Kitchen stuff.

Remember this post, where I had the conversation-in-my-head with Martha Stewart regarding the mixers? I now have a Kitchen Aid mixer. No, it wasn't from Martha (as I somehow doubt she has eeeeever stumbled across this little blog); it was my birthday gift from my folks. And dang if it doesn't make cooking a whoooooooooooooole lot easier. Seriously. Between that and the food processor (mentioned in the post linked above), I feel like I have a "complete" kitchen - as in, I can theoretically make anything I turn to in a cookbook without wondering how the heck I'm gonna improvise for the lack of XYZ semi-major appliance.

I still have to improvise for lack of a citrus zester (actually, I'd probably go with a rasp/file looking thing, since it'll also grate fresh nutmeg and such - multiple uses is a good thing for a small kitchen) or garlic press, perhaps, but those are inexpensive (as compared to a good mixer or food processor!), and I can pick those up if I see one here or there on sale.

It has been a month, I think, since I've cooked anything of the "complete-meal-in-a-box" description. I'm certainly still using canned/boxed/frozen ingredients, but the Homestyle Bakes or Hamburger Helper stuff is no more. At this point, I think I can improvise something healthier. Yay for some kitchen confidence!