Just the Right Tools

Back when we were first married, living in our little 8' x 35' trailer, we had, obviously, very little space for possessions.  A couple of pans, a small set of dishes, a cookie sheet, and a hand mixer were all we needed in the kitchen, my sewing machine fit behind the rocking chair in its case when not in use, and Dan had a few tools in a little storage area attached to the front porch. Then we moved into a duplex, had a couple of babies, and of necessity, slowly began to acquire.  Mostly baby things. And more dishes.  We were still far from floating in money, however, so there was no splurging on luxury items, or even useful items of higher price.

Fast forward to now, and we're blessed with a number of very nice tools--in the sewing room, in the workshop, and in the kitchen.  And that's where we'll drop anchor today.

I have a strange love of kitchen items.  I know women who are incensed if they receive a kitchen item for a present, but I love it!  And I even love pots and pans. One such pan came into my possession in Boise a number of years ago. We were headed for some shopping in the Town Square Mall and entered through the back door of The Bon (now Macy's).  The back door leads right into the kitchen shop and there, on display, was a pan for poaching eggs.  It was gor-jeous!!  And, it was a very reasonable price. Sold!  

So shiny and beautiful!

I had attempted to poach eggs in a pan of boiling water, but I'm not a fan of stringy eggs.  I also had an insert that sat in a skillet, but it was awkward to remove the eggs.  This pan, however, makes egg removal a cinch. Just lift each individual cup...

Yup, I broke two putting them in the cups--first time ever!

...and plop them on the plate (or in this case, some hash browns).

Easy peasy.

Mash the eggs and mix, add some more pepper, and enjoy!

Having the right tool makes sweet work of fixing a quick and yummy breakfast!  ♥

February Update

We spent last weekend in my hometown.  Bruder Bear and Karen were up, niece Kirsten was over, and nephew JR flew in from his new job.  We had such a good visit with everyone, and even stayed over, in the room next door to BB and Karen's, at the hotel for two nights.  We spent the days at Mom and Dad's and we all pitched in and got some needed chores done.  It's amazing that at almost ninety-one and eighty-eight-and-a-half, they are still in their own home.  But there are many things that are simply beyond them now, and fortunately, John and Karen can simply say, "We're doing them."  I'm not so good or persistent at saying it.  

John, Dan and JR tackled chores of a Dad nature and Karen, Kirsten and I tackled the house.  The amazing thing is that when you have a group that gets along like we all do, the work seems more like fun and there were plenty of laughs as well as groans (some of us aren't as young as we used to be).  By Sunday night, things were looking great and Mom and Dad were so happy and thankful.  We all stopped back by Monday morning to enjoy the fruits of our labors, and to try to talk them into hiring some help with the yard and house.  I don't think we were very successful.  Hopefully we'll "inspire" them through hounding.  :-)

Meanwhile, here at the Resort, we've started working on some more much needed improvements.  The focus this time is our bedroom, the closet, and our bathroom.  Dan got started a few weeks ago, but it's been slow going due to his work schedule and other things that just pop up.  We gutted our small walk-in closet and he's been able to scrape the "popcorn" off the ceiling, retexture, and paint it.  Next up, we'll paint the walls and then redo the shelves and the hanging area.  But, we're planning to put down hard floors in the bedroom and closet, so I guess we'll have to pick that out so he can put it down in the closet before he does the shelving.  Hmmm...  Note to self:  get cracking on picking out flooring.  (The problem is, I hate to shop, almost never go to town, and it's pretty obvious that in order to pick out the floor, I need to do both.)

I know you'll find the following pictures too thrilling for words, but here's a couple of before looks at the closet:

As I mentioned, it's small, but neither one of us has a lot of clothes, so it works,  (However, I've watched those House Hunters shows on HGTV, and I can just hear the wife saying, "How will I ever get all my clothes in here? It's tiny.  I'll have to use the guest room closet, too.  I don't know where you'll put your clothes {said to the husband}."    What does she do with all those clothes??)

No sewing has occurred of late, but I'm still having great fun with my knitting.  I've even made some purchases. Love shopping in my jammies on the internet!!  ♥

Happy Valentine's Day!

This pretty much sums up my idea of the perfect gift!

♥

Cozy Days

After a winter of pretty much no snow, the white stuff arrived last weekend with a bang.  And it's so beautiful! February can be dark and dreary with rain, or some years, almost spring-like.  Not often is it snowy.  

This was the scene out our bedroom window yesterday:

There is a chance for more snow today/evening, so we'll see if we get some more.  Meanwhile, it's cozy down time here at the resort, except for our resident snow plow man--who would be Dan.  I snapped this photo of him clowning around behind the piles yesterday (actually, he's kneeling).

As for myself, I'm keeping busy knitting.  I just finished a scarf for myself like one I made a year or so ago and gave to Mom.  I wore it yesterday and it kept my neck nice and warm.

Last night I started a new pair of socks and I've got about four inches done.  I'll post a picture in a day or so. I'm loving the yarn I'm using!  

And now, I'm off to the kitchen to start thinking about supper.  Spaghetti with meat sauce and roasted Brussels sprouts.  Mmmm...  And there are brownies in the cookie jar for my sweetie.  ♥

Thousands, and Counting

Catchy title, huh?  Bet you're wondering, "Thousands of what?!"  Well, I'll tell you.  Thousands of a particular cookie have been made in my house and now in Ann's.  

Long, long ago, Nestle published a recipe called Toll House Pan Cookies and touted it as a summer cookie-- bar cookies which would take far less time to bake than sheet after sheet of drop cookies and therefore use less oven heat.  I gave it a try and made numerous batches. As time went on, I began to tinker with the recipe until I think the only things it has in common with the original recipe is that it has eggs, flour, sugar and butter.  As do pretty much all cookies.  

Anyway, it's become a family classic.  Quick, delicious, and perfect for any occasion.  I've given the recipe to many people and they all love it.  

So here, without further ado, is my recipe:

Chocolate Chip Bar Cookies

1 cup butter

1 cup sugar

½ cup brown sugar

1½ tsp vanilla

2 eggs

2½ cups flour

¼ tsp salt

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1 cup chocolate chips

1 cup vanilla chips

Cream butter and sugars well.  Add vanilla and eggs, beat until blended.  Mix dry ingredients and add a cup at a time, mixing well.  Add chips.  Bake in a heavy jelly roll (10" x 15") pan at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes, until top is deep golden brown.  

By Now World Famous Bar Cookies!

Ann substitutes peanut butter chips for the vanilla chips. You could also use all chocolate, but the mix really is good!  I cut mine rather small and get 4 dozen, Ann cuts hers larger and probably gets about thirty.  They freeze well; I put a few in the cookie jar and the rest in Ziplock freezer bags and then remove a half-dozen at a time as needed.  That way, since there just the two of us here, they don't get stale.  

For years I used an old inexpensive jelly roll pan and my cookies always caved-in in the center of the pan. One day I was at Ann's and noticed she had a heavy pan just that size and when I asked, she said she got it from Pampered Chef.  When I got back home, I immediately ordered one. (You can order on line and have it sent to your house--no need to wait for a party!)  It made all the difference. Ann, even though she has that pan, always uses her Pampered Chef bar pan and swears by it.  {Please note: this is not an ad for Pampered Chef, but simply info regarding the need for a substantial pan to make these (and probably any bar cookies) turn out perfectly.  Any brand of heavy baking pan will work.}  

Oh, and warm, with a scoop of vanilla ice cream?  Oh yeah!  ♥

Victory . . . and a Yummy Dinner

Yes!!  The Seahawks won!  As long time Seahawks fans, this is one sweet victory.  What a team!

And here is where I confess that I usually can't stand the suspense of an important game like today's.  So I went to the grocery store, and let me tell you, it was empty (which was my hope)!  I roamed up and down the aisles, looked at sections I usually breeze through, and thoroughly enjoyed myself.  I returned home just after half time to discover that the 'Hawks were doing fantastically, and thus I was able to watch the second half while cooking dinner instead of hiding around the corner.

We were out of several needed items (no milk or eggs at our house), but I was also shopping for a recipe my long-time blog friend CJ posted today.  She is always tempting me one way or another--sewing machines, artisan bread, pressure cookers, the list goes on.  We "met" on a Bernina listserve probably eight or more years ago and we've kept in touch ever since.  

Anyway, the recipe was One Pot Kielbasa with Cabbage, Apples and Caraway and I'm here to tell you it is one terrific meal!  Here's a picture of my pot:

And here's a link to the recipe: Click here! Thanks, CJ!  ♥

And Now It's February!

Well, I won't go into a long-winded paragraph on how quickly time is passing, but...it's February!  

It's an absolutely gorgeous day outside.  We have about four inches of snow (yay!), and sunshine.  And it's supposed to be this way for a while, which is lovely as we've not had much winter this year.  I just snapped this photo from my dining room window:

Dan's at an all-day men's thing at church today, so this day is all mine.  They're even having dinner there, so I can play to my heart's content until eight or later!  I see some sewing in my future, as well as some knitting. I'm working on another scarf just like this one  and I'm enjoying it so much!  I have leftover chicken parmesan and spinach tortellini in the frig, so I'm set for the day. Oh, but I do have to climb on the NordicTrak before all the fun can start.  

The mention of the tortellini reminds me--we were in Coeur d'Alene for two days earlier this week (work stuff for Dan and I got to tag along), and we ran over to Spokane so we could hit Trader Joe's.  I kinda like that funky little store!  I'm surprised at how reasonable the prices are.  That's where I picked up the package of tortellini, and I must say I'm in love with their boxes of granola.  The sodium contents are low and the flavor is great!  (I love to stir it into my yogurt.)  I also found that they carry white whole wheat flour for a very reasonable price, so I bought a bag to give it a try.  The only other brand I've tried is King Arthur's, but it's hard to get locally and I'm out.  

Well, the NordicTrak awaits, so I'm off!  ♥