tasterspoon's Profile

In my transition from college to adulthood to family life, I had a blender, then a mini prep food processor (gift), then an immersion blender (hand me down), then a food processor (wedding gift). That progression worked for me and I recommend it, though a multitasker like the immersion blender that also has a blender jar or processor attachment could be a great way to go. I still use my blender more than any of the other items.

I too would vote for a straight up, full size (not single-serving) blender for frosty drinks, soups and purees. That seems the most practical for a college student. The food processor really depends on what you're trying to make. Its big advantage is dicing/shredding lots of food at once, saving a lot of hand/knife time. But if it's tiny, you're either making small batches anyway that you could replicate by hand or with a blender (e.g. pesto) or you're making tons of batches (I once made pumpkin risotto with my mini prep and it took forever). I never really needed or used my big food processor till I was making family sized portions of things. And the immersion blender, while taking up zero real estate and really handy for hot soup, doesn't do much else for me. In fact, when we moved two years ago, I mislaid it and haven't really missed it. A couple times I've made soup and halfheartedly looked for it, then just pulled out the blender.

The scented toilet paper holder story is hilarious. So many of mine have been triggered by others' comments. This is such a great thread.

We knew one family that had all of the following:
- bunk beds
- water beds
- laundry chute, for sure
- pinball machine
- in-ground pool
- oh my gosh, the old timey newspaper wallpaper! yes!
- an air hockey table
- an electric organ - the kind that would make various percussive rhythms, samba beats and what have you
- cable TV
- PONG
- snowmobiles!
- sugar cereals
- laminated place mats with activities, maps, etc.
- five kids all close in age, plus a constant parade of foster kids, so anyone and everyone was welcome, all the time, and there was always someone to play with
- when we all went up to their lakehouse every summer, all the boys would sleep in an actual moving truck

Visiting my grandparents was always a treat. They had
- a wet bar and the most amazing collection of swizzle sticks from all over the world; I'd play with them for hours
- sink sprayer, totally
- a separate bathtub and shower, which I thought was so cool, plus fully carpeted bathrooms
- his and hers walk-in closets
- an intercom system (connected to a radio and record player) throughout the house.
- that red and black electric shoe buffer thing!
- flocked wallpaper in the dining room.
- a rotary telephone where the ear and mouthpieces were separate
- my grandmother had a deep sewing basket full of smaller baskets with myriad buttons, pincushions, etc., and my grandfather (who owned a hardware store) had a FULLY stocked workbench with every kind of tool, saw, nail, screw, scrap wood...and a vise. I don't remember anyone telling us we couldn't use anything, either.
- My grandmother hated to cook, so sometimes when we stayed with them summer dinners would be nothing but watermelon. Or sweet corn. Or ice cream!

Nthing the window seat. I remember my brother and I accompanied my parents
when we were shopping for a home and went to a ton of open houses. Late in one day I realized I had lost my beloved baby doll. After some phoning around the baby doll was discovered in the hidden compartment beneath a window seat where I had spent the entire visit to one home.

Once, I went to play at a friend's house and her mom was doing the laundry and asked which one of us wanted to clean out the lint filter. I had never been offered this opportunity at home and didn't understand the appeal. But my friend stepped forward and showed me how to peel off the big wad of lint from the basket and I was hooked. I've loved that part of doing laundry ever since.

I have a jar problem. My husband loves this one kind of pickle (Milwaukee's) that comes in big, 32 oz jars that have a narrow mouth. I've been keeping them because it pains me to throw them away, and by now we have DOZENS, but they're really not very useful. They're not great for stock because the mouth is too narrow for easy fat skimming and because you can't get frozen stock out easily. I put craft supplies in some but they're too big for the small amounts of such items one usually collects and the small mouth, again, makes them impossible to reach into. Ditto spices. They're just so big.
Can anyone think of a way to make these practical, or should I just say sayonara and clear out my cupboards?

A silpat/exopat or similar silicone sheet liner. You'll never have to grease a cookie sheet again! To be able to cook things that would ordinarily stick, from meatballs to those lacey shredded cheese things, to anything toffee-ish, oh the freedom! I use my silpats constantly. Relatedly, I suggest a cookie sheet with no edges (I guess the edges technically make it a jelly roll pan anyway?) or at least big enough so that your silpats will lie flat.

I found a silpat equivalent that was very thin and cheap that I cut to the size of my toaster oven tray. My mom was visiting and threw it away and I've never found a replacement and I miss it almost daily.

Question: how much do you really have to plant to have real salads? I've tried this in the past with maybe one or two windowboxes' worth of seeds and have only been able to pick five or six leaves at a time, which does not a salad make. Maybe I'm not waiting long enough?

I like planting little edible flowers, like violas and nasturtiums, to pop in a salad. Even if you buy your basic greens, having flowers in your food is so inestimably gourmet!

I agree with those who see it as a fun challenge as a cook. My finest hour was planning a New Year's Eve dinner party a few years ago - we had a couple of omnivores, a couple of vegans, a raw foodist (vegan), a raw meatist (only raw meat/dairy/eggs) and a celiac (gluten free). And someone who didn't like mushrooms! I wanted to make sure everyone could eat at least two dishes and that no one felt singled out with a specialty dinner. The raw meatist was the toughest; I got stuck after carpaccio but fortunately she traveled with her own stash of ground beef. It was a lot of dishes, but a LOT of fun.

Practical question for those with bunk beds: how tall do your ceilings have to be? These rooms all look pretty tall, but it's hard to tell. I have a dream of future bunk beds, but we have eight foot ceilings and I want both kids to be able to sit up comfortably with a little headroom. Is there a rule of thumb for how much vertical space is good for a non-claustrophobic bunk bed?

Good tip on the fabric. I've been thinking I need oilcloth for some summer projects but am unenthused by the patterns online or the ones that are pretty are wicked expensive.

Ikea has a metal garlic press that is really good. It's the one where all the sections (including the handles) are cylindrical and the garlic section pops out. It gets nearly the whole clove through so there's little waste and comes completely clean in the dishwasher.

I'm also a fan of their metal tins in the kitchen section, sold as a nesting set of three, usually oval or rectangles. Wait for a pattern you like, they change all the time, grumble my mis-matched kitchen shelves. I like the tall ones for storing dry goods, and the flat ones in lieu of wrapping paper or for giving cookies.

I was all hot to trot about getting chickens as soon as we bought a house with a yard - I even signed up for a local chicken email list, attended council meetings and signed petitions when I learned the house we wanted was in an area with chicken laws in flux...but now that we've settled, I just don't know.

I love the idea of home-grown eggs, but am not sure about the amount of maintenance, medical care, flock drama as CharmCityCook mentioned, emotional toll of the fact that we live in a high traffic raccoon and hawk area and...what do you do when their laying life is through? Would it be emotionally ravaging to eat them? And are you even legally allowed to kill your own poultry? (Sorry, I don't mean to offend those who love their chickens, and maybe I would love mine like pets as well, I just...don't know!) As someone who killed several goldfish growing up and haven't been able to stomach taking on the responsibility for a fish ever again, I'm just afraid of little animals who can't tell me what they need. What if I make a big investment in an Eggloo or whatever and my dog turns out to be a chicken killer? Aaaugh!

I am going to file this away. We do try to leave something for our babysitter, but it stresses me out because I'm always rushing to get ready to leave (and part of the perk of going out is that I'm NOT supposed to be cooking that night)...and then she always leaves a pile of dishes in the sink, which I don't understand, since I never would have done that back in my day. But we'll keep having her since she lives just down the block. *sigh*