A Thanksgiving Story

Oh, just a short little story, but it sure does warm my heart and I want to share it with you!

Just earlier today, I went to visit a friend in the hospital. Much to my surprise, right next door, was a store called Zorn's. 

I had not thought about Zorn's in, well, decades. Before my mother died in 1988, she cooked a big Thanksgiving dinner every year. It had all the trimmings, and my mother was a fantastic cook who could make the most gourmet meal out of common ingredients on any given weeknight. 

My mother's stuffing for Thanksgiving was GREAT. It had a wonderful blending of fresh flavors that was so savory, so absolutely delicious, everyone looked forward to it year after year. Between Thanksgiving dinner and subsequent turkey sandwiches with stuffing, the memories I conjure up right now are pretty intense.

But....my mother (and father) were immigrants from Denmark. My mother, um, didn't know squat about making stuffing. Looking back, I don't think she ever really "got it." How did I find out? Smart, very smart, woman - when my husband and I were dating, I guess she figured that she could certainly ask him to do her a favor and my guess is she probably told him to keep a secret...OR ELSE, knowing he would!

What she told my husband to do was to go to Zorn's, now, about 45 minutes away from where she lived, pick up the stuffing, bring it to her and KEEP QUIET about it! A guy dating the mother's daughter is not going to do that? She's no fool! Obviously, she had been going there for YEARS.

I don't remember how or when we all found out her secret, but we were completely shocked when we did, given her great cooking skills.

What great memories I had seeing Zorn's today...and my husband (the same guy) and I bought lots of Thanksgiving trimmings there today...including their stuffing. I'll have two types of stuffing at our table this year - mine and Zorn's. It will be REALLY interesting to see who likes which stuffing best!

Thanksgiving in my home

An East Hampton Kitchen

I met Sean Sullivan, author of the (insert wildly positive adjective here) food blog Spectacularly Delicious and Associate Publisher of House Beautiful, this summer at House Beautiful's Kitchen of the Year press event. After maybe, a 20 minute conversation, probably less, enthusiastically talking about kitchens, including his, I asked Sean if I could go to his home and see his kitchen. I don't know if that says more about me or more about Sean, but his joy for his kitchen was contagious. Sean immediately said "yes, come!" and I did. This is a three-post story, so herewith Part I.

I knew this: I knew I would find a happy kitchen. See for yourself!

Ten years ago, the kitchen was designed by Sean and his architect. The backsplash tile, with its watery coloring, has an authentic, crafted, look and texture. It has a lovely iridescent glow, a real East Hampton beachy feel. The cabinetry, simple and modern, is a great complementary color/finish to the backsplash tile. The soft (sandy/beachy) beige counter and floor tile adds to the beachy factor! White walls add lightness for that year round summer feel, doesn't it?

Sean's kitchen is somewhat unconventional. The microwave is ... above the refrigerator (Sean and his partner, Stephen, are TALL-not an issue for them).

The wall cabinetry runs straight across the rear wall and does not change height or depth over the range. Ventilation for the range is served by a common in-wall fan at the back of the range. Upon my "kitchen designer police" close inspection of the woodwork above the range, I have to admit that there was just a very, very small amount of discoloration on the wood, which would not be noticed unless one was looking for it (like me) and, the kitchen is 10 years old! I was surprised. Sean said that next time he would have a proper ventilation system. I then nodded my head in approval, unfurrowing my brow.

Softly frosted sliding see through doors with large finger holes are, to my eye, fantastic! Note how the top of the wall cabinets line up with the top of the window...it makes sense visually-see 2nd photo at top. It's warm, homey, and useful. I'm crazy about it. 

 

I LOVE awning windows. they are actually one of my favorite window types. Add a spot to sit near the window and life is good!

Sean COOKS, and Stephen, Sean's partner, is a terrific assistant chef. What a team effort! Here are Sean's tips for prep and entertaining on the big day.

Are you an assistant chef? Follow Sean's rules: Accept the task you are given, find a spot out of the main traffic area to do it, CLEAN UP AFTER, and ask "what's next?"

How Sean entertains: Don't drag out the dinner over hours! Have hors d'oeuvres ready when guests arrive and when EVERYONE has arrived, sit right down to the meal! Eliminating long anticipation of the meal or various courses allows guests to relax, dine (they're hungry!) and get to the next, satisfying, level of uber-relaxation after the meal, and that's when the real fun begins.

We have two more interesting parts to this kitchen - Sean's Batterie de Cuisine, and Details, coming soon! See Sean's Thanksgiving recipes, which he has adapted from various sources, and keep in touch with the main page of Spectacularly Delicious! If you experience a little slow loading on the site, hang in there, it's WELL worth it!

TPB Top Porzelanik Barcelona - A New Kitchen Countertop

It's my real pleasure to announce a brand new product for American kitchens! I've searched and searched and I cannot see where this product has been talked about in the US anywhere online up to now. 

It's a kitchen countertop that creates an entirely new category of countertop materials, starting now! It's beautiful, it's extremely durable and it will coordinate perfectly with any kitchen decor. I saw it at the kitchen show, SICI in Spain, and it's called TPB | Top Porzelanik Barcelona. It is a newly introduced product for this company. I attended the SICI show in Madrid as a speaker on American kitchen design, along with my colleague Roberta Kravette, courtesy of the top kitchen design software program, autokitchen which is based in Spain, but has software users around the globe.

NOTE: I have no ties of any kind to this company. I discovered it at the SICI show, love it and wish to share my find.

The TPB top is, essentially, a ceramic tile countertop, in slab form.  The top is light weight and possible to have 100 different finishes and textures. There are six different "bases" available, each of which will give a different look to this thinner-than-normal countertop. It's easy cleaning and highly durable. It is a natural product and completely recyclable. Take a look at the spec sheet. And here is a list of features and benefits of the countertop material. 

I have two samples that I was able to take back with me, and while some of my images below are very close up and the surface looks to have a textured relief, it is completely smooth with just a tiny textural feel. I encourage you to take a good look at the website to see all of the information about this very interesting and exciting countertop material!

Following are images that I took at the SICI show in Madrid a few weeks back. I predict that this material will receive a very enthusiastic greeting in the U.S. It is stunning.

Get the flash player here: http://www.adobe.com/flashplayer

 

The Social Kitchen

Come to today's chat on The Social Kitchen on Sears' Facebook page! We'll be talking about how your kitchen can be a social gathering spot for the holidays and still be efficient. Whether you make the chat on time today, which will start soon, or you see this later on, please add your comments to our chat on Sears' page. See you there shortly!

Kitchen Lighting - The Lighting Guy

Here's your lighting guy...it's Matthew T. Gregg, president of Synergy Lighting. Matt is a Certified Lighting specialist by the American Lighting Association, Member of the Illumination Engineering Society, Member of the National Association of Independent Lighting Distributors and Energy Star Partner. I'm happy to have made Matt's acquaintance and I had a few basic questions for him. Yes, every now and then we have to review certain basics of lighting, so here we go! Do you have questions for Matt? Ask in the comments section!

What's the latest in general overhead lighting for kitchens? What 3 products do you like and why?

As trends in style, décor and technology evolve, so do the myriad of products available in today’s marketplace.   This can often lead to confusion for homeowners and designers in choosing the appropriate type of lighting.  When choosing overhead lighting, it’s easy enough to be persuaded emotionally to a particular fixture or design, however the foremost thoughts should be on task, design, function and longevity. 

Recessed cans are often regarded today as being old and bulky, and ready for something new.  This might hold true if you currently have 6” or 8” recessed cans with standard white or black baffles trims.  Most manufacturers today make an assortment of trims and baffles that are easily interchangeable between fixtures, thus allowing over 40 possible appearances for any kitchen design.  Revitalizing a ceiling with either a trim change, or smaller more sophisticated recessed lighting is always a winner. 

Synergy Lighting Starlites are the smallest recessed light fixtures available.  These small fixtures come in white or silver or custom color and add unique functionality.   Weather you choose to install them in rows or patterns, or simply place them randomly throughout the ceiling, the Starlites simulate a romantic, starlit sky when dimmed, and provide full task lighting when on full bright.

Contrast Lighting is another top pick for recessed lighting offering over 200 distinct options from simple to extravagant.  These dimmable fixtures provide ease of installation and affordability with the flexibility of adding the finishing touches to accentuate any design style.  Contrast offers from 2” modern to 5” contemporary and traditional styles and can be installed with ProLED light bulbs for the ultimate in energy savings.

Contrast LightingFor kitchens with existing 5” or 6” recessed cans, Juno Lighting offers the ultimate in LED Solid State lighting with is fully dimmable LED remodel can that has 20 different trim options.  This fixture comes with a built in LED light engine that lasts for 60,000 hours of use.  For most kitchens, this means 30 years of never changing a light bulb.   At only 14 total watts, these LED fixtures provide crisp, brilliant illumination which is excellent for enhancing granite and simulated stone countertops, wood finishes and tile.

What are your recommendations for quantity of (general) light to specify for a kitchen? What part does beam spread play (I'm always concerned with that issue)? Do you have a quick and easy way to specify adequate lighting? 

When designing lighting for any kitchen, you must consider layering three light levels for different occurrences that the kitchen will be used for.   These types of layers are referred to as event lighting.  Each event that will occur in the kitchen will require a separate form of adjustable (dimmable) lighting.  These are Task Lighting, Accent Lighting, and Mood Lighting and can be created by the following design tips.

CablLED LightingTask Lighting:  Highest levels of light are required for activities such as Cooking, Cleaning, and Bill Paying, or homework.  Lighting should consist of adequate overhead lighting, and under cabinet lighting around counter tops and, islands and bars.

An excellent under cabinet lighting product is the CabLED from OptiLED.com, These IP68 Rate LED Strips are flexible and easy to install.  CabLED^TMcomes with a complete interconnection and mounting system for both indoor and outdoor under cabinet designs which enables it to be mounted on wallboard, concrete, brick, tile, metal, wood, glass or any surface which can support an anchor or adhesive base easily and without installation errors.  Available in both cool and warm LED, and completely waterproof against inadvertent splashing, the CabLED is an excellent, discrete under cabinet solution.

Accent Lighting: Moderate levels of light should be created in multiple layers such as Under and Over-cabinet lighting, or to position adjustable overhead lighting to illuminate architectural features such as range tops, open glass cabinets and décor. Typically, accent lighting is used in general home illumination when the kitchen is not in use.

Mood Lighting:  Lower levels of light are required, utilizing dimmers.  Popular forms of mood lighting are a combination of task and accent lighting, and optional lighting created from toe-kick lighting, or candle lights.  These help set a stage for parties, or romantic quiet evening with good food and fine wines.

What else should consumers and designers be aware of when thinking about kitchen lighting? 

By utilizing lighting in layers, homeowners can adjust these setting and create different landscapes throughout a kitchen to make the kitchen much more than the room where meals are prepared.  Remember a kitchen is the only room in the home that serves multiple uses, and can be illuminated for multiple dramatic effects.  Kitchen lighting is the most crucial lighting project for any home. 

When utilizing three types of lighting in a kitchen, the rule of thumb is 40 foot candles for cleaning and cooking, 20 foot candles for dining, and 2 foot candles for mood lighting.  

The bulk of foot candle illumination (task lighting) will come from the overhead lighting.  Remember that track lighting is a form of accent lighting, not task.  When determining the appropriate number of recessed cans or lighting fixtures for a ceiling, there is no such thing as too much when combined with dimmers, only too little.  A general rule of thumb is a minimum of 65 watts of incandescent or 11 watts of LED for every 20 square feet of kitchen space.  Beam spread is only a concern with extremely high ceilings in narrow kitchens that require longer distances of down light, all other main lighting should be of flood type lighting. 

Spot Lights and narrow beams are used in accent lighting at lower wattages only.  Under Cabinet lighting requires a minimum of 30 Watts Incandescent or 3 Watts LED per foot.   As for accent and mood lighting, these are added to task lighting, and require no other considerations past their existence in the kitchen.  Fluorescent lighting should always be avoided in a kitchen as the light source is dulling to countertops, wood grains and finishes.  

QUESTIONS FOR MATT? ASK IN THE COMMENTS SECTION!