Welcome to My Kitchen

Well, I figured it was finally time to start blogging about all that happens daily in my kitchen and beyond...The kitchen is the hub of our daily activity, a place where we meet, mingle and renew ourselves each day.  Whether it be to test out a new recipe, plant the seeds for the garden, sip a glass of wine or just catch up at the end of the day, this is where it all happens.  As life spreads out in many directions, the kitchen is always the place one can return to either in person or in their mind, to recall the comfort of the room.  How many of us can recall the smells and sounds of our grandmothers kitchen?  The scent of fresh bread baking in the oven, as we waited with anticipation to cut that first slice and spread the butter across the bread, watching it melt..Or the days of picking strawberries and making jam..This simpler life is what we often miss out on in these craziness of daily activities.  We often forget that those simple things are the ones that will be remembered as we and our children age...

Last week a friend and I spent three days making sausage.  Now one may wonder why would anyone take the time to do this?  It is easy to run to the store, and buy your package of bratwurst, italian or chicken sausage and bring it home to cook.  I often find that it is the process that relaxes, rejuvinates and refreshes one.  The joy of using grandma's sausage press, cranking the handle, and pulling the meat into the casings brought back a simpler time.  Yes, it a time consuming process, but I know every ingredient that is in those sausages. In addition to being able to fill up the freezer, we were able to fill our hearts at the same time.  The hours spent with that friend, laughing, sharing recipes, and tasting the sausage is time I wouldn't trade.  Because like grinding the meat, mixing in the spices and pressing the sausage, friendships grow when we spend the time...So, here in the kitchen, I grow my many relationships and watch them rise, and yes, some do fall, and grow into a lifetime of memories.