Hunting for Character in Appliances

Look closely at the stoves I show here. What do you see? Look closer. Right! They are stoves that look like old-school wood burning stoves, but are, in fact, electric. How cool is that?

Small Batch Cooking - Just Enough For One or Two

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I live alone. Well, not exactly alone. I do have a cat and a dog, and occasionally my boyfriend flies in from Seattle, but for the most part, I live alone. One of the biggest complaints I hear from friends, and one that I make as well, is that cooking for one stinks. The main complaint is that if you cook more than you need for a meal or two, you feel compelled to eat it anyway, even if you are full or really shouldn't eat more. I was raised not to waste food. As a result, it sits on my waist. Do you know what I am talking about? Are you guilty of it too? I think I may have found a cookbook that you may want to own as well!

Debby Maugans Nakos has written a pioneering cookbook aptly entitled: Small-Batch Baking. She has taken everyday baked-good's recipes for foods like cookies, cake, pies, tarts, crisps, crumbles, and sweetbreads, and rewritten them to make make, well like the title says, small batches. Such a brilliant concept!

Each recipe is "just enough" for one or two people, with no risk of left-overs. Instead of measuring your ingredients in cups, recipes are measured in tablespoons. Scaled down pans create the beautiful shape of the bunt cake we have all come to love so well, but instead of being 10 servings or more, you get two. There are simple recipes for muffins, but also fancier recipes such as Creme Brulee. The cookbook has 225 fantastic recipes to choose from. Breakfast and desert have never been better!

I found this book on Amazon for $13.95, but actually purchased it on Ebay for less than $5 including shipping! It is published by Workman Publishing, NY, ISBN#0-7611-3035-7. Another great thing about this book is it is sized smaller than a typical cookbook. This will make it convenient to store in my Shouse kitchen.

If you like to cook, enjoy baked goods, and, like me, have little self control, check out this cookbook! I like it so much I gave them as gifts this past holiday season. Oh, I don't want to forget to mention that Debby also has a Gluten-Free version AND a chocolate lovers version. Yum!