Culinary Choo-Choo

I figured since my last post concerned my kitchen table, I might as well ride the kitchen train. It is my favorite room after all, and probably the room I spend the most time in.

This is my kitchen:


It's got fantastic counter space and fantastic counters, even. They're some kind of faux-granite that has a name I can't remember; it's supposed to be good though, I remember my realtor commenting on it in a good way. The two best things in the kitchen are both items my I inherited from my grandmother. The first is the butcher block.

I remember this butcher block for about as long as I can remember anything. It was in my grandparents' kitchen at their house in San Antonio and always had a bowl of fruit and a scale on it (I also inherited the scale. It's a really cool old postal scale - you can actually see it in this photo, sitting on the counter to the left of the stove), and because my grandmother was such an incredibly fabulous Southern cook, the butcher block brings back quite nice memories for me. It's also in great shape. I don't know what kind of wood it is but it's pretty heavy. I don't really like cutting meat directly on it because I'm worried about bugs and grease which I guess defeats the original purpose of a butcher block, but it's the perfect object to go in the middle of the kitchen. And it looks nice with flowers on it.

The second best thing in the kitchen is the marble slab on the counter. Also from my grandmother, the slab actually used to sit atop the butcher block. Once I got it, I immediately found it a home on the counter so that I can use it for baking and pastry. I made a fresh cherry pie the other day and the slab is absolutely perfect for rolling pie crust. It stays cool so that the shortening in the crust doesn't warm up and toughen the dough, but it's nice and smooth at the same time so the dough doesn't get mashed into the little cracks and crags it might otherwise find. Here it is:


I have to say one of the selling points about the house for me is the fact that it came with a gas stove, and a good one. I've always preferred gas to electric stoves, and ovens as well. Which this is. It cooks so nice and evenly and brings water to boil like a charm! Seriously though, "gas oven and stove" was truly one of my sticking points when looking for a house. I know I could've bought myself one, but the fact that this house already had one installed was a shear stroke of perfection.

Note the blue fishie towel. It's awesome.

So my plan for the kitchen is this: paint it blue. I think we've picked out what's called a "Bridal Blue"; it's a nice soft cool blue with more purple undertones than green. My only concern is that sometimes blues and greens can look institutional. I think it'll look nice though. If not, we can always paint over it! I'd also like to paint the cabinets white. I just love the look of blue and white and think it will lend a relaxing feel to the kitchen. Good to eat and cook in, especially in the dead of summer when it's so darned hot outside.

Well, that's it from Planet House tonight. See everyone on the flip-flop.