A know this is early but Ive got a Christmas dinner question.

By on August 31st, 2009

My brother and I are both intermediate cooks in the kitchen and with a little forethought, time and ingenuinety we can make just about anything. We have made dinner today 2 years already and we’re going on our 3rd year. Each year we’ve out done ourselves, but this year Im stumped. It has been suggested that we do a “Christmas cruise theme”, with each course a different European country, but quite honestly Im struggling to work out even a basic menu to work off for this undertaking. Please some suggestions of different foods from different European countries would be so helpful.

Homemade christmas gifts.

By on August 30th, 2009

Okay so I’m not gonna be in town for halloween or thanksgiving or anything until christmas, I have nothing to look forward to but christmas. So I am trying to think of homemade christmas gifts. I really like baking so I want to do something that involves the kitchen.
Heres my ideas:
for people who live by me:
gingerbread men in those cute little containers for x-mas
for people who live in another city or province:
cookie in a jar thing
if you have any other ideas thank you. and also do you have any soft gingerbread men recipes.

oh and you know those emails that go around near christmas time that have christmas recipe websites in them. do you know any of those websites. thanks.

Will this next dream be prophetic too.

By on August 29th, 2009

I had a dream that I was watching a delivery guy hand my husband a white envelope and that I’m standing in the kitchen with a garbage can full of fast food wrappers (may be irrelevant.lol) but never know what the envelope contains.

A week later my brother in law drops by the house (While we’ve got major remodeling happening) and wakes me up from a nap (yes, I napped while the carpenters were here lol) to tell me that he was being served - in other words sued. He was holding a 52 page packet in a large white envelope.

The next day my husband goes to check our mail and comes home with a large white envelope (certified mail) with a petition. he’s being court ordered to attend a court hearing regarding mineral rights to his families land (we already knew this was happening) and was told that the judge has given the attorneys 90 days to wrap this up.

After a few days, I have another dream where my daughter and I are on our way to buy shoes (for my kids) and we miss our ramp on the interstate, and I have to take a detour and after much driving we get to where we need to go and while in a department store I ask her to hold on to my purse and she wanders off and looses it. I am frantically looking for her and she finally appears without my purse. I keep searching and find it but all my money is gone. I go to a back room in the dept. store and there are two sofas. I immediately begin to cry and then a woman (with child) asks whats wrong and I tell her “I’ve just lost all my money - my kids’ shoe money.” and she reaches into her pocket and says she’s going to give me money and I stop her and say “I can’t ask you to do that.” then I don’t know what happens but I find myself packing up Christmas decorations from a small table (I don’t know why but in my dream we are “visiting” a hospital for my son) and I come across a stack of folders and in the folders there is this woman’s adoption file of the child that’s with her in the dream, and A LOT of money, blank checks made out by a company and bank account information. I’m unsure what all this means. can someone help me.

How to keep spices from hardening in cabinet.

By on August 28th, 2009

I keep all my spices in a cabinet in the kitchen and they ALL get rock hard. I used the onion salt for garlic bread 2 days ago and we used a knife to loosen it up, went to use it now and it’s rock hard again. How can I keep this from happening.

interior design help with kitchen color.

By on August 27th, 2009

I am trying to pick a color for my kitchen. we just put down sandy colored tile throughout the house and painted the living room and dinning room tan with a mochaa sponge foe finish trying to go for the tuscan theme i am putting in darkcabinetss with a sandy granite counter top i have foe gold antique tin plates for the back splash. i have picked out two different greens and a yellow. they all look like there yelling at me when i walk into the kitchen. HELP.

What is the benefit (if any) of a freestanding stove.

By on August 26th, 2009

We’re redesigning our kitchen and I’m just looking at various options that are around.
(I do a lot of cooking)
And unfortunately we’re on a pretty tight budget.

Ideas for an ice cream cake.

By on August 25th, 2009

I’m making an ice-cream cake to look somewhat like Mt. St. Helens~ just a mtn./volcano cake. I need to make it with strawberries, banannas and ice-cream but can add other ingredients as well. Looking for low cost and able to be assembled with the avg. kitchens supplies (no fancy cake pans) Does anyone have any ideas. I’m thinking maybe making a gingerbread mtn, and filling it with a strawberryand ice cream lava. But what to do with banannas. And Do you think it would taste good with straw, ban and ginger bread.

How can I turn make a modern table look vintage.

By on August 24th, 2009

I found a perfect kitchen table for my apartment. The only problem is it is a bit more modern than I would like. The base is a stark white and I am looking for any ideas on how I can make it more vintage or “used” looking. I was thinking light sandpaper on the legs but am unsure as the paint is a high gloss. Any help is appreciated.

Where can I find 3.375 inch or 85mm center to center kitchen cabinet hardware.

By on August 23rd, 2009

I have some original kitchen cabinets from 1964 or so. I want to update the hardware, however the center holes measure 3.375 (3 3/8 inches). I have not been able to find anyone who stocks these pulls. Any ideas.

OMG you HAVE to read this, THis is the BEST story EVA.

By on August 22nd, 2009

Hi, sorry about the title, but i had to get your attention didn’t i.

i mean, last time i posted a similar question i got no responses

so here goes,

what do you think of my story, i know there is a million questions asking this, but i really need opinions.

by the way i’m 13

here it is.

Our house sat on the very middle of a huge hill, our property stretched on at about a 50metre radius from our house. Our house was old, one of the houses you might have recognised if you came from the year 2000. It was a 2-storey weatherboard farmhouse. The curtains of the smallest upstairs bedroom were hanging out the window letting the wind blow them across till they almost touched the end of the house. I looked back at it, then on towards the small wooden garden shed down the path.

As I neared my destination I heard shuffling footsteps and whispers coming from the shed. I rapped the secret knock,.

The door swung open and the grinning face of my best friend, Jasmine, greeted me, I walked in and took my position on top of an old suitcase. Her twin brother Spencer was sitting cross-legged on a bag of fertiliser, flipping through a Car magazine and Sam was reclining against the wall , his dark chocolate brown hair blowing around from the breeze, making its way through a gap between 2 boards behind him

“Hey Spence, chuck us an oreo.”

Spencer rummaged in a decorated wooden box (Jaz and I made it in woodwork at school)) we kept hidden under a loose floorboard. He found the packet of Oreos amoungst goodies and quite forcefully threw me one, I wasn’t quite expecting it, and it hit me in the face, it was only a biscuit, but Spencer looked shocked that he’d hurt me.
“It’s ok Spence, I’m a bad catch” seeing his confused look I corrected myself “ I’m not very good at catching”
He didn’t reply, he was always shy when we all met up. Jaz smiled at me as though to say, he’ll be right. I knew he would, there’d been a million other awkward moments like these, I guess that’s what’s to be expected when your best friends brother has aspergers, specially when he fancies you.

“Where’s Toby.” I asked quizzically
“He had soccer practice” Sam answered
“Oh” I sighed, looking up out the windows onto the rolling hills, covered in towering skyscrapers and towers, which stretched on as far as I could see.
“So what’s up Jaz. I’ve gotta get back soon, mum and dad are going out and I have to look after Meg”
“uhh Liv.” Jaz said slowly, looking rather awkward
“What.” I replied, sensing something was wrong
“We’re moving”
My heart sunk, I thought it would sink down to my feet, my first best friend, my only best friend, was moving.
“Its only an hour away, you can come and visit in the hollidays and on the weekends, and I can come and visit you” Jaz added, moving towards me
“Why.” was all I could manage to choke out, tears streaming down my red face
“Well Dads a Space engineer, he got a job working on the new space crafts they’re designing, you know to take us to Mars”

I took a deep breath, I knew Mr Makenzie had a very important job, I knew that they had to design spacecrafts that could take people to mars, I knew earth was almost polluted beyond repair.

After a while I calmed down.
“I’ve gotta go” I told them and closed the door quietly behind me, I didn’t have the strength to slam it, despite the sadness and anger that was making me tremble from head to toe.

I walked back up the paved path to the house and saw my sister playing in the yard, she was 6 and people said, if we were the same age we’d have looked like twins, we had the same wavy dark brown hair, the same piercing blue eyes, even the same dimples when we smiled.

I swung the kitchen door open and found mum and Dad reading a letter at the bench. I looked over Dads shoulder and read the words that would change my life for ever.
I do have a plot planned out, this is only the first page, i have written more, but in my opinion its not as good.
I know there is another Q exactly the same as this, but nobody answered it, did they. i needed a more catchy title
Well i am almost 14, but still,

also thanx everyone for answering, i guess a catchy title is all it takes.