In My Kitchen - February 2025

 

I've always been curious about what people keep in their kitchens. There's something special about seeing someone's collection of gadgets and dinnerware; it's like a peek into their personality. That's why I was pleased to discover the "In My Kitchen" link-up from Sherry's Kitchen, where people share what's new in their culinary spaces.

This month, I decided it was time to clear out my cabinets. I've had service for twelve of multiple sets of dishes for years. After a bit of decluttering from service for twelve to service for 2, 4, or 6 depending upon the pattern, I treated myself to something that truly speaks to me—two place settings of Pfaltzgraff’s “Naturewood” dinnerware. After all, when something goes out, it makes space for something new to come in. The gentle sage greens and nature-inspired patterns on this set are just lovely. I'm envisioning them in my conservatory this spring, surrounded by light and flowers. It feels like a fresh start!

I've also added a new kitchen tool that's changed how I make mashed potatoes: the potato ricer. Generally speaking, I’m not a fan of single use items, but having seen both Martha and Ina use one of these, I have to admit to being intrigued. Then, inspired by Kevin of Kevin Lee Jacobs' YouTube channel, I gave the ricer a try. Why didn't I do this sooner?

 

It's simple: peel potatoes, halve, boil, drain, let the steam evaporate a bit in the pan, and then press through the ricer. All I needed to do after this was whisk in some hot milk and butter, and I ended up with perfectly smooth mashed potatoes. If you love mashed potatoes, this gadget is a must-have.

The surprise of the month is—berries. Last Friday my number two son came for his monthly visit, bringing with him a crate of blueberries and blackberries. He got them for an amazing deal—just four dollars for the whole crate! He is his mother’s son, and can’t pass up a deal, so he bought a crate for each of us.

Now, the big question: Do I bake them into a cobbler? A pie? A crumble, or just enjoy them fresh with a scoop of my favorite Cabot Creamery triple cream vanilla yogurt? Whatever I choose, these berries won't last long around here.

That's all the excitement from my kitchen this February. I'll be back next month with more updates. What about you? What's new in your kitchen? Have you found any amazing deals or tried out any new gadgets? I'd love to hear your stories.

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Summer Berry Icebox Cake

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There is a lot to like about this dessert, particularly where patriotic summer holidays are concerned. It is cool and refreshing, makes use of the sweet goodness of fresh fruit, will be enjoyed by all, it is boldly red, white, and blue, and probably most importantly is that this no-bake dessert is make ahead. There is nothing to putting together this simple dessert; it’s more assembly than anything. I have found its sweet, cool deliciousness to be quite welcome for breakfast, so I think this would be as suitable for brunch as it would be for lunch or dinner.

No Bake Summer Berry Icebox Cake

Adapted from cakescottage.com

 21 graham crackers

8 oz. cream cheese, softened

2 (3.4 oz) packages Vanilla Instant Pudding

2 c. whole milk

½ c. Amaretto

12 oz. Cool whip (or homemade whipped cream)

3 c. sliced fresh strawberries

1½ c. fresh blueberries

2 oz. white chocolate chips

 Beat cream cheese and dry pudding mixes in large bowl with mixer until blended; gradually beat in milk and Amaretto.

 Gently stir in Cool Whip or homemade whipped cream, reserving ½ cup. Spread a thin layer of Cool Whip in a 9” x 13” pan just to coat the bottom.

 Layer 5 graham crackers across the center of the pan, then 2 more, breaking them as needed, to fit around the top and bottom edges.

 Spread a layer of pudding mixture over grahams and top with a layer of blueberries and sliced strawberries. Place graham crackers on top of berries, then pudding mixture, and then layer of berries again. Repeat the graham/pudding/berries layers 1 more time (3 times total) and you should reach the top of the pan.

 Refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight until the graham crackers have softened completely.

 When ready to serve, melt white chocolate chips in a bowl as directed on package and drizzle over dessert.

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Blueberry Crumble

This is the quickest, easiest dessert you'll ever make.  I call it "Blueberry Crumble" because I used blueberries, but truth be told you can use raspberries and call it Raspberry Crumble, blackberries and call it Blackberry Crumble, a variety of berries and call it Mixed Berry Crumble, peaches and raspberries and call it Peach Melba Crumble, well, you get the idea.  You can pretty much use any berry that you like, or peaches, nectarines, or plums, and come out with a delicious dessert, that will draw both admiration and praise.  I've been known to throw this together as surprise guests are having coffee in the living room, only to serve it an hour later.  The key is simply keeping fruit on hand. (I always have blueberries in the freezer - they freeze beautifully and, as a consequence, I'm never left guessing what to make for dessert when the pressure's on.)

The amount of fruit you use is pretty much up to you.  I grab a bowl the size of whatever amount of fruit I have and dump it in.  Be sure to wash the fruit thoroughly before use and allow it some time to drain (or pat it dry with paper towels if you're in a hurry).  If you're using fruit that has a pit, as in the case of peaches, plums, and nectarines, cut them in half and pit them, then slice them into wedges about a half inch thick.  (I do recommend the peach/blueberry or raspberry combination for both color and taste.)

Wash the fruit thoroughly before use and drain well.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. 

Put fruit into any size bowl that happens to be handy and that supports the amount of fruit you have on hand. I used this old favorite 1-qt. oval casserole.

Place the following ingredients into the work bowl of your food processor:

3/4 cup all-purpose flour

3/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup nuts (almonds, walnuts, pecans, and hazelnuts work well here)

1/8 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Pinch of salt

Pulse a couple of times until nuts are chopped fine and thoroughly blended into the flour/sugar mixture.

Cut 1 stick of cold butter, into 1/2-inch cubes and add to the dry mixture.  Pulse until mixture begins to clump. This will be your streusel topping.

Pour the topping evenly over your fruit, pressing down a bit.  If you have any left over, put it in a freezer bag, label it and freeze it to use for a future crumble, or topping on muffins or baked oatmeal.

 Bake in the middle of the oven for 20-25 minutes or until the fruit juices bubble on the side.  If the top starts to get too brown, cover it with a piece of foil.

Serve warm with a scoop of ice cream.  If there are any leftovers, I'm sure you can convince yourself that they would make an excellent breakfast, considering the serving of fruit and all.

Try it, and tell me what you think!

This post is linked to:

Feed the Birds - A Recipe for Wild Bird Suet

This Northern Flicker absolutely delighted us with his appearance at the suet feeder.

Today's post is for the birds.  Literally.  Instead of offering up a recipe to feed you and your family, here is one to help our feathered friends have an easier time surviving winter.  When the weather turns cold and insects that are there for the taking during the summer are no longer available, the birds often struggle to find enough food.  Supplementing their diet with suet will make them happy, healthy, and keep them warm during the winter months.

As snowflakes begin to fall, a Carolina Wren surveys the scene.

Buying commercial suet cakes is a fine idea, but if you want to experiment on your own, here is a fairly basic, easy recipe that the birds will love.  This is also a great, hands-on project for the kids, and a way to teach them about nature and the importance of their part in helping to sustain it.

FRUIT & NUT SUET

8 ounces lard

1/2 cup chunky peanut butter

3 pieces sandwich bread, crumbled

1/4 cup flour

1/4 cup cornmeal

1/8 cup sugar

1/2 cup chopped apple

1/2 cup assorted fruits (raisins, craisins, dried cherries, dried berries, etc.)

1/2 cup assorted seeds

Melt lard with peanut butter in a large pan over low heat.  When melted together, remove from heat and stir in flour, cornmeal, and sugar.  Add apple, fruits, bread and seeds.  Add more crumbled bread if the mixture is too liquid.  You want to get the mixture to the point where the bread is absorbing all of the liquid and it becomes thick.  Scoop the homemade wild bird suet into a large loaf pan.  Refrigerate overnight.  Slice as needed to place in your suet feeder while keeping the remaining suet refrigerated.

If you already use commercial suet, save the plastic container that it comes in and use this as a mold.  It works perfectly and will fit quite nicely into your feeder.  The birds will love you, and put on an active and colorful show all winter.  This minimal amount of effort will reward you all season long.

This mixture attracts the following birds:

Downy woodpecker

Tufted titmouse

White-breasted nuthatch

Black-capped chickadee

Carolina wren

Cardinal

Bluebird

and, much to our delight, the Northern Flicker

The very persistent Northern Flicker.

Feathers left behind.

For more information on birds, I recommend this excellent field guide.

This is linked to Hearth and Soul blog hop and Good Life Wednesdays.

Ornamentally, my dear Watson!

That is the answer to the question I posed to myself today when wondering aloud how I was going to decorate the mantle.  It's an annual adventure since I seldom remember what I do from year to year.

I had no clue what I was doing, just started digging around in the basement looking for BIG things to put on it and ended up using the giant ornaments that I ran down the center of the dining room table last year. I like to do something different with table every year, so the ornaments are now classified as free-range decorating items.  I also made a big score at Michael's over the weekend by nabbing a lot of their floral and greenery items at 50% off.  Largely I bought them with package decorating in mind (more about that later in the week), but ended up using about a third of it on the mantle.  I plan on decorating BOLDLY, but sparingly this year; with the house on the market, this is a must.  I don't have time for extensive set-up or tear-down or dusting so many small things, so by using fewer, but larger ones, I'll get a big punch of holiday cheer without having to knock myself out.  Is it possible that I'll enjoy them this year?  Here's hoping!

These big ornaments are from Sam's and were purchased last year by my husband!  I knew what I wanted to use to decorate the dining room table, so just told him to find me some BIG cranberry and gold ornaments.  He did!  I was gobsmacked.  And I liked them!  (Ditto.)  They're actually for outdoor use and are shatterproof, so both pretty and durable.  And who knows, since I do something different every year, one day they may end up outside.

The two large poinsettias were purchased with the intention of using them to decorate large holiday packages, but I really liked the way they looked here.

The small poinsettias, cranberry, and gold berries (also from Michael's and purchased with package-wrapping intent) added some life to the lighted greenery (and yes, it is lighted and was illuminated when this picture was taken).

Apparently I collect brass candlesticks.  I didn't realize it until I counted up nine of them.  Most of them are by Virginia Metalcrafters.  I love them all.

 
 

After decorating the mantle I whipped up a batch of DELICIOUS mocha fudge sauce.  We had it over generous scoops of peppermint ice cream for dessert after dinner (and when I say dinner I mean sloppy joes consumed during the Rams game).  It was so good I could have eaten it as a side dish.  Watch for the recipe later this week.

This is linked to Metamorphosis Monday, Seasonal Sundays and The Holiday Home Linky Party at The Lettered Cottage.