As a single-ish woman living in an urban setting by herself usually means a tiny studio apartment and a pathetic strip of a kitchen in a high rise apartment commplex. That's not me. Actually, I have a pretty spacious one bedroom on the first floor of a townhouse. My landlords live upstairs and are a wonderful gay couple who redid my apartment several years ago. Think bay window, fireplace, exposed brick, wood floors, and a kitchen the size of most people's bedrooms. Of course, this is still an urban kitchen, so not the hugest thing. But no mini-fridge or mini-countertops for me. The only thing I regret is the electric stove, but the ease of cleanup sort of makes up for that.
Not glamourously huge, but big enough for me and one other person. I keep a second rolling stainless steel topped kitchen cart in my bedroom, and use it as a storage place for my iron and ironing board for the days when I invite folks over to cook. It makes a perfect portable prep station.
My wood topped kitchen cart is my bread station, complete with my kitchenaid mixer, a gazillion kinds of flour, masa for tortillas, cornmeal for dusting, and other various goodies. Is it strange I have dedicated bread station? Ideally, I'd like to build shelves for my flour canisters to free up the counterspace, but that would require me to actually mount something straight. I'm pretty good with handy things. I know how to install dry wall screws. I can use an electric drill. I just can't use a leveler for the life of me.
I have also been fighting with where to store my spices and herbs. I use them nearly every day. I refuse to put them over my stove as that destroys their flavor. I had the next to the stove, but even that was pretty dicey as the heat emanates. This weekend, I had a stroke of genius and not only managed to get more countertop space, but a safer and more useful place for my spices. I used to have my microwave on the counter. Mostly because the previous tenant had it on the counter. My toaster oven was wedged on top of it and under the cupboard. Not exactly the safest place. I really only use my microwave to (a) defrost leftovers and (b) heat water.
Hmmm. Aha! And so, on top of my refridgerator went my microwave. The toaster was moved next to the stove and magical space appeared to accomodate all of my vast collection of spices as well as my garlic, ginger, hot peppers and other fresh herbs.
All of this rambling is just my excitement in finding something closer to Kitchen Shangri-La. I think that one should always seek to make the kitchen somewhere enjoyable. Keep your basics visable. If you do break down and buy crap or some kind of trigger food, hide that away. I keep my spices out because I like to be able to see them all when crafting a new recipe. I like my bread making items all in one place. I hide away my Swiss dark chocolate since I only bought a couple bars in Zurich when I passed through in the freezer. Its the same reason why I tend to use my vegetable criper sparingly, and keep my veggies lined up on the shelf. I'm a visual food improviser. I won't remember the wilted carrot (doh!) in the bottom of my drawer. Or the scrap of Vidalia onion begging to be thrown into a dip or camelized as a garnish.
Dry goods, like lentils, quinoa, wild rice, dried fruits and nuts all stay in a cupboard, but in clear mason jars and well displayed. Cans are bought fairly sparingly, none of this 300 cans of tomato paste hiding the one can of garbanzo beans. I try to shop like the average non-American person. Don't buy for a lifetime, buy for that week, or that few days. Sure, I could save a few cents by buying 30 cans of black beans when they go on sale, but by the time I get through them all, I'll be so sick of black beans, I'll have thrown the last two cans away in disgust. Keep one or two of the basics always on hand, and you'll be just fine.
The same goes for kitchen gadgets. A good mixer, mini-food chopper, blender, and coffee grinder are all I need. I have one very very very nice set of all-clad stainless steel pans, a cast iron skillet, a steaming basket, one set of mixing bowls, a George Foreman grill, a few baking sheets, and a set of glass Pyrex dishes with tuppeware tops. That's about it. No bread machine. No hand whipper gidgits. No juicers. No fancy egg slicers. A good santoku knife and paring knife will get you everywhere.
Oy, I'm rambling. Yaaaay!
UPDATE!
My very nice gay landlords broke up and told me I had to move. It wouldn't have been so bad if it weren't for the fact that it was in between the biggest blizzards Washington DC has ever seen in all of history and that I was about to leave the country for 5 weeks for work. This meant that my generous amount of notice meant I had to find a place essentially overnight. Instant karma, just add water, I found the most amazing apartment just a block from my old place, complete with a beautiful kitchen, the best freaking kitchen a one bedroom in DC could possibly have. Oh, and a gas stove! Almost impossible to find in this type of unit, but thbbbbbt to all of you.
The joy of cooking in this kitchen has just opened up the possibilities... from canning to dinner parties, I have the space to do it all. The real test was when I had 4 people cooking and prepping in my kitchen all at the same time without getting in the way. I'm in love with a kitchen if that's possible. Oh, and the best part, the island swivels around the column so I can open up or close the kitchen as I see fit. Huzzah.
I'm a visual improviser, and so the storage in the island allows me to see all my grains and flours... it makes whipping up a batch of English Muffins incredibly easy. No wondering if I've got something, no finding something expired in the back a year after its expiration date.
Some things never change. Spices must be visible and away from heat. Boy has the worst spice set up in the world, which doesn't allow him to see his spices... which leads to him owning 3 of the same spice because he worries he doesn't have something. Its endearing. But its also frustrating, which led us on the epic space rack hunt of aught six. Haha, joking. But in all seriousness, it makes a difference. It allows for inspiration. It allows for improvisation. It ain't gotta be pretty.
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