Toaster Oven Talk

Once upon a time, before the existence of microwave ovens, people used a little invention called the toaster oven. Recently when our microwave decided to make its journey to Silicone Heaven we hit the store to buy a new one and found them sitting next to some toaster ovens. We'd been mulling over the idea of going with a toaster oven when our microwave and toaster died but now we were faced with that decision. I mean sure you can make something super hot super fast with a microwave but you mostly get rubberized food with all the flavor nuked out. With a toaster oven you can do pretty much whatever you would with a regular oven except you wouldn't raise the temperature of your kitchen which means if you get tired of grilling all the time this summer and start jonesing for a winter favorite, there's your trusty toaster oven for all your baking needs! Since picking up our toaster oven we've toasted things, made pizza, baked ziti, chicken wrapped in bacon and reheated leftovers.

I'm looking forward to experimenting with a traditional Sunday roast but in the meantime I'll be trying recipes and seeing what works and what doesn't. So far the only thing I can't do with a toaster oven is make popcorn, but I'm working on it:)

In the meantime, for anyone out there who have a toaster oven collecting dust or have been considering buying one. Here are some recipes to try:

Cannelloni

prep: 10 min, cook: 10min

10-12 pieces round

dumpling wrappers

3 oz. red pasta sauce

3 Cups ricotta cheese

2 Tbs heavy cream

2 tsp grated mozzarella

1Tbs olive oil

green vegetables or meat of choice

Bring a pan of water to a boil and reduce heat. Add wrappers individually, for 10 seconds at a time and spread them out (they will be sticky). Fill them with sauce and steamed vegetables or meat of choice, fold over. Spread olive oil onto a heatproof dish. Combine cheese and cream, pour it over the folded wraps. Sprinkle with mozzarella and bake in toaster oven for 10 minutes, until slightly browned.

Good Housekeeping has lots of great recipes including this one for Maple-Glazed Sausages and Figs and Big Oven has a terrific selection of toaster oven recipes including this one for Stuffed Chicken Breasts!

That's about it for this week except to announce my Christmas in July craft fair has been cancelled due to lack of interest. Oh well, guess I'll stick with Etsy and 1000 Markets for the time being. Next week I hope to announce my membership with a local Arts Group and dates of a rrrrreally big shoe (ok, ok, bad Ed Sullivan impression)! Chow for now!

A challenge on this the second day of summer...

Psst, see the comic strip above? It's a new feature of my blog and every week you'll see a new cartoon depicting a humorous but true adventure in the kitchen with "In The Weeds." Enjoy!

This morning I turned on the news to hear experts say knocking back multiple cups of coffee can fight certain types of Cancer, however, this afternoon these same experts say all that coffee from this morning can make you fat! Of course why worry about coffee affecting your waistline when you have this to contend with!

Yep, that's right folks Friendly's has decided to join the multiple attempts by fast food establishments to assassinate real cooking with a deluxe burger sandwiched between well, two grilled cheese sandwiches! The Epicurean inside of me gave a little gasp and began weeping when I saw this although not nearly as much as when KFC's latest monstrosity came out. Still, I don't get how Friendly's gastronomic disaster has almost twice as many calories as a "sandwich" made from two greasy pieces of fried chicken with two pieces of cheese, strips of bacon and some kind of mayonnaise sauce between them! I find myself laughing when I think of how not too long ago McDonald's and other fast food restaurants were forced to kill the super size options on their menu for cries of obesity, lawsuits yadda yadda yadda and yet as fast food "restaurants" leap at us with increasingly larger and more disgusting "sandwiches" I hear nothing but crickets. Is it because they're too busy wretching and twitching from grease and fat overload? While I do, on limited occasion, visit my local fast food chain (there are seven on my block alone) I recognize that these places are destroying American palettes. We spoke to someone just today who will be visiting friends in Europe for two weeks but admitted to being afraid of the cultures she'll be experiencing. We urged her not to be frightened and to try all the new dishes that will come before her! There are two things hubby and I detest in our travels, 1. Americans visiting a foreign country who yell in English REALLY REALLY LOUD LIKE VOLUME WILL SUDDENLY MAKE A NATIVE OF FRANCE UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU'RE TRYING TO ASK THEM.

2. People who visit foreign countries but will only visit establishments that are familiar to them. Why bother spending thousands of dollars to have the same experiences you can get at home for free? And sorry folks, Americans are NOT the only people guilty of this, nearly every country out there has people like this!

On this second official day of summer I know nearly everybody out there is in vacation mode. So whether you're travelling out of the country, around the country, across the country or just another part of the state, experiment! Every region has its own tastes and culinary delights. If you come across a local favorite, give it a try! Scarf down a Whoopie Pie, chow down on that Philly Cheese steak, indulge in good ole fashioned BBQ in a different part of the country than your own and snack on some Rocky Mountain Oysters... yeah, I know what they are but millions of people descend on Montana in August for them every year so they must be doing something right;) Even if you're too broke or busy to take a vacation this year, include a new area restaurant in your staycation. Challenge yourselves this summer by staying away from the local fast food joint and treat your tastebuds to something that isn't greasy, gooey, and dipped in fat... unless of course you're talking about a nice slice of NYC pizza or a deep fried Milky Way! Chow for now!

Summertime and the living is easy...

With summer officially underway my thoughts have immediately jumped to the next season. Of course this doesn't mean I won't be making anymore summer goodies this year but as fast as the year is going we'll all blink twice and start seeing the changing of leaves. So with thoughts of harvest time mixing with the celebratory atmosphere that accompanies the start of summer vacation the first thing that popped into my head was apples. Try as I might, I couldn't get thoughts of apples out of my head. So I decided to create some scrumptious new apple candles! These beauties stand 3" tall, contain 11oz of creamy scented soy wax and smell like the real thing. Pick a Red Delicious, Granny Smith or Golden Delicious for $10 plus shipping (also available unscented upon request).

I also experimented a little this week and came up with a "British Chocolate Spread" candle for my British, ex-pat and Anglophile fans. This exquisite delight was hand poured and set in an old (and thoroughly washed) jar of the famous chocolate spread with the purple label that we all know and love! It's 14 oz of chocolatey goodness for $12 plus shipping (International customers please contact me with your post code for a more accurate shipping cost).

This Saturday, June 5th, I'll be setting up shop at the East Deering Neighborhood Association Craft/Yard/Bake Sale located at The Columbia Club on Wordsworth Street in Portland (just off Veranda Street) from 9am - 4pm. The weatherman is calling for another soggy day (I swear he's out to get me) but fear not, in the event of rain the sale will be moved inside the Columbia Club. Hope to see you there! Have a great week everyone, be sure to check out my personal blog, Egg Drop Soup, which was written in honor of our servicemen and women who have served and continue to serve today. Have a safe and happy Memorial Day:)

“Love of beauty is Taste. The creation of beauty is Art.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson

They say life often imitates art and so on Saturday when I discovered an article in the LA Times about a former TV chef being arrested for hiring homeless people to kill someone, I was immediately reminded of a great book I'd read last year called, Beat Until Stiff by Claire M. Johnson. In this book an ornery middle aged pastry chef, having recently divorced her cheating husband so who can blame her for being ornery, finds one of her kitchen staff brutally murdered and shoved into the linen closet. As more and more people die, she narrowly escapes being arrested as the main suspect mainly because of a detective and friend of her ex-husband who she has a love/hate relationship with and a very complicated conspiracy is uncovered. I won't give all the details but if you're a foodie who loves a good mystery novel, go pick this book up:) Claire Johnson also wrote Roux Morgue which continues the chef's chaotic life in the Culinary world with more murder and mayhem.

I've been told my candles are art but I don't see it. To me art is Picasso, Rembrandt or even Frank Lloyd Wright but I'm no aficionado so when multiple passersby exclaim that I have real talent, am an artist and "this is real art!" I'll give them the benefit of the doubt:) A lot goes into my candles from the moment of conception until the actual execution. I'm constantly on the lookout for sturdy glasses and containers of good quality that will exemplify whatever candle I may consider making with them in the future but for as little as possible to keep my costs (and therefore selling price) down. There will be times when I'll just stop and stare at something at the grocery store or eatery or even on the street pondering whether or not what I'm staring at can be successfully replicated as a candle. When I'm especially focused, I guess I have a certain expression on my face that makes hubby think I'm angry with him LOL but if I can't envision it, it just doesn't happen.

Anyway, with warmer weather and summer on the brain and Memorial Day just around the corner, I've been busy creating three new candles. The Margarita Votive has the same great scent as its larger cousins except it comes in a 3" votive glass with real Margarita salt on the rim and is very very cute:) I'm especially proud of my Watermelon Jar Candle. Watermelon in itself doesn't actually have a scent so I went for the next best thing and aimed for a watermelon candy scent. This candle resembles the fruit, complete with imitation seeds on top and a lid that's been hand painted by yours truly to resemble an old fashioned picnic blanket. It's a sweet and fresh addition to my jar candle line that will be perfect for summer decor.

Finally, if you find my Breakfast In a Jar candles intriguing you'll love my new Day at the Beach candles! These are double layered colored soy wax scented with the clean, crisp aroma of Ocean Breeze and the tropical fragrance of Pina Colada or Margarita and is available in 6, 14 and 24oz jars. I can also do triple layered candles if you decide you'd like both drink fragrances with Ocean Breeze upon request.

That's about all for today. If you're in Maine this weekend, the Cumberland County Y is holding their annual Tri for the Y event Saturday, May 22nd from 8am -noon when over 300 athletes will swim in a 325 yard pool, bike 12 miles and run 3.1 miles all to raise funds for the Y's Financial Assistance Program which allows the less fortunate a chance to utilize the Y's facilities even if they couldn't afford it. They're still in need of 15 volunteers so if you'd like to help or know someone who does click here. Have a great week everyone, chow for now!

Candles, candles and more candles

Apologies for the delay folks, with upcoming events in May and June fast approaching time just got away from me! Don't you just hate when it seems like there aren't enough hours in the day?

Anyway, despite the NAMI Walk and Art show being just three weeks away, my imagination refuses to let me mindlessly crank out candles like a machine and so this week I've listed 8 new candles including smaller versions of the Pina Colada, Margarita and Hot Fudge Sundae Candles. I especially love the little green cactus stem on the new Margarita glass!

The new candles listed are Chocolate and Strawberry Milkshake candles and a votive sized chocolate milkshake so you can get both milkshakes either lifesized for $16 or votive sized for $5. It seems I caught chocolate fever because I was also inspired to create the Chocolate Silk Pie candle which is about as much decadent chocolatey goodness you can get without packing on the pounds! Finally, there's the crustless Lemon Meringue pie votive with a cute little whipped cream dollop on top.

I'm working on three more candles and hope to release them next week. My plans for the Maple Syrup and Bacon candles didn't go quite as I'd hoped hence the delay but that can happen when dealing with handmade. You can either release garbage and hope it sells or you can go back to the drawing board and make another attempt at good quality. I prefer the latter! And yes, you did read right, I am attempting a bacon scented candle! It's a wonderful scent, so smoky and meaty the husband wanted to drink the oil right out of the bottle! So if you're a bacon lover keep watch for the listing of this little gem. I'm also attempting a vanilla milkshake this weekend, the only problem is figuring out what color says vanilla to the most people. Personally I envision an off yellow shake (almost like the small pina colada), however others have told me white like my hot fudge sundaes while others have suggested more of a beige color. So I think this calls for a poll. Please take a moment between now and the 21st to let me know what you think via the poll on the top left of your screen. Your input is greatly appreciated!

Finally, specifically for the NAMI walk but soon to be listed on Etsy and 1000markets, I'll be selling Tealight Sampler packs of 3, 4, 6, and 8 so you can get a test sniff of any scent you're curious about. The Neopolitan Tealight Sampler with chocolate, vanilla and strawberry will be available in sets of 3 and 6, the Tropical Tealight Sampler will feature Pina Colada, Margarita, Lemon and Orange Creamsicle in packs of 4 and 8, the Fruit Bowl Tealight Sampler will contain Strawberry, Lemon, Apple and Blueberry tealights in packs of 4 and 8 and the Pie Sampler which gives you a choice of chocolate cream, lemon meringue, blueberry, pumpkin, pecan and apple pies in sets of 3 and 6. You can also buy the Assorted Sampler where you can choose any of the above mentioned scents as well as Creme Brulee in packs of 3, 4, 6, and 8. Mix and match or just get the one scent, whatever takes your fancy! Custom orders will also be available for sets of 10 and 12.

That's about it for this week. Be sure to check my personal blog, Egg Drop Soup! Chow for now.

Delicious goings on are afoot!

March looks to be a very busy month as there are now 7 new items listed in my shop with much more to come! I had so much fun making my Old Fashioned Hot Fudge Sundae candles that I’ve decided to make a smaller votive sized version which is now featured for $5 plus shipping. This week I’m also unveiling the long promised Orange Dream sherbet candle that smells as sweet and creamy as it looks and, for a taste of the tropics to help you lose those winter blues, there’s my mouthwatering Pina Colada candle.

Next week you’ll be introduced to my strawberry, mixed berry and blueberry pies and strawberry milkshake will be added to the ice cream line of luscious soy candles. For those who may have missed it another creation I had fun with, the Irish Coffee candle, is now on sale so pick one up today!

I anticipate announcing consignment at two local stores as well as my spring and summer fair schedule this month once I confirm the venues so if you live in Maine or intend to visit the Portland area feel free to look me up! Keep checking this blog for updates and feel free to browse my shop: culinarychiqconcepts.etsy.com for items available now. As always if there’s something you’d like but don’t see, drop me a line and ask me about it.

FREE TEALIGHT WITH EVERY ORDER!

Now, when you place an order, you'll receive a sample tealight of a different candle currently available at Culinarychiq Concepts or get a sneak preview of upcoming candles: Blueberry Pie, Strawberry Milkshake, Lemon Meringue Pie and Margarita!

If you have a tealight preference, please leave a message when you order otherwise let it be a pleasant surprise:)

Chow for now!