Starbucks 'Trenta': How The New Size Compares To Your Stomach
Famous Death Row Last Meals
When I was growing up, once a year my parents would take my sister and me on vacation just after school let out for the summer. We'd rent a little house in Gearhart, OR that was a block from the beach and settle in for four or five days of laziness, walking along the shore and several hours of skee-ball in the neighboring town of Seaside.
This house was tiny, mostly just graying shingle, a sprawling deck and a kitchen where everything was at least fifty years old (it has since been sold and remodeled into a charmless monstrosity, built to impress instead of to comfort). The thing my dad liked best about that kitchen was that it came with an old waffle iron. You know the kind I'm talking about, big and square, with rounded corners and covered in chrome. The waffle plates lift out and are reversable, making it possible to lay the whole thing flat and make pancakes on it. We had a waffle iron like it at home, purchased at a thrift store when my parents were first married.
We always gave the first waffle to the dog, as it was always a little too greasy and a bit flaccid. The next waffle would be perfect, crisp and brown on the outside, but steamy and tender on the inside. My sister and I would scoot in one side of the built-in breakfast nook (covered in sparkly turquoise vinyl that was cracked in places) with our plates (heavy old mismatched stoneware) and dig in. My dad would stand at the counter, making waffles until the batter was all gone, a plate of his own breakfast at his elbow. He often commented that he'd like to take that waffle iron home with us, as it was superior to ours. He never followed through on that threat though, mostly because he wanted to ensure that it would be there for the following year.
These days, I buy every old waffle iron I come across at thrift stores and rummage sales. They have to have cast iron grill/waffle plates and be covered in chrome. I have one or two in reserve at any given time, in case my primary iron craps out. The rest I pass along to special friends and close family, so that they too can know the magic of the waffle.
Let's hear your memories of kitchen tools and appliances.
PHOTOS: President Obama's Kissing Technique
Broke Stars: 11 Celebrities Who Went Bankrupt
Jane Seymour's Modest And Modern Style
Adele Five-Year Break? Singer Plans to Focus on Relationship, Write 'Happy Record'
Social Security Is Failing Even Faster Than We Thought
LOOK: Amazing Underwater Photos Of Dogs
Man Says Starbucks Discriminated Against Him Because He Has Half An Arm
Chris Brown, Grammys 2012: Embattled Singer Slams Critics
Janice Dickinson's Outrageous Style
3 Economic Misconceptions That Need to Die
Ford's clever Sports Illustrated Swimsuit ad features phantom model
PHOTOS: How You Can Get The 'Miracle' Dress
Trace Adkins Reunites With College Crush, 30 Years Later
Van Gogh's Starry Night modded into beautiful interactive light and sound show (video)
Photos Of Dead Lacrosse Player's Injured Body Shown To Jury
'Hooker Teacher' Forced To Resign, Now Can't Find Work
PHOTOS: Model Falls At Dennis Basso Show
Lauren Scruggs Goes On Ski Vacation
WATCH AND LAUGH: Cops In 2-Hour Standoff With Empty Car
New Clues, Details Emerge In Powell Case
Stephen Wiltshire Draws Cities From Memory
PHOTOS: Remembering The People's Ballerina
20 Of Elizabeth Olsen's Versatile Looks
We Meant There WERE Nukes In The Fire
LOOK: The Last Of The Cave People
Style Icon Dies After Collapsing At Fashion Show
Best In Show Winner Declared
WATCH: Saint VaLINtine Hits Game-Winning Shot
Most Eligible Post 50 Celebs
PHOTOS: Kate Spends Valentine's Day Solo!
10 Celebs Who Refuse To 'Fix' Their Teeth
Prosecutors Appeal Overturned Murder Convictions
9-12-2008 @8:17PM Amyco said... The thing I miss is my mom's electric frying pan. It was fairly large, squarish shaped, had a big lid with an adjustable vent, and could be used like a frying pan or a crockpot if you turned the heat really low. The nice thing about it was it had handles on both sides, but the handle with the control knob was also really large. The ones I see nowadays have tiny handles and nonstick coating.
Reply
9-12-2008 @8:51PM lizandrsn said... We didn't have much in the way of appliances that I recall. Mom still has her Kitchen Aid, and us girls purchased our own because of hers.
As an adult I buy up Westbend Stir-Crazy Popcorn Poppers. We purchased the larger, 8-quart lid to maximize our popping fun. There's always one in the house, and a brood in the garage.
Reply
9-13-2008 @3:01AM bunny said... I have to agree with Lizandrsn on the Westbend Stir Crazy Popcorn Popper. I have one and LOVE it!!! It makes the BEST popcorn!!!
I never thought about buying a "spare". For me, it is a storage issue. I don't have lots of "spare space" to keep "duplicate" appliances. Would be nice!!!
My other "can't live without" items are a hand held mandolin for slicing veggies really thin and a mezaluna for chopping garlic and herbs. I guess part of it is what you are used to. I use those items at my Mom's house when I go over there to cook and I use them in my home as they are "familiar".......
My Mom always had a Braun stick mixer, a food processor and a KitchenAid mixer. I have those items too and really like them. I also give them as gifts for weddings and housewarmings.
Mom also had a waffle iron like the one in the picture. It lasted until her and my Dad's 46th anniversary [they really built things to last when she bought it]!!! She did not replace her waffle iron. She decided that the "waffle-making" duty should pass to someone else in the family. Now, she comes over to my home for waffles. I use a Waring waffle iron, like the ones used at hotels.
Reply
9-13-2008 @10:18AM Sally said... My mom used to have a waffle iron, but I don't recall her ever using it. I've never used one. I do use an electric skillet on occasion -- and I've used it as a deep fryer, but never as a slow cooker. It's something to try.
I've moved 4 times in the last 12 years and I'm now on a kick to simplify and minimize my belongings. The fewer kitchen appliances I have, the better. Of course, kitchen appliances are nothing in comparison to cookbooks! I'm minimizing those, too.
Reply
9-13-2008 @10:44AM ann lemons said... Those plates are not for pancakes, they're for grilled sandwiches. At least they were at our house. They compressed things slightly, sort of an early American panini without the grill marks. Faster and toastier than a skillet, which was what was always used for pancakes. The waffle iron was kept on a high shelf my dad had to access.
What I loved, and found again in a thrift store, was the Sunbeam Mixmaster my mother used for her mile-high angel food cakes. The beaters are so efficient, you barely have to scrape the sides.
Reply
9-14-2008 @2:07PM Susan said... Ditto here on the Stir Crazy Popcorn Popper. LOVE IT !! We have been married 45 years and are on our 3rd one - after ruining too many pots to count.
Reply
9-14-2008 @5:06PM Rt said... It appears we are all of a similar age.
Mother cooked waffles in two irons (two square waffles per iron) because with four children to feed besides dad it took several waffles for dinner. We would have pancakes for breakfast but waffles were for dinner, for some strange reason. We also had a fried egg on a hamburger patty for dinner, Delicious, maybe not normal but delicious - some toast to sop up the runny yolk/juices and heaven it is.
To this day I like waffles, not so much with syrup any more, but with butter and an over-medium fried egg (the same with pancakes, now there's no need for toast). Add a meat on the side and that is one scrumptious meal.
I am a fan of the Stir Crazy popcorn maker as well. My dad used to make popcorn in a pressure cooker (he liked the thick walls of the pot). He experimented with heating the oil first (testing with three kernels), or just puting the popcorn in from the start - it kills me that I can't remember the results of the experiment. In any case we ate lots of delicious popcorn (he liked it when watching sports). As the technologies advanced he switched to a Stir Crazy but I was out of the house by then. Dad passed on but I got the Stir Crazy and I am amazed the consistently good bowls of popcorn that can be had - using bulk popcorn is a plus for me because I am cheap and then I can tailor the salt, et al, to my taste (mother uses the lazy nuke bags on the infrequent occasions she makes popcorn, they're not bad - just not as good). I have a (the?) pressure cooker as well but it is better suited to larger batches and has more of a learning curve.
I happen to own an electric frying pan like Amyco describes. It can't be my mom's because she still has hers. She finds she can fit (one) more porkchops in it than her round frying pan. Her sister also prefers to fry eggs in it rather than the round frying pan. With only brief experience setting the temperature is easy and consistent - the recommended temps on the handle work quite well. I have to wonder why these are not more common.
It would be interesting to hear what other 'modern' devices have improved the user experience. Certainly the drip coffee pot must be one - percolators worked but drip has to be better (I don't drink coffee so I can't vote). My sister bot a quesadilla maker because she like the pattern it seared into the tortilla - hmmm, well ok, I prefer a frying pan.
I consider the nuke to be a very useful device. Many people seem to use it just to reheat coffee and/or make popcorn but there are many things it is suited for - not the least of which is steaming vegetables. The efficiency impresses me - minimal electricity usage and minimal heat loss. For those who care to learn new ways it is a clever idea.
Have I missed one?
Reply
9-14-2008 @10:17PM lisa said... oh you've brought back great memories of my sweet, departed grandmother who had a very similar waffle iron. not only were the waffles like none i have had since, she also made amazing melted cheese sandwiches on the waffle iron. there were always two or three different cheeses on thick, delicious multigrain bread. the waffle iron would press and toast the pattern into the bread. yum. thanks for your memories and helping me to conjure mine!
Reply
9-17-2008 @6:33PM wanderinglady said... Wow, that waffle iron is just like the one our family had growing up. Even the model (Kenmore) -- our family bought everything at Sears. I have a waffle iron at home, but I don't think I've used it in about 10 years...
Reply