Are you enjoying cooking in your new kitchen? … Of course you are
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shadowmoss
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Rain has started in Quartzsite. I was worried when it was 54* and windy at 5:30am. Growing up in the Midwest I don't like it when it is too warm and the wind picks up. That used to mean tornado.
travelaround
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Hope you all stay safe in the Quartzsite storm! I am definitely cooking in the new kitchen but I have other people to cook for only once weekly, for the church potluck. The rest of the time my cooking is minimal... but sure is nice to have a working refrigerator/freezer again and an oven I can use! (Things I didn't have in the trailer.)
That said, I may have to miss the church potluck this week if there is more snow. The weather app says it will start again tonight and continue to be snowy all week long. I don't go out in the snow. It is so much safer to stay home.
About cooking - I'm having to re-purchase things for my kitchen... things I lost in the fire and never had for the last three years because there was no place to put things in the trailer, and I couldn't get that trailer oven to work anyway. Things like large mixing bowls, muffin and bread pans, bake ware of all kinds really... and so cooking is limited but I'm slowly but surely working up to having a well-stocked kitchen again. My goal is to learn to make foods I've never made before. I have a list of things I want to make and I'm using AllRecipes.com to find the recipes.
That said, I may have to miss the church potluck this week if there is more snow. The weather app says it will start again tonight and continue to be snowy all week long. I don't go out in the snow. It is so much safer to stay home.
About cooking - I'm having to re-purchase things for my kitchen... things I lost in the fire and never had for the last three years because there was no place to put things in the trailer, and I couldn't get that trailer oven to work anyway. Things like large mixing bowls, muffin and bread pans, bake ware of all kinds really... and so cooking is limited but I'm slowly but surely working up to having a well-stocked kitchen again. My goal is to learn to make foods I've never made before. I have a list of things I want to make and I'm using AllRecipes.com to find the recipes.
vanbrat
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Me too, anyone want a few dozen old books some craft books, some really old poetry books some old car repair books....... I am going to clear out enough 'stuff' from my sewing room to actually see the walls and the closet
sounds like you maybe need to hit the thrift stores..... And this time of year you can find all kinds of things as people clean out their cupboards for all the new 'stuff' they got for Xmas....
Me too, anyone want a few dozen old books some craft books, some really old poetry books some old car repair books....... I am going to clear out enough 'stuff' from my sewing room to actually see the walls and the closet
travelaround
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Sad to say, there's only one thrift store in my area and it is closing. And 90% of what they had seemed like useless tchotchkes. You can understand why the store is closing. I think the last thing people in my area need is more tchotchkes. People in my area live 75 miles from Walmart or any other big box store and we need useful things... kitchen equipment, furniture... things like that.
vanbrat
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One of the thrift stores here on the Rock actually gets goodies from not just us residents but from one of the big thrift companies. It comes in once a month or something like that...... Still a bunch of tchokes but mostly clothing and such. but still lots of money folks here that change their week ender house totally every few years so we get goods from them too.
Well TA... non the less I’m sure your happy. One step at a time and you just got up a big one. There will be more potlucks and things. Part of living a tad remote. After persevering in the trailer and getting a home you can truly live in I have no doubt the simple things will happen as well. Your patience in my opinion was remarkable... now you can hunker down and get through the winter a bit more comfortable then a trailer. How far away did your daughter move? Will they visit? Can they get you needed items to make your life better and complete?
And the butterfly effect
Rain last night and this morning. Then around noon the sun broke through and now the wind is howling bringing with it a considerable chill factor. It feels like at least 40 to 45 miles an hour gust at my campsite. I am enjoying an afternoon tea party for one. Some skillet baked biscuits with butter and jam. Making them means patting thinner than normal biscuits, baking in a covered skillet over low heat, flipping them over one time. They come out soft and fluffy even if they are not storybook look, perfect examples, of biscuits they taste very good.
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Snowed a little bit today, not enough to even cover the grass. We don't get winters anywhere near like we used to. Tn gets worse then our part of Michigan much of the time.
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Did you read the USDA had to release new growing zones? Those maps you check to know when to plant seeds .
travelaround
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My daughter and her spouse did not leave on good terms with me. It is hard to describe, but lets just say there was some animosity and it wasn't coming from me. They seemed to be resentful that I was going to get a house built, and they didn't like the shed either. !? So I haven't heard from them since August except once she called to ask if I still have their Corvette and skoolie-turned-shed-on-wheels. Well, I don't have the keys and do have many other things to do with my life, so yes, I still have them. God only knows where our relationship will go from here but I think they were stressed when they left and I forgive them of course but... I don't expect her to do anything nice for me in the near future. I think they have enough on their hands dealing with the three children and high rents in Southern Oregon. When she called she did say they had it better when they were living here on my property... but there were many reasons they wanted to leave, and I wish them well.
travelaround
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Sounds awesome. I want the recipe. I have a skillet... but no cover for it. Maybe I could just bake them?
travelaround
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Our snow from yesterday has melted already, but more is expected tonight and during the week to come. We're way overdue for a heavy snowfall - not that I'm looking forward to it - but the forest needs it.
travelaround
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I did hear that or read it somewhere. I think our zone is still 8.
No recipe, I just use a biscuit mix bought in small pouches that makes only about 6 biscuits. Just add milk and stir. Then make it into 1/2”to 3/4” thick patty cakes. I usually make a half pouch worth at a time. That is all that will fit into my big skillet.
My pantry is too small to store a lot of scratch baking ingredients such as flour and shortening.
My skillet and lid were thrift store finds. The “universal” pot lid has ridges on it so it fits onto both large and small pans. So it is the only metal with glass pot lid I travel with
I also have a couple of flexible silicone pot covers, one very small and the other large. They also work just fine instead of a regular pot lid.
You know how it is, not a lot of space for cooking gear or groceries in a tiny travel trailer but after a while I realized having a pantry that was easy access was going to vastly improve my kitchen setup So I added a very shallow one with sliding doors on top of my existing lower cabinet. Shallow to preserve as much counter space as I could and also to limit how much weight I put in the rear of my tiny travel trailer. Half of the space in the cabinet is over the wheel well so that is where canned goods and liquids go. The other half mostly gets lighter weight dry ingredients like pouches of biscuit mix, dehydrated hash browns, spices, etc. In the photo the second down drawer by the red door is where ALL of my pots, pans, lids, bowls, plates, drinking and measuring cups fit.
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I had not heard that but likely that has to do with I am no longer doing any gardening. But for a number of years I used to be pretty passionate about it. So I was curious what was happening with the zoning maps.
Turns out that technology such as more local weather stations that report from GPS enabled devices have created new maps with better localized mapping of “micro climate” identification. Not quite as micro to the level of your own back yard but perhaps to your small town or neighborhood. Meaning you can stand in a spot then use your cell phone to identify the GPS position and then copy that GPS position and paste it online into the new plant hardiness map system.
Here is the web page link that explains the changes.
https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/pages/map-creation
Here is the link to enter GPS coordinates or Zip Codes and download maps for the location
https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/pages/map-downloads
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vanbrat
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Baking mixes are good, and those companies spent millions making sure they work so I sure use them.
Maki I can see how you would be proud of the cabinets you made they look very nice. I made my kitchen area, but it is not nearly as pretty. It works for the most part, but it is not for looking at. I used 1/4 inch ply and now a few spots are warped and not as flat as when I started so now, I am going to have to figure out some better support I will. I think it's not only because of too thin of plywood but also because there is way too much moistier in the air around here. I like the screen panels they both look good, hide the clutter and let in air. I made some fabric things that hang on the walls to replace the boxes from under the bed. Everything was to tight fitting, and it made it hard to get to anything. I still have the boxes under the bed, but they now hold other things. I am much better at making things with fabric then with wood.
Maki I can see how you would be proud of the cabinets you made they look very nice. I made my kitchen area, but it is not nearly as pretty. It works for the most part, but it is not for looking at. I used 1/4 inch ply and now a few spots are warped and not as flat as when I started so now, I am going to have to figure out some better support I will. I think it's not only because of too thin of plywood but also because there is way too much moistier in the air around here. I like the screen panels they both look good, hide the clutter and let in air. I made some fabric things that hang on the walls to replace the boxes from under the bed. Everything was to tight fitting, and it made it hard to get to anything. I still have the boxes under the bed, but they now hold other things. I am much better at making things with fabric then with wood.
Happy Camper
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I also like Makis cabinets vanbrat. Maybe for something simple that can breathe and have dual purpose you can use peg board? Then when you're camped you can set up some hooks for various purposes.
Just a thought that might or might not make sense in your setup. And it's easy enough to cut and fit.
Just a thought that might or might not make sense in your setup. And it's easy enough to cut and fit.
An important step when using plywood is to seal the both front and back surfaces as well as the cut edges. If you only seal one side of the wood the warping can increase.
The quality of the plywood makes a very big difference. The term “cabinet grade plywood” is a real thing. Fewer knots in the wood and fewer voids in the interior plys. Cabinet grade is more stable. The cheapest plywood at the store is actually not a bargain. It is a lower price because it is lower quality.
This is the plywood edge on my desk drawer. I purchased the plywood at Home Depot. This edge view shows the middle layer has no voids in it. That means it is a much more stable choice for cabinet making.
The drawer sides are 1/2” which is undersized for cabinet making, in houses they use 3/4” thick plywood. The bottom of that drawer is 1/4 inch thick plywood set into a groove in the side. It too was of good quality with an no void center lamination, purcasex at Home Depot. My drawer face is 1/2” thick solid poplar. Poplar is the lightest of the hardwood family and the least expensive.. Every single surface of the plywood in the drawers was sealed with clear, water based polyurethane. They are not fancy cabinet making, or expensive woods but they were made with great care for the longevity of use. I do not expect perfection from myself. But I did my homework when it came to understanding that the materials I chose, including adhesives, and surface finishes, paint or varnish, had to suit the use and give protection.
The quality of the plywood makes a very big difference. The term “cabinet grade plywood” is a real thing. Fewer knots in the wood and fewer voids in the interior plys. Cabinet grade is more stable. The cheapest plywood at the store is actually not a bargain. It is a lower price because it is lower quality.
This is the plywood edge on my desk drawer. I purchased the plywood at Home Depot. This edge view shows the middle layer has no voids in it. That means it is a much more stable choice for cabinet making.
The drawer sides are 1/2” which is undersized for cabinet making, in houses they use 3/4” thick plywood. The bottom of that drawer is 1/4 inch thick plywood set into a groove in the side. It too was of good quality with an no void center lamination, purcasex at Home Depot. My drawer face is 1/2” thick solid poplar. Poplar is the lightest of the hardwood family and the least expensive.. Every single surface of the plywood in the drawers was sealed with clear, water based polyurethane. They are not fancy cabinet making, or expensive woods but they were made with great care for the longevity of use. I do not expect perfection from myself. But I did my homework when it came to understanding that the materials I chose, including adhesives, and surface finishes, paint or varnish, had to suit the use and give protection.
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