Kitchen Planning!

We are renovating our kitchen starting next month, so last night I looked at all our ideas we have been collecting and drew up the plans... the for real ones. *wow* I am so excited about having a more functional kitchen I can hardly believe that after all this planning we are finally getting going on it!

There are so many things to consider - like having a proofing drawer for raising bread - would LOVE one of those in the new kitchen, and an island for rolling out dough and  other large food preparation.... and finding the right stove - right now I have my heart set on a 48 inch dual oven, 6 burner + a grill gas stove... (swoon), I love the Liebherr fridges... but they are pretty expensive - not sure w can justify the money at this point. Which leaves us wondering what do you choose as an interim appliance after looking at the top of the line?

Then there is the whole space management thing - making sure there is room for all the 'occaisional' appliance storage,  room to move around comfortable with 3 cooks in there at a time sometimes, making sure the kitchen can grow with our small children, as it is also craft and creative expression central for them - and will be until they are at leat 12.  Hell, even though we have a craft and sewing room, my 21 year old daughter and I turned the family room and kitchen into creative textile remodeling central just recently ourselves...

In our home, the kitchen really is the heart, so while I am super excited to get started - I want to make sure I have considered all the important elements and that I don't overlook anything in my excitement. We also want to keep in mind our commitment to enviornmental responsibility, and if there are ways to make the kitchen a more green space at the end of the reno.  Things like a better place for the compost pail than on the counter or under the sink.... other waster management, and "green" energy management

This is the first kitchen we will completely gut and re-do, other kitchen renovations in past houses have always been facelifts only.... Off to look at cabinets - again, and to see what fits into our design specs now that we have more or less finalized it!

If you have ideas to share, please! share!

below is a rough sketch of the plan so far

Happiness is a full pantry

This week was a cold one! Perfect for making soup and canning it!  There is a simple joy in making something that you know you can just open up and enjoy at some point int he future with no deep involved planning or work! It also got me to to thinkikng I still want to research how to process our canning efforts so they can be available for sale so other families can have the joy of a can of soup without all the perservatives and subpar ingredients.  On one hand it seems so easy and on the other its such a monumental task to consider. I am used to cooking for the family - not for commerical preparation ! I don't have a clue what is involved with all that, and yet, it is a passion of mine ( and my daughters' ) to provide real food for people.. especially families with growing children.... So the research has begun - and we will muddle through understanding what is involved to take our humble home cannning to a retail ready product, without losing quality!

This week we made and canned condensed potato w/bacon soup, chili, wild mushroom soup (condensed)  and split pea w/ farmer's sausage soup... a batch of bread, some bannock .... and it was ALL incredibly delicious! ( and made the house feel and smell warm and welcoming from the cold outside)