diertac's Profile

Make your own with thrift-store vases, dinnerware and glassware! Very inexpensive, easy and awesome. Keep everything together permanently with a little epoxy. See this post from CraftyNest:

http://www.craftynest.com/2008/10/repurposed-cake-stands/

Amen sauceykat!

In a recent Alton Brown episode (Tender is the Loin or something like that) he explained that he preferred garlic powder in a pork tenderloin marinade because the powder infuses the liquid in a way chopped or mince garlic can't.

So, I made it and broke out the garlic powder for the first time in a long time and I liked it. The marinade had a distinct garlic tone, but not overpowering or harsh from raw garlic. It was even and consistent throughout the marinade as well. A fine choice for marinades or liquids that need consistent garlic flavor, I think.

They work decently (not great), but a big problem is the exhausting/venting (our downdraft didn't vent out, just recycled the air) and more importantly, the grease hits your cooktop as the greasy air is pulled down. Gets to be pretty messy.

We opted to build in a real vent hood, that was above and vented to the outside. MUCH nicer.

Yikes, I had a Yellow Tail merlot that was so bad I won't drink another wine from YT again. This is not meant as a flame, it was possibly just a bad vintage!

I also avoid two-buck Chuck. I used to drink it, but one New Year's Eve we started with a really nice, old vines chateauneuf du pape. When we ran out of that we opened up the only other bottle I had, the Charles Shaw. Now I can't get over the fact that it tasted like pickles in comparison to the fancy wine. That'll teach me! :)

What I do for inexpensive wines at home is go for something like Hogue which is surprisingly drinkable, plus it has a screw top, and it's under $10. Of course, a host or hostess might not appreciate the screw top as much as I do.

I constantly am searching for sub-$10 wines to try, and I have found some really good ones. One of my latest faves is on sale at HT for $9.99, Cupcake cellars, or something such as that. I also like Frontera's merlots, cabs and blends, which are very reasonably priced as well.

This looks similar to a recipe I found in Cooking @ Home, although they also called for mashed sweet potatoes to drizzle the blueberry glaze over. I seem to recall the other recipe called for a little beef broth, so it's definitely a different one.

It was delicious, but the plate looked like someone had overadjusted the saturation! :)

Bet this will be a great recipe too.

zeven13 needs to get a clue. Take English lessons.

Is a pound still essentially two dollars? Because $3 for a slice of anything seems a little steep...

I reeled from sticker shock the last time I was in England, in early 2008. I want to go back, but I'm not sure my wallet can afford it.

I love the train case idea! You have me on eBay right now searching for one. I have always put together toiletries in a basket for my guests, but putting them in a vintage train case takes it to a whole new level. It's like opening a gift from the past.

My own touches:
1. We redid our guest room in the earthy red warm tone to match Rousillon in France. I loved Provence, and so the room is completely decorated, top to bottom, in a Provencale fashion.

2. Above the guest bed we have vinyl lettering that says, in French: "Family and friends are the flowers in the garden of life."

3. My photos from our trip to Provence adorn all the walls of the room.

4. I found bottled water, with its own cup sealed on top, at a local Marshall's. I bought several of them to put out when guests come.

5. I have a luggage holder, the kind you see in hotels, in the room as well.

6. I lay out an assortment of travel magazines, food magazines, Oprah, etc. for those who want to read.

7. Going the extra mile for "creature comforts" I save the toothbrushes and floss I get at my dentist's visits to include in my baskets for guests. I also have slippers that were laid out for us at boutique hotels, still sealed for guests.

The only problem with all of this fanciness is that guests don't usually *use* it. They tend to want to leave it, as I did, perfect and unused. No one's used the slippers or water, preferring to run downstairs to get their own water in a glass, but I guess it's good to have it out and available.

I also disagree on the nonstick. Things like fried eggs, etc. stick horribly in spite of all my best efforts in my regular pans. I have to echo Tiamat_the_Red's recommendation as well, to buy an inexpensive 10" or 12" nonstick skillet. It's not a lifetime purchase, but it's good to get you started.

Speaking of getting started, I would also throw in the recommendation to purchase a 10" Lodge cast iron skillet. Or, better yet, locate an old, old, really well-seasoned one at a garage sale. Even if it's not really well-seasoned, I heard a rumor that older Lodge skillets season better than the new ones. Use it for cooking bacon, pan frying and things like that. Avoid cooking acidic foods (tomato sauce, etc.) in it. Google "seasoning a cast iron skillet" and read up on how to treat it right. This will eventually become your lifetime "nonstick" skillet.

If you find yourself with enough money to buy a set of real stainless steel cookware, but not enough for "All Clad", then check out BJ's, Sam's or Costco. I purchased a fantastic set of 18/10 stainless steel cookware at Costco five or so years ago, for hundreds less than what a similar set of All Clad would have cost me. The cookware is exceptionally high quality, and I actually preferred the handle design over that of All Clad, but because it's not a "name brand" it cost much less. Hey, someone had to make it and I wouldn't be surprised at all if All Clad created it for Costco's Kirkland Signature line.

As your cookware collection expands, you might want to consider a high quality wok one day. Not necessary right away, and it was the last purchase we made to complete our set of kitchen cookware. If you want a wok, I would suggest purchasing it directly from the Wok Shop (http://www.wokshop.com) rather than buying some fancy dancy overpriced Williams Sonoma wok, or a knock off. The Wok Shop sells authentic woks, and they've got a hand hammered one at a fraction of the cost of fancier cookware stores. And it's much higher in quality. It is also a piece that requires care and love.

Whatever you do, avoid Circulon! :)

(Glad I can finally share all the stuff I learned in my 20's from trying to outfit my kitchen...)