Tiniest Kitchen Expands! Sells Stuff!

MORE TINY STUFF!! RIGHT HERE!!!

Today I started an Etsy store to sell some very cool vintage stuff and hopefully some very yummy stuff in the near future. You can see it at...http://www.etsy.com/shop/TiniestVintageYums

I am starting off with a bunch of great vintage things, and shortly I hope to be selling jams and candies!

Check it out! Like it on Facebook! Favorite the shop on Etsy! I'd love you for any of those!

A few things listed right now...

Super cool crystal and glass decanter set.

Special art deco metal/bronze purse.

Gold chain and ball wrap necklace.

Gold and pearl choker.

Check it out at HERE!!!

Thanks for the support, lots more inventory to be added ASAP, keep checking back for new stuff. I'll keep posting shop updates on the blog, hope you find something you'll love!

Spiced Pumpkin Oatmeal, a love for brunch.

I want to talk about brunch.

I know it's Wednesday night. Not prime brunch discussion time, but I believe brunch is an important topic and can be discussed at anytime. Especially Wednesday night, you have just lost your glow from your past Sunday brunch and are approaching the point where you can start eagerly anticipating Saturday brunch.

This is what hump day means to me.

What do you need for brunch? An array of options. All yummy. That can touch on your plate. And all should taste good with some amount of maple syrup on it. 

There should be eggs, meat, carbs, coffee, butter, syrup, juice and alcohol. Always. 

There should also be either oatmeal or grits. Always. Sweet oatmeal or cheesy savory grits. This post is about the oatmeal. Maybe next week we can discuss grits.

I like oatmeal. I actually love Quaker Instant Oatmeal, especially the cinnamon & spice flavor. I was raised on it, and my mom and nana always taught me to eat it out of a huge plate, and to start at the edges, eat in large circles from the outside to the inside so I wouldn't burn my mouth.

Now I am grown up. Sort of. I do now, however, make oatmeal from oats and stuff and flavor it myself, rather then out of the little paper pack. I like lots of flavor, so this recipe gave me lots of joy. 

This oatmeal reminds me of eating a pumpkin pie with no crust. So yum. Lots of health. Toasted spices. Pumpkin puree. Oats. Milk. 

Pair it with...

And a lovely friend...

And at our house someone's always doing this during brunch...

And you get....

Yup. That's brunch. This photo is by said Lovely Friend (www.beewaterhouse.tumblr.com)

Countdown to Saturday.

Spiced Pumpkin Oatmeal

From the New York Times Cookbook

You'll Need...

1/4 tsp ground allspice

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon, plus more on top

1/8 tsp ground ginger

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1 cup canned pumpkin puree

4 1/2 cups milk

1 1/2 cups steel cut oats

3/4 tsp salt

Stuff you might like on top, apple sauce, apples, syrup, honey...

Toast the allspice, nutmeg, cinnamon and ginger in a large saucepan until they smell lovely, probably about 2 minutes. Add the brown sugar and pumpkin and mix together. Add the milk and raise the heat till it comes to nice simmer. Add the oats and let it all simmer over a medium heat for about 20-25 minutes, until the oats are tender but not mush. 

Remove from heat and add the salt. Serve topped with cinnamon and other things you love. 

Fettuccine with Brussels Sprouts, Caramelized Onion, Cranberries & Sausage

I'm in hibernation.

I always go into hibernation a little bit in February. Something weird always happens, and it's cold, and I can usually find a way to hide out from the world for a little bit. You'd think this would mean I could blog a lot with all that time, but instead I'm basically hoarding new recipes. Cooking non-stop, immediately devouring and returning to the land of the people inside my television.

I'm reemerging. I think it's time. So now I share food! Yummy yummy food! It's time to move on from the rough events of the first half of this short month and try and make things better and more exciting in the second half. 

I'm looking for new things now. New things to do, new things to do to make money and new things to learn. It's a goal. Not to be confused with a resolution. Different.

Any ideas? Let me know!

This pasta was a step in the right direction. It combines all things I had in my kitchen that I've never combined before. It has stunning color and amazing taste. It is healthy...-er then a lot of things we eat here.

Try it. Want a close up of awesome colors???

Yea. That's what I'm saying. New. Fresh. Exciting.

Do it.

Fettuccine with Brussels Sprouts, Caramelized Onion and Cranberries
Adapted from Saveur


You'll Need...
2 pieces of sweet Italian sausage, casing removed and chopped (optional, can be vegetarian!)
Glob of olive oil (about 2 tbsp, but it's up to you!)
2 cups Brussels sprouts, trimmed and halved vertically
1 medium onion, sliced
1 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup dry vermouth
1/2 cup dried cranberries
6 oz. fettuccine
Parmesan cheese
Salt & pepper to taste


In a large saucepan, sauté sausage in the olive oil until cooked through. Using a slotted spoon remove the meat and put aside.

Place the Brussels sprouts face down in the oil from the sausage and cook till the faces are browned and beginning to crisp, about 2 minutes. Add the onion and toss with the sprouts until translucent. Add the broth, vermouth and cranberries; scraping anything from the bottom of the pan. Bring to a strong simmer, then cover and lower heat slightly, let simmer for about 10 minutes or until the sprouts are tender.

At the same time, cook your pasta (nice and al dente!). Reserve about 1/4 cup of pasta water before draining the pasta. Drain and add to the saucepan with the sprout mixture. Mix well until the pasta absorbs most of the liquid. If the pasta seems to dry, add the reserved pasta water 1 tbsp at a time. Add the sausage and toss. Serve, garnished generously with fresh parmesan.

Tiny Event in a Tiny Apartment

We love having parties. LOVE. I love cooking a huge meal, and putting out pretty candles, and using all my super sweet serving platters (I have a ridiculous amount). We love drinking bottles of wine and eating cheese and pasta with our lovely friends, catching up and eventually falling asleep and waking up to leftovers. It's all good.

As you might have guessed, our apartment is miniscule. The Tiniest Kitchen is a part of the Tiniest Home. At least tiny for two people, two cats and a dog. I thought I'd share our home ready for a party...

The Tiniest Living Room (that's the whole thing)

 Other half to the house (check out our family portrait!)

 A glance into the Tiniest Kitchen...again that's the whole thing! Notice my mad stacking skills....

 Many people in a small space.

 Lots of stuff can come from a tiny space!

It's small but it's cozy...and home! :-)

Granola

I have a dream. A dream to be great at making pretty presents for people. I want to put things in pretty mason jars with lovely scraps of fabric and have cool loopy handwriting to label them. 

This jar of granola is a step in the right direction.

People, I live in Manhattan. It is such a pain in the ass to lug supplies home! On the weekends I can't get myself out of the apartment to scour for pretty bottles and fabric and labels. So I make pretty food, but then Chako and I just eat it. Whoops.

This granola is super tasty and crunchy and rather healthy for coming out of our kitchen. It has a strong coconut presence, which gives me joy. 

I'm currently talking Chako through making pasta with jarred sauce. Literally step by step. I think I've ruined him.

Always a good start...wet and dry.

Mixed

Maybe your friend will bring you an awesome pot holder from GUAM!

Ready to be jarred...

 One for us and one for a friend!

Granola

Adapted from A Thought For Food

You'll Need...

4 cups rolled oats or steel cut oats (I used steel cut, since that's what I had!)

2 cups sweetened shredded coconut

2 cups chopped mixed nuts (I used a mixture of almonds, walnuts, cashews, macadamia and brazil)

3/4 cups vegetable oil

1/2 cup honey

1 1/2 cups dried cranberries

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.

In a large bowl, toss the oats, coconut, and nuts together. In a separate smaller bowl, mix the vegetable oil and honey. Pour the wet over the dry and mix well with a wooden spoon. Spread the mixture into a baking pan (13x18, 1 inch recommended...), and bake, stirring occasionally, for about 45 minutes or until the mixture is golden brown. Remove from oven and allow to cool, then mix in cranberries and enjoy! Store in an airtight container.