common ground : cookbooks

Showing posts with label cookbooks. Show all posts

Friday, April 21, 2023

Cupboard Top Spring Garden Vignette

Hi Friends, it's hard for me to believe, but I haven't shared the cookbook cupboard (in real time) since last late summer. It has been seasonally decorated, but somehow didn't make it to the blog. Since I love decorating with a garden theme for spring I wanted to make sure that I share the latest on the cupboard top.

Late Summer in the Cookbook Cupboard

It seems like August brings all the chickens out to gather in the kitchen and Garden Room. I think of them "down on the farm" hunting and pecking in the barnyard; waiting around for a sprinkle of feed then heading to cooler shady spots for a siesta. So here we are on the Cookbook Cupboard now in late Summer with a few of my vintage flock...

It's A Plaid Christmas in the Cookbook Cupboard

Hi Friends, I've been getting started decorating for Christmas this last week, so my house has been a total mixup. You too? Boxes and tubs filled with fun, once a year items to unwrap and enjoy. I like to change things up a bit each year, but some things are just "traditional". I use red Tartan plaid only once a year, so at Christmas I welcome all my collection and let it saturate my house.

Cottage Kitchen Christmas

The kitchen at our home was renovated back in 2015, which consisted of a complete gutting and opening up the kitchen to the "family room". We of course didn't own the house at that time and the homeowners did a great job with an up-to-date remodel. They had a large TV and sound system located in this niche shelf above the bank of cabinets and counter. We didn't want a large TV there, as I prefer a smaller one on the counter that I could see when seated at the bar. So... what to do with that open shelving that left a big vacant space between the cabinets?

August in the Cookbook Cupboard

I don't change up the "cookbook nook" cupboard as much as some of my other spots, but I do like to keep it seasonal. Lately I've been sharing some of my vintage chick-a-doodles that are meandering around the house. Last year they liked this spot, so I thought I'd bring a few back and share it's late-summer look.

Christmas in the Cookbook Nook

Say Hello to my newest Christmas friend, courtesy of my sister as an early Christmas present. He's so adorable and woodsy I just needed to show him off. I'd been looking for a reindeer for awhile, thinking twiggy or mossy, but this guy is perfect. His grassy covering looks like real reindeer fur. He's a cutie.

Vintage Repurposed Cupboard

When placing all my odds and ends of mix and match white chippy pieces out in the "Garden Room", (I'm going to refer to that big space formally known as the Sunroom, as The Garden Room, ala Katie from Let's Add Sprinkles. Sometimes it's not very sunny so it's now The Garden Room) I soon realized that there wasn't going to be space to fit it all in. Despite a huge room, I had an abundance of furniture that I've had "in storage" begging to be functional again. I had to find a place for this old cupboard that had unfortunately lost it's doors many years ago. It had been in the basement holding quilts or dishes in it's previous lives.

Can you?...

I've been "Fallifying" my sunporch and that means tweaking the vintage "Seed" box that I keep on my bakers rack. I love old promotional recipe pamphlets and cookbooks and wanted to share this great little canning book from Atlas Jars dated 1952.

So, have you ever "canned"?

(google images)

My mother-in-law (not her picture, above) had a big garden each year and did lots of canning. We always looked forward to her yummy green beans, relishes, refrigerator pickles, jams and jellies. But somehow I just never got in on the ~~hard work~~ fun.

Recently we've had to go to a low salt diet due to some inner ear problems and vertigo my hubby has had. So many health issues are brought on by a high salt diet. I'm not just talking about taking the salt shaker off the table, but actually drastically cutting out salt by researching food nutrition labels. You just will not believe all the salt that's in our foods. Boxed and canned foods are just crazy. So I've had to rethink all our food choices. It's not been fun, but when you think that the average American eats 4500-5000mg of salt a day, when we should only be having 1000-1500mg a day, you can see why we have some tricky health problems brought on by high blood pressure. Anyway, don't want to get "preachy" here, just a "Public Service Announcement" with a happy face. All this has made me realize the importance of natural and organic foods and preparation for staying healthy. I don't know about you, but I need all the help I can get!

So am I canning?

well....

no, not this year, but seeing all your gardens out there has made me realize a raised bed of green beans and tomatoes might be a good idea for next year. At least that way I could control the amount of salt in our tomato and spaghetti sauces, and then hubby's nightly green beans.

How many of you can on a regular basis, and what are your favorites?

And don't forget to enter the Tattered Goods

Give Away going on here

ends Sat. September 1.

I'll be joining in on these parties this week:

Wow Us Wednesday at Savvy Southern Style

Very Merry Vintage Style

Have a Daily Cup of Mrs. Olson

From My Front Porch to Yours

Hope you're having a great week,

and saying prayers for all you in Issac's path

Wednesday, January 18, 2012

I'm Hungry for Comfort Food

I'm not a "Foodie", but I have been searching out some recipes for some yummy comfort food lately. I'm trying to cook more healthy dishes this year, and I'm all about easy and the least possible mess in the kitchen.
Here are a few that I think look and sound super good, with all the comfort that goes in having a simmering pot on the stove or in the oven.