Okay, so I really didn’t think that going through Charlotte’s Web chapter by chapter would take so freakin’ long. But now that I’m on the other side of it, I can say that even though it took a fair amount of work, I enjoyed the exercise and I can tell you that I have a new understanding that I hadn’t had when I read it as a child.
So what’s next?
Well I still have to tell you about Barcelona. (I’ve made the potato dish learned in a cooking class many times since coming back.)
And I haven’t written about this year’s border to border walk.
I’ll get to those pieces, but I also wanted a new family challenge. Like I did when we weighed all of the good food that was wasted in one month (over 20 pounds) or when I de-cluttered the house and managed to move out thousands of pounds of clutter (yes I weighed it) or when I tried to hold a birthday party for under $10, kept the Christmas tree up until March 24th, or yes, even when we got our very first incubator chicks.
I was recently at Barnes and Noble and noticed a premier issue of Christopher Kimball’s Milk Street – The New Home Cooking magazine. The red banner across the top of the cover reads “56 Recipes for Bold, Easy Weekday Meals.” I bought the magazine and when I got home, settled down to read it.
Milk Street is a quality magazine with heavy pages and has gorgeous photos of each dish. Each recipe is actually a short article giving a little history or memory associated with the food. The type of food is varied with recipes from all over the world. Each write-up also suggests ways you can modify the dish and things to avoid.
Interestingly, each recipe includes how much time it takes to make it from start to finish.
It’s a stunning and impressive magazine, but photos and writing aside, what if the recipes aren’t really as easy as they say they are? What if it says it takes 15 minutes to make a dish, but I find out that unless you ‘re an automatron, there’s no way you’re getting this to the table in under 45 minutes?
So I plan to make every single one of the 56 recipes in the Milk Street premiere issue (i have no timetable other than at least one a week.) I’ll be making the dishes on a weeknight (Monday through Thursday) and I’ll let you know if the recipes are 1. Easy, 2. Quick, and 3. Tasty. I’ll also report on how long it takes to make each dish.
The magazine is at stores and book shops now – go get an issue if you’d like to play along at home.
Note: I have absolutely no affiliation with Milk Street. My posts will reflect a true and honest account of my experiences making these recipes.
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Wendy Thomas writes about the lessons learned while raising children and chickens in New Hampshire. Contact her at [email protected]
Also, join me on Facebook to find out more about the flock (children and chickens) and see some pretty funny chicken jokes, photos of tiny houses, and even a recipe or two.
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