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Country Kitchen: Give Your Kitchen A Facelift for Fall
By Mary Emma Allen
A homemaker and her family spend so much time in the kitchen, either
preparing meals, dining, playing games, or simply in conversation. So
often we get tired of looking at and working among the same decor day
after day.
Here are a few ideas on kitchen decorating for fall which do not involve
spending a fortune or undertaking a complete overhaul of the room.
TERRY TEA TOWEL cafe curtains are quick and easy to make and help give
your kitchen a new look. Measure your window and use enough terry tea
towels to equal twice the width measurement. (Most frequently four are
needed, two for each side of the window.)
Sew pairs together along the lengthwise edges. Trim along the bottom with
ball or tassel fringe. Attach clip-on rings to the top edge of each
curtain. Mount brass or white cafe curtain rod to the window frame at
desired height and slip on the curtain rings.
COLORFUL ACCESSORIES, or rearrangement of some you already possess, will
make a change in your kitchen. Keep kitchen accessories simple and use
items related to activities carried out in that room.
*Pots and pans can make a decorative display and create a focal point on
one wall. Some kitchens are designed so that these pots and pans hang
from the ceiling.
*Cookbooks can be arranged tastefully for a colorful accent on book
shelves in
a room divider, a shelf over your cooking area, on a counter.
*Plants are always pleasing in a kitchen, but usually should be
relatively small so they don't dominate the room and get in the way of
kitchen activities. Some cooks like to keep pots of herbal plants on the
window sill or on plant shelves in front of a larger window. Then they're
handy for your cooking.
*Colorful covers on chairs or stools add a decorative highlight. If you
use the terry tea towels for curtains, you can make these covers of the
same material.
Try an electric skillet meal to save time while decorating. You also can
use your usual skillet.
Mary Emma's Recipes
RAVIOLI SKILLET SUPPER - Brown one chopped onion in skilled coated with
vegetable spray or 1 tablespoon oil. Then combine in skillet ...onion, 3
cans (approx. 1 lb. each) beef ravioli, 2 cans (1 lb.) meatballs, if
desired, one 2-oz can sliced mushrooms 1 can (1 lb.) drained green beans.
Cover and simmer 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
Try PEANUT BUTTER KRISPIES for a quick dessert. Cook 3/4 cup corn syrup,
3/4 cup white sugar in pan over medium heat until first bubble. Add 3/4
cup creamy or chunky peanut butter and stir until melted.
Pour over 4 1/2 cups crispy rice type cereal and mix together. Put into a
buttered 9 x 13-inch pan. Melt 3/4 cup chocolate bits and spread over top
of krispies. Cut when cool.
(C) 2002 Mary Emma Allen
About the Author
Mary Emma Allen has been writing her "Cooking Column" for newspapers
and online publications for 30 years and
has compiled a family cookbook. SheÂ’s currently compiling a
cookbook/story book,
"Tales From a Country Kitchen." Visit her web site for more cooking
articles. Contact her at me.allen@juno.com
SeptemberLady "Born and have lived in Southern MD most of my life. My husband and I just finished building a new home on the family farm, where I hope to retire in the near future.
My interests: Doll collecting, cookbook collector (especially old ones), antiques, family/friend get-togethers, cooking/baking, flower and vegetable gardening, bird-watching."
Memorial Day: Backyard Grilling Memorial Day signals the start of barbecue season. Everyone wants to light that fire and charcoal that first meal. A few tips might pre- vent your entree from becoming a "Burnt Offering."
Read these tips for plenty of grilling ideas, make this year's barbecue perfect!
Growing and Using Garlic Chives Garlic chives, Allium tuberosum, is a hardy perennial (Zones 3-9) that will grow to about 12 inches high. The stems are skinnier and flat, instead of hollow as are regular chives, with greenish white blooms that are about an inch wide and not as rounded. They bloom in the summer rather than spring. The bloom stalks grow much taller than the leaves, sometimes up to 30 inches.
The stems and blooms are both edible and have a mild garlic onion taste. I've noticed many writers will list this as primarily as an Asian herb, as they are also known as Chinese chives, Chinese leeks, ku chai (China) or Nira (Japan), but it has many other uses as well!
The Perfect Porch Swing Perhaps it is the soothing rhythm or the reassuring creak of the porch swing that attracts us. Perhaps it is the companionable silence or quiet conversation. Or maybe swings simply remind us of more genteel times.
Although porch swings can be purchased in a wide range of materials, the most common are wicker and wood. You can also make your own porch swing from one of the myriad of woodworking patterns available at garden centers, hardware stores, or on the Internet.
Memorial Day: Backyard Grilling
Growing and Using Garlic Chives
The Perfect Porch Swing