A Day Off and Next Week's Plan

Today I have the day 'off'.  After a 55+ hour work week Duncan has decided to let me relax and do what i want this weekend.  He's wonderful like that.  So what am i doing with this time to relax?

At the moment cleaning.  So far this morning:

* Morning Routine (although i am dressed in hang around the house clothes)
* Folded and put away the laundry
* Upstairs trash & recycling emptied
* Kitchen trash & recycling emptied
* Dishwasher running (It's SO HOT today and i feel guilty not waiting until after 8 to run it, but the heat had made things start to mold, lesson learned)
* Pitched attempt at indoor herb garden.  The containers didn't allow for drainage and stuff just rotted.  I think i'll try something more creative next time.
* Lunch box hand washed, Lucky's waterbowl washed and sink returned to shiny.
* Kitchen trashcan hosed off and drying outside
* Under the bed storage purged of some junk
* Serious sweeping and dusting of bedroom, including under furniture
* Bedroom & Landing windows, mirrors and other glass cleaned
* Hung some new art and a set of shelves in the bedroom
* Organized the linen closet with labels and everything
* Swept the stairs

Now i'm tired and have decided i deserve something from Dunkin Donuts and to peruse the latest book i picked up: Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving.  I'm hoping to make some pickles and maybe more things as i learn.

Here is my plan for next week, which, even with the holiday, will be a little challenging routine wise, but WAY closer to normal.

Not this week (Routines)

This week has been crazy town work-wise, with long days and field work every single day.  Field work means a different schedule (often coming in early and/or leaving late) as well as not necessarily being able to eat breakfast or lunch because of the environment.  That can create a tired, cranky, hungry girl at the end of the day!

So while i've been thinking about routines and systems, i've not been able to consistently implement anything yet.  I have been keeping my sink shiny, something Ian teased me for on Tuesday.

Since tomorrow begins around 4:15 AM, I'm hoping to spend some time in the afternoon working on some menu planning and scheduling from the comfort of my couch (potentially after a nap).  I promise i am working on this stuff though!

As for the blog, i've created a Twitter account, so you can follow along as i attempt to do my various projects.  You can find me there as DomestiGeeky!  I'd love some followers and folks to chat with and learn from!

Kitchens of the Future... Or Not

I just finished reading The Real Kitchen of the Future Won’t Involve Sous-Vide over on Slate, and it really made me think.  I'm a gadget loving girl, for sure, but what do i really use in my kitchen?  What do i wish i had for making some jobs easier or to improve the quality of my food?


* Knives (i'm slowly learning to use more than just a little paring knife, thanks to my friends and spouse)
* Cutting boards, both plastic and wood
* Basic Pots and pans
* The crockpot
* The mixer - SO MUCH LOVE for my Kitchen Aid!
* My breadmaker, though less with my current diet plan, because i'm eating less bread.
* Mixing bowls, mostly plastic or old Pyrex/FireKing
* Pyrex casserole dishes
* Baking sheets with Silpats or parchment paper
* Mason jars

I infrequently use my blender, and have never used the pasta maker my spouse bought, though he has 2 or 3 times.  For special occasions we use the fondue set.  For a few recipes involving nuts i use the mini chopper thingy.  Once in a while i use the double boiler, and very rarely my dutch oven.

Some of this may be because i tend to cook simpler recipes.  I hope to continue learning new skills and adventuring more, but there is a balance between taking on those challenges and still needing dinner at the end of the day!

So what's essential in your kitchen?  What tools could you not survive without, and what gets dusty in the cabinets?

Salty Sweet

This weekend i must have had a particular craving for salty-sweet, as i tried out two new recipes.  I had to alter each to make things edible for my gluten-free and vegan friends, but they were still SO delicious, i have to share.

Chocolate Chip Potato Chip Cookies - i used regular old Lay's chips which came out fine.  I substituted Earth Balance for the butter and used Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose Flour for the flour.  I could of been braver on the salt application on top, but these were awesome and very easy to make.

Salted Oatmeal Cookies - Again, i swapped out Earth Balance for butter and used Gluten Free flour.  I also substituted a few tablespoons of applesauce instead of using eggs.  I added a little more cinnamon than the recipe called for, but also let the raw dough sit for longer in hopes of getting the oatmeal softer, which worked.  They didn't get too puffy, like sometimes dough does, but these were a huge hit.

When i asked my friends which they preferred, they all asked if i could just put potato chips in the oatmeal cookies.  I'm pretty proud of both sets, since i felt i was working without a net in making these GF and vegan.  I love when my experiments create tasty results!!!

Farm Share Week 1

So here's what i did with my delicious produce from the first week of my CSA through Fair Weather Acres, a beautiful and delicious haul!

Spinach (1 lb)

• Omelettes with spinach and swiss cheese and Farmer's Cow eggs (see picture).  Pretty proud of actually making an omelette that didn't turn into scrambled eggs, but could of been more patient and cooked it a tad longer.
• Cut up a ciabatta roll and layered herbed goat cheese, fresh spinach and roasted red pepper as a fancy late afternoon snack.
• Threw some in a salad for Saturday & Sunday dinners
• Cut some up and ate it with slices of turkey for a lunch on Monday & Tuesday.

Strawberries (1 qt)

• Ate some straight out of the container they were SO GOOD i snacked on them consistently.
• Strawberry shortcake for Father's Day using home made Cream Biscuits from the Fannie Farmer cookbook and whipped cream from scratch.  I wish i took a picture of these, they looked so pretty in my mom's blue bowls!

Parsley (1 bunch)

• Looking to use it soon, if not will dry it.

Rainbow chard (1 bunch) 

• Pickled the stems with a modified version of this recipe.  They are not kidding in calling this rainbow chard!  They are gorgeous!
• Going to sautee the greens with the beet leaves maybe?

Turnips (2)

• Cut 1/2 of the larger turnips into french fry shapes and roasted with some herbs in the oven.  Came out tasty, but could of cooked longer.  Amazingly low cal!

Beets (1 bunch)

• Tried to make beet chips with the actual beet part, but they all came out burnt.  Looks like i'll have a chance at redemption this week as we'll be getting more.  The ones i didn't burn came out tasty!
• Pickled the stalks using this recipe.  
• Saute the greens with the chard?  Or just combine this week's haul with the next for a larger serving?

Romaine lettuce (1 head)

• Saturday & Sunday dinner salad with tomatoes, spinach, cucumber, peas and chick peas.

Bok choy (1 head)

• Slow Cooker Chicken with Pineapple and Bok Choy

Tomatoes (2)

• Saturday & Sunday dinner salad, basic but tasty!