lindag

I like my Ipots way better than I expected.

Tomorrow, when it's cold and rainy I'll be making a big pot of vegetable beef soup and I'll have to use my All Clad 8qt. Stock pot because the kale and cabbage I add are so bulky. But I also scale down many recipes as well as steam vegs. so the mini will be very handy. It's nice to have all sizes and I think I'll get a lot of use from the mini. Also, I actually found a lid in my pantry that fits it well enough, it's part of a Pyrex casserole dish. I will, howeve, have to retire some pot from the kitchen into storage to have room for the new guy. My cabinets, like my freezers, are overstuffed.

They're certainly professional looking.

Thanks for the suggestion to make hash!

Received my Mini iPot just hours ago. PCd some very nice beets in anticipation of a pan of Red Flannel Hash made with the tough brisket from a couple days ago.

Today's breakfast was a toasted English muffin (extra crispy), with a drizzle of honey and chunky peanut butter. And a glass of V-8 alongside.

That would be painful at best. I like to use a combo of Mr and Mrs T bloody mary mix along with Clamato.

Dinner for me is a Cornish Pasty, not homemade but purchased from a cute little Pasty Shop in Hamilton MT called Mineshaft Pasties. They make great pasties there and I drive there every so often and buy a half dozen or so of the frozen to bring home to stock my freezer. I'm also cooking up some chicken livers to add as an enhancement to my dogs' food...I don't care for liver myself but the dogs sure do.

Have you you tried it in your Bloody Mary's?

I just poured myself a highball with the Jim Beam Apple...mixed it with about an ounce of Compari and filled the glass with soda. It's better...still not great, but at least drinkable. And it's a prettycolor.

Curious minds need to know.

Exactly, that's what I'd like to avoid. I think I'll try the ice cube tray method.

I was influenced by the ads for this I saw on TV and bought a fifth. Big disappointment; it has an odd smell and I don't care for the taste. Now I'm trying to find additives that will change the taste.

What's the best way to preserve the remaining canned chilis after using only part of the ingredients?

Nah, it looks like it's made to grip something.

I have one of these: Obviously mine says 'Linda's Spoons'. It came by using Betty Crocker 'points'; remember those? They would personalize it for you. I still have mine though it now has a chip on the side. It is still the best actual spoon rest, aside from the wax paper squares I use now. But it is cute and I keep it next to the range.

I have finally given up on spoon rests because they're so messy. Now I use wax paper squares that I can find at Costco (similar to that shown). Better than a spoon rest as they can be simply thrown away after using.

Now that the weather is cooling (weekend forecast for highs of about 50F), I'm dreaming of Chili and I'm thinking of this recipe that was in my files. Haven't made it yet but it looks very good. 2 lbs 85 percent lean ground beef 2 Tbs plus 2 cups water Salt and pepper ¾ tsp baking soda 6 dried ancho chiles, stemmed, seeded, and torn into 1-inch pieces 1 oz tortilla chips, crushed (1/4 cup) 2 Tbs ground cumin 1 Tbs paprika 1 Tbs garlic powder 1 Tbs ground coriander 2 tsp dried oregano ½ tsp dried thyme 1 (14.5-ounce) can whole peeled tomatoes 1 tablespoon vegetable oil 1 onion, chopped fine 3 garlic cloves, minced 1—2 teaspoons minced canned chipotle chiles in adobo sauce 1 (15-ounce) can pinto beans 2 tsp sugar 2 Tbs cider vinegar Heat oven to 275 degrees. Toss beef with 2 tablespoons water, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and baking soda in bowl until thoroughly combined. Set aside for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, place anchos in Dutch oven set over medium-high heat; toast, stirring frequently, until fragrant, 4 to 6 minutes, reducing heat if anchos begin to smoke. Transfer to food processor and let cool. Add tortilla chips, cumin, paprika, garlic powder, coriander, oregano, thyme, and 2 teaspoons pepper to food processor with anchos and process until finely ground, about 2 minutes. Transfer mixture to bowl. Process tomatoes and their juice in now-empty workbowl until smooth, about 30 seconds. Heat oil in now-empty pot over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, 4 to 6 minutes. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add beef and cook, stirring with wooden spoon to break meat up into 1/4-inch pieces, until beef is browned and fond begins to form on pot bottom, 12 to 14 minutes. Add ancho mixture and chipotle; cook, stirring frequently, until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Add remaining 2 cups water, beans and their liquid, sugar, and tomato puree. Bring to boil, scraping bottom of pot to loosen any browned bits. Cover, transfer to oven, and cook until meat is tender and chili is slightly thickened, 1 1/2 to 2 hours, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Remove chili from oven and let stand, uncovered, for 10 minutes. Stir in any fat that has risen to top of chili, then add vinegar and season with salt to taste. Serve, passing lime wedges, cilantro, and chopped onion separately. (Chili can be made up to 3 days in advance.)

Toaster Strudels (frozen) are way better than Pop Tarts.

Thank you. That lid doesn't show up on Amazon.US.

Can you show me where you found it? My searches turned up nothing for the 3 qt.

Can someone point me to the post where the 3 qt. glass lid was mentioned, the one that fits the Mini Ipot? I've searched here and on Amazon but came up empty!

Just pulled the trigger on the Ipot Mini! Couldn't stand it any longer. I have some beets that will fit nicely and I'll make a half recipe of Ina Garten's Oxtail Soup (substituting Orzo for the barley which I don't care for). No I just have to figure out which pot to remove to storage so I have room for the little guy. Oh and I need to get the glass lid that fits it. Darn those eG enablers!

Imagine my surprise yesterday when I stopped in at very small grocery store on my way to town and found OXTAILS in the frozen meat case!!! I bought some (and, no, they weren't cheap) and I'm on my way to planning the soup I've been wanting. Every one of the larger stores around me has had none so this was pretty darned exciting.

I do use the CSO for reheating my Papa Murphy's pizza. So much better than the microwave. Takes a few minutes rather than a few seconds but the pizza doesn't get tough or rubbery.