Recent Acquisitions

I always talk about recipes that I make. But I rarely talk about new toys that I acquire (read: receive from Giz). Truth be told, my mom is chomping at the bit to buy me kitchen items. I have to refuse about 3 offers per week because I don't have space. I live in an apartment and have a galley kitchen with only one entry/exit. I use every bit of space I have, plus the attic, to store all of my kitchen stuff. Sometimes I just go onto house purchasing websites to just visualize my future kitchen.

But, when I figure out space for something new, it's always exciting. Here are some recent acquisitions/arrivals.

R brought home some flowers for Daffodil Days. It's amazing to see how quickly the bunch of stems



turn into fully bloomed flowers.



I received a bag of chocolate from Venice:



I'm told that Marchini chocolates are really good. Does anyone know anything about it?

Also, it's not a new acquisition, per say, but I was so excited to have my first bbq of the season that I took a picture of my bbq.



Giz, has become very advanced in her gift purchasing. I'll get boxes every few months (in the mail/from Amazon) that I can't return. But, who am I kidding. Unless it's a Furby (don't ask), I'm all for getting packages in the mail.

Most recently, I received Dorie Greenspan's bible of baking and a juicer. It works surprisingly well. Hey mom, even R likes to use it!



I also recently decided to sew produce bags (you can read about it here). I hate going grocery shopping and wasting the plastic bags to wrap my produce. So, these bags are an environmentally-friendly option.



Last, but not least, today I received the prize for Ben's Food for Plastic challenge. This is the first thing that Equal Opportunity Kitchen has won. Thanks Ben! All of it will be put to good use. The measuring cups are very smart. I think the bowl would be good for a big summer salad or for transporting something to a potluck! The spatula, of course, will get regular use in my kitchen.



Quite serendipitous considering that Giz submitted her blitzes without knowing that it was a competition. Here is the winning recipe, blintzes:



Ben also sells tupperware in his site, that offers some useful options for the Spring. Ben's newest Food for Plastic event features food for kids. If you have any good recipes for kids, his event is a great place to submit them.

Of course - the obligatory reminder about the Tried, Tested and True deadline. Submission will be accepted until the end of the day Monday. I think I've spent too much time teaching university students that I've become a harda$$ about deadlines.