Pressure Cooker Hard-boiled Eggs? Who knew?

I love hard-boiled eggs.  I love to eat them with salt, I love to eat them in egg salad, I love potato salad with hard-boiled eggs included.  I love hard-boiled eggs.  Still, hard-boiled eggs can be a pain in the rear.  I've read all the tricks:  warm them to room temperature before you boil them, turn the water off as soon as it begins a rolling boil, dunk them in ice immediately after removing from heat, make sure you use older eggs, etc.  Still, I can't get any consistency when going to peel them. Is there anything more frustrating than taking half the darned egg with you as you attempt to peel your hard-boiled egg?

Perfect eggs (not-so-perfect photography!)

Imagine my surprise when I read Nom Nom Paleo's blog and she referenced making her hard-boiled eggs in her pressure cooker.  I read it twice.  What?!  I can use my pressure cooker to make hard-boiled eggs?  Seriously.  This I've got to try.  So, I followed her link to Hip Pressure Cooking .  (My pressure cooker isn't of the hip variety, either...it is just a plain old Presto that my dad got me years ago, just like the one my parents had when I was growing up--definitely NOT hip.)  The directions were simple and the results were fabulous!  Each egg from the batch has peeled perfectly...I'm just so happy.  (Hey, it is the little things that make me happy, remember?)



It is this simple:  1 cup of water, steamer basket, and eggs.

There you have it:  Use your pressure-cooker to make hard-boiled eggs (you can make medium- or soft-boiled eggs, too). 

It is the little things, like perfectly peeling a hard-boiled egg,
that make me happy...

 Give it a try...you'll be amazed.

Did you miss us?

I can't believe I neglected this blog for almost three months.  At the same time, it really isn't surprising.  As I wrote in a note to a friend of mine, we've been so busy living life that we haven't had a moment to reflect on life these past few months.  This, I've discovered is one of the realities that comes with living a place with four real seasons.  The slumberous pace of winter quickly gives way to the exuberant pace of spring which then becomes the frenetic pace of summer, and finally, oh finally, gives way to the slow down that accompanies autumn.   Even the plants finally give up, the luscious bright colors of spring and summer tone down and become the muted colors of autumn.  It is as if they, too, are exhausted by the effort to give us such a beautiful show.    Still, it is an amazing show while we have it, isn't it?

That is how our summer was...and it is only as I look back on it that I realize it is no wonder that the blog got neglected...we were crazy busy living life and it was a blast!  From working to playing to travel to cooking to diy projects to friends and to family, we did it all.  Over the next few days, I'll catch you up...then we'll head into the slower days of autumn together.  I'm ready to slow down, aren't you?

For now, I'll leave you with this lovely picture of my children.  "No, no, don't hold back.  Tell me what you really think of my cooking!"

(Trying new recipes wasn't always appreciated...

the kids were actually plugging their noses

 so they didn't have to taste the food!

More Bagels

The great thing about making something more than once is that you start to get the hang of it and can then pass along the skill. The last time we made bagels, Buttercup was involved with the entire process. I love knowing that she'll know how to do all these things for herself.

From boiling to baking, she was part of the process.

When it was all said and done, I was so proud of her.

Even better, she was proud of herself.

How I discovered blogs and why I decided to join in on the fun.

I first discovered blogs when I started searching Google for tips for living a more frugal life. The first blog I found was The Simple Dollar...I started reading Trent's advice and tips for doing more stuff for ourselves and disengaging from the conspicuous consumption of our society. As he attributed information to other blogs, I'd follow the links and it snowballed. In the year since I discovered his blog, that first click has grown into reading a LOT of blogs via RSS Feed.

So, I learned how to do things I had never done before, but that was not what hooked me on blogs...instead, it was that people who write blogs actually answer your questions. I love that! Can't figure out why your cookies didn't turn out? Ask the poster and he or she will help you trouble it. Have a dilemma with a point of view supported by the blogger? Write them (politely) and they will most likely engage in a dialogue with you. Blogs are NOT impersonal, anonymous noise. Instead, they are a sincere attempt by a lot of wonderful people to share information they've found valuable or meaningful. Want to know how to put in a zipper, make a cake, or make some exotic dish? Chances are good that some generous blogger has taken the time to write down step-by-step instructions with pictures to help you make it happen. I love the tutorials and real-life recipes bloggers share. They make me feel like I, too, can be creative and successful. These are NOT perfect people bragging; they post about their failures along with their successes...they are enthusiastic people sharing their passion with anyone who cares to join in. Their enthusiasm is infectious and I urge you to click on the links to some of my favorite blogs...whether they are writing about sewing or cooking or frugal living tips, these bloggers are awesome.