You say it works "sort of" -- I'd start with the truth and go from there! When you burn every dinner, suspicion falls on the cook. But what if your best efforts simply fail to produce an edible dinner? I used to have a 1940ish electric Hotpoint which made a noise  all the time. The oven sometimes failed to preheat, 2 of the 4 burners would not respond to their buttons and the 2 that did had no low, high was the lowest, medium red-hot. The best part had to be the flames that occasionally spurted from the buttons when pushed. Once with 20-some Thanksgiving guests in wait, the oven rack collapsed dislodging the electric element. Still, my DH was unpersuaded that it was "time." My mistake for years was continuing to make that sorry piece of metal look good. What would best motivate your DH? Seeing real-life ruined dinners, trashed pans, wasted ingredients? Reviewing a written log of trashed pans, wasted ingredients, and lost time? If water doesn't boil, dinners are routinely delayed, cookies blacken while still raw in the middle, even non-cooks start to get the message. When he asks about dinner, why not tearfully show him the remains of your efforts in the trash? Or does colorful language better grab his attention? You could cheerfully announce a new winter menu of raw salads and takeout so as not to waste any more hard-earned money on good roasts and hearty casseroles. These luxurious are for those with a working range ..... Like me! We've had our new Blue Star for two years now and my husband still comments at least once a week that he can't believe how consistently great dinners are at our house. (Nothing like a working range & running water, I say, having done without both too long...) If I had stopped covering for that sorry-ash range years earlier, I could have save myself years of culinary grief. (And BTW, my first wish-list stove was far more modest than the one I finally ordered, no discussion, after coming to the end of my rope and letting go!) Truth is, if the furnace or water heater or car broke down, he would "get it" and you would get a reasonable new machine to help the household function again. We can all live without heat, hot water, and wheels just as easily. By which I mean it would be incredibly difficult! People do it, but usually not by choice. If a new stove is what you really need, there's probably a way to bump lesser priorities down the household list so the cook can cook. The person who eats without cooking needs to "get it." If he still sits down to a home-cooked dinner every night, he won't. As you start tonight's salad, start practicing new lines to the Eartha Kitt classic, "Santa Baby," linked. I'll get you started: "Santa Baby, slip a stove under the tree, for me..." Wear whatever works for you & keep singing! Here is a link that might be useful: Eartha Kitt,

From the article " The term conjures up visions of professionals using acres of counter space and island stoves to perfect their braising and baking - like Julia Child's kitchen memorialized in the Smithsonian." Hellloooooo??? Has this reporter SEEN Julia's kitchen. If I recall correctly as it's been a couple of years since I saw it, she had TWO, that's right - TWO!! small counters and a table in the middle. Heck, I've seen ISLANDS bigger than her kitchen. I love to cook and my kitchen was designed to have everything accessible within 5 small steps. The working floor space is a measly 8 square feet with the counters on the perimeter but it's a gorgeous, functional kitchen and it works. When I learned to cook it was in a kitchen filled with 16 other people and all the space we each had was a 2x3' cart with storage underneath. I cook or rather bake, because I have a passion for it. And what keeps me going, are the compliments. And they don't come from my family so I don't cook/bake for them. They just take it for granted. I think TV and Food Networks sensationalize the life of top Chefs. Out in the real world, it's nothing like that.

My countertops are solid surface that isn't as thick as Corian, but is the same kind of material. It may be a local name because when I google it, the fabricator I used is the only one that comes up under that name. I used this material because they had a blue that I liked . . . I didn't really like the Corian blues, and in my color scheme -- cream cabinets, yellow walls, blue counters -- it was important to me to get the blue color right. My integrated sink is a lighter blue, speckled. The integrated sink is one of the things I like best . . . absolutely NO place for yucch to collect. It almost never looks dirty, but when it gets stained, a quick swish with soft scrub does the job. To solve the problem of not being able to set hot pans on the countertop, I had the area next to the stove inset with tile the same color as the cabinets. I also have one long serving counter done in the same tile so the area by the stove doesn't look out of place. It has worked perfectly . . . I'm thinking my next kitchen will have the same thing. I've liked my solid surface counters a lot. My make-up table is the same product in matte white. I get lipstick and other makeup on it regularly, and just soft-scrub and it comes off. You know the pitfalls -- you may be cleaning more often -- but if you love the look, it will be worth it.

I bought some garlic from WGG last year, they have very reasonable prices and good quality. I have been waiting impatiently for a few months to see when they will start taking orders for this year! dcarch: I would suggest using an Asiatic variety such as Korean Mountain or Asian Tempest for making black garlic. The Asiatic varieties are generally short storing which is probably why the black garlic curing/aging process was invented in the first place. A Turban variety might make a good substitute if you can't find any Asiatics.