Friday, May 31, 2019

In My Kitchen: Not Much!

My kitchen this month has only basic activities: not much new or sharable. However, my back yard and basement storage areas, which serve as kitchen extensions, have a few things going on. I like to wrap up each month with a look at my kitchen and many other bloggers' kitchens, all shared at Sherry's blog HERE.

New basement shelves help us organize things we buy in larger quantities. Mostly at Costco!
This basement storage feels as if it's an extension of our kitchen.
Potted herbs make summer meals more delicious. By the end of May, they are safe from frosts and we can start a few of them. As summer arrives, we're also grilling outside more and more, as I've depicted many times. Our chives didn't
seem to enjoy our deeply cold winter. Luckily, my friend Margo gave me a bunch more chives since I took the photo.

In May, I spent a week on the National Geographic Orion on a cruise in
French Polynesia. The main activities were morning and afternoon expeditions
to look at the islands or to snorkel. But who wouldn't want to have this
breakfast instead of facing one's own kitchen every morning? I love vacations!

Close up of the new items.

What I really don't like in my kitchen this month: washing all the dishes by hand. I had to get out an old dish drainer from underneath the sink. What I expect to like next month: a replacement for my very old and up-to-now trustworthy dishwasher. It lasted something like 14 years -- that's 98 in dog years.

All photos Copyright © 2019 by Mae & Len Sander.
Blog post created and owned by Mae's Food Blog: maefood dot blogspot dot com.
If you see this post at some other blog, it's been stolen.

18 comments:

Debra Eliotseats said...

Good luck on dishwasher hunting. I like how you included the "What I don't like in my kitchen this month..." :)

Jeanie said...

My dishwasher has been going since 1995. I live in fear. Up north it's all by hand but unless there is company it's pretty easy to keep up (since I can't handle looking at them in the sink!).

My kitchen is like a wrecking zone today.

Angie's Recipes said...

I love those potted herbs! Have fun searching for a new dish washer!

Sherry's Pickings said...

hi Mae
I love your basement shelves! we don't even have a basement, but we do have a big storage room (and pete's office) downstairs. so glad you joined us for IMK again even if you don't have tons of stuff to show! Interesting point; maybe we should all do a 'what i hate in my kitchen' piece:) cheers till next month. sherry

Tina said...

I miss a basement up you sure can’t have one in Florida. Love your magnets.
Our dishwasher is..... ready for this? 34 years old! Seriously. The door is broken so we have to place a stool under it when we open it to load. Mostly we wash by hand but there are still occasions we load it up. It’s very loud!

Beth F said...

I don't own a dishwasher ...

Claudia said...

I keep my dishwasher maintenance agreement going, so if they can't fix it, they replace it. And, my "basement" is an under the house area, part carport, part potting shed and storage. A very useful arrangement.

Deb in Hawaii said...

Looks like a good month overall. Good luck with the dishwasher shopping. ;-)

Tiffin Fiona said...

French Polynesia - very exotic. Not really that far away from Australia but really hard to get to. I know we don't *need* dishwashers but they are pretty much an essential aren't they? Makes life a little easier for the chief cook and bottle washer. Ours is around 17 years old and still seems to be OK. It's noisy as all heck but it's a small price to pay. Touch wood that writing this doesn't mean that it will die!

http://www.tiffinbitesized.com.au/2019/06/02/in-my-kitchen-june-2019/

Shaheen said...

Ah nice to see someone else who buys some stuff in bulk. Its a bit more cost effective that way. We have a very small dishwasher that came with the house when we moved into it years back, but to be honest other than wanting to wash things pristine clean once in a while, like stained crockery - it doesn't get much use. But I understand its appeal if you have a big family, by the way I do like that pottery plate in the dish rack.

Moya-Food and Tools said...

Hello May, I never know if you get my comments but here goes... I feel your pain washing dishes and hope you get your dishwasher sorted. I too love having fresh herbs in the garden. Sounds like you had a wonderful cruise. Have a great June :)

(Diane) bookchickdi said...

Your herbs look so pretty in their pots!

Carole said...

Hope you have a new dishwasher son. cheers

Tandy | Lavender and Lime (http://tandysinclair.com) said...

vacations are always good things! Hope you find a new dishwasher that works for you. We had to replace ours a few years ago and I got a Bosch one that has a pull out cutlery drawer. I find it works well for me - and for sure beats washing dishes by hand :)

Nil @ The Little House by the Lake said...

It’s nice to have things in stock.
My house came with a very old dishwasher. I removed it and put a cupboard in that space.

Your herbs look so good. What are those plants in the ground behind the pots? They look lovely. :)

Liz said...

I saw your basement shelves and (before I read the description) thought...someone just made a Costco run. We do the same, buy in bulk for the cost savings.

What a fabulous trip you must have had, I love the underwater picture. The water is so blue!

Good luck with the dishwasher hunt. I'm not sure the new ones last as long as those old ones did, but they use less water.

Jen Rose said...

Oh my gosh I'd never manage if we had to wash all our dishes by hand! I feel your pain. I like how you've featured areas related to the kitchen that aren't your kitchen this month. In 3 previous homes our laundry was an extension of our kitchen and housed our pantry items and dishwasher. Super jealous you're enjoying summer weather while I'm freezing here in Canberra, Australia. Happy June! =)

Johanna GGG said...

I am a little jealous of your basement storage - we have very little room for those sort of bulk purchases. I also think your garden looks lovely and green for summer and that breakfast bar is fantastic. And I love your pottery plate in the dishrack but hope you get your dishwasher replaced!