Shame on corporate grocery stores!

Obviously, there are many reasons I could call shame down upon corporate grocery stores, (I won't go there yet...) but this is my recent rant.

Sandwich meats and cheese are way less expensive if you order from the deli counter instead of purchasing them prepackaged! Namely, at a grocery store called Kr*ger, even though the prepackaged meats and cheeses are the same brand as what they sell if you go to the deli counter...

Preposterous I say!

Try it out yourself if you don't believe me.

Mistakes Equal Growth, Part One: Grocery Stores

Dear Newlyweds,

Don't forget to check the expiration dates BEFORE you purchase and while you are standing in the aisle at the grocery store. You may save yourself some money by not buying both of those bags of lettuce even though it's a GREAT 2 for $5 sale because--logically, there's no way you'll eat all of that spinach by it's expiration date tomorrow.

Secondly, do not EVER entertain the thought that if you are out of vegetable oil, but have a new bottle of olive oil, that the olive oil will substitute. It won't.

Thirdly, DANGER, read each product title and subtitle carefully. The second 2 for $5 great value that you found is not real cheese but imitation cheese, and no, it does not taste the same.

Please, let me make these mistakes for you.

Love,
Jaclyn

Quotes of Julia Child

"Roast for 50 to 60 minutes, regulating heat so the duck is always making quiet cooking noises."

-Julia Child, Mastering the Art of French Cooking

Is this hilariously cute to anyone else? :)

Thanksgiving happened!

Thanksgiving happened and I carried out my menu as planned. (Minus the scalloped potoatoes which went awry when I realized that I only had one oven.)  And... obviously I need to work on my presentation a bit better (I swear the duck tastes much better than it looks) but it was my first time cooking this menu, so give me a pass yeah? 

We had two guests to our house yesterday and it was very cheerful Thanksgiving afternoon together. 

First time Thanksgiving dinner plans

Menu:

Canard Braise` aux Choux Rouges

(Roasted Duck with Braised Sweet Red Cabbage & Chestnuts) 

Gratin Dauphinois

(Scalloped Potatoes with Swiss Cheese)

Risotto Duxelles

 (Mushroom Risotto) 

Salad

Apple Crumble Pie with Vanilla Ice Cream

Apple Cider

Today I learned what capons are.

Well, today I almost bought, cooked, and served a castrated rooster for Thanksgiving. That's right! Today was the exciting day that I planned out the first annual Hoselton non-traditional tradition of thanksgiving dinner! This year we will be eating duck instead of turkey and while perusing the frozen meat aisle I saw this pretty little package combined with a MANAGER'S SALE. I looked at the price tag and this bird was typically sold for $20! "Ho moly," I thought, "50% off isn't bad--must be a pretty tasty bird, whatever it is!"

So I put it in my cart as you see above and continued my shopping until I thought, "wait, maybe I should see what a capon is in case it's not normal chicken." I pulled out my handy iPhone and Google taught me that capons are castrated roosters, castrated to improve flesh quality and they pretty fatty, made up of mostly white meat.

Although, I am pretty much ALWAYS up for making something I've never had before, I also do know what my husband likes to eat and a fatty bird with a lot of white meat is not one of them. So I tossed the capon out of my cart, but thought I'd share with you all what I learned today!

Intentions

First, this blog intends to be an inspiration & aid to all those newly married folks who walk wide-eyed into the kitchen for, perhaps, the first time--unprepared & underadvised.

Secondly, this blog stems from my own conviction that hospitality in the kitchen should translate into service for the family and others. I'd like to explore the concept behind this and share practical ways to make hospitality happen.

As you can see, I have many "things + ideas" to share from my own, recent, experience.