Kitchen Stewardship

Psssssst! Can you keep a secret? You could win a big ol' "green" lunch packing giveaway package in September and a Nutrimill grain mill later in the fall just for sticking around. Oh, and some great whole grain bread recipes and soaking grains research coming right up! Sign up to get all the KS goodness by entering your email address here:

What fun!  This giveaway was my most popular so far, which is good and bad.  It’s great for PlanetBox as a small company, but not so great for you all for future giveaways.  I’ve had to go with the “one comment for every entry” style, although I hate to do that to you.  At least I use Wordpress, so the multiple comments should go pretty quickly.  See the Charlie’s Soap Giveaway here.

In this post you can skim through for the survey results, some answers to your recipe wishings, including some “they’re coming right up!”, some “I wish I knew more of those too!”, some “Here is where you can find such recipes at KS,” and some “Here is where you can find such recipes elsewhere.”  And of course, the winner of the PlanetBox giveaway is in here, too!  hee hee

Survey results

First, I must say a huge “thank you” to all those of you who took the time to take my little old reader survey.  I am completely overwhelmed (in a good way) by the number of people who shared with me so I can know “Who’s out there?”

In case you, too, are curious, here are *some* of the results:

• 97% of my readers are women (I’m not surprised).
• Almost 40% are in their 30s and 33% in their 20s, making my target audience folks my age.  Again, not so surprising.
• Almost 90% of you are married, and no nuns out there.  What a bummer.  Just kidding
• 21% do not have children, which does surprise me as I often think about just moms reading my posts.  The moms out there are split rather evenly between one child, two, and 3-4.  A handful drive big vehicles!
• Homemakers and stay-at-home moms make up at least half the readers, and over 40% work at least part-time.  Again, I’m glad to know that!  I always think of people out there “just like me” at home.  Only 20% of you are bloggers, probably because I write too much and other bloggers don’t have time to read my stuff!  Heh heh heh…
  • And one person checked that they’re a stay-at-home mom and work full-time.  I’m hoping that was an “oops”!  Just thought I’d share…
• The vast majority of you have a Bachelor’s degree or higher, so I can freely pretend I’m an academe and I won’t lose too many of you…right?
• Almost everyone who took the survey is interested in “Healthy Eating” and 90% in “Real Food”.  Looks like I have a niche!  Almost as many want to save money and about 70% are looking for eco-friendly ideas, too.  I’m comfortable being a cross-niche blogger, too.
• Less than half of you (45%) would watch a vlog (video blog).  I’m with the rest of you; I generally skip them.  They’re “all the rage” though, and since I’m always one to do what everyone else is doing, you’ll be seeing vlogs 45% of the time here at KS.  (I hope the joke is obvious.)  I’ve been requested to video my kitchen or me doing something in the kitchen *shudder*.  We shall see!
• Thank you kindly to all of you who gave me ideas about what you want to see.  Luckily, almost everyone’s ideas are either on my radar or have already been covered.  (Browse those archives by clicking the Series/Carnivals tab at the top or the Recipes tab.  Between those and the Missions Checklist for Monday Missions, almost every post worth reading can be found.  I update them about every 6-8 weeks.) 

  I did get a few new ideas as well.  This jumped out at me:  “I’m sort-of looking for a Catholic Flylady.”  I LOVE that!  I actually have a post in my draft folder that begins:  “My dream?  I want to be the Flylady of the kitchen.”  Spot on!  I hope I can be just that for all of you.

• The majority of you would like one post per day.  So I thought I’d post, let’s say, FOUR some days this week.  Just to show you I’m listening.    Things can get post-heavy when I have a giveaway going.
• For the favorite feature of the site, “practical tips” edged out Monday Missions by less than a percentage point.  The fact that Monday Missions tend to be filled with practical tips works out pretty well then!  A special shout-out to the 8.1% of you who appreciate Katie’s randomness more than anything else here!  This one’s for you:  I totally messed up my mozzarella last weekend.  It has the consistency of feta and won’t melt.  Or slice.  Or do anything but crumble.  Highly disappointing!  Oh, and I dropped a hand blender covered in guacamole on the floor today.  And my shirt.  And pants.  My kitchen is always an adventure! 
• I loved reading about your favorite topics.  Some of you demonstrated that you’ve been around for a while by mentioning the microwave and super foods series.  Very nice!  My new goal is to write something that Lenetta will like more than the “What’s Under My Sink?” post.  !!

I wish I could just have a little chat with some of you and talk about the questions you have and what you want to see more of!  I’m inspired to write and have topics for the next year now, thank you.  Seriously.    Just remember, if you have specific questions, you can always ask them in a pertinent post, in the comments under “Contact” above if you can’t find a pertinent post, or just email me at kitchenstew at gmail.com.  I don’t always email back right away, but I’m honored by your trust in me and I do always email back eventually.

What Kinds of Recipes are You Looking For?

Yes, I actually took the time to answer you.  Good grief.  No wonder this giveaway winner post was so long in coming!  Seriously, I couldn’t stand having your requests dangling there without addressing them. Do read through and look for your ideas!

Lunches and Snacks:  Perhaps many of you were thinking about lunches because you were entering a lunchbox giveaway, but I am blown away by the vast amount of people who are looking for snacks and lunchbox ideas.  Then again, I often say that eating healthy is the trickiest on the road, so I understand!

I wrote a rather exhaustive list of lunch on the go ideas last August for the start of school, but I’ve added a few good ones to my repertoire since then.  I thought about just sharing them with you right here, but I decided I’m going to host a “Healthy Snacks on the Go” Round-Up and “Lunchtime Link-up” for sometime in the next few weeks (or maybe an eBook?).  If you’re dying for some snack ideas right now, do check out the Un-Processed Foods carnival from October, where you can find great recipes for homemade cheesy crackers, graham crackers, fruit roll-ups, granola and more!  These Almond Power Bars are awesome for traveling, too.

Fish and seafood:  Me too, me too!  I have one fish recipe for salmon patties, easy and super quick, but Tara has a little list of canned salmon recipes going.  I do have one in the works:  St. Peter’s fish rub that can go on any fish (and takes away the fishy taste, necessary for my husband to eat it).

Ethnic food:  The Nourishing Gourmet often posts Indian inspired meals, and Edible Aria is fabulous with the ethnic cuisine as well.  Who else?

Homemade bread/soaking grains:  I’m tackling whole grains, soaking grains and sourdough in February, so expect a lot of yummy bread recipes then, including Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day.  A few of you asked about a soaked whole grain bread recipe, and I have one here for soaked 100% whole wheat bread for the breadmaker.  There are other great ones out there, but I’ll be linking to those in February.  For sourdough recipes, Sarah is my diva!

Grinding grains: I am still pondering a grain grinder myself, but my resources for the choice include Cents to Get Debt Free, Heavenly Homemakers’ comparison, and GNOWFGLINS just had a Grain Mill Q&A.

Fermented vegetables:  Jenny is the queen of fermented foods; see her ebook Get Cultured and The Nourished Kitchen for recipes.  Sarah also has great lacto-fermentation recipes.

Crockpot Recipes:  I recently lamented that I don’t have many, but you can see the few crockpot recipes I have along with Sarah’s For the Love of the Slow Cooker Carnival.  And there’s always the famous source.

Kid-friendly/Toddler-friendly recipes:  For our family, “recipes” for kids look more like cheese, fresh fruit, dried fruit, nuts, etc.  The kids eat what we eat.  Luckily, they love homemade yogurt with fruit and oatmeal in the mornings.  The snack round-ups ought to fulfill many wishes in this category!

Highlight the difference between grassfed meat/pastured poultry and conventionally raised:  This is an excellent request.  I have a recipe or two coming up with beef, and I’ll be sure to discuss grassfed.  For now, Food Renegade has a guest post at Kelly the Kitchen Kop about how to cook grassfed beef.

Kombucha, cod liver oil:  Check Cheeseslave’s How to Make Kombucha and Kelly’s cod liver oil info.  More Kombucha info, How to Grow a Kombucha SCOBY, Kombucha for Ginger Aid and Kombucha Troubleshooting.  

Chicken recipes: Did you see the one I posted Tuesday: Puerto Rican Chicken?  My ultimate favorite.  See below for more… Casserole recipes:  I’m planning to join up in the next Once-a-Month-Cooking Day hosted by Money Saving Mom and Life as MOM with a modified day including a few cream of chicken casseroles with homemade cream of chicken soup.  That’s at the end of January!

Simple meals, simple vegetables:  Some simple meals here include Cream of Vegetable Soup, Tuscan Bean Soup, Creamed Chicken, Turkey Pot Pie and Sausage Zucchini Bake.  Additionally, Life as MOM just recently hosted a vegetable carnival with TONS of resources that I still want to pick through.

Fast Dinner recipes, one-pot ideas:  I am excited to announce a recipe round-up for healthy, homemade hamburger helper type dishes – one-pot pasta, rice or potato meals that are simple, yet nourishing.  Mine is Dad’s Homemade Cheeseburger Helper. For those wanting food soon after walking in the door, those crockpot recipes are one important option.  See Real Food for Working Moms for my other tips. 

Food husband will eat:  See above!

Quickbreads and muffins:  I’m so glad you asked!  I am working on adapting my famous pumpkin muffins to be a soaked grain recipe.  First attempt = edible, moist enough, but concave.  I’ll work on that!  I used bananas and cranberries in that version, so it will be a versatile recipe when I nail it!  These Apple Squares are pretty good, if you don’t mind an unsoaked 100% whole grain recipe!

Sandwich/Panini makings:  I’m a fan of using whatever is on hand, but my ultimate favorite combination is the California Chicken Wraps.

Breakfast recipes:  Here’s my list:

• Potato Pancakes (Latke) (post)
• Best Scrambled Eggs Ever
• Banana Flax Muffins
• Homemade Granola and Granola bars
• 100% Whole Grain Soaked Pancakes
• Apple Squares

Musings of a Housewife had a post on healthy breakfast options, too.

“Normal” recipes into nourishing food:  Yes!  The next two weeks at Kitchen Stewardship are addressing just that!

Kid-friendly organ meat recipes/liver pate that tastes good:  I got nothin’ for ya!  Edible Aria does, though:  check out Chopped Liver and Liver and Onions.  The photos actually make me want to EAT liver!  I’m pretty sure Cheeseslave has some liver recipes – watch the Real Food Face-Off for a handful of people who sing the praises of organ meats and check out their recipes!

Easy soup recipes that freeze well:  All my soup recipes freeze well, and they’re by and large easy!  Chopping vegetables is unavoidable, and that’s usually the only time-consuming part.  Do check out my Recipes tab; we eat a LOT of soups at my house.  I’m sure I’ll post more as time goes on.

Healthy homemade pasta:  I know The Nourishing Gourmet has a recipe!

Gluten-free and milk-free:  Many recipes fall into this category accidentally, like Mexican Beans and Rice and Chicken Rice-a-Roni.  My fav gluten-free blog is Amy’s Simply Sugar and Gluten Free, and from there you can find many, many others!

Something with lamb:  Kimberly Hartke just said in this week’s Face-off that she loves lamb.  Check her out!

Make-ahead recipes and mixes:  I feel like I haven’t done as much with mixes since moving more to Real Food, but it’s a great idea.  I’m putting this one on my list.

Salad recipes:  For me, it’s all about throwing everything you can think of in there and making great dressing.  A salad dressing round-up is coming in two weeks!  (You can link up yours if you’ve got a winner!)

Kefir recipe that doesn’t make a smoothie:  I don’t make dairy kefir, but Wardeh often sings its praises.  Check out GNOWFGLINS.

Desserts, especially chocolate:  Hmmmm…I’ve had requests for a brownie recipe, so it’s on the list for sometime this spring, and I’m hoping to get my rice pudding recipe in soon too (brown rice, whole milk, butter…soooo yummy!).

Organic gardening posts:  Definitely visit Laura at Heavenly Homemakers – she even has an eBook on that very subject (that I need to buy if I decide I have time for a garden this summer!).

And, at Long Last, the Winner is…

That’s Jane Rose!  Congratulations on snagging this much-coveted prize!  Email me with your contact info.  For the rest of you, I know how you can get one anyway.  Just visit PlanetBox’s website and make an order.  They will last forever, so the price can cover the 3-4 lunchboxes you’d have to buy a child over the course of 8 years of so anyway, right? 

Folks, thanks for waiting for me.  I promise I’ll be more prompt in the future.  I don’t like when people make excuses about not getting to something, so it’s definitely a goal to cut that out myself!  I’m looking forward to the next couple months at Kitchen Stewardship, and it’s just fabulous to have you all along for the ride.  Thanks for hanging with me!

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If you missed the last Monday Mission, click here.

Hungry for more? Related posts:

1. Packing a Lunch: Healthy Food To Go
2. Packing a Reduced Waste Lunch
3. Unpack the Lunch: The Child’s Responsibility