Smithy

That's pretty close to what my best friends do. One dinner (chicken with gravy, mashed potatoes and a salad), then the rest of the meat gets pulled off and put into containers to be used in other meals. The skin and bones all go into the broth pot. I think they've said 5 meals also, all told.

@KennethT, that's a great story and a heckofa good hotel! I loved your suggested renaming: "unobtanium". 😄

Word has come down that @marlena spieler, an early and prolific contributor to the forums, passed away earlier this month. I didn't know her personally, but remember reading her posts in my first years here. If you'd like to revisit her contributions, please visit her profile for an easy search. Marlena was a talented food writer who went on to help others write their books, and judging from the Facebook posts about her she was immensely entertaining. Three posts written in her memory follow; they were accompanied with photos but I'm not going to try to include them. From eG member @Carolyn Tillie: From Amy Sherman: I'll finish with this note from her daughter, Leah: Rest in peace, Marlena.

My husband says when he was a boy he loved carrots and would yank them out of the garden plot, barely swipe the dirt off, and scarf them down until his mother took him to task for it. He stopped (a miracle, that) but she kept yelling at him about the stolen carrots. Then one day she spotted their dog stealing carrots from the garden! She was gracious enough to apologize to her son for the wrongful accusation.

That sounds very familiar. I had a hotpot like that, but the best I did with it was Cup-a-Soup or whatever that stuff was called. My best friend sneaked an electric skillet into her dorm room, and thanks to her we had lasagna more than once.

Remind us please about this side dish? My searches under @Mmmpomps' name don't turn up anything that looks like this. Also, how do you do your potato salad? I'm on a potato salad binge right now. It might be time to revive the Potato Salad Cook-Off!

The trivet has handles that I set upright before putting the egg bite tray in, like this: When the cooking is done, I pull the trivet up with the bite pan cradled between the handles. I don't think the handles are long enough to grab if I have 2 silicone pans stacked, though. I'll have to come up with something to grab them by. Maybe a couple of wire loops made from coat hangers, or picture wire, or even twist ties?

Yes, you put 1 cup of water in the bottom of the pot, and set the egg bite mold (lidded) atop the trivet. Let us know how yours works out poach-wise! Photos too!

Thanks for this review. I had no trouble getting the eggs to release from the mold, and I didn't use any butter or oil to assist with release. The bites popped right out, but each pocket can be pushed from the bottom if necessary. I appreciate the comment about not using the dishwasher. The molds are supposed to be dishwasher-safe, but I've seen my dishwasher leave powdery residues on silicone sometimes. May as well play it safe.

I was working from a recipe in @JAZ's 5-Ingredient Instant Pot Cookbook (eG-friendly Amazon.com link). Based on the results, I won't stray far from the proportions or timing! The recipe is 6 large eggs, 1/4c milk, 1/3c cheese, then seasonings and vegetables (I omitted the vegetables and used dried herbs). I used my stick blender to whip the eggs thoroughly, and I suspect the extra incorporated air helped lighten the texture. Timing: 8 minutes on high pressure; 5 minutes natural release, then quick release. Note that the egg bite pan lid should be on the pan during the cooking process. The texture is perfect, in my opinion: firm enough to pick up with fingers, but still tender. I cut one in half so you can see the interior bubbles. You can also see that the dried herbs (not part of the recipe) rose to the top of the bite. I don't know how that would have changed if I'd used the chopped chives and asparagus in the original recipe. I don't know about poaching the eggs -- that is, what settings would be needed for a particular texture -- but yes, each pocket in the egg bite pan would easily hold one chicken egg. I think the pockets are large enough to accommodate duck eggs, but since I don't have any I can't be sure. I guess I'll have to try some egg-poaching experiments! And maybe I can get some duck eggs locally.

Instant Pot makes an "official" egg bite mold that fits the 6-quart (or larger) Instant Pots. They're 50% off right now! And very, very useful. Instant Pot Egg Bite Mold (eG-friendly Amazon.com link)

I think I got this "egg bite" mold last year, but I've only just now gotten round to using it. Must get another! It works beautifully for egg bites, and I suspect it's also going to be my flan mold, so I can make individual flans and try different flavorings. Instant Pot Official Egg Bite Mold (eG-friendly Amazon.com link) Incidentally, it's 50% off right now. Must go over to the Current Sales and Deals topic to announce it!

What makes it "eternal"? Does it seem to take forever to get through a batch? 😉

That looks like a good recipe, whether or not it's the one @liuzhou had in mind. I have some rhubarb begging to be used, and I'd like to try this recipe. One question, however: what is "stem ginger"?

Thank to @blue_dolphin's enabling over here in the Trader Joe's topic, I am now the proud owner of two beautiful silicone turners. This is the one: GIR: Get It Right Premium Silicone Ultimate Turner - Non-Stick Heat Resistant Turner (eG-friendly Amazon.com link). I got two because I wanted one for the house and one for our trailer. I've already used both in the house, because one was already in the dishwasher and I was too lazy to fish it out and clean it. I tell you, these are heavy and well-constructed and well-balanced. As blue_dolphin noted the leading edges are thin (the better to flip one's crepes, my dear) but the paddle itself is quite sturdy, and so is the handle. It's a new favorite tool. I hope it holds up well.

That's a funny story, and a brilliant ad. Thanks for posting the tweet.

That link requires us to know your email address and password! Here, let's see if this works: All-Clad Summer Factory Seconds sale

I really need to branch out on my salad offerings! Thanks for that suggestion. And yes, our seasons and weather do seem to be topsy-turvy. 🙂

I want to follow up on this post from the Camping, Princess Style blog. Late last spring, in Texas, I picked up some inexpensive but good-looking packages of "steak ends" cut from ribeye steaks. They looked to me like they were made -- MADE, I tell you -- for high-heat grilling then slicing for tacos, fajitas, salads or the like. I finally got around to trying one pair tonight for a nice midsummer steak salad. The grill did its job... ...maybe a little more done than I'd have liked, but not dried out. The steaks had plenty of juice and fat. My darling insisted on keeping his on the side and eating it separately from his salad. We were both happy. Despite our best intentions, there are no leftovers.

This is a delightful story of flexibility and generosity, not to mention quick thinking to produce something delicious!

I agree, both from direct experience and from watching topics here and in real life, that 1 week is wildly improbable. You really are looking at weeks. Many weeks. (An old engineering joke notes that you should take any project schedule and multiply it by pi...and that seems to run pretty true.) Whether you vacate the premises or stay in the house depends on several things I can think of: how much other room you have, your options for setting up another place to eat, your tolerance for chaos, your need to check in or at least be available to answer questions. (We caught a few mistakes just before they happened, so the counter actually ended up where it was supposed to instead of where the contractor thought the drawings said when he misread the plan.) Strategies for staying home can, and often do, include setting up an "outdoor" or temporary kitchen, whether on the patio or in the garage or another bedroom, with a microwave, a small refrigerator or freezer, and a hotplate or electric kettle. You can make a lot of meals in advance and freeze them. Another idea is to have everything premeasured and packaged, then throw it into a slow cooker. Remember also that you'll need to wash dishes (where?) or else plan to eat out of disposable containers. There are a number of topics here documenting the planning and remodeling process. We'd love it if you do the same when the time comes!

I've been pleased with the CUKOR 2-Slice Long Slot Toaster with Window, Bagel Toaster with Warm Rack and 7 Bread Shade Settings, Glass Toaster with Automatic Lifting, Slide-out Glass Panel and Removable Crumb Tray (eG-friendly Amazon.com link) that I bought in 2020. It works, it toasts well, you can see what's going on with it because of the transparent sides. The only caveat I have is that if you don't like seeing pale stripes along your toast where the support wires are holding it upright you'll be unhappy with this one; the stripes are thin but quite visible. Note that this is one long slot. It isn't long enough for 2 pieces of bread sliced from the middle of a boule, but it's plenty long for 2 pieces of standard loaf-sized bread. I like it because it will take long slices of bread, which is what I typically eat. This particular toaster is no longer available on Amazon, but Amazon offers some similar designs. Maybe the Cukor can be ordered elsewhere, or Amazon's substitutes may be just as good.

Huh. I've never heard of creamed corn in a tube either! My mother always cooked it from canned. I cook a creamed corn casserole based on my mother's recipe as a special holiday treat for my darling. It's All His, and safe from me except to take a token amount with the dinner. If I ever run across a tube of the stuff I'll give it a try.

Those are PERFECT winter dishes! I'd have bought the set too. And Had Words when I brought it home.

Those are wonderful drawings! I am surprised at the idea of painting a mural on a barn back in 1958, but the refrigerators to Inuit is quite witty for a "Refrigerated" section. Great find! By the way: what is "Grated and cubed cheese" in the Refrigerated section? Is it intended as a specific course, or simply an advance preparation of an ingredient?