Kitchen updates

Salmon roasted in the counter top roasting oven

Black bean quinoa patties from the griddle

So! I am now two weeks in to this adventure of making three meals a day for eight people with no stove or oven. I have been forced to become better organized and more creative in my cooking, and so far, I don't think we have suffered for it. Yesterday afternoon, I decided to try my hand at baking a cake in my counter top roasting oven. I made a cinnamon apple spice cake, full of cinnamon and hazelnuts. Other than needing extra time to bake (I think my little roaster runs a bit cool), it turned out really well. For dinner, I used my electric skillet to make fried potatoes with browned butter, rosemary, and garlic. I also made veggie and salmon burgers on the griddle, and microwaved a bowl of frozen vegetables. On Tuesday, I made a potato and garbanzo bean curry in the slow cooker, and served it with rice. The curry was delicious, but the farmer and eldest son asked for a little more flavor next time. I think I will add some ginger and a handful of fresh cilantro before serving. Tonight I am planning on searing shrimp in my electric skillet, tossing it with butter, garlic, parsley, and lemon juice. If I have enough time, I will make two loaves of baguette bread in my counter top oven, and serve the shrimp with bread, salad, and rice pilaf. I think another cake is in order, as the one I made yesterday is long gone. The only problem with baking in the counter top oven is that I can not use any of my larger baking dishes, so the quantities are not quite enough for my large family! I forgot to mention the other tricky part of my new kitchen routine, and that is that during Lent, our family forgoes meat. So, I am cooking vegetarian with no stove or oven for the next four weeks! I checked out a handful of gorgeous vegetarian cook books from the library last night, as I badly need some inspiration. I think the no stove/vegetarian thing would be a lot easier in the summer time, when I can grill outside and load up on fresh veggies from the garden. I find myself craving hot soup, which is really hard to make with no stove! I woke up to a light dusting of snow on the ground, and under that a sheet of ice. The sun is shining brightly, beckoning me outside for a walk in the end of winter frostiness. The children are all still asleep (with the exception of Stuart), relishing an unexpected snow day. I should be doing laundry, starting the bread, and taking care of paper work, but I am also enjoying the slow paced morning, lingering over a second cup of coffee.