Search Results for: blog cooking without a stove

Cornish Game Hens—Cooking the Other “Bird”

My young daughter loves “bird.” Meaning she happily devours anything that has wings—-chicken, turkey, quail, and yes, even Cornish game hens. Only she thinks all white meat is chicken (including pork). Not wanting to mess with a good thing (she eats every bite of white meat without complaint) I simply refer to dishes with white meat as “bird.” And it’s not as though she hasn’t seen me prepare the recipes. She simply accepts that birds come in different sizes and as long as the cooked meat is not over seasoned, drenched in gravy or (Heaven forbid) touching any other food … Continue reading →

Safety Products You Can Live Without

I’m definitely not saying that you shouldn’t baby proof your house. Let’s be clear about this right from the start. But I am saying that the folks who make all these lovely little safety devices would have you believing that danger lurks in every room, around every corner. Dare I say that the best kind of safety is the old fashioned kind? (That’s right–plain old fashioned keeping an eye on your kids is the best kind of accident prevention.) Refrigerator Latches Granted each of my children has done their own version of a science experiment answering the question: What happens … Continue reading →

Kids Cooking? Make Sure the Fire Extinguisher is Handy

My teens have been cooking forever. First, of course, they were just helping mom in the kitchen and while we still often make meal preparation or baking a group activity–they are cooking more and more on their own. Even after a couple years, I have still not become entirely comfortable with them creating their own concoctions in the kitchen–owing mostly to my still finding the occasional stove burner or oven left on, napkins too close to the stove, etc. What I do know is that while I have always had a fire extinguisher in the kitchen–when my kids became regular … Continue reading →

Ask a Food Blogger: How Do You Create a Menu Plan?

I’m excited to answer my first food blogger question: I know I would eat healthier and we’d eat more meals at home if I had a weekly menu plan. But how do you go about creating one? You are correct on both counts: menu plans will help you eat healthier, stick to certain goals, and it will decrease the likelihood that you have to get take out for lack of preparation. One thing that can help with menu preparation is recipe software. Most recipe software has grocery list features as well as menu planning features. I have written before about … Continue reading →

The Frugal Blog Week in Review: Jan. 27 to Feb. 2

Hello there! It is a quiet Saturday evening on the day before the Superbowl. my husband is getting the last kid to bed, I’m listening to my new Nora Jones music, and I am seriously thinking of taking a nice hot bath. Before that, though, I wanted to bring you the week in review for the Frugal Living Blog. I know you read every blog faithfully, so I’ll just assume you want to reread them all again. Saturday, January 27 Save on Paper: Take Advantage of Junk Mail In an earlier blog, Save on Paper: The Three Best Ways, I … Continue reading →

Three Kitchen Gadgets I Can’t Cook Without – Part 2

Yesterday I blogged about three kitchen gadgets that I could but didn’t want to cook without. Those gadgets are my salad spinner, my small plastic cutting board, and my small food processor, and those 3 are probably the most useful gadgets in my kitchen. However, there are plenty more useful kitchen gadgets that I use every day or at least a few times a week. Those other 3 kitchen gadgets are my wire colander, my glass mixing bowl set, and my rubber spatulas. Food Gadget #1: Wire Colander I don’t know how often you boil water in your kitchen, but … Continue reading →

Turkey Preparation Trepidation

You don’t know how challenging it is to cook a Thanksgiving feast until you attempt to do it all by yourself… without a double oven… or Chinese take-out. How did my mom pull it off year after year? Turkey Day is just a few hours away and if you haven’t already formulated your game plan for the all-you-can-eat holiday buffet taking place on your dining room table, then I wish you luck. Goodness knows I am going to need it. This year, I decided to make like my mom and spearhead our Thanksgiving Day dinner. And by dinner I don’t … Continue reading →

The Kitchen Triangle

I really want to remodel my kitchen. If you saw it, you would know why, there are cabinets that are unusable due to position and the dishwasher is so far away from the sink that the floor has to be mopped every time I load the dishwasher. Almost every night I spend time looking at dream kitchens. Those wonderful, easy to use kitchens that would make feeding your family and entertaining a joy. We all know about the triangle. Conventional wisdom says that the triangle formed by the sink, stove and refrigerator makes your kitchen workable. This theory was developed … Continue reading →

Kitchen Playdates by Lauren Bank Deen

The other day at the library, I just had to pick up this colorful book, Kitchen Playdates by Lauren Bank Deen. The cover shows happy kids busy in the kitchen cooking and the book promised ideas and recipes that could be made with kids. My kids have always loved to cook with me, especially when it comes to baking. They like to measure, stir, chop and more. One of my daughter’s favorite possessions is her monogramed apron, and my youngest son contents himself with a towel wrapped around his waste. My oldest son begs for more responsibility in the kitchen … Continue reading →

Toaster Oven

When my husband and I lived in our first home we had a toaster with two large slots big enough to fit bagel halves. I’m pretty sure we got the toaster as a wedding gift. It was a fine toaster and served us well. When we bought our first house the previous owners left their toaster oven behind. I boxed it up along with all the Amway product they left in the garage and gave it to the real estate agent. I know why they left it; it was really dirty and it was easier to replace than clean. Our … Continue reading →