Black Friday got us. Black Friday got us good. Here is one example:
You know Black Friday got you good when you spend nearly $100 on something you didn’t even know existed earlier that morning. That’s what happened to me when my friend Diana advertised the Instant Pot Electric Pressure Cooker
And then I had to do all this research to figure out how to use this thing without blowing the house up. It’s actually way easier and safer than I had imagined… whew! But we’re kinda superdupercautious about everything in our household (like we actually unplug the toaster oven when it’s not in use… and we use it like 5x/day), so I felt I had to study the manual and all that.
Then it was time for recipes. The Instant Pot came with a recipe booklet, but who ever uses recipes from the booklet that comes with the thing? Really?
Actually, I did. I tried the creme brulee recipe from it, only because I fell for Costco’s half gallon of heavy cream again and didn’t have time to make ice cream. (FYI I think it’s worthwhile to make it the traditional, non pressure cooker way in the future). I guess I also tried the “Jasmine Rice” recipe from it, only because we needed some white rice in a pinch and for some reason our rice cooker takes foreverrrrr to make rice so I thought I’d try this “4 minute white rice.” Let me tell you now, though. Four minute rice doesn’t mean four minute rice. It means 1) let the pressure cooker take 10 minutes to get up to pressure, and then 2) add an additional 4 minutes to cook the rice, and then 3) add an additional 2 minutes to depressurize the thing before you can safely access the rice. So really, that’s like 15 minute white rice. Just so you know. Cuz I didn’t.
*8/28/2014 UPDATE: Congrats to Teresa A., winner of the giveaway! Thanks, all for your participation!*
California Dreamin’
I live in California. There’s a lot to love, from the weather to the diversity to the FOOD! The food, my friends. The food. And it’s not just me– these people agree that when it comes to food, California is tough to beat! I was particularly impressed to learn that California produces half the nation’s supply of fruits, vegetables, and nuts! WOW! That makes the whole “eating local and fresh” thing so much more enticing!
I’m sure you’ve heard it before: eat organic, eat local, eat fresh. It’s not just for hippies or hipsters anymore– groceries stores everywhere are reflecting the increasing demand for fresh, local, and organic products. I can get behind that. And so can a lot of other people, apparently. For example, over the last few years, I’ve been hearing more and more about juice bars: cafés serving freshly prepared fruit juices. It’s a thing. And why not? There are few things more satisfying than sipping exquisitely fresh, tasty, and healthy juice!
I have a feeling most of my readers are not from California, though. Wouldn’t it be nice to get some fresh-pressed, made-to-order, organic, locally-sourced, raw, California-sunshined juice delivered to your doorstep… tomorrow?
Lately, I’ve been toting this guy around everywhere:
It contains three of my new favorite things:
an excellent water bottle, super refreshing iced tea, and chia seeds.
The bottle
First, the water bottle. I have gone through a lot of water bottles in my time, from the free squeezable sport bottles from basketball camp to the once-trendy Nalgene bottles to the hipster stainless steel bottles to cups (and bottles) with straws. They all had their pros and cons. The Nalgenes had a nice, wide mouth opening so I could gulp down water quickly… but this was also the bottle’s downfall. I know I’m not the only student who tried to sneak in a gulp while trekking across campus only to spill water all over my shirt.
I loved the look of the stainless steel bottles, but those got banged up very quickly when I threw my backpack around. Any “cool” factor they had disappeared when my bottle lolled about like an indecisive top, having been dropped multiple times. Plus, the stainless steel bottles were kind of annoying to clean. You can’t really fit a sponge in those small mouth openings, and I dunno about you, but vinegar is not part of my usual dishwashing routine, so it was annoying to have to bust that out to clean this one item. Then again, I didn’t use a dishwasher back then, so maybe I’d feel differently about this now. But still, the dents.
We all have it. That disorganized drawer stuffed full of user manuals and instruction booklets.
You buy a new toaster oven, glance through the user manual, then tug open that heavy drawer and squeeeeze it into the bulging pile and hope the drawer closes… just one more time. Yup. I know exactly where that drawer is in my parents’ house, where it was in our previous home, and where it was in this house. Because I avoided that drawer. Is this pot dishwasher-safe? Hmm… probably says so in the manual, but…. eh. I don’t want to look for it. Or maybe you just broke your very expensive blender and are desperate to know how long the warranty is. Already flustered and very nervous (hubby will NOT be pleased to know you broke the machine after 7 years and 1 month, especially if the warranty was for 7 years (which it was… go figure)), you sift through piles and piles of manuals only to realize it’s. not. there. BUT WAIT maybe you missed it, let’s try again! Your frustration increases as your pile somehow looks twice as big as it started. Where is that thing?!
Wouldn’t it be nice if you had your manuals, instruction booklets, random back-of-the-packaging-with-important-instructions, DVDs and other relevant items all lumped in one place, ready to turn to whenever you need?
So you’ve already got the spatula, the whisk, and a few mixing bowls. What’s next? Ready to up your game? Here are the next 10 items I think would be most useful to add to your baking collection!
This basic list is for the college student who owns nothing but a plastic spatula and maybe a set of measuring cups, but wants to bake an occasional batch of brownies or cupcakes. (For those of you looking to boost an already-stocked baker’s kitchen, see this list of 10 More Items to Add to Your Baking Arsenal). Whether you plan to bake just a couple times a year, or are hoping to upgrade your entire baking collection (newly engaged, anyone?), here are a few must-have tools for any baker’s kitchen. I’ve linked some good options you can buy on a budget, as well as my own personal favorites which might cost a bit more.
Whether you’ve just moved into your own apartment or you’ve just decided you want to make a batch of cookies for this rainy day, every kitchen should have these basic ingredients for baking. Chances are you will still need basic refrigerator items, too, like eggs and butter, but having these pantry staples ahead of time will save you a lot of hassle. There’s nothing quite as annoying as getting halfway into a recipe, batter-dripping spatula in hand, only to realize you don’t have a key ingredient to finish! So stock up, and happy baking!
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