5 ways to improve office coffee

If you drink coffee and your taste buds aren't totally dead, good coffee at work is essential.  A decent cup can work wonders, while horrid coffee can ruin an otherwise reasonable morning. 

A coffee habit can run into real money.  At my local Starbucks a cup of regular coffee is $1.50 for 12 ounces,  $1.95 for 16 ounces, and $2.25 for 20 ounces.  If you buy the smallest size 5 days a week, that's $7.50 a week without tax or tip or over $350 a year.  No lattes, no muffins - just a small, plain coffee. Dunkin Donuts, 7-Eleven or the local coffee shop may be a bit cheaper, but you still spend big bucks over time.

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Roasted cauliflower - Simply amazing

Updated on Monday, October 3, 2011 at 1:46PM by motherwouldknow

Although roasted vegetables take a while to cook, they are unbelievably easy to prepare. You can dress them up with fancy sauces or marinades, but in their simplest form, all you need is a vegetable, a pan, and a bit of oil and/or butter.

Recently, I came across Michael Ruhlman's roasted cauliflower recipe.  Don’t stop reading here if you now want to navigate away from this page as quickly as your fingers will take you. Whether you have never eaten cauliflower or have tasted it and hated the stuff – give me (and cauliflower) a chance.  This super easy recipe will change your mind about a rather plain looking vegetable with a bad reputation. 

If you aren’t convinced by my entreaties, keep in mind that Michael Ruhlman (in addition to being a great writer, cookbook author and very interesting person) has been a judge on “Iron Chef America” and “The Next Iron Chef.”  Now, are you with me (and Michael)?

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My herb explorations continue

This summer I decided to get up-close-and-personal with fresh herbs.  I grew several varieties on my back deck and bought more basil at the farmers' market because my own basil didn’t thrive this year.  I have been drying fresh herbs too. Saturday, I pushed the boundaries even further by experimenting with how to freeze fresh chives and basil.  

Maybe it's not a major adventure compared to some that others undertake.  After all, while I was herbing away, Diana Nyad swam 82 nautical miles and Andrew Kibble attempted to climb the 3 highest mountains in England, Scotland, and Wales in 24 hours.  But where I come from, being brave can be a state of mind in the kitchen as well as a requirement for athletic achievement.

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