CEFreeman, I think you're my NEW best friend!! Omg, I love reese and since my new oven went in, it's cookie-dough from the bag as I *try* in vain to get it on that cookie sheet and into the oven. Oh so many fails ;) But like Legallin, I actually love the smell of french fries in the deep frier and such. But I grew up with my mom doing that all the time. I guess those range hoods always pulled the "stench" out enough for me, and I maybe it's a little cultural?? What we grew up with, so it smells like home? Or maybe these folks aren't rotating their oil enough?? I always filter mine before storage (if I'm reusing), refrigerate and replace often. We also only leave the oil out long enough to cool and then place it in glass jars. I like to think all of that helps... Certainly no grease stains on my parents' ceiling after 25 years in the house and my mom fries daily at least. Or the type of oil?? We've always been a canola oil family, so maybe it's lower odor?? ...wonder what deepfried cookie dough would taste like?? ;) ...especially if it was wrapped around a reese peanut butter cup... ;)

If you have recipes that you like that contain beans, try substituting green peas or chick peas for the beans - you could even prepare 2 1/2 batches and add beans to your portion. (How does he feel about lentils?) Get creative with grains! They are so easy. Cous cous, different rices, risotto - you can do a zillion one dish meals with them. You could add prepared meat (e.g.,cooked shrimp) to his portion before serving. Everything that you do with pasta you can do with grains. Lots of meat eaters love wild rice - it is really satisfying. I make the rice and while it is cooking saute thinly sliced celery and mushrooms in a little butter, mix with the cooked rice, pour in baking dish, bake at 350 for 15 minutes (or even longer) - yum! You can experiment on this theme with any grain - the little bit of baking seems to "marry" everything together. Veggie casseroles can be prepared in advance and frozen. I find that freezing in general helps my diet and wallet so that I don't eat unhealthy expensive food out all the time. Making a big batch of artichoke tomato pasta sauce is just as easy as a little one - just freeze in the little bags made for this purpose in the correct portions. Same for soups. Don't forget that old standby, the crock pot. You can make a very hearty stew with potatoes, onions, great bean-less chili for a different taste. Throw everything in the post before you go to work, turn on low or med, dinner is ready when you get home. Polenta pie is super quick and delicious: make your polenta in the pot, stir in any thing you want - diced red/orange/yellow peppers, garlic, jalapenos, a little cheese, any spices, anything not too watery or that wouldn't go with cornmeal. When it's cooked, pour into a greased glass pie pan, sprinkle top with cheese and bake for 15 minutes, until cheese melts. Cut like pie and serve with salad that you make while the polenta is baking. I agree that the prepared (frozen, etc.) vegetarian foods are just as junky as non-veg. Have you ever looked at the sodium contents? Got this off another website: Vegan "Meatloaf" 1 package of frozen TVP (Texturized Vegetable Protein- Ground beef imitation type such as "GimmeLean") 1 bell pepper, diced 1 medium onion (or according to taste) 1 egg OR equivelent in egg-replacer Approx. 1.5 cups of bread-crumbs (Add as you feel needed) A lot of ketchup (the more the better) Defrost TVP. Hand-mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Put in casserole dish, mold to dish. Add more ketchup to cover sides and top( like cake icing). Bake for 1 hour (or until the veggies are tender). Note: When served, it may fall apart, or crumble. This "meatloaf" is best with corn and mashed potatoes on the side! Personally, I love to cook and be creative with food - it really relaxes me. Perhaps since time is a factor, you can start to prepare meals together if you already don't. It's a nice way to be together after a day of work. (If your...

We moved into a neighborhood of 1960s-70s colonials. One of the many things I liked about our house was the black slate foyer floor. A new friend came by and mentioned that "that slate is really easy to remove" and she had just put new large-format tile in her foyer instead. 12 years later and I still prefer my black slate. The other thing I wouldn't and won't change is the kitchen curtains. The kitchen faces the street and includes a breakfast nook, so we need some curtains, but I don't want to block the view altogether. The house came with cafe curtains, as well as an upper tier of curtains (not a valance) for the larger breakfast nook windows. They are somewhat sheer, maybe translucent is the word, which I like: it's like looking through lightly-frosted glass so I can see if someone is walking by the house without really being able to see who they are. The little ruffle probably dates them the most, but given that they are otherwise plain it's cute. What I'd really like is a toile pattern, but I just can't find a fabric that is translucent, without being "shiny".

The recipe called for room temperature butter. I should have questioned that. Now I have too many variables to do a single test. 1) Cold Butter 2) White sugar, but suggestions are that it doesn't make a difference. 3) No convection, my mother's stove did not have convection. Life is tough, how many Crisps do I have to make, and eat, in order to get it right? I will have to revise the recipe for two portions instead of eight. I remember, as a kid, that my mother purchased one of every chocolate cake box mix she could find and we certainly enjoyed the taste test.... I believe the winner was the Stop Rite store brand. As for location? I inherited the house and property on which I went through my childhood. My mother designed it, my father built it. How cool is that?