Since just before Thanksgiving, when I wanted to do a huge food and cooking post I have been without a kitchen, quite literally. I have been making do with an electric skillet, a dual burner hot plate, and a crock pot for almost two months. Crazy? Absolutely. So now that I’ve made that explanation, let’s get with the content.
What Have I Been Cooking?
Ok, so just prior to the destruction of the kitchen I used my Nanny’s cherry chip cake recipe, which I am not including here because I’m not actually going to talk about it in detail, to bake my mother a birthday cake. I put too much pudding in the batter, making it too moist and it fell apart. It still tasted delicious, but I was so disappointed by the fact that it was a crumbly mess that did not look pretty, even with my soft pink icing. Food failure!
At Thanksgiving, I attempted to make two pies, both of which lead me to the conclusion that I will not be buy Pillsbury refrigerated pie crusts (the kind you roll and put in a pan) ever again. They tasted strange, like they had some kind of chemical taste, which is not something I look for in a pie crust. I tried working with an entirely different pecan pie recipe, and it was too syrupy sweet for my taste. I guess I will just stick to my Grandmama’s tried and true Southern Pecan Pie recipe. I also tried to make my Nanny’s No Fail Chocolate Pie, which I can normally make without problems; lesson learned, do not use a brand of cocoa powder you are not familiar with. Neither pie was spectacular, and I was very disappointed.
Where am I with the Remodel?
Good news, as evidenced by the pictures below (I apologize for the poor quality but there are no lights in the kitchen at the moment), we are rocketing right along now. Walls and ceiling have been painted, cabinets and counters have been placed and are almost set, oven has been mounted, sink has been placed, and the refrigerator is where it belongs. We ran into quite a lot of problems along the way, and entire walls have to be replaced; it turned into a nightmare.
Here’s hoping that we finish the kitchen today, as we have planned. However, I do not hold out a great deal of hope, all things considered.
