What I love, What I do, (from the Kitchen): I love, Love, LOVE, Dishes

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

I love, Love, LOVE, Dishes

When I was a teenager I went to visit an aunt in Wyoming. While playing in a out building on the property with my cousins I found a set of green dishes stacked on a shelf and obviously forgotten. When I showed them to her she smiled and said they must have belonged to the original ranch owners. Several months later a package arrived at my home in Arvada Colorado from this aunt. Much to my surprise in the box was this small set of depression glassware and the beginning of a LOVE of collecting dishes.

This is the latest addition to my collection.

I love to decorate with dishes for the seasons

This is a combination of the depression glass and my mother's china.

I love to get little plates for the Holiday's and take treats to my neighbors.

Entertaining and table presentations are important to me.

This is the same rack for a wedding with different plates to go with the color scheme.

Just after this wedding KUTV in Salt Lake City did a report on Lead Poisoning in imported dishes. I had purchased an entire set of these dishes at a local store.

Just a small sample of the many dishes I own.

After the report came out my oldest daughter and I decided to take a sampling of our dishes and have them tested. The complete set of dishes that I had recently purchased tested the highest levels of the day, yikes. I promptly returned them to the store and only received 50% back for them...I explained to them my concern for the lead content and even wrote to the manager, two years later those dishes are still sold in that store. Many stores import plates from China, Mexico and other places that are inexpensive but are not safe either.

Many people have this in their homes around where I live, this dish tested quite high as well. It now is only a place holder for the person on their special day and we no longer serve food on it.

As a cook and now a blogger I am always looking at dishes to serve on or take pictures with, for example the very first picture on this blog. When I purchased those there was a sticker with a code and the word passed on it. I was curious to know if legislation had been passed on imports of dishes from outside of the country and it caused me to do a little research only to find not much has happened since the story came out. I have tried to reach Jim Matheson to see where his investigation has gone but still haven't received any information.

Warning: This time of year there are many dishes that are inexpensive and so cute for the Holiday Season please be careful! I found these guidelines and thought that I would pass them along.

What do I look for?

The following hints are generally useful, but they are only hints. Certainty comes only from testing. Many manufacturers will have test records for the patterns they make. If you know the manufacturer, you should ask --

Potential risk factors include:

1. China handed down from a previous generation. These heirlooms were made before lead was recognized as a hazard.

2. Home-made or handcrafted china, either from the U.S. or abroad, unless you are sure the maker used a lead-free glaze or high-temperature, commercial firing practices.

3. Highly decorated, multi-colored inside surfaces (the part that touches the food and drink).

4. Decorations on top of the glaze instead of beneath it. Can you feel the decoration when you rub your fingers over it? When you hold the piece at an angle to the light, can you see brush strokes above the transparent glaze surface? Has the decoration begun to wear away?

5. Corroded glaze, or a dusty or chalky grey residue on the glaze after the piece has been washed. THIS TYPE OF CHINA COULD BE QUITE DANGEROUS. STOP USING IT AT ONCE. Any combination of factors 1 through 4 deserves particular attention. Factor 5, which could indicate extreme danger, is fortunately quite rare.

How do I minimize my risks?

1. Don't store food or drink in questionable china pitchers, bowls, etc. The longer food remains in contact with a china surface containing lead, the more lead can be drawn into the food.

2. Don't serve highly acidic food or drink in questionable china, especially to children. Acidic foods and drinks will leach lead out of china much faster than neutral foods like rice or mashed potatoes or neutral drinks like water or milk. Examples of acidic foods and drinks are: cola-type soft drinks; orange and grapefruit juice; applesauce and apple juice; tomatoes and tomato-based products like ketchup and spaghetti sauce; salad dressings with vinegar; tea and coffee.

3. Don't use a questionable piece of china in your everyday routine. Your favorite coffee mug, the bowl that usually goes into the refrigerator with leftovers, the everyday china your children use -- these are the pieces of china to focus on. China that you use only on special occasions is of less concern (particularly if you follow tips 1 and 2).

4. Don't heat or microwave in questionable china. Heat can speed up the lead-leaching process. These precautions aren't necessary, of course, if the china is lead-free or very-low-lead -- i.e., meets the stringent California warning standards. (California has a higher standard for imports than the national regulations!)

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The Pantry

The pantry can be a life saver if it is well stocked and can help when you just don't know what to fix for dinner.

As I have made meals over the years I have stocked up on things that are common in my recipes so all I have to do is shop from my shelves. It is easy to come up with things quickly when you have supplies on hand. It may seem like a lot to have on hand but these are some of my pantry/storage staples and if you build slowly it isn't oppresive to purchase. Watch the ads and sales in your local stores.

Canned/Storage:
Tomato Sauce
Tomato Paste
chicken broth
beef broth
tuna
chicken
corn
olives
beans- kidney. canellini, black, refried
dried beans, red, white, pinto, split peas
creamed soups, mushroom. chicken. celery
tomato soup
bean with bacon soup
rice
flour
sugar
favorite spices
variety of pasta's
peanut butter

Freezer:
chicken breasts
bone in hams
chuck roasts pork roasts
pork chops
lean ground beef
ground turkey
Itailian sausage
vegetables

Refrigerator:
milk
eggs
butter
Tillamook cheddar cheese
Lowfat mozerella cheese
sour cream
cream cheese
mayonnaise
miracle whip
ketchup
mustard
half and half
cucumber
lettuce
celery
carrots
apples
limes

Pantry Shelf:
onions
avocados
tomatoes
garlic
potatoes, red and Idaho russet

Home Canned Items: (I love to can!)
tomatoes
chicken breasts
green beans
salsa
chile sauce

Favorite From the Pantry Recipes

Lauri's Italian Sauce

3 bottles whole tomatoes (4cans approx. 1 lb size)
2 8 oz. cans tomato sauce
1 6 oz. can tomato paste
3 8 oz. cans mushrooms

3 T. dried Oregano
3 T. dried Marjoram
3 T. dried Basil
1 ½ T. dried Thyme
T. Fennel (optional)
dried onion or two chopped fresh onions
2 T. minced dried garlic or 5 cloves fresh garlic minced (if using fresh onion and garlic sauté them in olive oil until transparent and then add the remaining ingredients)

Combine all of the above ingredients and bring to a boil, simmer on low heat until thickened. (I usually simmer it for several hours)

Meat Sauce

4 lbs, lean ground beef
2 chopped onions
2-3 cloves garlic, minced

Brown the meat and add the onion and garlic and cook until tender. Add to the marinara sauce and simmer.

Sour Cream Enchilladas

Mix
4 lb. hamburger
2 onions, chopped
6 carrots, grated or chopped
1 or 2 green pepper chopped
2 T. salt
1/2 t. pepper
1/4 t. garlic salt

Brown beef and drain, add prepared vegetables. Cook until tender and drain, cool.*

Add to hamburger mixture
2 cans cream of chicken soup
1/4 oz. can green chili's chopped (more if you want a little more spice)
1 c. sour cream
1 c. milk
Monterey jack and cheddar cheese grated (to your taste)
corn tortillas

Fill corn tortillas with meat mixture. Place seam down in a 9x13 baking pan. Layer with sauce and cheese. Bake at 350 for 25 mins. This can also be served lasagna style in a casserole dish. This saves time rolling the enchiladas. It just depends on how you want the dish to look on the plates.

*This meat mixture is great to use for other things as well, it can be used to make sloppy joes, tacos, or with other ground beef recipes. It is a great way to add more vegetables to meals with out children or picky eaters even knowing. Just freeze into portions in a zippered bag and thaw when you need a quick meal.

Tips

Always fill your sink with hot soapy water and wash as you go. This helps to keep the mess under control. (I love to cook to I really hate to clean up after!)

When you fix rice for a meal make extra and freeze some of it in a zipper bag. With this premeasured rice it is easy to do a quick thaw and serve or add to other ingredients for a quick and easy meal.

Post a shopping list where you can find it, when you run out of something simply write it down and teach your family to do the same. You are less likely to be caught off guard when you are making your favorite dish.

Make a menu and include your shopping list. You spend less time in the store when you have a plan. When you make more trips to the store you simply spend more money. Having worked with a large grocery chain I learned some of the tricks used to get you to buy more. Be prepared when you go!

Shop the Ads. Make your menu out with the ad and use the shopping list. Most people don't have time to run from store to store getting the best deal on just a few things. When you compare and find the best prices it saves you time, money, and gas.

When making dishes like lasagna, manicotti, chicken pot pie, and many casseroles make two at the same time and freeze the second one for rainy day or a sick friend. It takes little effort to make the extra and it can be a big bonus in your freezer.

Tomatoes should not be stored in the refrigerator but on your counter top. The cold causes them to break down and turn mushy.

If you need to ripen your avacados faster place them in a small paper bag with a banana or apple. The gas that they put off causes the avacado to ripen faster.

Don't store onion and garlic together because the garlic goes bad faster from the gas emitted from the onions,

Applesauce Spice Cake

2 c. sugar
1 c. shortening
2 c. thick unsweetened applesauce
2 eggs
2 t. cinnamon
1 t nutmeg
1/2 t. cloves
1/2 t. allspice
1 t. salt
8 t. baking powder (that's right)
3 c. flour
1 c. nuts chopped (optional)

Cream together shortening and sugar, add eggs. Mix dry ingredients and combine both mixes. Spread on to a sheet cake pan and bake at 350 for 25 minutes.

Frosting:

½ c. plus 2 T. butter
5 c. powdered sugar
2½ t. Mapleline flavoring
3 T. milk

Soften butter and combine with remaining ingredients, spread on top of cake.

This is good to take to Pot Luck dinners or large gatherings. I would also freeze leftover cake in individual servings for my kids after school or when they needed a quick, small snack.

Zucchini Blues

Took it for granted
When it was planted
That I had just enough

Now during my days
I'm trying new ways
To use up all this stuff

My basement is crammed
It's been jellied and jammed
Make into bread and cake

It's been chopped and sliced
And grated and diced...
There's nothing else to make!

I've baked it and planned it
Boiled and canned it
And frozen all I need

I have had my fill
There's too much... and still
It's growing like a weed.

(After going away for a week I came home to find six zucchini that were bat size in the garden. Seems like the kids didn't look as hard as they said they did! So I thought of this poem. Anyone need some Zucchini?)