a recipe (Italian Sausage Soup) & some helpful tips

I thank you for your condolences on the loss of our friend.  Your kind, thoughtful words were very comforting.  You are all so dear.

When I asked for ideas/suggestions for posts many of you said you would like to see recipes.  So, I thought I would oblige with some of my go-to recipes.  You might remember from one of my kitchen drawer posts that I showed a draw with folders of recipes  HERE;  several people asked to know what was in my "go-to" folder.

(By the way... I loved that so many of you mentioned the kitchen drawers as some of your favorite posts!  Loved!  I still adore the quote from Barbara Barry's beautiful book Around Beauty where she writes...

 "As much as I love the part of my work that is all about what is seen when we walk into a room, I also love the part of my work that is about what is not seen.  Or at least not by everyone- the inside of the cabinets, the full refrigerator, the silver drawer, and the well-stocked pantry; they too can be things of beauty, artfully arranged to inspire when given a cursory glance."

 I have had a number of people tell me that because of my posts they organized their own kitchen drawers using pretty baskets and containers and feel a sense of calm and happiness when they open them.  Proof that it really is the simple, little things in life that bring us daily joy, yes?!)

Back to recipes.... several weeks ago I made this recipe (which I have been making/tweaking for 11 years now per the date stamp on the original printed copy) and was told again how wonderful it was and how much comfort it brought.  I am always amazed when I look at the ingredients and how simple the recipe is to make that it becomes this wonderful, delicious soup.  I hope you will try it and let me know how you like it.  In the recipe I've included in italics how I make the recipe.  We like spicy/pepper hot, but if you don't, or have children, I would suggest you make it with sweet Italian sausage.)

Italian Sausage Soup

Ingredients:

1 lb. Italian Sausage (sweet/hot/mixture of sweet&hot. I use hot) casings removed and sausage broken up

4 cloves minced garlic

32 oz. Beef Broth (l carton) (I use Trader Joe's Organic)

1 (14.5 oz.) can Italian-Style stewed tomatoes 

1 cup sliced carrots (approx. 2 carrots)

2 (14.5 oz.) cans Great Northern Beans, UNDRAINED (I use Trader Joe's Organic)

2 small/medium zucchini, diced/cubed

2-4 cups FRESH baby spinach- rinsed, torn and packed into a measuring cup (I use a whole small plastic-box of the pre-washed organic baby spinach)

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions:

In a stockpot or Dutch oven, brown the sausage.  After sausage is brown add garlic for one minute until fragrant.  (If needed,  drain sausage well to remove any grease)  Stir in broth, tomatoes, carrots, and season with salt and pepper.

Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 15 minutes.

Stir in beans WITH liquid and zucchini.  Cover and simmer another 15 minutes.

Remove from heat and add spinach, pushing it down into the hot broth.  

Replace the lid, allowing the heat from the soup to cook the spinach leaves.  

Soup is ready to serve 5 minutes after adding the spinach.

(Soup freezes well) 

(Recipe adapted from Allrecipes.com) 

Tips:

Last weekend, at the celebration of my friend at her house, a catered chili was served.  The chili had a rather soup-like consistency, so I shared with the sweet teenage girl who offered to serve the chili a tip on how to keep the ladle from dripping when serving. 

After filling the ladle to the desired amount and before taking it out of the pot, reinsert the bottom half of the ladle back into the soup then serve to your bowl/cup. The ladle will come out without any drips!  Magic ;)

Another tip (learned on Instagram, but can not remember from whom;  I think it was their grandmother's tip)  came in handy when my friend and I were de-constructing flowers from the memorial into smaller arrangements.  

Place hydrangeas in HOT, even boiling water.  The water will help open the woody stems and allow water in.  I tried it on some very wilted hydrangeas- dipping the stem into a pot of boiled water and they came back perfectly!

Wishing you a wonderful weekend!
xxojoan

kitchen drawers- the sink side

Since the kitchen is almost all drawers I've shared, in several posts, the island side here and the range side here.  In this post I'll show you the drawers on the sink side and a couple of ideas, details and  favorites of mine!

I'll start with a favorite detail on the corner Lazy Susan.  The bi-fold door opens using the cupboard latch on the right door.  I wanted the cabinet to look like an authentic, old cabinet door, so I purchased an extra cupboard latch and had our carpenter remove its innards to make it a "dummy" latch.  Placing the dummy latch on the left stops the bi-fold door from opening completely, but it is only by a couple of degrees and I certainly don't mind the loss of a bit of opening to get the look that both cabinets are fully functional- it was a small price to pay.  The Lazy Susan has two tiers which hold glass containers for leftovers (these are my favorites; I don't like to use plastic for storing food/reheating.)  The top drawer to the left holds teas, the middle drawer cereals and the bottom is our bread drawer.

 To the right of the lazy Susan is probably my most used drawer- my knife drawer!  I was asked what brand of knives I use in one of the other drawer posts, so I thought I would answer that here. First, I love a good knife!  Using a good, sharp knife makes prep/cooking so much more enjoyable.  In reality, I think all you really need is one good chef's knife, a paring knife and a bread knife.  That said, the hoarder collector in me loves having so many different sizes and types of knives and not having to wash one knife between tasks when prepping.  I collected the knives over many years- usually asking for a particular knife for Christmas or birthdays (I'm that strange woman who actually loves practical gifts:)  There are some wonderful, quality knives on the market.  The most important thing is to find one that is comfortable and fits your hand well.  The majority of my knives are J.A. Henckels  and Wusthof .  If you're looking to buy good knives it is helpful to know that many makers (both of the brands above, in fact) have several different "lines" of varying price-points and quality. It's important to do your research.  Just like with cookware, with knives you get what you pay for and I highly suggest buying the best you can afford since a good knife can last you a lifetime!  Kitchen shops like Williams-Sonoma and Sur la table, where you can handle and compare several at one time, are great sources.  

This drawer holds another favorite "collection"- salad servers!  I love all things "horn," and especially love horn salad servers:)  I have vintage and new horn, horn and sterling, sterling and wood, bamboo, and carved stone salad servers.
The horn and sterling bottle opener is used for beer bottles... even when the bottle has a screw-top; it makes for a nicer presentation!

 The next drawer down holds stainless mixing bowls, white Jadeite bowls, sterling-rimmed and hotel silver wine coasters, three antique bread boards that I use as cutting boards for small jobs (I use these daily) and paper towels.  Like my kleenex boxes I prefer my paper towels hidden from view;  for me it is worth the extra two-seconds of effort to open the drawer to get to them.  If I'm working a large meal or recipe I'll sit them on the counter while cooking, but then put them back in the drawer.  In Dallas I had them on a holder mounted on the inside of the under sink cabinet door, but since I put a skirt under the sink here this was my solution to the paper towel issue, and it has worked great.

The bottom drawer holds more mixing bowls- vintage green Jadeite and depression glass bowls, strainers, grater, a salad spinner and a vintage hotel silver tray for carrying coffee/cocktails to the desired location!

To the immediate left of the sink is the drawer where I keep everyday flatware and  under that is a pull out bin that holds two large containers- one for trash and one for recyclables.

To the immediate right of the sink is the dishwasher and then the top drawer next to that holds kitchen towels. Below the towel drawer are drawers of white bowls of various sizes for cereals/soups.  For the most part;) I am a white-dish kind of girl.

This drawer is a favorite!  I love vintage and antique flatware and special utilitarian pieces, and this drawer holds them all.  Just opening it makes me happy!  (Can you spot your shell spoon Linda Lime?!) 

The majority of the kitchen drawers have an auto-close feature (aka soft-close/self-close).  Since I knew I would be using certain large drawers for multiple stacks of plates, Le Creuset dutch ovens, cast iron skillets, etc.  those drawers do not have the auto-close feature.  Different manufacturers of the hardware have different weight restrictions, so it is helpful to determine in advance if the weight in a particular drawer will exceed the limit.
While I'm a professed "white dish" girl, I do like a bit of color every once in a while and always in my favorite pea green!

Below that is the black and white drawer.  The plates in the lower left and bowls in the upper right are antique as are the white ironstone plates. Vintage fern-etched wine glasses and antique fern-etched beakers that I use for candles share the drawer. The floral plates (all different flower designs) are new.

The last bank of drawers at the end of the kitchen sink counter has a drawer filled with pens, address book, tape, scissors, etc. and below that the much-used  "tool" drawer containing a measuring tape, hammer, various screw drivers and LOTs of misc. tools and products.  The drawer is very handy and keeps us from always having to go to the basement when needing a hammer/screwdriver for doing a small project around the house.

Lastly, I wanted to answer a question posed to me in the last kitchen drawer post,... anonymous wrote:
 "can you tell me honestly the actual number of hours to do the dishes, store everything so prettily everyday?
I am fifty years old and have never been able to keep house the way you do for a single day. depressing but wth!"

I loved this question, and I get it, I do!  The honest answer is it doesn't take me long to do dishes  (sometimes I do them by hand and other days I put most things in the dishwasher) and even less time to put things away because everything has a dedicated "place" in the room.  I think the key is in organizing.  It doesn't matter if a household has one person or six... being organized saves you time and energy.  I feel there is a science and psychology to organizing (a kitchen, or a house for that matter) that actual enhances your life.   Life is busy, chaotic and sometimes difficult, and I feel organizing is a way of pampering oneself and making things easier on a daily basis.  It is a simple,everyday practice that becomes a gift you give yourself.  Opening a messy drawer or closet makes "me" feel messy, so it saves me time and emotional energy to be able to open a drawer and grab a "zester" that is sitting right where it always is, instead of having to dig through the drawer to find it and being annoyed in the process!   Once you organize a space,  it's done and there is a place for everything.  You never have to figure out again where to "put" something, and you never have to hunt for something that you've misplaced! Staying organized merely requires putting something back where you initially decided was the most optimum placement.  If you think about and study what you need and really use and then edit down to the essentials,  then decide where the best placement for each and every item is, it saves a lot of time.  Having said that, it took me a good month, or more, to really figure out the best placement of things.  I would move entire drawers around as I realized that the "towels" worked better to the right of the sink for me and the silverware to the left/ that the spices worked best on one side of the island/that I needed measuring spoons on both sides of the island/etc ... small things, but things that really made a big difference in how the kitchen functioned for me, making it more efficient and life (or at least cooking;) easier!

Writing that organizing can be "a gift to yourself" reminded me of something I read recently in Barbara Barry's gorgeous, inspiring new book, which I highly recommend... Barbara Barry- Around Beauty.   This book is truly stunning and is a soulful, love letter about home and design.

In a passage called "Inner Beauty", Barbara writes,   "As much as I love the part of my work that is all about what is seen when we walk into a room, I also love the part of my work that is about what is not seen.  Or at least not by everyone- the inside of the cabinets, the full refrigerator, the silver drawer, and the well-stocked pantry; they too can be things of beauty, artfully arranged to inspire when given a cursory glance."

What are your thoughts on "organizing"?!  Does it come natural to you or do you have to work at it?

For more drawer organization and storage:
To see the drawers on the range side click  HERE
To see the drawers on the island click HERE

kitchen drawers- the range side

I wrote my first "kitchen drawer" post (here) after my niece, Jenny, said she would like to be visiting the farmhouse, having a glass of wine and looking in my kitchen drawers!  I figured if Jenny wanted to look inside the drawers then some of you probably did too!   Since the kitchen is all drawers it seemed best to break up these posts.  Having recently received her first piece of All-Clad, Jenny asked me how I cared for my cookware , and with that in mind I decided to show the "range" side of the kitchen next which houses my "collection" of All-Clad to show Jenny... and you!  

I keep several All-Clad pots on the stainless shelf above the range, and the rest are kept in the drawers.  Oh, and to answer her question I use my favorite Bar Keepers Friend to clean the All-Clad.   

This is also Ella's favorite side of the kitchen- you can see her food and water bowls, and her "cookies" in the jar on the counter.  (And, might I add, that when we had lunch with Bunny Williams and John Rosselli  here  that I noticed that her dogs have that very same wicker bone-shaped mat! :)

 

The view looking towards the kitchen dining area.

The top drawer on the far left side holds my Le Creuset dutch ovens and Le Creuset Bouillabaisse pot.   I love Le Creuset and highly recommend the investment over the imitators.  (I gave Jenny a large white dutch several years ago and she loves it too!)  I adore the ovals (they don't cook any better I just think they're pretty;) and bought the black 5 quart dutch first.  While it's great for some recipes it isn't large enough for others, so I then bought the larger jade 6.75 qt dutch.  My suggestion, if you are looking to buy one, is to buy a larger size since you can make both large and small recipes in it and you only have to buy one!   I have found the 6.75 to be perfect, but if you have a really large family I would go with the 8 or 9 quart.   I purchased all my Le Creuset from their outlet stores where you can find some great deals on seconds.  I placed the heavy pots on a top drawer so that I don't have to bend over to get them out.

I used clear plastic, non-adhesive drawer liners from Ikea in all the drawers.   

Below is my cast iron drawer.  The skillets on the left were inherited from my grandmother and the Le Creuset skillet is a favorite for fish.   And, every good southern girl has an iron cornbread stick pan, yes?!  

 Next up we start with the All-Clad.  I have the "stainless" All-Clad.  I've noticed over the years that All-Clad will add/delete lines from their collections, but the stainless seems to be their "classic" and is always available.  They state on their website that it is their "most popular" line.  It is the line that you see Martha and Ina using on their shows.

The kitchen is where you start to see my hoarder "collecting" gene come out! :)  My logic is if one pan is good, then three is better!  And, they're just so pretty you can't buy just one!  While I'm a hoarder buyer of good cookware I'm also frugal...  my initial set of All-Clad was purchased at Bed, Bath & Beyond back when you could use their 20% off coupons (unfortunately, they quickly wised up and exempted All-Clad from the coupons) and since then all other  pieces were purchased from either TJMaxx or Cookware & More -which sells "seconds", but, I honestly have never been able to find the flaw on the pieces I purchased from them.  They sell All-Clad at 32% off the listed price and then twice a year (March and October-ish) they have a 20% off their already great prices!  Get on their email list to get sale date notifications.  (Note: even now if you buy 4 pieces, or more, you get the 20% off!  They also have great customer service which is always a plus!)  I wrote about them here.

 

Below that drawer are my wooden salad bowls-  I love wooden bowls!  The smallest one is a vintage Hawaiian piece and was my grandmother's and the largest one (okay, I have two;) is 17-1/2"!   A Bonjour coffee press, a Chantal jade tea kettle and the Michael Graves teapot,  which was a gift from a friend some 30 years ago, fill the deep drawer. 

The top drawer to the left of the range is my miscellaneous drawer.  It holds a Salter scale (which i love btw) and my margarita straws from Ikea!   I find that cutting off the bottom 2"  from the straws makes them the perfect straw for margaritas in my favorite Marta glass from CB2.  And, apparently we eat a lot of corn on the cob with all those corn handle holders! :)

All-Clad skillets!  

 All-Clad steamers.

This top drawer to the right of the range holds tongs, spatulas, pot holders, a timer and a digital thermometer.  The red silicone pot handle holder is actually used as a warning -I place it on the handle to the oven door so that I don't reach in and grab a HOT skillet handle, and trust me I have!  The little piece of foil is to wrap the Le Creuset lid handles when the oven is above 500 degrees (I think that is the temperature it needs to be wrapped?)  The blue wires in the back are Wolf temperature probes that measure the internal temperature of foods while cooking.  

The shallow little woven baskets that I use for organization in many of the drawers I found at Walmart (for around $5.)  To those that inquired about them; you'll find them in the "bath" hardware section (think towel rings).  I just purchased several a couple of weeks ago, so they still carry them.

 Several crepe pans and All-Clad Teflon skillets.  I only use the Teflon on occasion- mainly for eggs.   Have I told you my crepe pan story?  For years Dan "waxed poetic" about how his grandmother made him crepes.   He made it sound like every time he saw her she was making crepes for him.  And after visiting France and watching him get so happy having a crepe from a street vendor I came home and took a "crepe class" at Sur la Table in Dallas to learn to make his beloved grandmothers' crepes.  It was only after I took the class and while making the first batch for him that he mentioned that she had only actually made them for him once... ONCE!  ha!

The baking drawer!

 More baking!   This drawer just makes me happy!  My favorite popover and Madeleine pans.  The scalloped white porcelain baking dish is a favorite from HomeGoods- it's the perfect size for so many things and is just so pretty!  The antique English white ironstone leaf inside it is my spoon rest that I grab when I need one on the stove.  I have Slipat, but honestly I've never been a big fan-  you?

The All-Clad big boys!  15" skillet and saute pan with smaller lidded saute.  This is also Dan's BBQ essentials drawer with the extra long tongs, lighter and the remote BBQ thermometer.  

 More baking...

And, this final drawer is deep enough to hold files of recipes (this isn't my only recipe filing system- I also have several large notebook binders of recipes that I keep with my cookbooks.)  You can see that my current obsession is finding and saving "shrimp and grits" recipes.  I haven't actually made any of the recipes yet, so if you have a fabulous recipe please email it to me!

This drawer also holds my Reynolds Handi-Vac vacuum sealer.  I love this little device!  It does an amazing job of sealing meats for freezing without the cost or storage requirement of the large and pricier versions.

So, that's this side of the kitchen!   

The next and last "kitchen drawers" post will be the sink side.  Told you- there are lots of drawers for Jenny to look inside!

For more drawer organization and storage:
To see the drawers on the sink side click HERE
To see the drawers on the island click HERE

kitchen drawers- the island

It's another beautiful "snow day" here in New Hampshire and that means I'm in the kitchen!

Awhile back my sweet, beautiful niece, Jenny, told me that she liked to imagine she was visiting us at the farmhouse and we were sitting in the kitchen having a glass of wine, talking about cooking and...

 looking in my kitchen drawers!!!

I figure if Jenny wants to look inside my kitchen drawers, then there are probably some of you who want to too!

[By the way.... If you live in Baton Rouge, Louisiana and are thinking of putting in a swimming pool Jenny and her husband build pools- both residential and commercial gunite swimming pools.  They offer new construction, remodels, replasters, pool maintenance and consultation.
Lucas Firmin Pools ]





We got around 24-inches of snow during the blizzard last weekend!  We went from having no snow on the ground to 24"!




Years ago, well before we even thought of moving, I came across a kitchen that used all drawers instead of lower-cabinets.  I thought the idea was brilliant and functional and saved the magazine article for inspiration (remember the old days when you had to literally tear something out of a magazine instead of "pinning" it?!!! ;)  When designing this kitchen I incorporated all-drawers (well, almost "all") into the plan.  I couldn't be more happy with them and highly recommend them if you are designing or renovating a kitchen.

Since I have a lot of drawers I think it is best to break this topic up into a couple of posts.  I'll start with the island drawers.  

The marble top island is where most of the food prep takes place, so items inside these drawers are geared towards ease and convenience in cooking.  The island measures a little over 3 x 7 feet.  To keep from having to continually run around to get something in a drawer on the other side I have strategically placed duplicate items in drawers on both sides of the island.  It's a simple thing, but one that makes cooking more enjoyable.

The following are the drawers directly across from the sink.
I love to open a kitchen drawer and find "pretty"!  These little woven baskets ($5 each from Walmart) are the perfect holders for utensils.
One of my favorite kitchen tips is in the lower right hand corner- individual measuring spoons.  I bought several sets of measuring spoons,  took them off the ring they come on and can now pull the right sized individual spoon out for whatever I need instead of having to fold the spoons I'm not using back and then wash them all when I've only used one! When making a recipe I pull the appropriate spoon for an ingredient in a recipe and the ingredient itself and set them side by side.  Do you mise en plas?!

Next down is my "savory" herb and spice drawer.  The white polymer tiered-shelf drawer organizer
was cut to fit the drawer.

Below it are baking spices and ingredients, plus bulk bags purchased from Penzeys- I love Penzeys!

Flanking the ends of the other side of the island is the wine refrigerator and a cabinet for large items like my sheet pans, wire racks, cutting boards etc.  The refrigerator and the cabinet left a very small space to be accessed from this side.  I had the cabinet maker make shallow drawers so as not to waste any space.  I keep my papers and plastic wrap in one....

and measuring cups in another.

Below the measuring cups I store Ziploc and paper bags.

The following drawers are on the range side of the island.  As I mentioned, I store an extra set of measuring cups, spoons, scissors and a timer on this side so I don't have to keep running around the island to find items.  This drawer is right next to the wine refrigerator (right side of photograph) and is the wine opening station!

Love this drawer as it holds all things baking!  Oh, and my immersion hand blender- if you don't have one you need one, trust me!  It's a kitchen favorite this time of year when making soups.

This drawer is another favorite, holding my Cuisinart food processor, KitchenAid 9-speed hand mixer, and my chef's torch for making Dan's favorite crème brûlée!

I know it's not a "drawer," but I thought "Jenny" would want to see where I keep my sheet pans and cutting boards! :)

Hope you liked the Jenny-inspired post!

For more drawer organization and storage:
To see the drawers on the sink side click HERE
To see the drawers on the range side click HERE