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Tuesday, March 16, 2021

Tuesday 4 All About Food Prep

I follow Annie at Tuesday 4. Each week she asks four questions and this week it is all about cooking. Hop over there and join in.


1.  What is the most valuable kitchen utensil you have or one you use often and could not live without?
8 inch chef's knife and a paring knife. I would advise anyone just starting out to buy these two knives and get the best ones you can afford. But it has to "fit" your hand, so you really need to do an in store "test drive" first.

2. Do you have any fancy gadgets like air fryers, etc in your kitchen? How are they working out for you?
I bought an instapot and never used it after owning it for a year and a half. I gave it to Son2, and I am not sure if they have used it or not. 
I have an air fryer and I love it. There is rarely a day I do not use it for one thing or another. 
I have a zucchini spiralizer that I use regularly. 
I also have a kitchen aid mixer, but generally opt to use the hand mixer because it is easier unless I am mixing a huge recipe or making multi recipes I would use a mixer for.
The food saver is great, but I only use it for foods I plan to store in the freezer for long storage

3. Do you have any step or labor saving ideas that make cooking and meal preparation easier?
Make a shopping list the then take a picture of the list. I can't tell you how many times I have left the grocery list on the kitchen table, but I always have my phone with me. The photo of the list has come in handy so many times, and saves me from return trips to pick up what I forgot.

4. What is your favorite recipe of all time? Would you share it with us? 
I am not sure I have a favorite recipe, but I have seasonal favorites
I do make this year round and it is not necessarily a favorite but it is a staple. I make this about 2 times a month.

Pimento Cheese (base recipe)
1 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
1 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
1 small jar of chopped pimentos, drained
1/3 - 1/2 cup mayonnaise 
couple of drops of hot sauce
ground pepper, optional

Let the shredded cheeses sit on the counter until they have softened a bit. Then use a mixer at slow speed to break up the shreds into smaller pieces. Next add the mayo. This is a matter of personal preference. I like mine with less mayonnaise, but TheHub likes his with heavy mayo. Still using the mixer combine until it is a spreadable consistency. Again this is a preference thing. We like ours with some of the cheese still a bit chunky. My mother liked hers mousse like and would make hers in her food processor so it would be smooth (ick!) 
After the cheese and mayo are thoroughly combined stir in the pimento cheese and hot sauce.

We eat it like this sometimes but I add  any or any combination of the following if I am in the mood.
minced green onions
minced jalapeños
lemon zest
bacon crumbles
minced celery
minced bell pepper
chopped pecans
My personal favorite is a combo of green onion, jalapeño and pecan bits.

TheHub loves it as a sandwich spread on bread (never toast). 
It makes a wicked grilled cheese (my favorite), but I usually eat it on celery sticks or cucumber slices.
It is good on crackers of all kinds and is wonderful stirred into hot mashed potatoes or grits.
It is not good by itself though. It like to have company when it is eaten!








44 comments:

  1. 1. My knife. It's the trimmer knife from the Cutco set DH bought me years ago. Prior to that, I used a decent Wusthoff, but it was purchased for DH, and never really fit me to the point that I'd be lost without it.
    2. I use my KitchenAid mixer regularly, if not daily. I use the dough hook to knead bread--can't remember the last time I hand kneaded. I invested in the FGSVA attachment, and that is amazing! I use the meat grinder fairly frequently, and the vegetable attachment to make applesauce. No need to peel the apples, just cook, put through the mixer, and voila. Same with tomatoes if I am making sauce or soup. The only other gadgets I use regularly are my slow cookers, 3 different sizes. I did buy on impulse, a KitchenAid ice-cream and gelato maker from a local resell site, and it has ruined store bought ice-cream for us all. That said, I would never had paid full price for it. For the life of me, I can't figure out the InstantPot craze--I don't see where it would save me any time or money. I have slow cookers, I have a pressure canner which doubles as a pressure cooker should I ever decide to use it as such--which I haven't. I do use it for hot water bath canning, however.
    3. My best labor saving advice is to get a KitchenAid, and keep it on the counter. If you do things like make applesauce or can tomatoes, or regularly grind your own meat, get the FGSVA attachment Also, when kids were younger, pre-school age and a bit older, I didn't restrict food, but I did restrict access to the pantry and refrigerator. The kitchen was only "open" to them at certain times. It helped keep the mess at bay.
    4. I don't have a favorite of all times, but our very favorite salsa of all times, (well, of those who eat salsa) is from the "Getting Started" section of the Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving.

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    1. I have a wusthoff and it fits me well, but I have used others that did not. I think the feel of the knife is just about as critical as the blade.

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  2. I am a real purist with the pimiento and cheese--grated cheese, pimiento, Miracle Whip, and smidgen of salt. Only on bread and never heated, not smooth as I like the cheese feeling.

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    1. Everyone has their own way of doing things and should do it the way they like it best.

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  3. I make my grocery list using an app on my phone. I just add to it as I see something I need and it is all ready when I go to the store. I forget to bring lists too.
    We use our InstantPot all of the time. Loved your answers. Have a nice day!

    https://lorisbusylife.blogspot.com/

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    1. I know people love the instapot. I just never used it and it wound up taking too much real estate in the kitchen to keep for a maybe someday.

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  4. As a mainly non cook (fear of knives being a contributing reason) who is now cooking for one), I would say 1. would be my slow cooker and stove top oven, realizing they are not real utensils, and my immersable blender. 2. No gadgets other than the stand blender and I suppose some consider an electric kettle a gadget. I will never go back to on the stove or zapping long as I live. 3.Probably not. I am a throw it in the slow cooker or make a casserole and otherwise I allow others to cook for me. So unless not cooking counts, lol. I do cook and freeze all the time. 4. Way too many recipes to choose one.

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    1. I agree about having a favorite. I just used the recipe I use most (though if I am telling the truth I never measure anything)

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  5. The song is too cute! I totally agree with you on the knives being the most important. I love your idea to take a photo of your shopping list! I need to start doing that, I forget mine on a regular basis too. Thanks for sharing your pimento cheese recipe, it sounds delicious :)

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    1. I love to see kids singing with their Moms or Dads. I had seen this one a little bit ago and knew it would be used here someday. When I decided to use the pimento cheese recipe I knew this was the day.

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  6. Oh yum, I love pimento cheese. It is so good. And I agree with you on the paring knife. Mine is serrated which I really like.

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    1. I like pimento cheese too, but TheHub loves, loves it. I keep it here nearly all the time.

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  7. You are so right about knives - and about them having to feel right. The knives I most often use are not the ones my partner favours - for just that reason.
    Love the shopping list idea, but I do struggle to read on my phone. Having to repeatedly enlarge the list would do my head in.

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    1. I think knives are like gloves and you have to try them on for size!

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  8. Sweet dreams are definitely made of cheese. What a cute parody. 1. I can't decide. 2. About 30 years ago I bought an Oster mixer. It is my tried-and-true friend. I love the dough hooks, and I have a food processer and ice cream maker that can go on it instead of the arm. Several years ago the arm failed me. Oster didn't have replacement parts, but I actually found an arm on ebay that has allowed Oster and me to continue our love affair. 3. When I cut dough into shapes for rolls, I use a pizza cutter instead of a knife. 4. My favorite recipe is Butterhorn Rolls from my elderly Betty Crocker cookbook.

    Love,
    Janie

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    1. I love the parody, but I particularly like the girl singing with her dad.
      Old cookbooks are treasure troves!

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  9. I'm with Lori -- I use an iPhone app for making a shopping list, which has a number of useful features like marking off what you buy, but keeping already-purchased items hidden but still viewable so you can review what you bought in the past.

    Another feature: the list is sharable, so my husband can shop using the list on his iPhone, and mark off the purchases he makes so we don't have any confusion about who is buying what. One time when we were sharing a vacation condo, we even temporarily shared lists with the others who were in on the rental. And then un-shared when we were no longer together.

    be safe... mae at maefood.blogspot.com

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    1. Smart to share with everyone in the condo! TheHub and I use different phones and a lot of times apps are not compatible

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  10. I enjoyed reading your answers. Yes, a knife would be the most useful utensil in my kitchen, too. Would my rice cooker be considered a fancy gadget? I do know how to cook rice on the stove top, but, the rice cooker is easier. It gets used almost every other day!

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  11. I love pimento cheese too- never had it until I moved to the South in 1997- but I add cream cheese to my cheddar mixture. I had to order 6 jars of chopped pimentos walmart.com during the pandemic because Aldi didn't carry them! Favorite kitchen utensil- hmm...I've never had any desire for a Kitchen Aid which my daughter and sister keep trying to get me to buy. I like my little hand mixer. I'd have to say a microwave but that's really an appliance! My favorite recipe is probably my NY cheesecake which I can improvise. I pretty much have pockets in all my clothes so I just pop my shopping list in there and I never bring my phone into a store. I leave it in the console- nothing to me is ruder than someone chatting on their cell in a store and I get a lot of phone calls- sometimes 25 a day. No I'm not that popular- it's clients or ones wanting to provide services for my clients. I do have an air fryer but I don't use it everyday- maybe 3 times a week??

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  12. I have no idea why Aldi does not carry pimentos. I go to the Walmart grocery near me and buy the jars 10 at a time (mainly because I hate Walmart and go as seldom as possible)

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  13. your recipe looks great. Love your answers hope you have a great week

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  14. I've never had pimento cheese, though have heard of it. I'm not a huge fan of pimentos though, but I bet it would be good without them too. Now bacon bits....

    I have a decent set of knives but they certainly aren't the greatest. I'm just too cheap to spend that much. After Christmas a couple of years ago I bought an Instapot, used it twice and realized I could have done the same thing on the stove or in the oven in the same amount of time so now it just gathers dust in the cupboard. I really should try to sell it.
    My slow cooker would likely be the closest thing to a fancy gadget. I use it a lot - through the ingredients in it in the morning and by late afternoon the house smells great and I can sit down to a decent dinner.
    My favorite recipe is mac and cheese. I melt butter, add diced onions and allow that to cook before adding flour to make a roux. I know that it's not technically a roux because I cook the onions first but it works for me. I slowly add milk until it starts to thicken and coat the back of the spoon. I always use pre-shredded cheese - cause I'm lazy - and it depends what I have on hand I add that to the milk mixture and then pour it over pre-cooked pasta in a buttered casserole dish. I usually make macaroni but I didn't have any last week so used shells. I really liked the way the sauce got into the shells, so may to continue to do it that way. Last step is to add some breadcrumbs on top for a bit of texture. I can make it early in the day and heat it up for dinner. You'll note I didn't give you amounts, it's all by feel - I have no idea how much of anything I add. :)

    Take care, stay well.

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    1. I understand the feel. I don't really measure anything at all!

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  15. Splurging on a good knife should be on my list. I got my son a nice 6 incj I think for fish prep for Christmas. My Instant pot sits as well. I told my daughter to give it a try and if she likes its hers. If not, I'll bring to lake as my sil loves hers and she'd get use out of it.

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    1. When the instapot was the rage I bought one, took it out of the box and it just sat there. Son2 said he would like it and I liked getting rid of it.

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  16. I enjoyed your answers. Your pimento cheese recipe reminds me we used to have this at Christmas but I haven't had any for years. Maybe it's time to resurrect the tradition ;-)

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    1. Pimento cheese (pronounced pimmina cheese here)is a staple here. Just about any sandwich place in town has it on the menu.

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  17. Boy I will try this, I bet hubs would love it. Funny I got an inst pot for Christmas a year ago and have not used it.

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    1. I am glad my instapot is gone. I don't mind cooking so it really offered no benefits. The air fryer is another story though. I love having all the benefits of a small convection oven without heating up my regular oven, and I use it every single day. My only issue with it is that I evidently ordered it in the wrong color. I meant to order black but must have hit the teal button by mistake. It looks like of like one of those old plastic hair dryers.

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  18. Oh man, I forget my list so many times.. I am going to start taking a pic of it, thanks for the tip!! Happy Tuesday!

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    1. Me and thee. Taking a picture was not life changing but it really does help.

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  19. We have an InstantPot that we use frequently, but not an air fryer. I have hesitated in getting an fryer because of the space, but am tempted. Would you consider doing a post on how you use yours?

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    1. Sure I could do a post on how I use it. I actually have a spot to store mine but use it nearly everyday and there are just two of us here, so why bother.

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  20. Mmmm, pimento cheese. Love the stuff. Last made for end-of-year festivities. I agree that a good knife or two are the most important kitchen utensils. Use my chef's knife every day. Could get by without a paring knife, but it's so handy. And like some others, I have a grocery list app on my phone -- makes things tons easier. And because Mrs KR has it on her phone too, when we both go to the grocery store we can split up and get things, and can see on the app what each one of us has already gotten. Handy!

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    1. I have an app for a list on my phone but I never use it. I am one of those people who had rather actually write something, I guess.

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  21. The idea of taking the photo of the list is genius. I never thought of that before and I always forget my list!! Always!

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    1. After years of leaving my list on the kitchen table, it is so nice to have it with me now in photo form.

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  22. I have an air fryer and love it too - although the main thing I make in it is fries! And like you, I tend to use my hand held mixer for most things rather than the kitchen aid mixer. For me that was a waste of money, to be honest. Oddly enough I think my hand mixer is the one my parents gave me when I first came to Switzerland over 40 years ago and here it is, still going strong!

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    1. I like the dough hook function on my kitchen aid, but make bread so rarely that it is pretty useless. I do use it when I am making multi batches of cookies which happens once a year during the Christmas holidays.

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  23. I have thought about getting an air fryer. I do love my zucchini spiralizer. That's a great idea on taking a photo of your grocery list.

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  24. That sounds like the most delicious filling for a toasted sandwich!
    I hope the spring is good to you, you might have mentioned already but are you in line for a vaccine yet?

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