Domestic Diva Tip #1

So, if you've not discovered Pinterest yet then I must warn you to continue reading this post at your own risk. 
I will not be held responsible for any addiction that you may encounter, the hours of your day wasted on the computer or the sudden urge to modpodge, organize, redesign and/or renovate your entire life!!!!


If you are brave enough ( or stupid enough ) to ask "What is Pinterest" then I apologise in advance.

Pinterest is an online Virtual pinboard.
It lets you organize and share all the beautiful things you find on the web. People use pinboards to plan their weddings, decorate their homes, and organize their favorite recipes.

Best of all, you can browse pinboards created by other people. Browsing pinboards is a fun way to discover new things and get inspiration from people who share your interests. To get started, request an invite.

For example, I have a board title "domestic diva", this is where I accumulate all of the brilliant ideas OTHER people have discovered for housekeeping that I plan to implement in my own home so as to radiate domestic awesomeness.

So the theme of this post is exactly that.......Domestic diva tips. I would like to share some tried and true ideas that I've found on pintereset and elsewhere online so that I can at least feel as though the hours spent in front of my computer screen ooohing and aaaahing have not been in vain.

Starting from today, maybe once a week, once a month or as the urge floods over me to share, I will test a Domestic Diva Tip and give it either a thumbs up or a thumbs down.

That way you can all keep from wasting your precious time on a Pinterest addiction such as mine!!

So here goes: 

Domestic  Diva

Tip #1

Protecting stainless appliances

with baby oil.

A couple of hears ago we upgraded our kitchen appliances, the hubby instantly wanted stainless steel, a look I LOVE also. However, we've all heard the warnings about finger prints, smudges and scuffs driving even the most dedicated housekeeper to insanity.

But who can resist?? You either come to terms with the fact that your appliances will never look clean like the day you unwrapped them or make stainless steel wipes your new best friend!

I do a little of both, I can live with the smudges on a day to day basis but always find myself shining those suckers up before a dinner party or visit from the mother in-law.

I recently read somewhere the baby oil does a great job of buffing up those appliances like brand new so I thought I'd give it a try. Normally I use the stainless steel wipes from the supermarket, no brand in particular, just whatever is on sale. There's no doubt that they work but they are a little pricey for what you get, and I always try to stretch the amount of  square inch wiping I get from each cloth and end up with tell tale "cheap lady" streaks.

So, good old Johnson's baby oil, I'm sure this bottle is as old as my 6 year old. But it still looks, smells and works great. A little squirt onto some paper towel and buff to your hearts content. 

Some people recommend that you clean the surface first with a wet cloth, mine wasn't too bad to start with but you can see the streak marks from the last time I wiped my fridge down. If you look carefully, the door on the right has been wiped with baby oil and the one on the left is a good representation of what my stainless steel always looks like.

I was going to leave one side treated and the other untouched in order to do a comparison in a week or so but the pure joy I got from seeing my stainless steel so shiny got the better of me and I ended up doing everything, the dishwasher included!

So readers, The Fonz and I agree. The cheap and multi-use baby oil gets my vote, my home will now officially be a stainless steel wipe free building.

House cleaning central also offers a multitude of other options for cleaning stainless steel. I've only tried the baby oil and am super happy with the results so far. 

Happy Domestic Bliss to you all. Feel free to share any of your own tips.

I'm going nude!

Ha!!! Gotcha, you perverts. You thought there was actually going to be naked people on your screen....go on ...admit it! You know I track my traffic to this blog..........ahhhhh! PANIC!
Just kidding. But seriously, if you`re here for naked people you`re barking up the wrong tree today.
I just wanted to share with my fully clothed readers a new product that I stumbled across in Australia on my last visit.

Don`t you just love the censored fruit parts. Now before you Canadians get all excited, I'm trying to find a supplier here so that I can tell you all where to get this product, no luck yet.So for now you can all read on and be envious of my impulse purchase.

We all know how easy it is to get suckered into the ease and convenience of Ziploc bags and plastic wrap, in the words of one of my dear friends...it makes me feel like an "environmental terrorist" (thanks Nat).

I've used a few products in the war of packed school lunches, such as these handy lunchskins. They work well but are easily lost and still require a lunch kit. Also the fact that they are made in Canada makes them an appealing purchase. I lucked out and was able to trade a couple for some of my jam at a market.

So here's what I purchased in a Safeway supermarket in Australia, on clearance mind you for A$6.99. Ingeniously named...the nude food mover is an all in one lunch kit system. I picked up one for each of my girls and they have used them every day this week with no complains, no spills, no dry bread and no breakage....so far.

 

Here's the bio:

Nude Food Movers = a healthy body + a healthy planet!



Hailed as the best thing since sliced bread – and the ultimate way to keep that bread fresh, the Nude Food Movers range consists of lunch, sandwich and snack boxes, stackable snack tubes, banana and muffin movers and neoprene covers.


The Nude Food Movers range by Smash, is designed with a space for everything to eliminate the need for portion packing and wrapping. All products are also BPA free making them the perfect choice for families!


In 2010, Nude Food Movers in conjunction with Nutrition Australia, developed the first annual Nude Food Day to encourage Australians to pack nutritious, environmentally friendly lunches for work and school while raising money for healthy schools programs.


The event was hugely successful, and 2011 we made it international spreading the word to New Zealand. In the years to come, we want the whole world to participate in Nude Food Day and become healthier and more environmentally aware together!


If you haven’t already, it’s time to join the Nude Food Movement!

The product line has an assortment of different configurations and snack containers, the only complaint I have is that my luggage space was just not big enough for me to buy more components. I did have to reserve space for my other Aussie treats.
So not only has this nifty little product replaced the plastic wrap, it has also replaced the lunch kit. No more mould checks in the little corners and stitching of synthetic fabric lunch kits for this momma and no more squished lunch for my little monkeys.

On another Aussie topic...Australia day is coming up soon, don't forget January 26th. Our hot lunch lady extraordinaire Stacy is my hero of the week for sourcing out REAL Aussie meat pies for the occasion. I will be in the hot lunch room showing my Aussie pride....can't wait.

For all my garlic customers

I was checking out Design Mom today and noticed an interesting link that she shared from saveur.com, I could not resist taking a peek myself.

I thought this idea was interesting, I've seen and tried a lot of different techniques for dealing with garlic in the past. I don't own a garlic press *gasp*, that's right you  heard me....I use a knife, old school baby.

But I have fallen for the seductive promises of several gadgets that just end up taking up space and making a big old mess.

This technique would be great if you're needing a lot of garlic all at once, otherwise I can tell you there is no way on earth I would dirty two large bowls just to peel some garlic.
If any of you try it out let me know if it works with my garlic. It looks as though in the video they are peeling soft stem garlic....which is not the same as the variety that I grow.

I do believe that saveur.com could be dangerous to my health and that I could have easily lost my whole day watching their short video tips and ogling their recipes. So simple, yet things that I never think to do, like how to make a lemongrass knot to add to recipes. I'm already thinking of ways to incorporate that idea into my jamming.

I would also like to share my favourite kitchen tip for dealing with stinky garlicky, oniony hands.

You know the smell. You've just chopped a tonne of onions for french onion soup, maybe you're caramelising some onions for pizza. That onion smell gets right under you skin and takes forever to go away no matter how much soap you lather on you hands!
If you have a stainless steel faucet or sink simply turn on you water, get your hands wet and rub them all over your kitchen sink or faucet, making sure that the surface touches every part of your hands, between your fingers, tops and palms. The steel neutralises the smell, try it out and let me know if it works for you too.

Yummy, yummy, yummy I've got ravioli in my tummy.

Tried out the ravioli maker this weekend and ..... I LOVE IT!!! It's spring break for the next two weeks so I am going to make a whole bunch of pasta and freeze it.

It makes mass production so much faster. Now I just need to make some freezer space.

The filling for this one is onion, garlic, spinach, herb and garlic goat cheese finished off with some olive oil, sea salt and parmigiana reggiano.

Some roasted asparagus for a nummi dinner.

Well hello Mr ravioli maker

Yesterday was a good day.

I went to watch my Zoe sing at the Performing Arts Centre in Vernon with her fellow choir members and was so blown away at their talents I actually had tears in my eyes. What a great experience for the kids to stand proud on a real stage and sing in front of a real audience, granted there was no possibility of them having rotten tomatoes thrown at them or getting booed off the stage, but they were truly fantastic.

Followed by a yummy lunch at Pho fusion with my wonderful friend Louisa and a very impromptu visit to a new store in town called Epicurean Food Equipment, on 27th Street.

I've been meaning to drop into this great new store as I am a bit of a kitchen gadget junkie, but never seem to manage it.

WELL, I'm amazed I was able to leave with only having spent $25 buckaroo's.

Here's what I picked up.....

Is anyone as excited as me?? Homemade Ravioli, oh the possibilities are endless. Butternut squash with feta, chicken and rosemary, beet and ginger (thanks for the inspiration Natalie), spinach and ricotta, chicken and prosciutto.....or even sweet blueberry ravioli.

Anyone want to join me for a ravioli weekend extravaganza. I think I will make a bunch and freeze them for quick weekday dinners. My kids are going to never want to move out.

We have the kitchen aid pasta roller attachment too so I can't wait to get a little production line going. I'm taking names.......anyone up for it?

I get to go to work again today, yaay for me!! I think I'm getting the hang of things, I so look forward to hanging out with Brenda and spending time in such a pretty environment where everything has a place and nobody can come along and mess it up.

Yes, that was a dig at my kids, I'm only human! I love them, just not their mess.

Tootles

Pressure cooker love....

One attempt under my belt, I would not call an absolute success, but the final result was tasty, beef on a bun with caramelised onions and peppers. 

This pressure cooking stuff is a bit challenging without the original manufacturers info for my new toy. Thank goodness for the Internet, I'm planning some apple sauce for this afternoon.

Last night I cooked a roast in an hour but I definitely think it could have been done in half an hour.

I tried a new spice profile. Red peppers, star anise, garlic, paprika, bay leaf, salt and pepper with some beef broth.

If anyone out there has helpful hints or recipes they are willing to share PLEASE feel free to pass them on. I'm itching to use my new toy for canning as well, but I think I need to keep my training wheels on for a bit longer before I start putting glass jars into this wondrous machine.