Using those kitchen appliances…

When you spend a week with the Happy Housewife…

Just before our trip to Mexico, I was fortunate to spend a week with my brother, his wife (the Happy Housewife) and their kiddos. The kids and I had a fantastic time playing and I also had the opportunity to learn a LOT.

You’ve already seen the impact of the visit on my blog. Now I’m going to share the impact on my kitchen.

Toni has been singing the praises of breadmaking for years. I received two breadmakers as wedding gifts years ago (and yes, I registered for one of them) only to give both away after very little use. But after tasting her bread, and thinking about how much healthier the bread could be if I made it myself, now, I’m ready to try again.

Yesterday Toni emailed me her breadmaker brand of choice: Zojirushi. So off to the store I went to get one. Since I was hosting a few ladies for dinner, I thought I would let them be my first taste-testers.

Here’s what my kitchen looked like just 20 minutes after being home from the kitchen and grocery stores:

My first run was more like a cake, but it was a recipe I got from the Zojirushi site, so it still counts. I was actually using my friends for a first round of tasters because I am planning on bringing a breakfast bread and muffins to a Bible study luncheon this Wednesday and I thought I might need a trial run.

Well, I did need that trial run, because here’s what my Luscious Blueberry Loaf turned out to be:

I did figure out my mistake. I added the blueberries at the beginning of the knead cycle instead of the end. I thought it was the end because the thing was beeping. I was, obviously, wrong. Oh well. The edges still tasted good.

Hopefully I’ll fare better tomorrow night in preparation for Wednesday. Don’t worry, I am making muffins, too.

But wait, there’s more to this tale of kitchen catastrophe and recovery…

For some reason I am a crockpot failure. (Yes, it’s true. I know it sounds impossible, but it’s not.)

I remember making delicious crockpot meals as a single gal, yet since I’ve been married, everything turns out terrible. I’ve been through several crockpots, wondering if it was the crockpot that was causing the calamities. Four crockpots later, my food still tastes like paper.

So Toni has given me the diagnostic.

“Go home, brown one bottom butt roast on all sides and put it in a crockpot with 1 cup of brown sugar and 1 cup of Worcestershire. Cook at low for about 8 hours. Call with the results.” She said.

Well, I accidentally bought a different cut, but I’m hoping for some success anyhow. Any success would be better than what I’ve expereinced in the past.

All right, the crockpot is cooking:

Tagged as: Breadmaking, Cooking, Crockpot