Things That Make You Say Hmmmmmmm?

I remember being deeply disappointed last time I visited my mother.

One thing she could really do well was bake pies. Her piecrust was the talk of the town. I waited all year for this trip, just knowing I would be biting into the perfect pecan pie. She got out the pecans (which she hand-picked from the woods), put together the filling.... I was drooling by now. Then she opens a Pillsbury pie crust packet and proceeds to press it into the pan. I almost cried. She wouldn't let me take over at that point as this was HER pie.
*sigh*
Some things may take a few more minutes, but sometimes we lose so much when we buy into the convenience foods.

 
Sometimes it is not just the savings of preparation, but of clean up as well that causes me to

turn to a few of these convenience items periodically.

I have two young children and some days, between my and their activities, homework, etc, it's nice to get up from the table and not have a huge pile of dirty prep pans to clean up. Some nights, I'd rather play a game of Clue with my family than scrub pans. smileys/smile.gif

Costco carries high-quality roasts and short ribs from Harris Ranch, which have been a lifesaver for me when I wanted home-cooked flavor and didn't have the time or energy to do the prep and clean up.

 
I was working with some children in the classroom today, and one of the volunteers

asked the children to draw a "will". The kids questioned her about how to do that, and she said "You know, a 'will' on a car?"

One boy responded, "Oh, you mean a wheel, a wheeeel!"

 
In my defense...

this is not a riding lawn mower but some kind of attachment that goes on a tractor tractor, as in John Deere, and if you don't know who/what that is, you would if you lived here!

 
It's not only food.

Have you seen that set of measuring spoons that are set up for a dash, a pinch, a bit, and one other that escapes me? I think the largest of them "measures" about an 1/8th tsp.

Who buys that stuff?

 
I, on the other hand, reach for the band aid after using the grater. Confess that I love pre-grated

 
Haha, that is why I like the way Rachael Ray cooks. She makes it easy

for folks who find it complex. I have a dear friend(s) who find the process rather confusing. If I say, "a tad of this or a little of that" it is all over.

 
Ang, frequent grating produces calluses that can't be cut. lol, but if you use pre-grated,

I'll get off my high horse.

 
I should add...one of the things I love best about traveling around the U.S. is hearing

the various regional accents, intonations and twangs. It's such a kick.

 
Hey - I bought those spoons!

I thought they were adorable! I was just using them as an adornment on wrapped foodie gifts...Not to be used, but just cause it was funny :0

Of course, my girlfriend, the measuring-impaired, was really happy with them, cause now she could measure a pinch, a dash and a smidgen!

 
Gee...I guess I may be the lone dissenter here

While I love the slow, rewarding rhythm of time well-spent in the kitchen, not to mention the vicarioius thrill from having mis en place in place, I still find myself utilizing the "short cut" products at my grocers.

I have an early rise and a long commute with an end result that I am tired at the end of the day. But I try to eat healthy. I try to avoid stopping at a fast-food drive through and avoid the billion-calorie burgers.

So I stop at the grocers and buy a package of pre-cut miropoix mix and a bag of lentils and a box of organic broth....because my fresh organic carrots have gone hairy and my home-made chicken broth is a square of ice in the freezer sitting next to its other homemade cousin, Nan's delicious mulligatawny.

And I buy pre-cooked rottiserie chickens because...to be honest, I think they are as good as mine. In fact, more often they are better, because theirs are consistently good, while mine are hit/miss.

And while I have yet to buy the hard-boiled eggs, I have been tempted when I see how perfect they look and recall my frustration at my own failed attempts with shells sticking and green rings. Hard-boiled eggs are a blessing to a dieter. They can be the difference between will-power and a nose-dive in a bag of cheese popcorn. I can easily see someone buying them to make deviled eggs the way Mom did....someone like me who can't made a pretty smooth hard-boiled egg to save her soul.

 
Back in the day, we used to buy CornMeal Mush in Loaf,

you coukd get it in the refrigerator section, snd slice it up, fry it and have it for breakfast- Ironically, when i first heard about Polenta, in the early '80s, I used to by this, slice it, coverit with tomato sauce, cheese etc, bake it and call it "Polenta" usually with my fingers crosse behind my back!! if I had only known!!!

 
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