Just a quick note this week.  I’ve had many clients recently have scheduling SNAFU’s because they put an event on their digital calendar (on their phone) but accidentally put it on the wrong week. The advantages to keeping your calendar digitally are numerous and worthwhile. However, there is a very real hurdle that everything looks exactly the same. Next week looks like next month, which looks like next year. Most apps will reopen the calendar exactly where it was when you closed it. But wherever you are looks just like this week. For example, I have one doctor who I see for a follow up once a year. So, when I saw her a few weeks ago, I put next year’s appointment into my phone calendar. Then I switched out of my calendar app. So next time I opened the app, I was in August of 2018… I have screwed up my calendar because of this in the past. I accidentally kept adding events to the next year.  My tip is to get in the habit of always hitting the “Today” button on your calendar app to bring you back to this week before flipping to whenever you want to make a new appointment.

My career as a professional chef and my education at the Culinary Institute of America was crucial to my achieving the level of organization that I have now. In fact there is a single phrase that encompases the all facets of organization in the kitchen that I thought it was worth sharing while doing this summer series about kitchen organization and food prep.  That phase is Mise en Place. Roughly, it translates from French as “everything in it’s place.” Believe it or not, this is actually the motto of my alma mater. That’s how important it is to the method and madness of a good chef. Practically, it means that you need to have everything set up and planned before you start cooking. Otherwise chaos (more than is necessary) likely will ensue.  Of course as a trained chef I can sometimes overlap preparation with production. I can start sauteing the veggies while I prepare the meat for a stew. But, the reality is that the ability to do that effectively has come from years of practice and mastering the timing of cooking and of my own prep speed… and I still don’t always get it right. Personally, I find Mise en Place most applicable in the kitchen for me in regards to baking. I’m a good baker. I trained for a time with Joanne Chang of Flour and Meyers + Change. However I am a very careful baker. It doesn’t not come easily or naturally the way cooking does at this point. I am slow, methodical, and detailed. Because otherwise I will make a mistake…. …timer just went off to check my Blueberry Buckle… …the Buckle needs 5 more minutes… …As you can see from the picture, I go into pastry battle fully prepped. My oven is preheated, my pans are greased, I’ve read…

First of all, let’s talk about how awesome Brussel Sprouts are… Very awesome! They are one of the things that I never liked but forced myself to keep trying when I was a chef. And, it really didn’t take too long to start liking them and then really liking them. How to buy: Pick sprouts that are medium sized, not much bigger than a quarter in circumference. The bigger they are the tougher and less flavorful they are. Small ones are delicious, but they take more time to prep. Also try to pick ones that are all roughly the same size. That way they will cook evenly. If you don’t like Brussel Sprouts I think there is a good chance you’ve only had them either overcooked or undercooked. If they are radically different sizes, you might get both in the same plate.  How to cook them: There are many ways to cook Brussel Sprouts. I had an amazing bowl of Buffalo-style Sprouts at the East Coast Grill many years ago. But my go to on a Tuesday night is… 1. (When prepping) Cut the bottom off and cut in half lengthwise.  2. (Optional.) I like to toss them in a bowl with just enough oil to coat and season with salt and pepper. I think you get a nice even seasoning that way. 3. Sear them, flat side down in a hot pan with olive oil until golden brown on the flat side. 4. Add a small handful of Craisins. (Golden raisins would work too and if you wanted to get crazy throw some pignoli (pine nuts) in too.) 5. Toss, add a little bit of water, maybe 3 T if you’re working with a 14″ pan, then cover with a lid. (or the bowl you tossed the Sprouts in.) The goal…

Quick break from the kitchen storage and food prep series to talk about something that happened, or should I say finished happening today. I don’t bring this up to toot my own horn, but rather to celebrate a personal success in perseverance and planning. I hope it doesn’t come off as purely self congratulatory, as that is not my intention. There were certainly many “learning experiences” and frustrations before achieving this level of “planning zen.” So… it all started in Milton MA in the fall/winter of 2014. When the original window from the 1927 house next door were being replaced, I got my hands on what turned out to be dozens of 6 and 4 pane window. I had a vision of turning them into picture frames for our house. But there were so many questions to answer to get them from crappy old windows to the image I had in my head. Such as… Do they have lead paint on them? How do I test for that? (Answer: home lead test kit and Yes, they do.) How do I get rid of the lead paint safely? Do I need to repair the windows first? (There are about 12 sub-questions about how to do that.) How do I attach the pictures? Do I mount them on the front of the back of the glass? How do I get the paint to look right? Is it worth spending the time taping the windows before painting? How do I secure the pictures to the glass in a non-permanent way? What size pictures should I use? Do I want to frost the glass around the pictures? Once I decide on the size of the pictures, how do I get my digital images to be that size? How to I hang the frame securely without being…

Salad stuff can also be prepped many days in advance. However, now would be a good time to mention how important it is to have a sharp knife. First of all, if it far safer to use a sharp knife. Most people are afraid to use a sharp knife because it seems more dangerous. But, when you use a dull knife you have to exert far more force, which makes it much more likely for your knife to slip and more likely for the knife to be substantially out of control when you do slip. So have a sharp knife! The other reason to have a sharp knife is that it allows you to prep food that will last longer. When cutting vegetables the goal is to have a nice, clean cut which damages as few of the cells as possible. A dull knife rips the cells open, leaves a jagged edge, and spills the cells contents (mostly water) out which dramatically decreases shelf life. With a sharp knife, a fresh pepper will likely last 7-10 days if you place a paper towel underneath them in the container or bag.  There are tons of ways to cut a pepper, I find the following the easiest. I take the top and bottom off, pull the insides out, slice down the side to open it into a flat rectangle, then slice off any extra ribs of “pith.” Then it’s just a matter of slicing or dicing.

I’m a busy guy. I own my own business. My wife works full time, often on nights and weekends too. I have a relatively high maintenance 8 year old and a maniac of a three year old. I own a home… with the accompanying yard and manage a rental property with it’s own set of demands.  Did I mention that I have ADHD too?  Bottom line: I don’t have time to F*** around. I am all about efficiency! I’m also the person in the house who does the cooking every night. Partly because I’m a classically trained chef, partly because I work from home, it makes sense for me to be the chef at La Casa di Reid. But I certainly don’t have to time to make anything epic Monday thru Friday. My goal is always to have a healthy, delicious meal on the table in less than 1/2 hour, while doing the dishes as I go and making my son’s and my wife’s lunches for the next day. Though 30 minutes may be ambitious for the not-former-professional-chef among you. Easy, quick, simple, healthy, delicious is not unreasonable for anyone.  But, the pork & brussel sprouts that are going on the table tonight are do not begin their journey tonight at 5:40 when I get home from picking up my son. They started their path to our table last Friday. That’s when I make the shopping list, often with the help of my wife. (And, actually that list starts as soon as the shopping is done the previous Saturday. If you have a running list on your fridge or on your phone, you can add things throughout the week as the run out or run low.) The next step is food shopping which happens at a more or less predictable day…

I would also suggest thinking outside the box in terms of how to use your vertical space. I’ve used the ‘item’ in the first picture for years. It holds things that I use semi-regularly like spice blends, black pepper, and specialty vinegars. And it fits perfectly on one of our weird small walls between doors in 1920’s kitchen.  As for the mug hooks… that’s one of my favorite out of the box solutions ever… if I do say so myself. I use multiple mugs daily to mix a medicine I have to take for my stomach. Having them right on above the sink hanging from the valance (if that’s even the right word) makes it so easy.  I guess the bottom line is a somewhat complex matrix of what you use most often, the space you have, the layout of the space, and how creative you can get.

I have two pan racks. Thought I’d show you the second one too. This one is over the dishwasher, several paces away from the stove. So it is the home to many things we don’t use every day.  Also, you’ll notice that you can use the top level to store things as well. In this one I have an old “grizwald.” (vintage cast iron pan) In the other picture you can see that I have finally found a home for that one really large bowl that I use 4 times a year that doesn’t fit in any of the cabinets. AND… I hang herb and garlic to dry from the middle of the rack. Can’t find a picture from last year. I’ll take one this summer and post later.

…Then don’t forget about the ceiling! Hanging pot racks are super cool! They get a whole bunch of bulky items, some of which you use regularly, some very infrequently, completely out of your way. And, this is a category of items that do not stack or nest well in your cabinets, they take up a lot of space, and, let’s face it, I like bending over less and less every year. You have to make sure you have enough clearance. Don’t put them over high traffic areas. Make sure everyone who uses the pans can reach them and that the tallest person in your house won’t bang his/her head on them. Other than that, they’re super easy to install. As long as you have a drill and can figure out where the joists or strapping is, you’re good to go.  You may also notice that our go to cleaner is hanging right there so we don’t have to bend over and rummage under the sink every night to clean the stove and table. As always, the things you use most should be most accessible. The three pans that are missing are closest to the stove because we use them almost every day.

Spices are weird. They are things that you absolutely need for certain things but usually aren’t things you use every day. In fact you may use a specific spice once or twice a year. Plus, they are strangely expensive, so you don’t want to just throw them out… even though they do lose potency after time. They are also a pretty awkward size/shape if you think about the standard shelf size and depth in most kitchens. Basically they are an organizational nightmare. Here are some thoughts/tips about organizing spices.  Try not to buy a spice for a recipe that you know you’ll only make once. See if a friend or neighbor can “lend” you a tablespoon.  Consider getting rid of older spices. The conventional wisdom is that spices last about year. I would argue with that. They definitely lose potency but it’s not like they are good one day and bad the next. Just be aware that you may need to adjust and use a bit more in certain applications. Though most ground spices are candidates to be tossed without worry between 3 & 6 years. For applicable spices, consider buying the whole spice instead of the ground spice. You will radically extend the shelf life when you store whole spices. Particularly nutmeg should be kept whole. It starts to loose its “oompf” very quickly. A whole nutmeg will last a very long time and it always at your fingertips with a quick grate on the microplane.* For other spices, like fennel seeds, a cheap coffee grinder will usually do the trick. I really like having all my spices visible so I don’t have to rifle through them and make a mess. Plus as a “lazy” ADHDer, not having to go in and out of a drawer or cabinet is nice.…

Conceptually, I don’t love knife blocks. I always wonder how sanitary it is down at the bottom of that slot that you put your knife in. All it takes is one or two times of not getting the knife totally clean… But that’s speculation on my part.  Knife bars are my joint. I love seeing them all out and displayed for easy use. Plus, we have almost no counter space. So, again, using the walls is the way to go.  The knife rack is at an angle because otherwise it wouldn’t fit on the wall anywhere near the cutting board. 

Really this one is partially a continuation of the first tip, keeping things that you use a lot handy. But since there is only so much counter space near where you need to work in a kitchen, use the walls! You could see in the last post that I have two mason jars next to the stove. Great, but that doesn’t hold all my spatulas, ladles, and large spoons. A simple tool bar with S hooks solves that problem for just a couple buck and with a few screws.