawer. My one sis says she couldn't live w/o hers - any thoughts?

And finally, I've read many articles in Consumer Reports on kitchen renovations, but haven't found them that helpful. We did take their advice with our refridge, but there's next to no info on range tops and wall ovens and I found their info on IKEA cabinets conflicting. Thanks for the tip about GardenWeb!

I'm on the hunt for a light-ish dessert for Easter - something that won't compete with the big meal, but add a nice, sweet note. The tough part is that altho it's technically spring, here in the Midwest it's still pretty chilly!

Thanks for sharing your thoughful comment, kynnmorton! While I choose to live in the suburbs of Detroit, I love our fair city and all that it has to offer.

This sounds amazing! I've been looking for an excuse to replenish my supply of walnut oil - bingo!

We had a deacon's bench on one side of my family's kitchen table where we ate dinners most nights. As the youngest, I was stuck sitting on the bench with my Mom and let me tell you - I hated it. I couldn't move it closer to the table w/o my Mom's help and never felt comfortable.

Thankfully it had back support (probably best to keep me falling off as a kid), but the experience would have been even worse if I had to sit there with one or more of my sisters. Pandemonium!

Looks great! I love duck and I love pomegranate molasses (and finding new uses for it) - double win!

Wow, so exciting! We recently moved into our home and as we have no plans to go anywhere for a long time, there are no more excuses for not doing everything we can (aka, afford) to make it a place that we love AND is fully functional.

The main issue, of course, is the ktichen. It's original to the 1952 house tho someone replaced the carpeting (!) with a cheapo laminate and threw in (literally - there are 2 they never finished) some can lights in the ceiling. Our hope/plan is to completely renovate it - fingers crossed that we can do it this year. As we've never undertaken a renovation - or hired contractors - I'm really looking forward to this series!!