Salad Spinner for my Delicates

A salad spinner has been on my kitchen wish list for a few months (years) now. The item has been passed over by more necessary kitchen appliances such as garlic presses and doughnut makers. While the salad spinner is quite cool and I hate soggy salads, I have to be true to myself and admit that I don't particularly care for salad and really love garlic sauces and doughnuts a whole heck of a lot better.
Recently, I came across an invention that has the same properties as the spinner but would be way more useful to me and my life style.

THE LAUNDRY POD

If you read through the instructions you will totally see the connection. This is a salad spinner for laundry. I don't care that it costs 5x as much as the lettuce version. I want one, and I want one now...or for Christmas...but definitely soon...ish

Bathroom Chic

One would think that being a single girl living in a one bedroom apartment, I would have enough room for all of my stuff. Well that is just not the case. Last weekend I got down and dirty and really cleaned my apartment trying once again, to get my life organized. Part of the weekend was devoted to driving over to Target/Christmas Tree Shoppe/Michael's for frames and miscellaneous organizational items.

Occasionally I dabble in make-up, but I don't always remember to wash my make-up brushes. Honestly, I think I have really deep cleaned them once...in about 2 years...yeah...

Part of my problem is leaving them out to dry, I don't want to put them back in their pouch damp because that could cause mildew or something gross. While walking through Michael's I came up with a perfect solution! For about $5 I was able to purchase two small vases and blue marble stones. Now after I apply eye shadows and what not, I can quickly spray the brushes with cleaner and leave them standing upside-down to dry.


I think it looks rather cute. They have been living in these little vases for just over a week, and I couldn't be happier!

Bacon Risotto

If we are friends in real life, or were at some point and are still friends on facebook, you may recall that I recently posted the picture above. I decided I wanted to go beyond my comfort zone and cook things that real people would want to eat. (I have learned that eating a can of baked beans for dinner is a bit odd)

Bacon Risotto sounded like a good place to start. I already knew how to make risotto the lazy way (with Uncle Ben's Rice instead of Arborio), but never added anything extras - just simple risotto. So I went online and realized that most people just throw in the extras at the end, well I can do that too, gosh darn it! Out of fear that the bacon flavor wouldn't be strong enough, I opted to incorporate the grease. Additionally, to make veggie health people happy I added in some fresh tomatoes too!

I wanted to share the recipe with the world, I don't really know if the measurements are absolutely correct, since I don't measure much (accept the rice) so, I would suggest you use this as guidelines. When it comes to the wine, feel free to have fun with it - I honestly probably use at least 1/3 of a cup if not more.

Bacon Riscotto

Ingredients

• 1/2 pound bacon, diced (totally used breakfast bacon chopped up)
• 5 cups of chicken stock (you may use more or less - just be mindful)
• 3/4 onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 1/2 cups Arborio rice
• 4 tablespoons butter (may use more like 6)
• 1/4 - 1/2 cup of Parmesan cheese
• White wine - preerably Riesling
• S&P
• 2 mid-sized tomatoes (fresh)

Directions

1. Cook the bacon in a large skillet (skillet should have high sides) over medium heat until browned, about 10 minutes. Drain the bacon and reserve some grease (yum)
2. Bring chicken stock to boil in a saucepan over high heat; reduce heat to low to keep the stock hot
3. Heat 2-4 tablespoons of butter in the same bacon pan over medium -high heat. I recommend leaving some grease in the pan for flavor.
4. Add onion and garlic; cook and stirl until the onion begins to turn clear, about 2 minutes
5. Pour in the rice and stir until the rice is coated in butter and the rice starts to toast
6. Bring on the wine! Splash some into the pan, listen for the sizzle. Make sure to cover the rice thoroughly. Once the wine reduces, reduce the heat.
7. Start stirring in the chicken stock (I ladle it in to help keep the mess under control) - I would advise putting in 1/4 - 1/3 of the broth in at a time. As the broth gets absorbed, add more until tender, yet slightly firm. Roughly 15-20 minutes.
8. Remove the risotto from the heat and add the remaining butter, Parmesan cheese, and the bacon.
9. Chop up tomatoes (best to squeeze out the seeds first) and throw them into the mix too.
10. Season with salt and pepper.
11. Dig in!
    

More Resolutions

New Year's resolutions are silly, I know. People make a number declarations about how they will quit smoking, join a gym, and eat healthier. Others will read the classics, cut down on tv, or start hiking. A month later, old habits return and gyms make out by taking in new memberships but don't have to worry about dealing with an increase of visitors to the facilities. Wait, now that I think about it, many people make a resolution to join a gym, they don't often specify that they will ever step into it afterward, so I guess that means they went through with their plans. Just a thought.

Please don't read this as me saying that I am above making resolutions, I made two on my blog on January 1st and since then have added a few more as ways to improve my quality of life. I am a realist in the sense that I know putting join a gym on the list is a silly way for me to throw away money, but I will look into either another social sport to play, I'm looking your way broomball and touch football, or a dance class. Maybe if I find a really good deal I could find myself frequenting a pilates or yoga studio.

One of my new resolutions that I have found easy to implement and is already providing me with amazing results is cleaning for 15 minutes each day. I had read about a resolution like this before, in fact, I might mentioned this idea at least 2 other times in the blog - clearly it didn't stick. For the last few days I have gone home and done a 15 minute clean. I think I am able to get more done in that quarter of an hour than I do when I try cleaning for an hour because I knew that it would be over soon and I wanted to be productive.

If you tend to let your apartment/house/condo get messy and then feel overwhelmed at the idea of tidying up, this process is totally for you. :) I'll spare you the rest of my resolutions because A) that can be boring to read and B) in case they don't stick you won't know I failed.

Donut mind if you got me this

Sunbeam makes a Donut Maker! In minutes you can go from no donuts in the house to FIVE fresh and warm circles of love!


The ad doesn't indicate if a recipe book comes with the machine itself, but I am sure Sunbeam wouldn't leave me hanging. Either way, I would have no issue researching the best way to create delicious donuts.

While this phenomenal machine is being sold for the low low price of $39.99. Normally, I would have no problem pulling out the credit card for this purchase, but it is the Christmas season. Therefore, not a ton of discretionary income laying around to provide myself with silly do-dads.

Maybe there are some Christmas (and birthday) elves (there are totally birthday elves out there don't try and argue me on that one) and I, too, can be a proud owner of a donut making machine.

Triumphant return to the kitchen

For the last three months my experiences in the kitchen have been limited to microwaving, toasting, and the occasional nachos or buffalo chicken dip in the oven. As Harry Truman said, "If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen". Personally, I can't during the summer, so I try to keep my distance from that very small room in my apartment.

With the arrival of Earl, the temperatures have dropped to a much more comfortable level and I am more inclined to consider the idea of using my stove top. Tonight, I decided to make my triumphant return by making a pasta sauce. I had some canned tomatoes and sauce that were begging to be put in a frying pan. As I began tossing in spices and cheese, I remembered a recipe that my friend sent me for sauce that involved a stick of butter. It sounded weird to me too, but being high of the smells of freshly made dinner, I just let my hands work and in went a few lumps of butter. Holy moly, so tasty! I highly encourage you all to try it next time it is pasta night, the butter really did make a difference.

Seriously, is there anything butter doesn't make better?

If I buy an applaiance, it better be cute

As much as I love my pink giraffe print broom, I have been in need of a vacuum. The main reason that "purchase vacuum" jumped to the top of my to-do list is because there is sawdust all over one end of my bedroom from when my a/c was installed. My window is super big, so my dad made a wall to fill in the space so the unit would stay put in the sill. For the last month and a half I just opt to stay away from that spot. But today I was in a pretty angry mood so I decided I need a trip to Target and made some apartment purchases.

I can now say that I am now a proud owner of a purple vacuum. It is a Shark, which my sister assured me was a good brand. As soon as I saw it on display, I knew I wanted it for three reasons.

1. It is a stand up vacuum
2. The middle can be popped out to be a hand vac
3. It is cordless!

The one downside is that I have to wait 24 hours before I can take her for a spin around the apartment. I mean I probably won't actually get around to vacuuming until Tuesday, 20 minutes before some friends come over
for pizza and martinis...

As I was tooling around the store, I happened upon the Britta aisle. I have wanted a Britta forever. In the past, a roommate would have one to contribute to the communal kitchen, or I just abused my water cooler privileges at work. But with this heat, I would like to have access to filtered water at any moment, there is just something about the tap water here that I do not like. I have been waiting for Brittas to go on sale, and not only were they sale, but came with a $5 Target gift card and came in fun colors! I went with lime green. When I think kitchen I think green - typically avocado but lime works too - and I just had to have it.

When Life Spoils Your Milk...

Make A Poor Man's Mocha?

This was the beginning of week two of working full time and going to night class from 6-9 EVERY DAY. I am surviving as best I can. Sleep is a luxury. Grocery shopping is nothing but a memory. I opted to stay at my parents' this weekend when I went to pick up my car that has been in their driveway since Christmas, so I wasn't able to get any real cleaning done up here and I have about a four foot tall pile of clothes that need laundered, oye! Sunday night, I decided that I had enough food to survive the upcoming week so I could go without a late night run to the store. This morning, however, I immediately regretted the decision while I made my cup of coffee. Just as my travel mug filled up, I went into the fridge and realized, no milk.

Ugh.

I froze. I had no idea what I was going to do to make the coffee drinkable - I had brewed it strong and drinking it black was simply not an option. I considered the idea of adding extra sugar, but that didn't feel right. Then as I looked up into my food cupboard, I saw the solution to my problem. The hot chocolate powder packets. I quickly grabbed one, dumped half a packet into my mug, and stirred. Yum. I had completely forgotten about this technique and thankfully it really does the trick. Somehow the sweetness of the chocolate powder simultaneously acts as a creamer and sugar, and I am ok with just accepting this as fact. Hopefully I can get some milk this upcoming weekend, but for now, I can deal with this as a temporary solution.

Sticky Feet No More

Domestic Goddess duties just build up so high when one lives alone. You can't ignore the dirty sink surface in the bathroom or the stack of mail in the living room or the sticky kitchen floor hoping someone else will deal with it. For the last few weeks I have noticed that my kitchen floor had a sticky spot near the stove. (Hey I admit it, sometimes I really get into cooking and not everything makes it into the pot) The spot has been bothersome, but I couldn't bring myself to deal with it. Tonight, it is just me against the spot.

Washing the floor is something that I hate doing more than any other chore, but at the same time if I am able to complete the task in one go I feel so freaking accomplished. Back in the day when I worked at the ice cream store we would have to mop up the floors - which were covered in ice cream, fudge, caramel and who knows what else - my back always was killing me the day after. Fortunately, my teeny kitchen has an even smaller floor. This means I was only Cinderella for about 10 minutes, but those 10 minutes felt like forever.

I am now rather proud that my feet no longer stick to the floor and I hope to be more careful while cooking so that it doesn't get gross like that again. But we'll see. Worst comes to worst, I have to pretend to be a Disney princess for another 10 minutes. I think at this point I have already done some serious laundry, cleaned the bathroom, washed the dishes and cleaned the floor. I am letting my domestic goddess alter ego have a break now. I only wish I had the energy to make something to eat for dinner, but then again, I would just have to clean up again...

Wow, the Sham WOW was named correctly

My friend is getting married this June. Thursday was her bridal shower. It was a really cute event hosted at a bridesmaid's house. Per proper protocol each of us went ahead and brought along a gift for the bride-to-be (or the BTB for short) to open up. After some mass emailing, we all decided to stick with getting something from one of her registries rather than deviating from her selections. As each gift was opened the BTB squealed with delight.

"SPOONS!"

"SALAD-SPINNER!"

"VASE!"

"TURKEY BASTER!"

"SHAM WOW!!!!"

Yes, she registered for a set of Sham Wows. We were all a bit jealous when we saw it come out of one of the packages, I experienced the same feeling when I learned a friend of mine had gotten a Snuggie...

Once my jealousy subsided -- don't worry it was a whole 2 seconds of my life -- I had a quick reflection which revolved around the question: "do you think those things actually work?" I figured I would just have to follow up with her in a few weeks to see if she had to use one.

Later on in the evening, our hostess went to go grab her cell phone that began ringing randomly and in doing so accidently knocked over a glass that had just a teeny bit of red wine left in it. The wine spilled on the off-white carpet!! Everyone went quiet for a moment and then BTB let out a "Sham wow!!". The box was grabbed, opened and an individual sham wow was passed to me, as I had gotten into position to help clean up the stain.

Now, I can personally attest to the fact that those suckers can absorb up the red wine like noone's business. We added in a little seltzer as well just to be sure that everything that could be done was done. After my blotting was completed, it was determined that you would never have guessed RED WINE had been spilt in the first place.

It really is a mircle maker.

I hope to someday own a set myself. Untill then, I will just wish longingly...

What is this that I am sitting on???

Today I finally got around to cleaning the disaster which was formally known as my bedroom. I would like to say I was shocked, appalled, and baffled about how it got this way, but let's be honest, packing and unpacking three weekends in a row was the cause for most of the trauma. I will attest to the fact that I need to get a bigger book shelf. I have books everywhere in here, it would appear that I have a knack for finding unused storage space.

Taming my room ended rather successfully. Not only can I walk all around my floor, - rather than hopping from one small open space to another - actually see the top of my dresser, - there were piles of earrings, necklaces, ticket stubs and flair - but wait for it.... I actually was able to sit in my clothes chair.

You may need to reread that last part...

I sat in my clothes chair.

I don't think I have ever sat in that chair for the almost two years I have had it. Not only that, but I was able to clear off my desk and put my computer on it. Normally Floyd here travels around with me on top of a hard cover book (which is a great way to plug the fact that if you ever feel the need to get me a gift at random, I could REALLY use a lap desk). But yeah, I took all of the clothing off the back of the chair and removed the old magazines and papers from the seat. Sitting in the chair was a strange sensation. I don't plan on revisiting it any time soon, I just felt wrong on so many levels.

The clothes were temporarily moved to hang over the top of the closet (if you can classify that cubby of a space a closet) door. They will be relocated back to the chair in a few moments. I am quite sure that anyone reading this understands the importance of the clothes chair. If for some reason the concept is escaping your grasp, the clothes chair is where items go that do not belong in the drawer/closet but also should not yet be put in the hamper. Think of it as a fashion limbo. There is no reason to try and change the chair's purpose back to sitting, my bed can fulfill that function just fine. I mean the clothes need to go somewhere and I don't think there is such thing as a clothes bed....that just sounds silly.


Please note, that is NOT my clothes chair. But that is the first image you get when one google images for one!

I will lie in the bed I made and enjoy it

Putting new sheets on my bed is quite possibly one of my least favorite activities. The whole process just aggravates me. I have a queen size bed which is great for sleeping but is a royal pain to make.

Once the sheets are off, I need to deal with the fact that they need to be cleaned. All I can say is thank you inventor of wash-dry-fold. Before I found you, I would swear and just get annoyed at the idea of fitting all the bedding in a wash machine and then have to attempt to fold huge pieces of fabric on my own. Now for 92 cents per pound I can pay someone else to do it for me! Even in this economy I am not giving this small luxury up. If I did them myself I would still need to pay to use the coin operated machine in my basement so it isn't as if I am completely wasting money here.

Once I have over come the issue of needing clean sheets, I need to tackle my naked bed. It is time for me to climb all around attempting to get the sheets positioned correctly and figure out a way to squeeze between my bed and the wall so that I can use the proper military fold for the corners. Somehow by the end of all this I always end up a bit sweaty. It is kind of pathetic.

In the end as much as I hate making my bed, the best nights sleep that I have are always the nights where I am sleeping in a freshly cleaned/made bed. It just feels so wonderful...it almost makes me want to go through the process a little more frequently...almost

I will never be a Suzy Homemaker

I may have gotten injured while doing laundry yesterday. I am dead serious.

This week I decided to focus in on the disaster that has over taken my room. I cleaned it to my best abilities (the floor is now visible), which then produced a series of errands that needed to be completed to get rid of some of the piles.

So I dropped of clothes at the dry cleaners, shoes at the cobbler, and finished off with a trip to the laundromat last night. Technically I still have to drop off sheets and towels at wash-dry-fold next week (I just hate trying to fold sheets by myself) but I'm considering that to be on next week's to-do list.

Anyway, I pulled the muscles located at the base of my ribcage and the only thing I have done that involved physical movement was doing my laundry last night. I know it sounds weird (and by weird I mean pathetic), but there is no other explanation. Just applying pressure to the area is causing me discomfort!

Clothes can be heavy when wet.... I did have to walk awkwardly down the street as I pulled my basket/cart-thing full of laundry down the street because I am too tall to use it comfortably...maybe it was the leaning?

I don't know. But this just shows I am not made to be a housewife/homemaker. Sorry Amy, I don't think you could even help me...