For Christmas I got two presents that I LOVE. But first my tangent. Around Christmas time I read an article about the fact that we often spend money on big items or gifts that we use irregularly in hopes that they will improve our life. The example the author cited was an RV that was purchased and never used. Her suggestion was that to significantly increase our happiness we should buy things that we will use regularly that will significantly impact our life.
That brings me to my Christmas presents....
1 - My new Knife. Russ bought me a really nice knife. It is a thing of beauty. I'm not joking when I say that the first time I used it I started to laugh because it was so sharp easy to slice though a ripe tomato. I gave it to my mom and she did the same thing. I love this knife because I use it every day, multiple times a day. And silly as it sounds it makes me happy each time I do because my life has been significantly improved. (You should see it cut through chicken. I swoon.) I know I'm a nerd but really nice knife = happy me.
2 - The Best 30-Minute Meals from America's Test Kitchen. As you well know I LOVE America's Test Kitchen. Their standards for excellence (which really means deliciousness) are high. I know I can trust every recipe they have. In fact, just Sunday I made their Bread Pudding, and it was heaven! But the down side is that a lot of their recipes are more time consuming than I have time for at dinner time. At most I will only make one or possibly two of their recipes in a week because I just don't have enough time after Abbie comes home from school. If I'm really on the ball I'll do prep work during the day but that doesn't always happen either. I'll be honest there is a level of quality that comes with letting things simmer, marinade, caramelize, and combine for longer than 30 minutes that just can't be replicated in that time frame. But if you don't have that time, enter their 30 Minute Meal Cookbook. The same high standards but start to finish 30 minutes. Tonight I made their Ravioli Bake and it was a big hit. It tasted a lot like lasagna, but I was able to fix the ravioli, a salad, green beans and get the table set (read: supervise Abbie setting the table) in 30 minutes. Not bad, my friends, not bad at all.
It is nice to have received gifts that just keep on giving.
2 comments:
I am green with envy! Being a cooking nerd myself . . . there is nothing that can make one happier than an extremely nice knife!
I ordered that cookbook and it's supposed to arrive tomorrow. I can't wait to try it out! Let's just say that this could revolutionize my life. I don't have time anymore to cook anything from the New Best book, but I'm really tired of fast'n'easy meals that are bland'n'boring. Thank you from the bottom of my stomach for introducing me to America's Test Kitchen!
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