You put a piece of paper towel on top of the flour otherwise the vacuum would suck up the flour. It's really going to be a boon for hurricane season here since I can buy ahead if we get a bad storm. We have a massive generator so I don't have to worry about being without power for 3 months like during the last one. I don't have the canisters but think I'll get some of those to vacuum seal things too which will cut down on having to rely completely on bags. You might be able to get better prices at places like Costco which we don't have here but ebay is a good source too. I'll have to check to see if they sell the canisters there.

Boy, does that sound like a fun program! Here is a recipe I LOVE. I love cabbage, apples, and caraway together, so I searched for recipes on line and finally selected this one, printed it, made it, and filed it away with my own comments and changes. Then I forgot I had it, and went through the process all over again a couple of weeks ago, searching, selecting, and printing. When I went to put the new recipe in the file, I laughed to see that it was the SAME one I had printed out last time -- and I had made the SAME notes and changes! Both times I had felt the dish needed both more caraway and some sweetness, for which I added concord grape wine, which made it perfect, in my opinion. It made the flavor much more complex. I will give you the recipe as I found it, with my changes in brackets. This recipe doesn't have bacon (no recipe you ever get from me will!), but you can probably add some if you like. Warm Red Cabbage, Red Onion, and Apple Slaw 5 T extra-virgin (only) olive oil 3 T balsamic vinegar [I like more] [a good splash of very sweet red wine, or maybe try some grape jelly or brown sugar] 1/2 head red cabbage [I used white once and it was fine] 1 large red onion [I used white once and it was fine] cut into 8 wedges [I cut it smaller] 1 t caraway seeds [I think it needs a lot more] 2 Granny Smith (or any tart) apples cored and cut into 8 wedges [I cut it into smaller pieces] salt and pepper to taste 1. Cut out the core of the cabbage and cut the cabbage into small pieces [I shred it] 2. Warm the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat. 3. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, 2 minutes. 4. Add the cabbage, apples, caraway seeds, and vinegar [and wine or sugar]. Stir well. 5. Cook, uncovered, 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. 6. Season to taste with salt and pepper when the cabbage is soft. 7. Transfer to serving bowl and serve immediately [I found it just fine serving it later].

Here are a couple of cold ones. The shrimp is of course just the starter dish: This was served as part of a buffet dinner in Canada last summer. Everyone loved it. Prep time: 20 minutes Cooking time: 15 minutes Makes: 8 servings Ingredients for Salmon: 2 1/2 lbs salmon fillets, cut into 16, 1 inch wide fingers 3 TBSP extra virgin olive oil juice and zest of one lemon 1 garlic clove, finely chopped 1 TBSP chopped fresh dill salt and white pepper to taste lemon slices for garnish 2 to 3 cups baby salad greens Ingredients for Tzatziki Sauce: 1/2 cup yoghurt 1/4 cup sour cream 2 garlic cloves, chopped 1/2 English cucumber, coarsely grated and squeezed of its moisture 1 TBSP fresh dill chopped salt, fresh cracked black pepper and lemon juice to taste Preparation: Salmon can be cooked the night before and served cold the next day. 1. Preheat oven to 400F. Place salmon on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Combine olive oil, lemon juice and zest, garlic and dill in a bowl and brush it over the salmon. 2. Cover salmon with foil and bake for 15 minutes, or until just cooked through. Uncover and cool to room temperature. 3. Cover with plastic wrap, leaving the fish in the pan and put it in the fridge. 4. Combine the tzatziki ingredients in a bowl and store in the fridge until needed. 5. Make a bed of the salad greens on a serving platter, arrange the salmon on top, garnish with lemon slices and serve the tzatziki alongside. Source: Eric Akis Victoria Times Colonist, Victoria, B.C. ********************************************************************** Here's a lovely little recipe which I made for our last virtual dinner which was around Valentine's Day: Serving Size : 4 Ingredient -- Preparation Method -------- ------------ ------------------------ 1 lg French lettuce 16 lg Jumbo Shrimp 2 lg pink Grapefruit For dressing: 1/4 c Orange juice 1/8 c Vinegar 1/4 c Olive oil 1/8 c Corn oil 1/4 c Green olives chopped 1/4 c Onion chopped 1/4 c Parsley chopped 1 t Cayene pepper 1 t Paprika (spanish pimenton) Salt and pepper Cook the shrimps as usual, peel them. Peel the grapefruit and separate each piece, also peel the white skin, being careful to get the complete pieces. Prepare the dressing by mixing all the ingredients. To serve: put the lettuce leaves on the dish, adorn with the grapefruit and shrimp. Put the dressing on top and serve. This salad will be better if the dressing can be prepared two hours before. Exported from MasterCook Patricia Wriedt. SharonCb

I like the larger wooden finials as the feet. Something on wheels means I'll probably kick it by accident and it'll go flying across the room. :) But it is a great idea if you want to move it out of the way when not in use! I'm curious as to what they look like before I give any more ideas. :) Are they solid, woven sides like Martha's, or are they more like your standard laundry basket with the holes all around to where things inside are visible? Are they pretty sturdy, or are they like that thinner wood? I'm thinking they are more sturdy because they're older. They made things better back then! ;) Alicia