Half Hour Meals Discussion: Can't Live Without It!

Theresa111 on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Theresa111 — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 19:29:43 +0000

I can see it too, Penny.

Theresa111 on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Theresa111 — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 19:28:52 +0000

Tony you are so lucky your Mom cooks because mine hardly ever did. Her Mother and Husband, then Melody and I did all of the cooking. Still, I do miss being taken care of in this sense of dinner on the table. Better make sure to take her to the ballet, movies, get her favorite chocolates and upon occasion ... take her out dancing. Mothers like that. :)

Theresa111 on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Theresa111 — Sat, 26 Sep 2009 19:26:04 +0000

I'll pay you to ship me some candied grapefruit. You can use it toward our fancy mixer. :D

Anniepooh on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Anniepooh — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 08:12:52 +0000

LOL, he needs to take photos is he does it!

Penny on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Penny — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 08:09:00 +0000

I got a laugh from the visual of SugarPies setting up his little grapefruit stand at the curb!! Awwww.....so cute!

sugarpies on 'Can't Live Without It!'

sugarpies — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 06:25:10 +0000

I've got an old recipe from Charleston Receipts for a Candied Grapefruit that I'll be making. But, I've been watching the tree in the backyard and thinking... no way I'll be able to use all this grapefruit! Maybe I should set up a grapefruit stand and make some money for a KitchenAid Pro Mixer!!

Arcticulates on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Arcticulates — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 23:42:57 +0000

My electric skillet.. It seems to cook small things like omlets and chicken strips, I use it all the time and it is getting a little worn on the edges, but I just love it.

Arcticulates on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Arcticulates — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 23:41:12 +0000

This is one of my biggies.. My last one wore out, and I have to get a new one, and am tossing around getting a all gadget included big one or a smaller handy one to keep on the counter for quicky crunching.. lol.. Maybe I will get both! sigh! :)

Anniepooh on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Anniepooh — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 21:30:00 +0000

You need someone to cook for you - can't you get those dogs to learn a thing or two? ;)

tonyb on 'Can't Live Without It!'

tonyb — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 21:28:32 +0000

My mom's cooking :)

Theresa111 on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Theresa111 — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 20:47:29 +0000

I got the Saveur magazine at a $12.00 price for a year just to try to win one of the new Kitchen Aid Mixers they were giving away. I even told them mine was sounding a little cranky. I haven't received one of the prizes and I have a sneaking suspicion that I won't either. Time to save up for a new heavy duty one. I am with you, Buck, save until can afford one.

Theresa111 on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Theresa111 — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 20:43:23 +0000

Annie, When I removed Mama's bowl from the dishwasher, I snapped two photos. See ... I am so sentimental.

I eat from this bowl a few times a week. I feel closer to her this way.

Penny on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Penny — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 11:20:15 +0000

P.S. Theresa...I like the yard sale idea (sorry Buck KitchenAid not going up for sale..LOL!!)

Penny on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Penny — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 11:19:05 +0000

I remember green stamps too! When I was a newlywed we had no money....I saved and saved my stamps to get a little charcoal grill that my poor husband couldn't put together! We ended up using it without the legs because they wouldn't stay on!

Theresa111 on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Theresa111 — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 10:33:48 +0000

Maybe you can photo some, I get to choose, pay for shipping some to me and make some cookies, using your cutters. I then send the cutters back to you, with a tin of cookies for you and your family?

Anniepooh on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Anniepooh — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 10:05:23 +0000

Oh, Green Stamps! I remember saving those (and prying them apart if they got damp) when I was younger. We have cookie jars in the family that are being passed down - very fun!

I also have way too many cookie cutters - got a whole bunch at a yard sale last year, some of them are plastic ones from the 70's with the Peanuts characters. Really neat! I love the old tin ones, though, those are my favorite.

sugarpies on 'Can't Live Without It!'

sugarpies — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 10:02:21 +0000

I remember Green Stamps, Theresa! I loved going to the "Green Stamp Store" with my grandmother and watching them roll your "purchase" along this metal track and present it to you at the counter! LOL (God, the things from childhood!)

I love my little coffee grinder for spices too! In fact, I use it to crush the almonds for my Maple Almond Cake! I do want a KitchenAid pro mixer, but alas, can't afford such a luxury at the moment.

sugarpies on 'Can't Live Without It!'

sugarpies — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 09:58:25 +0000

My grandmother had one of those too. I really like the single piece ones though. Lot easier to control and use, IMO. My mother sold Tupperware for years and she had one that you could fill with ice water. It was really nice because the chill helped keep dough from sticking to the surface. With my hardwood one, though, I just flour it a bit and when I'm done wash it well and then rub it very lightly with a little olive oil to keep the wood from drying out too much here in AZ and cracking.

As for sleep, I'm naturally a night owl, so I often end up waking up around 1am if I go to bed earlier and then feeling sleepy about dawn. Too many years working nights at a Trauma Center. ;)

Theresa111 on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Theresa111 — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 09:56:06 +0000

Penny, Cookie Jars! I had my very first cookie jar, which later disappeared, bought with S&H Green Stamps. For those of you who do not even know what I am talking about, they were little stamps on the sides of manufacturers boxes. Cut them out and then Elmer's Glue them into the booklet. Once you achieved the allotted amount, you could go to an outlet to redeem what you had been saving for.

I too, have many gadgets. The do no work, but lire in wait for me to resuscitate them from the darkened shelves or drawers. Really, I could give away 2/3 of them and never miss them. Mayhap I will have a good clear out and make another cook a happy camper. I did buy them with the best of intentions, you must understand. I didn't mean to be greedy, I just thought I needed them to make the job easier.

Oh Wow! We can have a yard sale in the middle of November! Get a Paypal account, list your stuff with price and photo. Then if someone wants it calculate the shipping and send it off. Not like Esty or EBay as this would be a Private Yard Sale, open only to members!

What do you think?

Theresa111 on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Theresa111 — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 09:49:57 +0000

What a good idea a rubber base for the mixing bowls. There is that word bowls, again. Bowls. Dont'cha just love 'em? Wow, looks as if you get up when we're going to sleep. I like this morning thing. Perhaps I'll get up earlier tomorrow. I recall my (Gmthr) Mama's wooden rolling pin with light green handles. The pin kept dislodging itself from the center rod to make it impossible to work with. I do believe it went to old rolling pin heaven. :(

Theresa111 on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Theresa111 — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 09:44:47 +0000

Hey CA, I am so with you there. My Kitchen Aid just needs a tune-up and it will probable keep going for another 17 years. It looks brand new, because I treat it with kid gloves, but it is beginning to sound labored. Today, I plan to make bread and hope it has the steam in it to get through the kneading process. If not, I will photograph the hard elbow grease action.

Theresa111 on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Theresa111 — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 09:39:54 +0000

Annie, We had a major flood in our basement of the house we are selling in February 2003. Freezing and almost knee deep. So many 100 year old family photographs were ruined or messed up a bit. Most of Mama's cookbooks with her handwritten notations were gone! This traumatic event made me learn to never trust precious stored items to the basement. But I suppose others who have experienced weather damages thought much the same thing, even if they were on the second floor. Perhaps storing them in waterproof containers would be the safest way to take care of them. I just wish I still had her books. I only have one of my Daddy's recipes and it is in his handwriting along with my 10 year old girlish penmanship. I cherish such non-monetary items. Memories are the finest treasures we get.

I have a THING about bowls! I would rather eat out of a bowl than off of a plate, unless I am in a restaurant. Bowls, bowls, bowls. Oh, start a discussion about bowls and let's see how many cooks have this same penchant for this crockery.

Anniepooh on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Anniepooh — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 09:39:29 +0000

Penny that's so funny about the Crockpots. I have 2 Crockpots - different sizes and the KitchenAid (someone GAVE it to me!) that I love. I still have my SaniSafe carbon blade knife I bought for school - I love it and would love to have a Sabatier, but this knife is so awesome. I sharpen it with a stone I have and it's as good as the day I bought it; 16 years ago for $12!

Penny on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Penny — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 08:40:31 +0000

Like Anne, I have some that are practical and some that are guilty pleasures (I admit I have a slight addiction to gadgets). So, on the practical side, there would be my Wusthoff chefs knife, KitchenAid professional mixer, Le Creuset 5 qt. pot, microplane, kitchen tongs, wooden spoons, and balloon whisk. As for guilty pleasures, I would have to say the coffee grinder I use for spices, immersion blender, 4 different sizes of crockpots, rottisserie, and vacuum sealer.

Most cherished possesions would be my grandmother's recipe box with recipes in her handwriting, and her stoneware cookie jar.

Anniepooh on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Anniepooh — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 08:21:59 +0000

Oh, now - Grandma's stuff - I've blogged about before. I have my great-grandmother's original pottery bowls (think tan with brown strip across the top edge), her wooden rolling pin - handles attached and non-movable, original hand-written recipe cards from her - that sort of thing. I cherish those items so much. I also have an affection for bowls - I have SO many and I buy more all the time - more like an obsession!

Fun stuff to have, Theresa!

sugarpies on 'Can't Live Without It!'

sugarpies — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 05:14:27 +0000

My hardwood rolling pin (French style not the rolly handled American version). My cast iron skillet (Southerners cannot cook cornbread without one). My lovely tartine pan and spring pan given me by a dear friend after many years of hard use in his kitchen when he moved back to NYC. My copy of Charleston Receipts and my copy of some of my Mama's recipes. My handled mixing bowl with pouring spout and rubber base so I don't have to chase the bowl across the counter when mixing. Wooden skewers that I use for everything from cake testers (I always lose the nice ones for some reason.) to mixing icing and dribbling on cookies.

CookingAsshole on 'Can't Live Without It!'

CookingAsshole — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 00:44:05 +0000

My beloved food processor.

Theresa111 on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Theresa111 — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 22:43:06 +0000

Never knew there was a croquembouche mold. Chef made us assemble without one. He never let on. Where might you get one, I would like to see what it looks like.

My Mama's (G.Mother) rectangular turquoise blue vegetable dish. It has scars and a burnt spot on the bottom from the stove. Mama always ate her cereal and soup out of it and it is considered one of my most precious possessions. Better than gems and gold.

My sister has her cast iron, but lightweight cooking pot, complete with an old worn out replaced wooden handle, which still turns, so one must be careful to hold the handle and the part where it is attached to the side of the pot, when pouring out or straining from it. The lid fits well, but years ago the knob broke off, so my sister threaded a pretty light purplish bead through a strong bobby pin and then looped it through and twisted it into place. I covet this pot, and she has it written in her will that I get it passed down to me. I learned to cook in that pot from when I was 3.5 years old.

Measuring tools, special knife, serrated w/ orange handle. Pampered Chef vegetable peeler, zester with handle, balloon whisk, candy thermometer, small special material cutting board and pastry brush. Kitchen Aid mixer. High temperature pink sparkly rubber scraper.

Anniepooh on 'Can't Live Without It!'

Anniepooh — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 19:59:32 +0000

We all have things in our kitchen that are must-haves like pots and pans, knives etc. but we all also have things that are very handy and we would miss greatly if we didn't have them available. We also all have things we don't need at all but love having regardless - guilty pleasures.

The few things I have that are so helpful I wouldn't want to be without them are my small grater - for garlic and nutmeg and very finely shredded cheese and my tongs, which I use for everything - including stirring.

The 'guilty' pieces are the mortar & pestles: I have a very small ceramic one and a suribachi (Japanese style), but I'd like a molcajete, an olive wood mortar & pestle and a marble one like one I had but somehow lost.

If I can ever get my hands on a croquembouche mold - I'll do so. There's absolutely no need for one, but I want one anyway :)