Lady of Universe» Cooking, Food & Wine

A Beautiful Stoneware Pitcher for Mother’s Day

admin — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 22:21:28 +0000

I had been trying to decide what to get Mom for Mother’s Day this year. I was having trouble deciding what to buy for a couple of reasons. First, my Mom seems to have everything. It seems if she needs something during the year, she simply picks it up for herself. The other thing is my budget is pretty tight this year. I would love to treat her to something really cool like a cooking class or time at a dayspa, but I just can’t swing it this year. But one thing my Mom loves is fresh lemonade, especially this time of year. And she recently broke her favorite glass pitcher. So I found this colorful Reco Stoneware Pitcher that will be perfect for her.

I know that she’ll love it. I bought the bright blue color that will go perfectly in her kitchen. Plus, when she’s not using it for drinks it can easily double as a flower vase. It’s like getting two gifts in one! And best of all, I was able to buy Mom a unique inexpensive kitchen gift that looks like it cost a lot more than I paid for it. Great for her and great for my wallet too!

Coffee Stays Hot Longer in Thermal Coffeemaker

admin — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 23:17:05 +0000

Like many coffee-lovers, I like my coffee hot. There have been many times I’ve gone into a coffee shop and been handed a cup of lukewarm coffee that I’ve had to bring back for a fresh cup. I guess some shops simply leave it sitting there for too long. I certainly don’t want to pay the premium prices of coffee shop coffee and not even be able to enjoy a nice hot brew. I feel the same way when I make my coffee at home. I love it fresh brewed but it always seems to cool off quickly. I either have to make smaller pots or I end up microwaving the coffee to warm it up. So I was thrilled to find this great 8-cup Thermal Coffeemaker from Black & Decker.

Not only does this thermal coffee machine keep coffee hot and fresh for up to 4 hours but it’s programmable too so I can have coffee waiting for me in the morning when I wake up. And it has the sneak-a-cup feature so I can grab a cup while it’s brewing if I want too. Not only does this programmable coffee machine have all of the features I’m looking for, but its modern style will look great in my kitchen too.

Unique Crockpot Chicken Recipe

admin — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 21:02:02 +0000

Chicken is perfect for cooking in the crockpot and I’m always keeping an eye out for new recipes. A few weeks ago I came across this all day crockpot chicken recipe. I wasn’t quite sure about it to be honest because the mixture of ingredients just sounded weird. I figured I’d at least give it a try and guess what… it turned out great. Somehow the ingredients just blend together into a delicious dish.

I filed it under my favorite crockpot recipes in my recipe organizer and I’m sure I’ll be cooking this quite a bit in the months and years to come. It takes a little bit more effort than other recipes where you basically just dump everything into the pot and turn it on, but it is well worth it. The different flavors are also a nice change from the usual chicken recipes that I’ve been cooking. We also loved the marinade and can’t wait to try it as a grilling marinate. It should make for some great grilled chicken that would be perfect over a salad.

A Covered Garlic Baker for Tasty Roasted Garlic

admin — Fri, 31 Oct 2008 19:46:35 +0000

As any garlic lover can attest to, there is nothing quite like the taste of fresh roasted garlic in your favorite dish to really liven up the flavor. For a long time I would just cook my fresh garlic by wrapping some foil around it and placing it in the oven to bake. It worked out okay, but I always knew there must be a better way to roast my garlic cloves. Then recently I was searching for some recipes online when I saw a reviewer raving about her garlic baker, so I thought it was time I bought one for myself.

Now that I have it, I really enjoy using my new garlic baker – it sure beats using aluminum foil by far. This baker is a really nice size and I can easily fit five to six garlic cloves in it, which is great when I’m making a large meal or if I’m planning to make a batch of garlic spread. Being made of quality clay, it’s really quite attractive as well. Now that I’ve been using and enjoying this great baker, I realized how much I enjoy cooking in clay and plan to purchase some more quality Romertopf cookware for my kitchen.