On Politics and Cooking...

Have you heard that Joe Biden, theoretically Obama's top choice for VP, loves to cook?

I have to say, I'm not sure what to think about this tendency to attribute "home cook" status to our presidential candidates and their associated flocks. Is this supposed to make them friendlier? More "American"? More approachable and down-to-earth? Because honestly, it would be more American to admit you eat out 6 or 7 nights a week and use your refrigerator to store extra clothes. And also, nothing about Cindy McCain makes me think "approachable and down-to-earth," least of all her cookie recipes.

But I guess I see their point. After all, American's have a long history of believing one thing and doing something completely different.

"M" is for Mixer! An Apartment 3.0 Upgrade...

A KitchenAid Pro 600, in fact! Wheee!! Thanks, Internets, for making it oh-so-very easy to locate and acquire expensive pretty things! Thanks, Food Writing Career, for providing me with the suitable justification for this purchase! Thanks, Engineer, for making me hit "Purchase" and also validating my color choice!

This is a shot of its maiden voyage kneading some ciabatta. I've been longing to make ciabatta forEVER. It's such a sticky, wet dough that it's near impossible to make it without a standing mixer. I'm happy to say that it mixed and whirred and kneaded without missing a beat! (More on the ciabatta itself later)

For interested parties, I decided on the KitchenAid 600 over the 500 only after much weighty thinking and wringing of hands. 600 has a slightly larger capacity (6 qts to 5 qts) and a stronger engine. There are other small differences, but since I plan on doing a lot of bread baking with this mixer, these were the two selling points. You can check out the full breakdown on the KitchenAid website.

The price difference is about $100, no small sum for someone relatively unemployed such as myself. But in the end, I decided that down the line I'll be more grateful to have the mighter power of the Pro 600 than the extra $100.

One small problem I've noticed so far--the mechanism for lifting the bowl up to the mixer-head really jerks and clunks. It locks in place and unlocks again without any problems, but the lifting and lowering reminds me of one of those creaky portcullises (portcullisi?) from medieval castles.

I've never had this experience with any other KitchenAid, and at first I just thought it needed some time to let the lubricant work into the gears and whatnot. But after raising and lowering the lift several dozen times and talking to a few fellow KitchenAid owners, I think this is actually a problem. Maybe the lifter-belt-thingy got thrown off the track during shipping? Who knows. I poked around the internet this afternoon trying to see if anyone else had this problem, but didn't come up with much. In any case, I'm going to call KitchenAid tomorrow and see what they think.

I'm not actually all that worried about it. KitchenAid has a great reputation for both their mixers and their service, and I'm sure it will get sorted out. I'm just happy it works and that I can still play with it in the meantime.

So...yay! Mixer! Ciabatta! Bing...Level Up!

Random Thoughts: Insulating Felt Panels? and Apartment 2.0

I saw these felt wall panels on Oh Joy! the other day. They're from British designer Selina Rose, and I think they're kinda gorgeous.

I doubt I could actually afford these particular hangings, but I wonder if I could do something similar. Windsor Button sells some pretty big swatches of felt. With a simple stencil and an x-acto knife, I bet I could craft something fun.

I wonder if these would help insulate windows during the winter? I'm SERIOUS! Yes, I know it's summertime. A gal's gotta think ahead is all I'm saying.

The Engineer and I are making a real effort to redecorate the apartment and make it feel more like a...well....like a home. Until now, we've been fairly happy with the odds n' ends that we've picked up at Goodwills and yard sales over the years. Happy in that everything functioned (with the exception of certain toasters who will not be named), was in fairly decent condition, and wasn't overly unstylish.

But with "Moving-In-Together: Take 2" we're thinking it's time to upgrade. The Engineer is calling this new phase "Apartment 2.0." Because he's a geek like that. So sweet.

Looking around the apartment, we realized that everything--with a very few exceptions--has been given to us by family or been acquired for less than $10. We're talking the couch, our lamps, the fairy lights over the door frame, the poster in the entryway, everything.

That's kind of sobering. And it makes me feel a bit sad. Don't get me wrong--we've been incredibly grateful for the generosity of our families over the years. But it's a strange thing to look around and realize that nothing is really ours. I would like to live in a house that feels like ours.

On top of this, I had the startling realization the other day that I no longer qualify as a "recent college graduate." While I'm not the type to fret about growing older, this does still strike a certain resonance in me. It's a bit like shedding a too-small pair of pants. Or cleaning your glasses after being caught in rainstorm.

It's disconcerting, though. I mean, if I'm no longer defining myself as "A," then what becomes "B"? I guess you could call this a feeling of nesting. Or settling down. Or growing up.

So. There you have it.