christine-murphy dot net

And I know this sounds mean, but to that I say, “GOOD RIDDANCE!”  You can read an article about it HERE.  I’m glad the commercial collection agencies have been going after them. That’s what they get for being jerks with lousy customer service.

I have hated them since they sold me a defective stove some years ago, and they refused to make good on it.  The delivery guys brought it in, turned it on for a minute or so, all the burners and the oven, to make sure it all worked.  Then they left.

A few days later, I cooked something in the oven for the first time…I even remember what it was, it was a beef-noodle casserole (recipe to follow in my next post here).  I preheated the oven to 350°F, prepared the casserole, put it in the oven to cook for the appointed 30 minutes.

Before the 30 minutes were up, I started to smell something burning.  I opened the oven, and, as Alton Brown would say, it was NASA-hot!  A LOT hotter than 350°!  I swear, it was so hot I almost burnt my face off!  And the cheese on top of my casserole was all burnt on top…yeccch!

Well, it didn’t take a rocket scientist from NASA to figure out that the thermostat was a dud.  And thus began an epic battle to get it fixed.  I suppose Mike could have tried to repair it himself, but he was afraid if he tried, and he screwed it up, it would void the warranty.

To make a long story shirt, Circuit City refused to make good, they told me to deal with Whirlpool, the manufacturer.  Whirlpool told me to call Circuit City.  It went on and on, until I FINALLY got someone at Whirlpool to agree to send a repairman out to look at the stove.

Mike took a day off from work to wait for the guy.  The guy showed up, opened the stove, looked at the thermostat, and said, “yup, it’s busted.”

NO DUH!  And that was all he could do for that visit!  Never mind the fact that I TOLD them that I knew it was the thermostat, PLUS I gave them the exact model number of the range.  Was it really too much for me to expect them to be prepared, and have the repair guy have a replacement thermostat in his truck?  But nope, he said it had to be ordered, and it would take something like a month to get it.

A MONTH?  Where did they have to get it from?  Outer Mongolia?  Delivered how?  By carrier pigeon?  I mean, this was the manufacturer I was talking to, they don’t have these parts on the shelf?  Even if there wasn’t a part in a local shop, there is such a thing as overnight delivery.  I was so desperate to have a working oven, being that Thanksgiving was about a month away by this time, that I was willing to pick up the tab for overnight part delivery.  But they said no, I had to wait another month.  I had already lost enough time with the runaround between Circuit City and Whirlpool, all over a defect that was not our fault!

I felt that Circuit City, as the store who sold me the stove, should have arranged for either a repair or a replacement as soon as I told them that they’d sold me a defective appliance.  But they didn’t care, in fact, their phone reps were very rude to me.  I was also not too thrilled with Whirlpool.  As a result, I never set foot in a Circuit City store ever again.  I tend to hold grudges for a long time, so when I heard that CC was having money problems, I rejoiced.  Now I am glad they are going out of business for good.  If this is the way they treat their customers, it’s been long overdue.

I’m not too impressed with Whirlpool, either.  Maybe it’s just their local service shop, but sending a guy to tell us what we already knew, and then making us wait a month for the stupid part is a pile of crap.

And I haven’t forgotten that, either.  Our ancient clothes dryer kicked the bucket last weekend, and we decided that it would be best to buy a new one.  I decided to buy from Sears, as they have a good record with us.  If you buy an appliance there and something goes wrong, they will send a guy out to fix it, they don’t do all of that runaround crap. Mike used to own a condo years ago that he rented out to a tenant, long before I met him.  He bought a fridge from Sears for the unit, and it had a defect.  Sears guy went over there and fixed it, no problem, no hassle.

Still, I bypassed all Whirlpool dryers, just in case.  I chose a Sears Kenmore brand.  I don’t know who actually makes the Kenmore appliances, but if it has the Sears brand name on it, then Sears has to honor the warranty if something goes wrong.

Anyhoo, if you want to go over there and be a vulture, Circuit City is liquidating all of its stock, so maybe you might get a good deal on a big screen TV or something.  But if they didn’t give good customer service when they were in business, certainly don’t expect it now.  If something goes wrong, it will be up to you to contact the manufacturer and hope that they will do something about it.

So if you are looking to buy a big-screen TV in time to watch the Super Bowl that our beloved Patriots will not be in, buyer beware!  After 2 1/2 months of the runaround, I finally had a working oven…a scant three days before Thanksgiving!

I love kitchen gadgets, really, I do.  But some of them are such useless space-wasters, and the sort of thing that Alton Brown calls *unitaskers*.  AB says that the only *unitasker* in your kitchen should be a fire extinguisher.  Who needs diet pills, when you can just gack up your lunch reading about dumb crap that people waste their money on?

So, here goes…

1. Electric Hot Dog Cooker – There are several kinds out there, but I thought that this one was especially dumb.  I mean, fifty bucks for a toaster that just cooks a coupla weenies?  When we cook hot dogs at home, we usually cook them on our George Foreman grill, an appliance that can be used for may other purposes, as well.
2. Banana Slicer – I kid you not, I actually saw this in a store.  It wasn’t very expensive, but still…WHY?  If you MUST have one, see one HERE.
3. Tuna Can Drainer – You gotta be kidding me!  Five bucks for this thing?  I just open the can, and, holding the top on and pressing down, I drain all of the tuna water into the cats’ dishes (the only place it is ever allowed to go, in this house).
4. Inside-The-Shell Electric Egg Scrambler – This thing is a Ron Popeil invention.  The only thing I have to say about it is…WHY?
5. Bread Crust Cutter-Offer – Sheesh, why spend money on this thing?  Ever hear of a KNIFE?  Just as dumb as that banana cutter thing!
6. Holy Toast Stamper – This thing might be worth the investment, if you can sell a piece of toast imprinted with the image of Jesus on ebay.  Or is that the Virgin Mary?  Who knows, and who cares?  But I hear that this market has dried up a long time ago, not even that Golden Palace online casino place is buying such crap.  Oh, well!
7. Electric Quesadilla Maker – Be honest, how many times are you going to be making quesadillas, to justify the money and the storage space for this thing?  You can easily make them on a griddle in a pan, or even on a George Foreman grill.  Sheesh!
8. Rachael Ray’s Garbage Bowl – Do we really need to spend $20 on a special bowl just for putting your food scrap garbage into?  The concept tht Rach uses, of using a bowl to collect garbage in, to save steps to the garbage can, is a good one.  But why a special bowl, why not just use any old bowl you have laying around?  Sheesh!
9. Non-Stick Steel Tortilla Shells – Now, I love taco salads and such, but who really needs these things?  I simply use my oven-safe Corelle cereal bowls for this purpose.  Works great!
10. Citrus Zester – Dumb.  Why buy this thing, when you can use a food grater of a vegetable peeler instead?

Coming soon will be a list of stuff that might be useless, but so gosh-darmed FUN!

I often talk about certain kitchen tools that I feel are important to have. So I thought I’d make a list of ten items that every kitchen should have.  This is by no means a complete list…just a few things I think are important to have.  These are items that will make your cooking so much easier, that you will want to cook at home more often…and may want to end up adding the best diet pill to the list!

1. A good French chef’s knife – These come in various sizes, and you should get one that is comfortable for your hand.  These can have wood, plastic, or metal handles, pick which is most comfortable for you.  Avoid the kind that “never needs sharpening”.  You can either buy a knife sharpening tool, or take your knives to be professionally sharpened.  Sharp knives are actually less dangerous to use than dull blades, as dullness makes you push harder and can cause slippage.  Also, look for “full tang”, this means that the metal that the knife is made of goes all the way into the length of the handle, these will hold up much better.
2. A 12″ cast iron skillet – Inexpensive and versatile.  You can cook on the stovetop in it, bake in it, roast in it.  If someone breaks into your house, you can beat them over the head with it.  Lodge is the leading brand.
3. An instant-read thermometer – The fool-proof way to test for doneness.  These come in digital and analog versions.  You can buy an inexpensive analog thermometer for under ten bucks…this is the one that  I have.
4. A good pepper grinder – Freshly ground pepper is far superior than the pre-ground variety.  if you grind pepper right when you use it, it doesn’t lose its flavor.  Oxo makes a good pepper grinder at an affordable price.
5. Measuring Plungers – These are really good for measuring sticky or goopy foods.  You adjust the yellow plunger part to the level you need to measure, put the food in, and then push the plunger to dump the food into the mixing bowl, pan, wherever it needs to be.  You can buy these at Alton Brown’s website, right here.
6. A slow-cooker – Also known as a Crock-Pot, which is trademarked by Rival, who made the original ones.  Now many other companies make them, as well.  A good size to get is an oval 5-quart model.  You can get a basic one for about $30, or pay more for extra features, such as timers.  If you have a large family or big eaters at your house, you may need a larger capacity, perhaps 6 or 7 quarts.
7. A bread machine – The average loaf of bread at a supermarket can cost as much as $3.00.  But if you make your own, the cost can be as low as less than a buck, for a basic loaf of bread.  For the most savings, buy flour and yeast in bulk.  I know that you can make bread without a machine, but machines mean a lot les work, and you’ll be more likekly to bake more often.  This is the machine that I have.  I don’t think this model is made any more, but Breadman makes other machines that are certainly just as good.
8. A bench scraper – Here is a good selection.  Yes, it’s original purpose is for scraping dough off of a work surface.  But I most often use mine for traferring cut-up veggies from the cutting board to the pan, mixing bowl, wherever.
9. A good basic cookbook – There are many out there, but I always say that if you can only have one cookbook, it should be The Way To Cook by Julia Child.    Julia teaches by starting with basic, or master recipes, and then encourages the home cook to expand on these by making a more complicated dish, with the master recipe as a basis.  Invest in the hardcover version if you can afford it, this is a big book, and the hardcover will hold up much better.
10. A fire extinguisher – This is a no-brainer.  Kitchen fires can happen to even the best cooks, even yours truly.  Buy one that is designed for kitchen use (yes there are different types), check it every so often, and replace it every couple of years or so.  Even if you never need to use it, they do not last forever.  Familiarize yourself as to how to use it, so that should you ever do need to use it, you’ll not be wasting precious time reading the instructions.

Coming soon will be other lists, including Ten Dumb Kitchen Items, and Ten Fun Kitchen Items.

I just love that word.  I think it should be put on digital signage…now wouldn’t that make people laugh while being stuck in traffic? It would beat the crap out of what some people do when they get infected with road rage!

What exactly does this funny word mean? It sounds like it’s dirty, but it’s not. It’s simply another word for “butterflying” a bird, to split and flatten it so it can be cooked on a grill or other surface. Here is a video that shows you how to spatchcock a bird:

I saw Jacques Pepin make a spatchcocked chicken dish, only he called it butterflying. Same thing, though.  When you spatchcock a bird, it enables it to cook much faster than if you roasted it whole.  Thus it is a suitable recipe for Jacques’ new series,  More Fast Food My Way.  You can get recipes and even watch entire episodes on that site; HERE is the page that has the spatchcocked chicken recipe and the show.

I made this last night, and it was very tasty.  Here’s what it looked like, all spatchcocked, with the mustard sauce spread over, before putting in the oven:

This chicken is started on top of the stove, where it cooks for about five minutes, then transferred to the oven for about half an hour.  So you will need some kind of a pan that doesn’t have plastic handles, that can be used both on the stove and in the oven.  I know that some manufacturers say that their plastic-handled pans are oven-safe…but usually only up to 350 degrees F.  This chicken cooks at 450 degrees.  Here, I chose a large cast iron skillet.  Such a skillet is very versatile, and I think every kitchen should have one.  But you can use any oven-safe pan that you happen to have.

This is what it looks like when it’s done:

To serve, I did just as Jacques did, and used the shears to cut it into several pieces. This is much easier than using a knife.

You know those scissors that come with knife sets in blocks, that are called “poultry shears”?  Well, they are not, they are scissors.  I guarantee that if you try to use these to spatchcock or otherwise dismantle a bird, your hands will hurt a LOT!  And they won’t do the job very well at all.

So you COULD buy a professional pair of poultry shears, like the ones that Jacques uses on his show.  But good ones like that tend to be expensive, around $70 or so for good quality ones that do the job and won’t hurt your hands.  I don’t know about you, but I didn’t want to spend that kind of money.

Then one day I saw an episode of Good Eats, where Alton Brown was dismantling a duck.  Now, AB can certainly afford to buy $70 poultry shears, as he makes as lot more money than I do.  But nope, he was using a pair of metal shears from the hardware store.  AB is very fond of using hardware store tools as kitchen tools, mostly because of the cost savings.  He said that these shears cost ten bucks.  And sure enough, when I went to Home Depot to buy a pair, that is what they cost.  And I must say that they do the job very well.  If they can cut through metal, which they were designed for, they can certain cut through poultry bones.

Just don’t try to be cheap by looking for the metal shears that might be in your garage or basement.  Buy a new pair and use them only for food.

Oh, and as Jacques said, don’t throw away that chicken backbone!  If you hack off the ends of the drumsticks, as he did, don’t throw those away, either.  You will save these, along with the neck that comes with the bird, to make stock.  If you like, you can freeze these, and keeps saving these until you have a lot, then you can make a good amount of stock.  I talked about how to make a stock in your slow-cooker in this post.

Don’t use the giblets (liver, heart, and gizzard) in your stock.   They will cloud it up and make it look and smell and taste nasty.  Save them for another purpose, such as giblet gravy.  Another thing they are good for is making homemade cat food…I will have to start doing some posts about that sometime soon.

Anyway, I hope you’ll try spatchcocking a bird in your own home soon.  Enjoy!

click image for larger recipe page

I have a hard time then it comes to Mike and meatless meals.  He claims that he has to have his meat with every meal, otherwise it won’t stick with him, and he’ll be hungry again in a couple of hours.  But nonetheless, I try to sneak in a vegetarian meal every so often.  I am not as big a carnivore as he is, and when we go out to eat, I often order a meatless entree.

When the current collection of Get Inspired recipe cards became available at Shaw’s, I was happy to see this one in particular (but I pick up all of them, as they are free).  I had some Gorgonzola cheese left over from Katie Brown’s Gorgonzola Stuffed Potatoes, that I made as part of our New Year’s Eve dinner, to accompany another Get Inspired dish, the Pepper-Crusted Steak.  I was looking for a good way to use it up before it all went bad, and this recipe filled the bill.  In fact, when I crumbled up the cheese I had left, it came to exactly the one cup called for!

Portobellos are very large, meaty mushrooms.  They seem to go very well with Gorgonzola cheese.  At one restaurant I worked at they served a whole Portobello (minus the stem, or course), grilled and topped with some Gorgonzola cheese and some roasted red bell peppers.  This was served as both an appetizer, and as a sandwich, on a humburger roll.  Both items sold very well.  We also used to run an occasional pizza special, with a pie topped with cut-up Portobellos, Gorgonzola, and julienned roasted red bell pepper.   That was also very tasty!

This pasta dish is VERY rich, due to the cheesy cream sauce and the chunks of meaty mushrooms.  Please be sure to buy fresh baby spinach for this, “adult” spinach is too tough and won’t wilt properly at the end.  The spinach “cooks” in the heat of the pasta and sauce.  If you cannot find baby spinach, you can use “adult” spinach, but you have to take the time to cut off the very tough stems.

You can buy bags of baby spinach that are supposedly *pre-washed*.  I wash thm anyway, just to make sure they are clean enough to eat.  Beisdes, I have the Oxo Good Grips salad spinner, and that thing is just so much fun!

This recipe is highly recommended and carnivore-approved.  Next time I make it, I will add some roasted red bell peppers, as they do go well with the ‘shrooms and cheese.  Enjoy!