Day 28: It Isn't Me It's The Stove

Menu:

Rustic French Bread (Schnuck's Atrisan Breads)

Mediterranean Salad ME

French Onion Soup JC

Filet Steaks w/ Canap'es JC

Baked Potato

For four years I have been completely frustrated with my stove. Ever since we put the glass top stove in the kitchen I have not been happy with it. I've burned several things and was always so quick to fault myself. All the while I'd always mention that the stove seems to only warm food or boil food there is no in between. Michael just didn't understand the aggravation in having a stove that didn't seem to cook properly. I just kept thinking that maybe glass tops are difficult to cook with and that I just needed to get used to it. When I tried making eggs of any kind it has been disastrous. It either takes forever for them to get done or they scorch quickly.

Today I was trying to get my onions to simmer. After about a half hour I went to Michael and said I have just spent this half hour trying to get the burner to heat up. That stove is so messed up. He was holding our mail in his hand and he said funny you should mention that. He showed me a letter from the place where we bought our stove. It is being recalled due to failure to heat properly. It has no middle temperature. He said the letter stated that you should turn off and unplug the stove immediately upon reading that letter.

Well I didn't. I had a dinner to make. I finally got the onions going and they had to cook for quite a while. Once the onions were mixed with the beef stock I could set it aside. I seared the ribeyes and then poured a wine syrup mixture over them. I topped the potatoes with butter, sour cream, seasonings and parsley while Michael put the vegetables I had chopped for the salads onto the greens. He poured us some German wine and we had a fabulous meal. The steaks were out of this world tender and juicy and the wine sauce gave it lots of flavor.

For the last four years it has been my stove not me. I was even thinking I had lost my knack for cooking. I've burned so many things thinking the stove was set to simmer or on low heat and yet all the while it was actually on a much higher setting due to a faulty sensor. All the time we have had this stove I would always think to myself that this is a great stove for someone who likes to eat out all the time. So maybe all those Julia meals that took me 6 and 7 hours may have actually taken only a few hours to make. I doubt it because one of the first things she states in her cookbook is that her recipes are not for the faint of heart.

Facts:
Day 28 of 100 (365 days with a functioning stove...maybe)

Pounds Lost: Didn't check today
Pounds Gained: Didn't check today
Happiness Level: 100%
Missing My Kids: 100% (I'll be seeing them soon though)
Cooking Enjoyment: 60% (Do NOT do more than one Julia recipe at a time.)
Eating Enjoyment: 100% (Michael and I don't usually stuff ourselves, tonight we sure did)
Meal Presentation: 100% (It even looked really good)