light

New Lights

Allow me to illuminate…

Let me shed some light on the situation…

I’m already out of witty puns. (Which is probably a good thing.)

Anyway, you might remember that a few weeks ago, I was cooking in the shadows. Some of you were so supportive, I feel like I owe it to you not to leave you in the dark. (Okay, I had one more.) For any readers just joining- our kitchen light, the ugly fluorescent thing it was, burned out. I’m actually glad it did, because I wanted to replace it from the moment we moved in. But you know how it goes, it worked- and there were other projects… So there it stayed. Then as luck would have it, the thing stopped doing its’ job and forced me to replace it. Sounds easy when I type it out… but it was so much more complicated than that! First of all, obviously, I love being in the kitchen. It’s where I spend the majority of my awake time. One of my favorite things about my house is that I can be with my family when they’re doing homework, watching TV, playing games, etc., while I am in the kitchen. (Another thing is that I have enough cupboards to accommodate my bundt pan collection, not that this has anything to do with picking out a light…) The point is, the kitchen is important to me. I enjoy cooking and baking… and I just wanted the light to be perfect.

The fluorescent monstrosity after the burned-out bulbs were removed.

I have, what I believe to be, an unusually difficult time making decisions. I don’t know, maybe everybody does? (Some people, not to mention names – Joanna Gaines- make it look so easy.) I surveyed these popular farmhouse industrial lights, that are really great. But my kitchen was built in the early 2000’s when Tuscan kitchens were the thing. Which is fine, because I like warm woods and I’m pretty traditional… but all of the new kitchens that look great with the “Fixer Upper” farm style lights are white on white (white cabinets with white counter tops). They’re beautiful, just not what I’ve got (and a kitchen remodel is not happening right now). So, it was hard for me to picture, because I’m one who needs to see it. When I would search for pictures of kitchens of my era, a lot of the lighting already looked outdated. Next, although my house has many traditional elements, the previous owners did some very nice contemporary upgrades. I actually like those too, because I like everything (which plays a part in my decision making problems). Since there is such an open concept in my home, I don’t want to clash elements with a fixture too old school. Then, there is the added consideration of the adjacent light over the kitchen table; they have to match, or at least get along. (Blah blah blah… it’s all very boring, I know.)

Original kitchen table light, moved to dining room

Originally, the light over the kitchen table was a long line of what looks like wax candles (that are actually not). It’s a pretty light… that looked better over my dining room table. After several texts and scouring the internet, my mom helped me pick out a new light (pictured below). I loved that it had a traditional feel- that was still up-to-date with the urban industrial farmhouse trend. The oiled bronze finish complimented the coppery tones in my countertops, and didn’t fight the black iron railings of the nearby modern stairway. However, the length was not adjustable and I did not like how the directness of the light was limited to only what lied underneath. Meaning, it was like a spot light for the table… or if we replaced the table with a chair, we could have done interrogations.

First attempt, spot light

The matching island light was three lights, identical to the pendant light over the table. In theory, it was perfect. In reality, it was not happening. The real issue wasn’t that when the old rectangular box above the stovetop was removed, there wasn’t an electrical box. And it wasn’t that the ceiling would now need patching and paint. It was that the length of the light this fixture was also not adjustable, and wouldn’t work over my gas range. (Sad face and sigh.)

So we sent it back.

The silver lining was that for as long as my husband has known me, I have wanted a pot rack. (I’m an old soul type, who would dream about babies, fireplaces, pot racks, and sculpted bakeware… I love what I love.) But I was concerned about a couple things… One, undoubtedly being, that even with a 10 foot ceiling, I needed to make sure that after the length of a mounted rack and hanging pans, I had room to stir in my biggest pot. Clearly, I need to cook! Second, I was concerned about the amount of light that would actually shine through. After cooking for weeks by lamplight, I wondered about how much glow would be obstructed by hanging pots and pans. I want to see what I’m doing!

My pot rack! Now for more hangable pots…

The solutions were easy with a little more thought. (And the fallback that they too could be returned.) I liked the look of the pendant over the kitchen table, so I found a wider style with an open top (less like a spotlight) on a chain (adjustable). For the island, I found a pot rack (also adjustable in length) with lights open to viewing, positioned above the pots, and with the pot hooks spread farther out than the lights- as to not block them. (I also intend to get the popular Edison bulbs, in the near future.) Overall, the fixture gives the space a kind of old world feel, and the credibility of a real working kitchen that I find charming without rivaling the contemporary aspects of my home. The styles of the two lights were not identical but complementary… they work… I can see in the morning and at night… I’m happy.

The light fixtures

I’d like to thank my husband and father-in-law who spent much of their recent weekends hanging lights, and taking them down, (and taking them to UPS), and installing electrical boxes and weight bearing structures… Thank you.

Roast Your Own

In the recent years of American coffee enlightenment, the flavor advantages of freshly roasted, freshly ground, and freshly brewed ‘Joe’ have become common household knowledge. Not only have we come to learn the difference between Arabica (the superior bean, even advertised to be sold at McDonald’s) and Robusta (the inferior) coffee beans, we are learning to appreciate the fruit behind the bean; the climate, soil and shade etc. its grown in, likened to grapes used for wine. Let’s be honest, whether you like them or not, Starbuck’s can be credited for opening the gates for many of the micro roasters we love today. And opening the eyes of many coffee drinkers, who didn’t grow up in cities like Seattle, that now know the difference between a crappy and a good cup of coffee. Because of local roasters and the variety available in most town grocery stores, we now refer to the names of coffee by the regions of origin, i.e. Kenya, Brazil, Hawaii (Kona), Jamaica (Blue Mountain), Guatemala, Columbia, etc. rather than Folger’s or Maxwell House. More importantly, the coffee craze has brought awareness to fair trade practices world-wide where farmers, harvesters and the like can receive more fair earnings for a hard day’s work (we still have a way to go).

What you may (or may not) know is that about half a century ago major coffee manufacturers added things from saw dust to brick dust to bulk up the quantity of product in their cans. True story, but that’s not what I was going to say. I was going to inform you that coffee in it’s green bean (un-roasted) form lasts a lot longer than when it’s brown and roasted, years even. Most retailer’s have gone the extra mile to equip their pre-packaged coffee bags with systems that let out the gases of roasted coffee beans without letting in oxygen, that will start to deteriorate the quality of the bean. Once you open it of course it’s only a matter of days, about 7-14, until your coffee will turn into dirt. Well not really, I’m exaggerating, but it might taste like it. You can freeze it, but I’ve actually heard experts say that if you plan on using it regularly that’s not the way to go either.

So what is a coffee lover to do? Roast your own.

Keep your green coffee beans in a clean dry container at room temp, (or a chic burlap sac) and roast in batches. People around the world do this many different ways. Some cook their beans on a stove top in a pan, others have made their own drums and rotating devices similar to a spit on a grill. You can bake them in the oven. One day I will own a professional grade roaster. In the meantime I use an air-popper, the kind used for popping corn. The air gets heated quickly and stays at a certain temperature (unlike doing it over an open flame). It is built to keep the kernels (or beans) in a constant state of motion for even heat distribution, much like a rotating drum. Depending on your roast, if you did find a bean that was really dark or extra light, you can remove it from your batch. I mean I’m not selling it commercially, it’s for my own personal use. And it’s as freshly ‘“roasted” as you can get! (Although I usually wait about 24 hours before I actually grind and brew it.)

Obviously there is an art to coffee roasting. Experts can go on for hours about the sound, smell and look of perfectly roasting the bean, depending on the type of bean, etc.; but I’m referring to home roasting. I don’t have a thermocouple or heat probe measuring the internal temperature of a coffee bean. I don’t roast low then turn up the heat, blah, blah, blah. But I do enjoy my coffee and especially doing things myself. The system is based on listening for 2 different “cracking” sounds. The “crackings” have to do with letting out moisture and gases. Also beans expand in size when roasted so keep in mind what looks like a normal brewing amount of green beans will be more when roasted.

It’s relatively easy. It’s about listening for the two cracks, and you will know if you are listening. Times aren’t exact, so I can’t tell you precisely when it will happen, but let’s say on average you will hear the first crack somewhere between 4-7 minutes, the second crack about a minute later. If you like a light roast remove the beans from heat shortly after the second crack (some people even do it before the second crack, but not the majority). If you like a medium roast, wait maybe another 30 seconds to a minute, and for a dark or espresso type roast maybe another minute yet (don’t burn ’em). The longer you let them “roast” the darker and shinier the beans will appear. It all happens rather fast after the second crack. And for a beginner I recommend getting the beans out sooner than later. It is also recommended that you do this in a well vented area, I place my popper on the stove top and keep the vent on. Some people I know like to do the whole process outside.

What is important to know is two things, one the beans have chaff, a paper-ish flake it gives off. (Which to be responsible, I should warn you is flammable, but I’ve never had a problem) Using my air popper I let the air blow into a kitchen strainer. Then I quickly dump it into the garbage and pour my beans into the same strainer and shake them fervently, while blowing on them. Because the second thing you need to know is that the beans will continue to cook, so you want them to cool quickly. Some people also use a fan, but I don’t want to clean chaff that’s blown all over the kitchen. I could see this if you are outside I guess.

It may sound like a lot, but it’s really not. Making biscuits could sound hard until you do it. Just remember this is for fun! Experiment with different beans and blends! Most people start keeping a chart of blends and roasting times, then you can remember what you enjoy the most. My favorite part is serving my husband and guests my own brew!

…Now if I only lived at a certain elevation on a location within a particular distance from the equator, I could actually grow my own!