You can spot the ubiquitous cast iron jack-of-all-trades pot in all the colors of the rainbow in magazines, cookbooks and cooking shows the world over.
Ever since I started watching the Food Network I got hooked on the versatility of this quality piece and have dreamed of one day having my very own multi-tasking French Dutch Oven.
Yeah, sure some of the popular celeb chefs like Rachel Ray, Mario Batali and even Queen Martha have created knock-offs of their own, for about half the price, but there was always one thing missing.
It was not a Le Creuset!
Sorry folks, but in this cooks opinion, nothing can compare to that classic French quality and reputation of Le Creuset.
Nope, not even Queen Martha or Molto Mario.
Le Creuset is a French brand that has been around since 1925 and is the world's leading manufacturer of quality Enameled Cast Iron cookware. They are the mainstay of French chefs.
The crème de la crème of cookware. They have that je ne sais quoi.
This particular Dutch Oven is made from a cast iron mold. The inside is coated in the highest quality vitreous enamel, the lid has a perfectly tight fit which ensures the moisture and flavor are retained in the cooking. The knob is made from a heat resistant material which is oven-proof to 375*, so you won't get third degree burns stirring your soup. Yep, we have all been there!
They are very versatile pieces as well. You can cook on the stove-top, bake in the oven or store leftovers in the fridge...all in the same pot!
Can you say easy-peazy clean up!
So, why I am I blathering on about all this you might ask?
Well, after 5 years of wishing and hoping, dreaming and drooling, today with a gift certificate in hand, I hauled ass over to Warren Cutlery this morning to be first in line for their 20% off sale. Needless to say, I am now the proudvery proud owner of a new Le Creuset Dutch Oven in Cherry Red.
courtesy of Warren Cutlery
Isn't she a beauty? I feel like a teenage boy with his first new shiny red Camero. Can't wait for a test drive!
My only dilemma now? What recipe I should use to christen my new cookware?
This week my amica Italiana Michelle, over at Bleeding Espresso, unwittingly created this little meme based on the questions that James Lipton asks all of his actor guests on Inside the Actors Studio.
I thought it would be fun to play along..so here goes.
1. What is your favorite word?Facetious 2.What is your least favorite word?Mucous 3. What turns you on creatively, spiritually, emotionally? Surrounding myself with like-minded creative people and appreciating their work. 4.What turns you off? Arrogance 5. What is your favorite curse word?Sons-a-bitches, be-otch is 2nd runner up. 6. What sound or noise do you love?The Italian Language being spoken 7.What sound or noise do you hate?Nails on a chalkboard 8. What profession other than your own would you like to attempt?Comedienne 9.What profession would you not like to do? Coal Miner 10.If Heaven exists, what would you like to hear God say when you arrive at the Pearly Gates? Hurry up!!Your Grandfather has tickets for you to see a Yankees game together (again).
Feel free to play along by answering in the comments or do the meme on your own blog! If you play on your blog, make sure you leave me a comment....I'd love to pop on over and check out your answers!
Unfortunately, I am not lucky enough to have acres of green land and sprawling flower gardens. That's my Mom.
Instead I have a challanging situation. I have a small porch. And It is longer than it is wide.
We have worked hard on it, but it is no way finished. I like to refer to it as Mon Petit Jardin.
That sounds much prettier than My Plants on the Porch, doesn't it?
I'll have a big reveal, once it is to the point where I am happy with it.
Chris would argue this will never happen, or at least not until the summer of 2015.
I scored a pair of shabby cream colored shutters for twenty bucks from a local salvage yard that will serve as a privacy screen once Chris adds hinges and rigs them to stand up.
I would argue this will never happen, or at least not until the summer of 2015.
And of course, we are still sans our café table and chairs. I can't wait until I can sit out there with a book and drink my morning café au lait.
In 2015.
Here is a sneak peak. Click on the smaller image to see it in full size.
How are your gardens coming this year? What are your gardening projects?
My good blog buddies Michelle and Anne have had a little fun with Flickr this week. They have inspired me to join in!!
I must admit, I am a fan of Flickr and I even have some photo's on there, but with my crazy schedule, I can't keep up on it as much as I'd like.
This is a neat little mosaic meme created using Flickr photos.
Cool right?
Now it's your turn! If you want to play...here's what you do.
a. Type your answer to each of the questions below into Flickr Search. b. Using only the first page, pick an image. c. Copy and paste each of the URLs for the images into fd's Mosaic Maker
Here are the questions:
1. Your first name. 2. What is your favorite food? 3. What high school did you go to? 4. What is your favorite color? 5. Who is your celebrity crush? 6. Favorite drink? 7. Dream vacation? 8. Favorite dessert? 9. What you want to be when you grow up? 10. What do you love most in life? 11. One Word to describe you. 12. Your flickr name.
I'd love to know if you are gonna play along. Drop me a comment so I can come check out your mosaic!
And thanks to these fabulous Flickr photographers for helping to create my mosaic!
Last night, I came home after work to find Chris walking out the front door. I asked him where he was going. He motioned for me to come with him. I never refuse.
We walked out into our driveway, next to the house and there we stood, looking for something, but I had no idea what.
He explained that when he took Madison out earlier, there was a friendly squirrel that was hanging around. "A little too friendly", he said.
Sure enough, we see the cute little guy approching. He was sticking really close to the edge of the house and then he ran right up to us.
He was adorable. He wasn't a newborn, but he was definitely a baby. His tail was as big as his body, he looked a little like this.
photo courtesy of 247wildlife.com
He was trying to stand on our feet and climb up our pant legs, which is not normal behavior for a squirrel.
We are not squirrel people. We have never seen a baby. Is he sick? Does he have rabies? Will he bite me!?
But, I was in love. I couldn't just leave him. It was obvious that something was wrong. You can't just show me a cute little defenseless animal and not let me help it. But again, I am not a squirrel person.
We quickly came inside and got to work.
We looked up a number for Animal Control in our city. We dialed. We got voicemail. It was after 5pm. Damn.
We looked up another number for Animal Control for the town. We dialed. No answer. Damn.
At that moment, I also remembered that this past weekend, there was a dead squirrel that got hit by a car right in front of our house. That was my ah-ha moment.
I told Chris that it was likely the mama got hit and the baby is all alone and scared now. Awww.
Now I was really on a mission.
There is a vet right down the road from us. I looked up the number. We called and someone answered. Chris was given another number. He dialed. Voicemail. We left another message. Argh.
I went for the big guns. I called my, well Madison's, vet. Someone answered. I explained my silly story and the women said " Yeah, hold on, we have the number of a women who resuces squirrels, I'll get you the number" Elation! Yes!
I dialed that number and Kim answered. My heart was beating so fast.
I explained my story and she was quite sympathetic and appreciative that we called. I told her about my suspicions about the mama. She agreed. She asked me about his tail, which I thought was strange, but later learned it helps tell their age. The younger the squirrel, the flatter the tail. As they get a bit older, it fills out fluffier and fluffier.
She knew squirrels!
I told her I wasn't sure if he needed rescue, he wasn't a small baby. She assured me that hy would need rescue. With mama gone, he would be hungry, not being able to fend for himself, and that he needed protection from predators. She said we did the right thing. Whew.
It turns out she was close by. Only about a 5 minute drive. Only one problem. She was at work and she couldn't leave. We need to bring the squirrel to her! Uh, what? How in the? I wouldn't know how to, um. Oh, my, what have I done???
She explained that we needed to try to get him in a box and drive him over. She would meet us outside her job to do the hand off. We were to call on our cell phone when we were close.
And then, she adds another little twist. She assures me there is not just one baby. Most litters are from three to six babies and she wants us to see if we can find others. Hey, I am not sure I can catch one...no less sixsquirrels.
Off we go, box in hand and a few walnuts to entice the little fella.
We head out into the driveway. He's no where to be found. My heart sinks. We walk up and down, looking under the porch, calling him, walking along the rock wall. Nothing.
Just as I am walking back to go in the house, I see a gray tail shake in a tree across the street. I walk over and find two baby squirrels curled up in the crook of the tree, about two feet above my head, cuddling with each other. As I get closer, they look scared, they were shaking a little. Double Awww.
I called Kim back. Told her we found two and had no idea how we would get them out of the tree. She must have sensed our trepidation on the phone earlier, because she informed us that she called a friend of hers that helps with the rescue efforts. He was on his way over. He'd be there in 10 minutes. Great.
I stood guard at the tree to make sure they didn't run away. I placed some walnuts in the crooks of the highest branches I could reach. They made cute little noises, like they were hungry. They fought over the walnuts and quickly devoured them. I am sure they were hungry.
I have to tell you, at this point I wanted nothing more to run in the house and grab my camera and snap shots of these little cuties. They looked so helpless tucked in the tree and huddled together. But, for the greater good, I didn't. I feared if I left they might run or I might scare them with the camera. So I have no pictures. But I assure you...they were adorable.
Chris had run in the house to get another box and his gloves, in case we had to grab them. I see him come out of front door and down the front steps and right in front of him another baby runs out from under the shrubs and out onto the sidewalk. Now we have three!
I yell to Chris and he tries to catch that one, to no avail. They are quick little suckers and I am sure he was frightened.
Chris runs inside to get yet another box.
I pick up the box he just brought out and I throw some walnuts in it. The third one scurries across the road toward me and toward his siblings in the tree. As he is sitting on the curb, I put the box with the walnuts open and facing the curb. He takes a flying leap and lands right in the box. I was so shocked I jumped, screamed and quickly folded the flaps down so he couldn't escape!
Yeah!! One down, two to go.
Chris came out and I told him I caught one. We are convinced that one was our original friend we saw in the driveway. He was not scared of us, where as the others were and had not left the tree.
About two minutes later, the Squirrel Rescue Man pulled up in his car. Relief.
He looked at the babies and told us we made the right call. He was very happy that we did. He said they definitely couldn't survive on their own.
He donned his gloves, climbed up the step ladder we had propped against the tree for him and he grabbed one and put him right in a box he brought. Easy Peazy.
The second one, wasn't going to go without a fight.
He ran around the tree a few times. I grabbed my box and tried to get him on the ground 3 or 4 times before he bolted into the neighbors flower garden, conveniently located behind a fence.
Mr. Squirrel Rescue Man was able to crawl part way into the garden and grab his tail from behind. He couldn't move and he was screaming a little while Chris grabbed him from the front. He tried to bite Chris on his gloves. Poor guy, so scared. I know. I know.
Mr. Squirrel Rescue Man told us how many he had home right now at various stages of rescue. He weans them with a cage that slowly allows them to get used to the outside and eventually, when they are ready and can survive, they will be set free again.
He thanked us profusely for doing the right thing. I felt good about our decision and I know Chris did as well. We saved three baby squirrels.
But all we did was make a few phone calls. Kim and Mr. Squirrel Man do the real work.
I am amazed that people actually do this. Out of the goodness of their hearts. Because they care. We love animals and we care, but this is a different level of caring.
I am grateful and humbled by what they do. And I thank them from the bottom of my heart.
So what about you? Have you ever rescued anything? Do you think we are crazy? What would you have done?
June 3, 2008. A date that will go down in history.
As you all know, I am a proud Barack Obama supporter, so you can imagine how elated and excited I am tonight.
It has been a long, drawn out time in coming, but Mr. Obama has reached the magic number of delegates tonight, which puts him over the top and crowns him the Democratic Nominee for President of the United States of America. We are all witnessing history in the making, as Barack is now the first ever African American nominee!! I for one am glad to have been around for this stupendous milestone and very proud of our great country for making this happen.
Change is happening.
Whooohooo!!!
I can assure you I will be buying up bumper stickers and pins like a crazy women!!
The important thing now is to look ahead and to figure out how to unite the party, so that we can win in November! We must win in November!!
One of the ways to do that is through the Vice Presidential nominee.
Who do you think Obama will pick for his running mate? What are the pro's and con's if he picks Hillary?
Congratulations Mr. President!!!I really like the sound of that.
Sweet, fragrant clusters of blossoms Delicate, graceful lilliputian stars Shades of violet, lavender and periwinkle blue Lovely, just lovely Can you smell them for there?
The first round of Lilacs made their way into my kitchen this week thanks to my other half.
Their delicious aroma fills my home with the sweet smell of Springtime and of childhood memories.
Memories of that same sweet aroma wafting through the kitchen windows of my childhood home when the breeze gently danced through the lilac branches in the back yard.
Lilacs are short lived, so you should definitely take the time to appreciate them.
Anne in Oxfordshire gave me a Chatty Blog Award. Imagine that? Me, a talkative person? Sheesh, I guess she knows me all to well!! Yeah, I guess I like to chat it up a bit!! I also have chatted via email with many people I have met through my blog. I really enjoy responding to all the comments left on my blog, getting to know new people from all walks of life and have made some great friends here just from chatting!!
So, my fellow chatters, I pass this Good Chat Blog Award onto....
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