This could be me.

(And, that could be Robert in the background, listening to his new Dave Ramsey CD’s while washing his car(truck). Himself. At home. With rags made from his old white t-shirts.)

Just wanted to share some exciting new kitchen goodies and gadgets that I recently acquired. Sadly, I left one of the most fun ones out of the picture – the salad spinner! Oh – it has saved many a dish towel and paper towel in the short amount of time I have owned it! I used to spend a WHOLE LOT of time submerging lettuce in a bowl of water, letting it drain in a colander, and then patting it dry with some sort of towel. That was a lot of prep work prior to the actual MAKING of the salad! I think I’m saving a few steps and some time with this $12.00 investment. (I’ve managed to hold onto a stash of birthday/Christmas money specifically for a few new kitchen items and a new pair of Dansko’s (or two) which has become an annual tradition. It’s all gone now – fun while it lasted!)

And the other fun new items that you see here are a new garlic press, (the old one was chipping – paint chips and pesto, anyone?), magnetic measuring spoons (no chain needed, no more scattered spoons in the drawer), a new grater/zester (had been using a large standing grater for this), a whisk (would you believe I didn’t own a whisk?) and last, but not least, local MAPLE SYRUP! A bunch of my mom-friends sent half gallon jars with a volunteer mom to get fresh syrup from a local sugar shack. I bought only one gallon – for $45, which is a really good deal – prices had been up to $70 per gallon. And as you can see, I’m not doing a very good job of rationing the stuff – I’ve only had mine for a week! I bought a half gallon of grade A and a half gallon of grade B. So far, we’ve only had the grade B, and it is delicious – has a stronger maple taste than grade A. I’m posting a recipe below that is one indication of why so much of this precious commodity is GONE!

This is beginning to feel like a chapter out of
The American Frugal Housewife, 1832 – Dedicated to Those Who are not Ashamed of Economy

Oh! And the other NEW item in the photo is the oven. Our old one (circa 1947) was still working alright, but beginning to show its age. For example, the front left burner decided to stop working at the end of last year. Then, the”broil” feature decided to quit. The rubber seals became very brittle and had all but completely broken off, making the oven a means of not only heating the food, but also the entire house. After we came home from Texas in January, we received an electric bill that was about $100 less than or usual bill. We thought is was due to the new frig and deep freeze some friends had generously bought for us, and they did probably help. But, then we asked our friend who house-sat if she had used the oven at all. “Not once,” was her reply. So, as much as I didn’t want to get rid of my cute retro oven with the double doors, it became evident that it was time!

(Oh – and the rattling frig got fixed by replacement this week!)

And don’t tell Dave Ramsey, but we did put it on our Sears credit card and plan to have it paid off with no interest within the next few months! (Did the same thing with a new washer last year – and just finished paying that one off with no interest, so I guess that meant it was time for another appliance to need replacing! Ugh. Why does that always seem to happen??!)

Here’s the adorable retro oven that now sits in the garage awaiting a new Craig’s List owner! (And I loved how it went so nicely with the retro checked floor. Oh well.)

I actually had it appraised once and found that it is worth about $500. It would be worth even more if it had a fancier style and attached canisters for sugar, tea, flour, etc. as some from the same era did. I really hate parting with it, but I’m hoping the proceeds will go to a good cause like summer day camp for three children!
(Or maybe we should pay off the new oven. Dave can be kind of a downer.)

I can’t believe this entire post is ending up being about my kitchen, but while I’m at it, I might as well also tell you that TJ Maxx, Marshalls, and Pier 1 are where I got deals on all of the small kitchen gadgets. They are better quality, and were priced much lower than ANY I found at Bed, Bath, and Beyond or Linens and Things. I just kept refusing to pay $15 for a lemon zester, and then one turned up for $5 at Pier 1 while I was shopping there for a birthday gift.

And here are the things I didn’t buy, but hope to with the next round of holidays:

a juicer
a good blender
(Mine works OK – but also circa 1950, from my grandmother. Don’t know if I’ll ever let myself buy this one, but it will even grind nuts and grains! Wow!)
an ice cream maker
a set of good knives
a mortar and pestle

I did recently receive THIS from J&K for my birthday, and can’t wait to post an attempt at one of Julia’s recipes!
(When I told Jack that I would whip him up a fancy French dish the next time he visited, he said, “The only French dish I’d like you to make for me are some of those fancy French FRIES.”

And aside from a round of Sunday night pancakes, here’s the recipe that required a good portion of my new maple syrup:
(And speaking of recipes, I’ll try and update the recipe index tonight as well.)

Baked Chicken with Maple Glaze