Eats
In general I'm anti gadget - until there is a reason to have the gadget. It's not so much that I'm a curmudgeon as I am someone with limited kitchen space.
A few weeks ago we caught up with some friends, who raved about their potato ricer. Their what?
A potato ricer is a thingamabob that you use in place of a potato masher. Ya press the potatoes through the holes, resulting in the rice shape of the name. I'd heard of a potato ricer before and had a general idea of what it was, but this was my first time hearing the claims that it is a superior way to make mashed potatoes. I mean, the way that we make mashed potatoes is just fine, there's no need for improvement.
However, our dating anniversary was coming up, so we dropped $18 to see what the fuss was about. I dunno what brand of ricer our friends have, and I can't say whether the one that I picked off of Amazon is better or worse, but if you're curious, this is what we got.
On Sunday we put it to the test.
Criticism: it was way harder that I imagined to press the potatoes through the ricer.
Admiration: whoa!!!! The ricer does give the potatoes a little extra oomph. I feel like it might have something to do with smaller particles of potato being able to soak up more salt and butter. It was worth the trouble to muscle the potatoes through the ricer.
Anyways, if you're looking for that special something to get your special someone, a potato ricer might just fit the bill. It was too cold to grill, so we rounded out the meal with pan fried steak for me, chicken for him, and air fryer roasted frozen broccoli.
In other food news, it was Boy Scout Camp this weekend, and I was not about to roll the dice by trying to travel somewhere like I did for last year's January camp. Doggo and I hunkered down for a single gals' weekend.
I lived large by making my single gal chili, which gave me a chance to try out another food tip via The Frugal Girl. The difference between my single gal chili and my family gal chili is that family chili is chili mac (no chipotle chilis because even a small amount is too spicy for the Hubs, and when you're cooking for a crowd it really is a lot easier to add pasta to stretch the recipe).
The thing about chipotle chilis is that they come in cans, and most recipes only use a partial can, so you're left with the rest of the can to "do something" with - and "something" is usually park it in the fridge and throw it out a few months later. Also it's a little high maintenance to scoop out the chilis and chop them up. Kristen's technique is to blend up the entire can so that there is no chopping, and then to seal it up in another container, where it will keep for up to two months (which is the longest that a can of chipotle chilis has ever lasted in her house).
Anyways, I blended up the can in my Ninja and sealed up the leftovers. I figure that if I still have this batch a month later, I'll add a Suzanne technique and freeze them up in small portions. Or I might forget about them and throw them out a few months from now...TBD.
Workouts
I really don't have anything to say about my week day workouts besides "same old same old" - I alternate the 30/3/12 workout with a run-walk kinda deal.
And on weekends I do a route from the hiking challenge (100 miles on local trails divvied up into 20-ish routes ranging in distance between 3 and 7 miles). It was above freezing with minimal wind on Saturday, so I was able to knock back a 4.5 mile route while Doggo was at Doggy Daycare. I was a bit put out that this is a three day weekend but only one day was viable for hiking, but at least it was one day and not zero days so I will take it.
Watching
Doggo continues to watch us watch Seinfeld.
Reading
I think I'm wrapping up my reading slump! I'm almost done with J is for Judgement by Sue Grafton. The first half of the book was "this is a perfectly fine entry in the Alphabet series" and then the book said "hold my beer and watch this" and jumped up to an 11. I'm very excited to finish it. I've got my next title picked out and on my Kindle, which will be a non-Alphabet book.
Peace out! How cold is it where you are? So far our lowest has been 1 degree, but we've got a few days of colder stuff coming. Do you celebrate your dating anniversary? Who's used a potato ricer?
I have always wondered what to do with all those chipotle chilis! I think I froze some and then threw them out when we moved. I'm going to give this a go, I think.
ReplyDeleteOh! I have an update for you! We finished Barry last night and Birchy, I am SO glad I actually watched it. There were a few episodes that were an absolute SLOG but wow, the ending! The last two episodes were fantastic. The ending was amazing. It was probably the most satisfying ending of a series I have ever seen (that just reminded me of Seinfeld's, which wasn't great, was it?)
It's been so long since I saw the last episode of Seinfeld! I kind of remember thinking that the jail ending was fitting. Stay tuned. Hey the first few seasons of Lost were so good that we stuck it through to the end.
DeleteWe do not celebrate our dating anniversary. I don't think either of us remembers that date that officially happened. Um, a long time ago? I am the queen of freezing something and then forgetting about it. The potato ricer looks interesting, but we are big mashed potato people and I don't see us veering from that. Moments ago, the little girls' school texted to say that school was cancelled. It's supposed to feel like 25 below. I haven't heard from my babysitting families that their schools are cancelled, so it might mean that I have tots and the girls home. Not my favorite combination.
ReplyDeleteThey cancelled school here on Tues and Wed, so if it was the same for you...I bet you have just been through two incredibly long days. Hang in there!
DeleteHah! 1 degree, and I was thinking...celcius? But no, I forgot that you live in the middle of the cold belt! It has been in the negative celcius here, but in F is in the 20s, so nothing like what you are experiencing!
ReplyDeleteMy Mom is a mashed potato queen and we always had a Foley food mill in the house growing up, which is basically a big version of the ricer. When I moved into my place, in a fit of shopping, I bought not only a Foley food mill, but a potato ricer as well, and I probably used them at least one time each before eventually selling them both on FBMP last year. So, I guess if you are an annual or more mashed potato family, I think it is worth it, but I should have just used a masher in my life, because I really did not use it/them as much as I thought I would. :(
I had to google the Foley mill and it was a familiar sight! The things that I've forgotten from childhood. I only remember my mom using a potato masher, so I wonder what the story with the Foley was.
DeleteI have very passionate feelings about C vs F - I'd be more than happy to adopt metric for weights and measures but if I ruled the world temperature would always be expressed in Fahrenheit. 32F just isn't that extreme of a temperature to justify calling it zero degrees. And saying that it's 37 when it's 100F...that also doesn't cut it. Thank you for coming to my Ted Talk.
Like Kyria, I grew up with a Foley food mill—or at least the Swiss equivalent—and I remember all the sibling squabbles over who got to operate it.
ReplyDeleteI had no idea potato ricers even existed. What’s the texture like? Is it a super smooth mash, or does it end up with a grainier, rice-like consistency?
Also, great job tackling your hiking challenge, especially in those freezing temperatures!
Now that I've heard the name and googled it, I now know that I grew up in a Foley food mill house too! But I also remember my mom using a potato masher, so I'm not sure what or if the Foley was used for.
DeleteThe texture is super fluffy and they taste very buttery. My guess is that the ricing process = more surface area so more room for the potatoes to absorb yummy stuff.
We have a potato ricer! My husband loves it and I agree it produces nice fluffy potatoes with a very even texture. I hate the act of ricing though so if I am in charge the ricer remains inactive.
ReplyDeleteYou know how I feel about chipotle chilis! Whoo! I have a bag half full of chipotle cubes in my freezer right now and use them frequently. But they may not be as useful if you are the only chipotle fan in the household.
Good on you for getting outside! I did some skiing this weekend which was fun but chilly. I think it’s supposed to be in the low teens for the next couple of days but then we’ll return to the 20s which I quite enjoy.
(This is Suzanne if you could not tell from the excess exclamation marks and chipotle fangirling.)
Man, we've been in a DEEP freeze for the past few days. It was so cold we didn't even take the dog to doggy day care. I look forward to getting outside..tomorrow when it warms up.
DeleteIt is SO cold here today. -15C + windchill (about -4 F). They cancelled a school ski trip and I am so relieved because I was going and felt the temperature outside and wilted a bit in the depths of my soul.
ReplyDeleteI have seen people with potato ricers before, but haven't actually ever used one. My husband is the KING of mashed potatoes and makes the absolute best ones I've ever eaten. Plus, it means I never have to mash potatoes, so I think I'll keep things how they are; perhaps if I introduced a new tool, it would become MY job and heaven forbid.
Hubs is also a champion mashed potato maker. That's the best of all worlds, when someone else makes the mashed potatoes!
DeleteIt's terrible here today. Wind chill is minus 30. Air temp is minus 18. Paul's school was canceled because of the cold. Thank God Taco still has school! It was terribly cold the last two days, but will warm up later this week. I got out for a walk on Saturday before it got epically cold. We don't have a treadmill, so I'm pretty limited on what I can do when it's too cold to be outside. I finished a great light read over the weekend called summer fridays. I needed something light after finishing the covenant of water last week. I really enjoyed the book, but it was quite a heavy read - literally and figuratively, because it was something like 775 pages. I read it on my kindle. There's no way I could read that physical book - especially in a cast!
ReplyDeleteThe coldest that we got was -10! It's +10 now and warming up to 30 tomorrow!!! HEAT WAVE!!!!! I can't wait.
DeleteWe do not have a potato ricer because we rarely actually make mashed potatoes. They get cold so quickly. I prefer roasted or baked potatoes. This is making me sound like some sort of monster who doesn't like mashed potatoes. They're great - all potatoes are great - they're just not what I usually make.
ReplyDeleteLike Lisa and Elisabeth, we're dealing with some COLD weather today. It was -12F when I walked Hannah and even she gave up after a pee and wanted to go back inside. We're not supposed to get above zero today! I love a cold day, though, because a lot of folks in my office will work from home and I will be here myself and it's glorious and I can get so much done!
I like roasted potatoes as well. I don't make baked potatoes very often because the Hubs would rather have mashed.
DeleteDoggo has done well with a few days of limited exercise. She can run in the back yard anytime that she wants, and we take her out on the leash for five minutes tops. It's going to warm up overnight and it will be above freezing soon!
I've never heard of a potato ricer! We're also very anti gadget in our house too, so I doubt I will ever try one but would love to try the mashed potatoes it makes!
ReplyDeleteAll that you need is a friend with a potato ricer and you'll be set! The ultimate Mashed Potato Goal is to have someone else make them;-)
DeleteIt's cold for us, but nowhere near your temperatures!
ReplyDeleteYes, we totally celebrate our dating anniversary, and our month-iversary (date of our wedding, but every month). My husband was a wise man and proposed on the same number day as we started dating, and we got married on that same number day, so it makes things easy to remember!
I don't have a potato ricer and don't want to add another gadget to our small kitchen, but who knows, it could happen!
I used to celebrate our monthiverssary but I got out of the habit. See this is what happens after you've been married for a while. I love that he thought to line up the days - so each celebration is 3x!
DeleteI don't have a potato ricer - and I've never tried riced potatoes. You make them sound wonderful, and as usual, your food photos have me drooling!
ReplyDeleteIt's OK - mashed potatoes are still good without a potato ricer;-)
DeleteWe are having a "Florida cold" spell. 60s, gloomy and rainy- SO unusual for us. You would laugh if you saw how people are dressed (winter coats, hats, etc. hee hee...) Don't worry- I will personally make sure the weather is amazing in two weeks.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure I make mashed potatoes often enough to get a potato ricer. But if my son read this post, he would make us get one for next Thanksgiving. He's always looking for ways to do things better.
I can't remember the J book- I do remember that some of them are definitely better than others though.
You're reminding me that I want to make chili...
Don't worry, the bar is pretty low for amazing weather by our standards.
DeleteI think your son would enjoy the ricer, since there's a bit of effort required. It's basically a no-gym workout!
I feel like a ricer does make better mashed potatoes, but not better enough to be worth cleaning it out. The key to it not being so difficult to press is to not fill it too full. But then your potatoes get kind of cold by the time you're done. We have one, but we generally don't bother with it. They *do* make excellent mashed potatoes though!
ReplyDeleteIt's chilly for this part of California. The lows have been in the low to mid 30s (F), which means it's cold enough that we can sleep with our window closed at night, and we have the heater on during the day (which I hate, because I'm cheap). I have been covering my avocado plant and my little orange tree at night with a bed sheet, that keeps them from freezing (I hope). The highs have been in the low 60s, which is sweater weather but no need for a jacket.
Ha ha we definitely live in different climates. Our no heat/no AC season is very brief.
DeleteOkay, I am going to treat myself to a potato ricer soon. I LOVE mashed potatoes but feel like they're always so lumpy. Maybe this will be the trick!
ReplyDeleteI had chili this week - mmmmmm! And it has been VERY cold here for Florida. There was snow in North Florida! It's been in the low 30s and I am not okay. THIS IS NOT WHAT I SIGNED UP FOR.
Definitely not what you signed up for! How much snow did you get? I saw some pretty impressive pictures from FL.
DeleteWe have a potato ricer - but we use it for applesauce, haha! It’s how my grandmother made hers and I’ve owned a ricer since I had my first apartment. It’s gotten down to 2* here - I sure hope it doesn’t go lower.
ReplyDeleteWe got one night with -10 but now we're back into the 20s! Woo hoo!
DeleteA potato ricer. Huh. Who knew about that? I never used one, I like my mashed potatoes nice and smooth. I use a masher and then a handheld mixer.
ReplyDeleteJon and I celebrate our dating anniversary. Well, more of a meet-aversary because I don't really know the date-aversary LOL
I love that you have snow. It's been cool here, but no freezing temps.